I heard the old man tell his tale:
Tinker, alone within a storm,
And losing hope he clears the leaves beneath a tree,
Seven stones
Lay on the ground.
Within the seventh house a friend was found.
And the changes of no consequence will pick up the reins from nowhere.
Sailors, in peril on the sea,
Amongst the waves a rock looms nearer, and not yet seen.
They see a gull
Flying by.
The Captain turns the boat and he asks not why.
And the changes of no consequence will pick up the reins from nowhere.
Nowhere.
Despair that tires the world brings the old man laughter.
The laughter of the world only grieves him,
Believe him,
The old man's guide is chance.
I heard the old man tell his tale:
Farmer, who knows not when to sow,
Consults the old man clutching money in his hand.
And with a shrug,
The old man smiled,
Took the money, left the farmer wild.
And the changes of no consequence will pick up the reins from nowhere.
Nowhere.
Despair that tires the world brings the old man laughter.
The laughter of the world only grieves him, believe him,
The old man's guide is chance.
Tinker, alone within a storm,
And losing hope he clears the leaves beneath a tree,
Seven stones
Lay on the ground.
Within the seventh house a friend was found.
And the changes of no consequence will pick up the reins from nowhere.
Sailors, in peril on the sea,
Amongst the waves a rock looms nearer, and not yet seen.
They see a gull
Flying by.
The Captain turns the boat and he asks not why.
And the changes of no consequence will pick up the reins from nowhere.
Nowhere.
Despair that tires the world brings the old man laughter.
The laughter of the world only grieves him,
Believe him,
The old man's guide is chance.
I heard the old man tell his tale:
Farmer, who knows not when to sow,
Consults the old man clutching money in his hand.
And with a shrug,
The old man smiled,
Took the money, left the farmer wild.
And the changes of no consequence will pick up the reins from nowhere.
Nowhere.
Despair that tires the world brings the old man laughter.
The laughter of the world only grieves him, believe him,
The old man's guide is chance.
Lyrics submitted by Demau Senae
Seven Stones Lyrics as written by Michael Rutherford Anthony Banks
Lyrics © CARLIN AMERICA INC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
In the first verse, it seems that the man is going through a rough time in his life, a "storm". He takes a walk and sits under a tree to think about his life. When he clears away the leaves, there are 7 stones. Thinking something like "what have I to lose?", he goes to the 7th house where he lives and meets a friend to help him through his problems.
The old man is possibly the captain in verse 2. He sees a seagull and follows it, not knowing that he narrowly avoids crashing.
In verse 3, the old man has learned that life should not be taken so seriously, but at the same time, it should not be taken too lightly.
In verse 4 a young farmer comes to the old man, assuming the old man can help him with farming. Before seeing if the old man really knows anything, he gives him money. The old man smiles and walks away.
The old man is not the person actually expiriencing these events he is merely telling the tale. The second verse is very simple, The captain sees a bird and decides to follow it and once again unknowingly avoids catastrophe.
This song seems to be about how utterly helpless we are, since everything that happens to these people has nothing to do with the wisdom or foolishness of their choices.
On 18 March 1967, owing to a navigational error, the Torrey Canyon oil tanker struck Pollard's Rock on Seven Stones reef between the Cornish mainland and the Scilly Isles. An inquiry in Liberia, where the ship was registered, found Shipmaster Pastrengo Rugiati was to blame, because he took a shortcut to save time in getting to Milford Haven.
It's human nature to look for associations between events and the superstitious will find links where logically, none can exist.
The repeated line "the changes of no consequence will pick up the reins from nowhere" simply warns against letting "signs" (changes of no consequence) guide you (pick up the reins).
The bitter old man exploits the gullibility of those who take his stories of luck at face value and assume he has the wisdom to advise. In fact his wisdom is only that some things ARE just chance.
Quite a bleak lyric really, but a great song.
Anyhow, a stone flung up by a passing car struck my windshield this morning. Didn't break it! I wouldn't normally, but I'm off to buy a lottery ticket. I mean, today's obviously my lucky day. Right?
The rhyme they repeat is And the changes of no consequence will pick up the reins from nowhere.
Meaning if you don't derive consequences of what is happening to you and don't do something about it, the reins of your fate/life will be picked from nowhere. I think its about knowing consciously where you're going and what your aim is. Otherwise life will just lead you from one disaster to another
Someone help me out. Is there a historical reference to "Seven Stones"? Seven certainly is a significant number in the Bible, especially as pertains to the subject of prophecy, but I know of nothing which ties seven stones directly or indirectly into relevance as regards these accounts of the fickle nature of an often malevolent and often, as well, beneficent "old man". Help me out if you have insights that might lead us to a clue! Thanks, fellow Genesisters and brothers!