Born in a Different England

Nostalgia paints a brighter, louder picture of the 1970s than even that decade of tastelessness warrants. If I had my time again I would rather have been born in a different England

Summer came the winter went blew away our discontent
The age of peace and plenty had begun
The organ grinder pulled the stops everyone we knew was on Top of the Pops
And everyone's favourite song was number one

And when things went wrong
We simply carried on
And everyone was happy

The shops were full the weather kind colliers worked in prosperous mines
The TV showed the good life every day
No one swore and no one fought the troops returned to Pippin Fort
With peace in Ulster just a breath away

But we've been reborn
Into a world we don't belong
A world that never happened

Where the trains ran on time the water turned to wine
There was justice there no poverty and no violent crime
The children never cried but toed the party line
We were Alice in a world wide Wonderland where everything was fine
The streets were safe at night there was pure peace of mind
It was all a long hot happy summer holiday with all of mankind
But I don't know
I think I was born in a different England

Men were walking on the moon everyone had silver spoons
We carried home the ashes every year
Football fans from rival gangs dropped their Stanley knives and danced
And drank each other's health with tepid beer

And though Chopper Harris died
His memory has survived
Bleeding bruised and battered

The year they won the Nobel Prize the National Front apologized
At Notting Hill they vowed to make amends
There was ITV and British Rail everyone loved the Prince of Wales
We hoped we'd see him married in the end

But things don't change
History still remains
Or does it really matter