Fairport Convention
"The Summer Before The War"

All on a Saturday
Bright as a Bell
Early, and just for the ride
We took a trip
Cycling down to the sea
You and your lady, and I

Oh what a summer
Oh what a sun
Bright in the blue sky it clung

One day at whitsun
The sea and the shore
The summer before the war

All summer places where
You could taste the country air
Racing our shadows we'd fly
Down through the narrow lanes
Chasing the slow trains
The last of an age going by

We had a good time
We had some fun
There was time then and we all were young

One day at whitsun
The sea and the shore
The summer before the war

Young hearts and young souls
Young minds to unfold
Knowing the untold somehow

One day at whitsun
The sea and the shore
The summer before the war

Young hearts and young souls
Young minds to unfold
Knowing the untold somehow

One day at whitsun
The sea and the shore
The summer before the war

We found a small cove
By the sand and the water
salt air brushing our skin
Your hand in her mind
Her hand in mine
Watching the sea rushing in

Oh what a moment
Oh what a day
We held it, and it never slipped away

One day at whitsun
The sea and the shore
The summer before the war