Alannah Myles

Esther walks the hall, carrying a candle
Listens at the wall, for a sign of life
Closing her eyes as the room fades away
Counting the chimes in the church of our saviour ringing out

To faces in the crowd

Simon drives this town, works a graveyard Sunday
Esther flags him down, doesn't speak a word
He hums to himself as the streets disappear
He catches himself looking back in the mirror filled with doubt

Two faces in the crowd

Chorus:
On the ferry from Dover to Calais
Arm in arm on a windswept day
I've got a photo of them sailing away
Mother's so pretty, father's so proud...

Verse III:
I stop to count the chimes, an orphan in the shadows
So little left behind, so much I'll never know
A list in 'The Times' of the lives lost at sea
An old photograph and a past that seems so like

Chorus:
On the ferry from Dover to Calais
Arm in arm on a windswept day
I've got a phot of them sailing away
Mother's so pretty, father's so proud...

Solo:

Esther walks the hall, carrying a candle
Listens at the wall, for a sign of life...

When Alannah Myles played the role of a young aspiring singer on an episode of The Kids Of Degrassi Street, it was more than just an act. Less than a decade later, the daughter of Canadian Hall Of Fame Broadcaster William Douglas Byles would be a Grammy and Juno Award-winning singer best known for her 1990 international hit “Black Velvet”.

Myles (who changed her last name from Byles as a teen) began writing songs at nine and was participating in Toronto’s Kiwanis Music Festival at twelve. While gigging solo at nineteen across southern Ontario, songwriter/musician Christopher Ward invited her to form a rock and blues cover band with him. During this time Ward became MuchMusic’s first VJ.

Ward spent seven years trying to get Myles signed. He produced a three song demo for her, and her entertainment lawyer Stephen Stohn came up with the idea of making a ‘video demo’ of Myles singing “Just One Kiss”. This finally attracted Warner Music Canada in 1987. The demo was passed along to Warner’s US affiliate labels and Atlantic Records also took interest.

more tracks from the album

Black Velvet

From the album

Black Velvet (2008)

Alannah Myles popular songs

Faces In The CrowdAlannah Myles

Alannah Myles

Black Velvet