Skyclad - The Well-Travelled Man lyrics

Seems so many years now since he set off down the road For the bright lights of the city and his story to unfold No strings, no family plans, no ties to hold him down His first avowed intent, to leave this dormitory town At first, he lay just dreaming till he hit upon a plan To be a true civilian and a well-travelled man His father told him: "Listen son, the world lies at your feet Great lands of opportunity and strangers all to meet So seize the day, go make your mark 'cause fortune loves the brave So many places to be seen Before you see your grave See the stars shoot over Cape Town Where the oceans all converge Ride the desert train at midnight Even sail the universe" Gather round, come one, come all Listen best ye can Raise a gla** and give a cheer You can see all at once he's a well-travelled man That long and dusty trail, it ran to anywhere but home Dined equally with pagan chiefs and emperors of Rome Through ages dark and winters long, lost in the strangest lands Through countless revolutions, saw man's cruelty to man Been a butcher, been a saviour Been a friend you wouldn't choose Built temples and filled graveyards For the side that couldn't lose Would you walk with him as spirits In the quiet of the night And seek to have the power For to set the world to right? Gather round, come one, come all Listen best ye can Raise a gla** and give a cheer You can see all at once he's a well-travelled man Gather round, come one, come all Listen best ye can Raise a gla** and give a cheer You can say what you like, he's a well-travelled man Seems so many years now since he set off all alone To see the wonders of this world, prove the stories he'd been sold Seeks the milk of human kindness and he takes it where he can From the yachts of Monte Carlo to a teahouse in Japan But now, he sits forsaken with a beer gla** in his hand Won't anybody listen to the well-travelled man?