Bones of an impressive romance
Scattered all across the sand
A secret safe with all the world
Too vain to seem so capable
Can you hear it calling ?
Do you feel warmer ?
As the hired hand is bought
How can a pretty painted shell
Send them all packing off to hell
A freight train laughs and rattles by
You kissed the girls and made them die
Can you hear it calling ?
Do you feel warmer ?
As the hired hand is bought
And I'll never come here again
And we will never come here again
And we will never play here again, again
Can you hear it calling ?
Do you feel warmer ?
As the hired hand is bought ?
Of her call
Of her call
Of her call
Dead and cold
Can you hear it calling ?
Do you feel warmer ?
As the hired hand is bought ?
Of the call
Of the call
Of her call
As she calls
Lyrics by:
Brown
Music by:
Squire / Brown
Written:
1985
Personnel:
John Squire (guitar)
Ian Brown (vocals)
Pete Garner (bass)
Alan Wren (drums, backing vocals)
Produced by:
The Stone Roses & Simon
Available on:
Sally Cinnamon single (as b-side)
The Complete Stone Roses (2.40)
First live performance:
In late 1985.
Details:
The dark lyrics of All Across The Sands were influenced by a book Ian Brown read about a German murderer, who killed and buried his female victims under sand. It also appears to draw upon a passage of the Bible, 'The Shepherd and His Flock' (John 10: 1 - 21), with the wolf and the sheep being symbolic of the murderer and murdered women respectively:
Here, Jesus is describing the Jewish rabbinic leadership as the 'hired hands'. Jesus' mission was to reveal Himself as the Son of God, the Messiah of Israel, but the Jewish leadership were jealous and frightened of Jesus - His popularity and His message of salvation - that they chose to reject their Messiah. Instead of saving the sheep, they were actually causing them to scatter, and become more vulnerable and confused. Years later, Ian would use 'The Shepherd and His Flock' on Can't See Me.
 
Biblical influence is also tangible in the lines, "I'll never come here again" (Jesus) and "And we will never come here again" (Jesus speaking, inclusive of His Disciples). When sending out His twelve Disciples, Jesus gave the following instruction:
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