[Marrianna]

Hello everyone,

These words were written to remember a certain day some years ago. Then they became even more significant because of an experience in my own life.

A Shadow Passing By

A fleeting glance
A moment left to chance
A day gone by
With a sunset sky
And a shining star
We'll never see again

A perfect bloom
Scarcely had the room
To show the world
A dream unfurled
And that life's too short
We're shadows passing by

Chorus
Shouldn't we learn a lesson from this moment on
Learn from the promises made from tears we cry
Doesn't it take some believing
That a flower has to fade
A new future could be made
From a shadow passing by

New days begin
Let the sunshine in
On a brand new start
Mend every heart
For we know that life
Is just a borrowed show

With broken wings
A bird can't fly
Let's not throw scorn
On those who try
We're all shadows
Of mere shadows passing by

Chorus
Shouldn't we learn a lesson from this moment on
Learn from the promises made from tears we cry
Doesn't it take some believing
That a flower has to fade
A new future could be made            
From a shadow passing by

(C) Marrianna

                                             http://soundcloud.com/marriannasongs

[Arkwright]

Hey Marrianna, good to see you back.

I note that the song relates to a certain day some years ago, but to me they convey the message we should remind ourselves of everyday that 'Life's too short' and don't let it just pass you by. In this regard it captures the sentiment beautifully.

The flow and meter seem spot on and the only slight criticism I have is the last verse. You have maintained a consistent rhyme scheme throughout the song until the last verse, where unfortunately you abandoned it and went from AABBCD to ABCBDB. This may not be a big issue and it's probably just my OCD kicking in.

Overall I think it's a lovely gentle piece of writing... Good work

[hardtwistmusic]

What a wonderful concept.  "We're just shadows passing by."  Not only are "we" not permanent (which is scary for most of us) but we're not really all that SUBSTANTIAL either. 

A perfect metaphor for primeval fears that still rule the human race. 

Wonderful.  Not much more to say.

[Marrianna]

Hey Marrianna, good to see you back.

I note that the song relates to a certain day some years ago, but to me they convey the message we should remind ourselves of everyday that 'Life's too short' and don't let it just pass you by. In this regard it captures the sentiment beautifully.

The flow and meter seem spot on and the only slight criticism I have is the last verse. You have maintained a consistent rhyme scheme throughout the song until the last verse, where unfortunately you abandoned it and went from AABBCD to ABCBDB. This may not be a big issue and it's probably just my OCD kicking in.

Overall I think it's a lovely gentle piece of writing... Good work

Hi Arkright,
Thanks for the welcome and your comments. I was pleased to read your interpretation and also you had noticed I had changed the form in the last verse regarding the rhyming. I have set the words to music but if I re-work the song at any time, I will keep in mind your observations and try something different.
Thanks again and I have enjoyed seeing more of your such impressive work on here.
Marrianna  

[Marrianna]

What a wonderful concept.  "We're just shadows passing by."  Not only are "we" not permanent (which is scary for most of us) but we're not really all that SUBSTANTIAL either. 

A perfect metaphor for primeval fears that still rule the human race. 

Wonderful.  Not much more to say.

Hi Verlon,

Thankyou for commenting on 'Shadow' and sharing your thoughts. With the loss I went through, it did seem that we were walking in each other's shadows. The fleeting glance at 'life's borrowed show', the world,  dreams being left incomplete etc. did seem so relevant as well.
Always in appreciation of your comments, Verlon.

Marrianna 

[SonderRevelations]

Hello Marrianna!

I am going to agree with Arkwright about the meaning that is conveyed to me as a reader of the lyric, but that does not detract from your intention of the feelings from that "certain day" whatsoever it may be. In fact I believe it utilizes a deeper level of "metaphor?" (that may be the wrong word I am looking for, I am quite tired today, so I am not as cognizant as I usually am.)

Normally, in a situation such as this where the format is this simple I would offer to add maybe a bridge/middle 8 and/or an out but you seemed to have covered all the key points of a piece such as this to where its entirely unnecessary.
Magnificent imagery, beautiful use of metaphor, and the flow is easily carried.

Great job, would love to hear it set to music!

- Matthew

[Marrianna]

Hello Marrianna!

I am going to agree with Arkwright about the meaning that is conveyed to me as a reader of the lyric, but that does not detract from your intention of the feelings from that "certain day" whatsoever it may be. In fact I believe it utilizes a deeper level of "metaphor?" (that may be the wrong word I am looking for, I am quite tired today, so I am not as cognizant as I usually am.)

