Brother can you spare me food,
And give me a drink of wine,
I've been travelling on this road,
For such a long long time,
I have seen the wonders,
But most amazing of them all,
I believe I've seen the face,
Of the risen Lord;
On a night like this there came,
A stranger on the road,
I saw him stumble, heard him fall,
I helped him with his load,
The further that we walked,
Well the heavier it became,
And I believe I've felt the weight,
From another world...
"More vintage de Burgh here. A traveller has returned from a long journey, and he's saying to the first man he meets 'Brother, can you spare me food and give me a drink of wine. I've been travelling on this road for such a long, long time.' And the song isn't set in the days of 2,000 years ago - it could be now, because I deliberately use the word 'amazing'. The context of that is 'I have seen wonders, but most amazing of them all - I believe I've seen the face of the risen Lord.' So he explains that he was walking along a road one night and this man came towards him and fell. So the singer, the narrator, explains that what he did was help this man to his feet and he carried the load. And, a bit like St. Christopher, if you know that story, the further that this man walked, the heavier the load became - until it was a real test of strength. And he believes that the weight which he felt came from another world. It's a very enigmatic song - and that's the end of it."
