‘Something Missing’

Like guillotine without a blade.
Like a red bill that’s never paid.
Like a solar panel sited in the shade.
Like a gravedigger without a spade.
Like an instrument that’s never played.
Like a lion tamer without a chair.
Like a city trader without stock or share.
Like a diver’s tank that’s out of air.
Like a maze centre with no way there.
Like a holy man without a prayer.

Something missing, something not right.
Something stolen under cover of night.
The fuse burns down toward the dynamite,
And we’re overtaken by the oversight.
Something’s cracked and something’s broke.
Trigger clicks, both barrels smoke.
The compass spins and morals choke.
The Master’s missing from the masterstroke.

Like a chainsaw without a chain.
Like a wedding ring down an open drain.
Like a cranium without a brain.
Like washing left out in the rain.
Like Charlie Chaplin without a cane.
Like an actor who cannot cry.
Like a drug dealer without supply.
Like a murderer with no alibi.
Like witnesses who won’t testify.
Like a serpent that tells no lie.

Like the penny that never drops.
Like the beetle that eats the crops.
Like bribes taken by dirty cops.
Like the car alarm that never stops.

chorus

Like a bald man in a barbershop.
Like a base camp on a mountaintop.
Like a rollercoaster without the drop.
Like high jump without the Fosbury Flop.
Like a horse and cart without the clippety-clop.
Like a spider web without a fly.
Like a horror film that doesn’t horrify.
Like a black cloud in a clear blue sky.
Like a waterfall that’s running dry.
Like a saviour to crucify.

chorus

Composer: Martin Day / Rich Milner

Lyricist: Martin Day
© M Day 10 Nov 2021 & 08 Nov 2022

As a curiosity…

These are the left over lines I had written, but prefered the above for the final version of the song.

Like exam paper without a grade
Like an invoice that’s never paid
Like an order that’s not obeyed

Like greyhound track without a hare
Like Ginger Rogers without Astaire
Like Piper Alpha without Red Adair
Like a sniper with no cross-hair
Like a round hole with a peg that’s square
Like a vegan served a steak that’s rare
Like a kingdom without an heir
Like ear-buds that will not pair
Like a horror film with no jump-scare
Like a London cabbie without a fare
Like a flat tyre when there’s no spare
Like a town hall with no town square
Like a working mother with no childcare
Like a royal entrance but no fanfare
Like an iron monger with no hardware
Like adrift at sea without a flare
Like a bald man with just nose hair

Like a pilot who missed his plane
Like a wedding dress with an ugly stain
Like a toilet pan with a blocked drain
Like a bodybuilder without the pain
Like a plane in Spain without the rain
Like a railway carriage without a train
Like a chain gang without out a chain
Like a silo without the grain
Like a runway without a plane

Like a parting with no goodbye
Like a rugby test without a try
Like a small child never asking why
Like a chrysalis but no butterfly
Like a telescope that doesn’t magnify
Like a fledgling that cannot fly
Like a junkie who’s never high
Like an end that is never nigh
Like an introvert who’s never shy
Like a snappy suit without a tie
Like wet-wipes that are bone dry
Like a grouNd frost in mid-July

Like a high street without the shops
Like a rainbow without raindrops
Like a clothing co. without sweatshops
Like an open book on black ops
Like a blind man with eye drops
Like frogs falling on rooftops

Like a personal shopper without a shop
Like a combine harvester without a crop
Like a grasshopper that’s lost its hop
Like a mountain without a top
Like a squad car without a cop
like a dance track without a drop
Like a final sentence without full stop
Like a cleaner without a mop
Like a sale ending in a sofa shop
Like a circus without a big top
Like a forest without a treetop
Like a kangaroo that’s lost its hop
Like a surgeon with no scheduled op
Like a balloon ending without a pop
Like a theme park without a gift shop
Like a dive ending in a belly flop
Like a stick missing from a lollipop
Like a kitchen without a countertop
Like a base camp on a mountaintop
Like a sleep over on a whistlestop

Something’s hacked and something’s woke

Like a crime scene without a clue
Like sailing boat without a crew
Like a vegan at a barbeque

Like a skydiver without a shute
Like a brass band without a flute
Like an orchard without the fruit
Like a bank heist without the loot
Like a piranha without the teeth
Like a coffin without a wreath

Like a war without the flags
Like a comic without the gags
Like a tourist without any bags
Like tree lions without the wags
Like a car crash without airbags
Like a flood without sandbags

Like a pub landlord without a bar
Like a track racer without a car
Like a fast runner not running far
Like a close thing but no cigar
Like a hoarse busker with an empty jar
Like an empty stable with the door ajar
Like a round of golf well over par
Like a backing band with a missing star
Like a rock band with no lead guitar
Like a jazz trio with no repertoire

Like a cave without a bat
Like a pint without a chat
Like cow without a pat

Like a padlock without a key