Shades of Grey
John Close and Juliette Cowan
Written by John Close and Juliette Cowan 1994

I provided the tune for words by my friend Juliette Cowan, who was living in Bradwell Common, MK when we met through work at The Open University in 1994. We wrote a few songs together.

Apologies for the quality of the audio on this track, a very poor cassette tape, and a slightly sloppy performance. It was one of those songs I thought "I must try do a decent version of that sometime" and now this is the only recording I've got.

I look again at the passing scene
Reflects my pain on the glass in between
The world is full of the pain of love
Sometimes I feel we've suffered enough
What can I say?
I'm just hanging here in shades of grey

I'm looking for the light
so I can find my way to be free
But all that I have found is a sky full of rain above me
On a dark winter's day
I'm just hanging here in shades of grey

It ought to be easy just to be with you
Live one day at a time
Take it slow and make it true
My soul sings a different rhyme
I long to be loved
But I'm just hanging here in shades of grey

It's a lonely road when you don't know the way to be free
I know I need some space but I could use some company
I'm wrapped up in my fear
And I'm just hanging here in shades of grey

A train speeds north on a winter's day
I close my eyes and remember you
I keep on thinking of what to say
I still don't know what I'm going to do
Like the sky out there
I'm hanging nowhere in shades of grey