Normally, in a situation such as this where the format is this simple I would offer to add maybe a bridge/middle 8 and/or an out but you seemed to have covered all the key points of a piece such as this to where its entirely unnecessary.
Magnificent imagery, beautiful use of metaphor, and the flow is easily carried.

Great job, would love to hear it set to music!

- Matthew

Hi Matthew,
Thankyou for your kind words. I wanted to keep it simple because I was really just saying /singing what I wanted to with meaning, rather than actually writing a song. Any other format including a bridge didn't really occur to me until you mentioned it but it might be interesting to try.
It is on a new Soundcloud link and so, if you listen, you will hear the music is quite straightforward, nothing fancy.
Marrianna :-)                        https://soundcloud.com/marriannasongs

[Royston]

Hi Marrianna

I read your lyrics last night which I found very poetical and meaningful and  this morning I had a listen to the completed song 'beautiful' I also had a listen to another of your songs and really like that as well.

Cheers

Royston

[Marrianna]

Hi Marrianna

I read your lyrics last night which I found very poetical and meaningful and  this morning I had a listen to the completed song 'beautiful' I also had a listen to another of your songs and really like that as well.

Cheers

Royston

Hi Royston,

It is good to see your positive and complimentary words about 'Shadow' (Passing By).
I remember now that a group of youngsters sang the song at a concert for a British Legion audience
and some were moved to tears, I was told. It is only now I am seeing the real significance of the words for those people listening remembering the ones who were lost during the wars. At the time, I thought of what the words had meant to me personally. It is through posting it here, and reading these few special comments, I am realizing that there is a much more far-reaching meaning that could come across. For that, I'd like to say thankyou.
 It was really nice to see the appreciative comments here. I am enriched by them.
Thankyou again

With Best Wishes from
Marrianna
x

[josemar]

I really dug that...
I like that the phrases are short, but full of substance...in some cases...3 words...
And it's just a good title, good idea.

I wish you well..

[Vintage54]

  Hey!
    That chorus is just wonderful, gets me everytime. But it's not just the chorus alone, that's just the icing on a beautiful cake. I left the table satisfied, and scraped up every crumb.

                     Bake me another
                           Vintage54

[igg]

Hi,

Loved the progression of images in the first two verses....each one reinforcing the central theme ....the too short time we have ...Then the resolution based on that perception in the chorus and following verses...

Story nicely told with great flow and metaphor.....

Great work

igg

[Neil C]

Marianna,
A good write I particularly enjoyed the verses. The first part of choruses might need a little bit of work as they're little bit long and wordy and dont have a natural rhyming scheme. But I'm sure they'd be ok with music.
Best line - 'We're all shadows Of mere shadows passing by'
 
Neil

[Marrianna]

  Hey!
    That chorus is just wonderful, gets me everytime. But it's not just the chorus alone, that's just the icing on a beautiful cake. I left the table satisfied, and scraped up every crumb.

                     Bake me another
                           Vintage54

Vintage 54  
I am really glad you enjoyed 'Shadow Passing By' so much. I enjoyed the way your comment is written too.   Thankyou

Marrianna

Hi,

Loved the progression of images in the first two verses....each one reinforcing the central theme ....the too short time we have ...Then the resolution based on that perception in the chorus and following verses...

Story nicely told with great flow and metaphor.....

Great work

igg

Hi igg,
I appreciate very much how you have described the working framework of the verses and chorus.
It is very nice to see how the words are being thought about in a meaningful way.

Thankyou.

Marrianna

Marianna,
A good write I particularly enjoyed the verses. The first part of choruses might need a little bit of work as they're little bit long and wordy and dont have a natural rhyming scheme. But I'm sure they'd be ok with music.
Best line - 'We're all shadows Of mere shadows passing by'
 Smiley
Neil

Thanks, Neil, and your interesting comment about the first 2 lines of the chorus. Musically, I agree they wouldn't work with every style but I was counter-balancing these longer lines against the short lines in the verses.
 I'm really glad you enjoyed the verses which set up the chorus, though. That is good to know so many thanks, again.

Marrianna 

https://soundcloud.com/marriannasongs

[tomcrocus]

Hi Marriana,
                 it's a sweet and beautiful lyric,i too love the chorus,
so much talent on this forum,it's amazing,
                                                         welcome back,
                                                                               Tom.