"Corner shop, it's the last one down…" fairalldanzmusic

"There's a constant drip and trickle of life that goes into one's awareness…"—Mike Leigh

LIVING IN A MIKE LEIGH WORLD

When the Mister and I first got together yonks ago we introduced each other to our favorite filmmakers. In that brief halcyon of dating, before we bravely bit the matrimonial bullet, we saw, first off, Wim Wenders, Wings of Desire and Mike Leigh’s High Hopes. I was instantly hooked on Leigh who was new to the U.S. at the time (or at least new to me) and we searched out every film of his that we could find on video (Remember, this was yonks ago). The moment a new one came out here we rushed to see it, never disappointed.

There was a time in our travels between here and the UK when it suddenly occurred to us that in every social and familial situation we found references to any one of the Mike Leigh films. I don’t recall which of us actually said it, but at some point we came to the same conclusion: We were, indeed, living in a Mike Leigh World. Which, of course meant we had to write a song. And so we did.

ON YOUTUBE

Paul Fairall singing Mike Leigh World. Lyrics and music by Paul Fairall and Linda Danz. Recorded in a 19th century farmhouse at Chatham, New York in the Hudson River Valley on August 13, 2009.

MIKE LEIGH WORLD

Got it all but the kitchen sink
Sweet dreams for everyone
Johnny thinks that he’s all alone
When there’s class war
In the living room
In a flat and you’re all knocked up
Two doors down and one floor up
Corner shop with the shade pulled down
Sweet dreams for everyone

We’re all living in a Mike Leigh world
And it’s high hopes for everyone
We’re all living in a Mike Leigh world
And it’s high time my old son

Put it all on the mantelpiece
Sweet dreams for everyone
Abigail’s in her party gown
And in the mean time
She’s on her own
In a flat and you’re all knocked up
Two doors down and one floor up
Corner shop at the end of town
Sweet dreams for everyone

We’re all living in a Mike Leigh world
And it’s high hopes for everyone
We’re all living in a Mike Leigh world
And it’s high time my old son

Take it all from the working man
Sweet dreams for everyone
Penny saves for a rainy day
When the clouds burst
And wash it away
In a flat and you’re all knocked up
Two doors down and one floor up
Corner shop it’s the last one down
And there’s no place for anyone

We’re all living in a Mike Leigh world
And it’s high hopes for everyone
We’re all living in a Mike Leigh world
And it’s high time my old son

Caravan of dreams
Parked on the street
Looking so neat and tidy
Sitting out in the shed
You’ve gone to bed
A bottle of wine gone to your head
Baby’s gone to bed

We’re all living in a Mike Leigh world
And it’s high hopes for everyone
We’re living in a Mike Leigh world
And it’s high time my old son

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