Peter Hammill - Everyone You Hold

Everyone you hold takes a piece of you away;
everyone you know pricks the image of the human clay
and everybody's laughing
the joke goes mouth to mouth and slips away.

Everyone you hold leaves you something of themself;
everyone you told spreads your secret on the warehouse shelf
and everybody buys it
for everyone's in commerce and in trade.

When every sweet embrace has faded
the voices dip, the faces dim and memory drifts away
still you stay in everyone you hold.

Everyone you hold, no, they never leave your side;
everybody knows there are secrets we can't hope to hide.
If everyone is with you
then you can never be alone at all
and everyone forgives you
accumulated whispers, Chinese walls.

Now everyone you knew
with smiles that you've seen through
we flag, it's true...

But you're still in everyone you hold.

Everyone you hold,
everyone you hold,
everyone you told
knows.