Seven Ages
by Dave Semple, Paul Battersby

(New video added Feb 4, 2024)

A folk song with orchestral accompaniment, about the seven ages of life.

Dave’s idea for this song came from the “All The World’s A Stage” monologue in Shakespeare’s play “As You Like It

Feb 4, 2024 update: I wanted to make a video for this song for years but only recently, thanks to artificial intelligence, has it been possible to make the images that I needed. All images were created using Playground

show / hide lyrics
Seven Ages
Lyrics by: Dave Semple

When you were seven, so colour blind,
So undefined. Your song: unsung.

From seventeen to twenty-four,
You play at love and tell your lies: the heart’s disguise.

At thirty-one a brand new son
A daughter’s cry a lullaby. The years rush by.

We walk the path. The path we call life.
All the world is our stage, and we all play our parts.
At the end of the game, the king, queen and pawns,
All share the same box.
At the end of the day we all drift into dreams.

Soon forty-five, you realize,
Your jaded eyes make you the fool. The world’s so cruel.

Then sixty-four, another door,
Awaiting you to soon pass through. Will life renew?

We walk the path. The path we call life.
All the world is our stage, and we all play our parts.
At the end of the game, the king, queen and pawns,
All share the same box.
At the end of the war, we all bleed the same shade.

Another turn at seventy-two
The friends that you knew have begun to head home.

At ninety years as memories fade,
The setting sun will soon set for you.

We walk the path. The path we call life.
We are born o’er the tomb, there’s a flash, then there’s night.
The candle burns brief, just an hour in the light.
Will you offer a verse will the song in your heart,
Cross over unsung?

Did you savour each rung?
All the world is our stage, and we all play our parts.
At the end of the game, the king, queen and pawns,
All share the same box.
At the end of the road…

We all fade away.

© Dave Semple – 16 February 2015

Dave Semplesongwriting, vocals, 6 string guitar, 12 string guitar, bodhran
Paul Battersbydrums, bass, flute, oboe, clarinet, 1st violin, 2nd violin, viola, cello, string bass, trumpet, french horn, trombone, tuba, (all from Virtual Playing Orchestra sample library) mixing
YouTube video
Audio only Visit Dave Semple at Reverb Nation


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