Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Lycris of "Les Miserable"

- The Runaway Cart Lyrics

[The crowd parts to reveal that the cart has crashed, trapping Monsieur Fauchelevant]

[VOICES]
Look at that!
Look at that!
It's Monsieur Fauchelevant!
Don't approach! Don't go near!
At the risk of your life!
He is caught by the wheel!
Oh, the pitiful man!
Stay away, Turn away!
There is nothing to do!
There is nothing to do!

[VALJEAN]
Is there anyone here
Who will rescue the man?
Who will help me to shoulder
The weight of the cart?

[VOICES]
Don't go near him, Mr. Mayor
The load is heavy as hell
The old man's a goner for sure
It'll kill you as well.

[Valjean attempts to lift the cart... but fails. He tries again. They manage to pull Fauchelevant clear]

[FAUCHELEVANT]
M'sieur le Mayor, I have no words
You come from God, you are a saint.

[Javert takes Valjean aside]

[JAVERT]
Can this be true?
I don't believe what I see!
A man your age
To be as strong as you are!
A mem'ry stirs...
You make me think of a man
From years ago
A man who broke his parole
He disappeared
Forgive me, Sir,
I would not dare!

[VALJEAN]
Say what you must
Don't leave it there...

[JAVERT]
I have only known one other
Who can do what you have done
He's a convict from the chain gang
He's been ten years on the run
But he couldn't run forever
We have found his hideaway
And he's just been re-arrested
And he comes to court today.
Well, of course he now denies it
You'd expect that of a `con'
But he couldn't run forever -
No, not even Jean Valjean!

[VALJEAN]
You say this man denies it all
And gives no sign of understanding or repentance?
You say this man is going to trial
And that's he's sure to be returned
To serve his sentence?
Come to that, can you be sure,
That I am not your man?

[JAVERT]
I have known the thief for ages
Tracked him down through thick and thin
And to make the matter certain
There's the brand upon his skin
He will bend, he will break
This time there is no mistake.

[Javert leaves. Valjean is alone]

Chain Gang - Overture / Work Song / Look Down Lyrics
[PRISONERS]
Look down, look down
Don't look 'em in the eye
Look down, look down,
You're here until you die

[CONVICT ONE]
The sun is strong
It's hot as hell below

[PRISONER]
Look down, look down,
There's twenty years to go

[CONVICT TWO]
I've done no wrong!
Sweet Jesus, hear my prayer!

[PRISONERS]
Look down look down,
Sweet Jesus doesn't care

[CONVICT THREE]
I know she'll wait,
I know that she'll be true!

[PRISONERS]
Look down, look down,
They've all forgotten you

[CONVICT FOUR]
When I get free ya won't see me
Here for dust!

[PRISONERS]
Look down, look down
Don't look 'em in the eye

[CONVICT FIVE]
How long, oh Lord
Before you let me die?

[PRISONERS]
Look down, look down,
You'll always be a slave
Look down, look down,
You're standing in your grave

[JAVERT]
Now bring me prisoner 24601
Your time is up
And your parole's begun
You know what that means.

[VALJEAN]
Yes, it means I'm free.

[JAVERT]
No!
It means you get
Your yellow ticket-of-leave
You are a thief

[VALJEAN]
I stole a loaf of bread.

[JAVERT]
You robbed a house.

[VALJEAN]
I broke a window pane.
My sister's child was close to death
And we were starving.

[JAVERT]
You will starve again
Unless you learn the meaning of the law.

[VALJEAN]
I know the meaning of those 19 years
A slave of the law

[JAVERT]
Five years for what you did
The rest because you tried to run
Yes, 24601.

[VALJEAN]
My name is Jean Valjean

[JAVERT]
And I am Javert
Do not forget my name!
Do not forget me,
24601.

[PRISONERS]
Look down, look down
You'll always be a slave
Look down, look down
You're standing in your grave.

[VALJEAN]
Freedom is mine. The earth is still.
I feel the wind. I breathe again.
And the sky clears
The world is waking.
Drink from the pool. How clean the taste.
Never forget the years, the waste.
Nor forgive them
For what they've done.
They are the guilty - everyone.
The day begins...
And now lets see
What this new world
Will do for me!

[He finds work on a farm]

[FARMER]
You'll have to go
I'll pay you off for the day
Collect your bits and pieces there
And be on your way.

[VALJEAN]
You have given me half
What the other men get!
This handful of tin
Wouldn't buy my sweat!

[LABORER]
You broke the law
It's there for people to see
Why should you get the same
As honest men like me?

[VALJEAN]
Now every door is closed to me
Another jail. Another key. Another chain
For when I come to any town
They check my papers
And they find the mark of Cain
In their eyes I see their fear
`We do not want you here.'

[He comes to an inn]

[INKEEPER'S WIFE]
My rooms are full
And I've no supper to spare
I'd like to help a stranger
All we want is to be fair

[VALJEAN]
I will pay in advance
I can sleep in a barn
You see how dark it is
I'm not some kind of dog!

[INNKEEPER]
You leave my house
Or feel the weight of my rod
We're law-abiding people here
Thanks be to God.

[They throw him out of the inn]

[VALJEAN]
And now I know how freedom feels
The jailer always at your heels
It is the law!
This piece of paper in my hand
That makes me cursed throughout the land
It is the law!
Like a cur
I walk the street,
The dirt beneath their feet.

[He sits down despairingly outside a house from which emerges the Bishop of Digne.]

[BISHOP]
Come in, Sir, for you are weary,
And the night is cold out there.
Though our lives are very humble
What we have, we have to share.
There is wine here to revive you.
There is bread to make you strong,
There's a bed to rest till morning,
Rest from pain, and rest from wrong.

[VALJEAN]
He let me eat my fill
I had the lion's share
The silver in my hand
Cost twice what I had earned
In all those nineteen years -
That lifetime of despair
And yet he trusted me.
The old fool trusted me -
He'd done his bit of good
I played the grateful serf
And thanked him like I should
But when the house was still,
I got up in the night.
Took the silver
Took my flight!

[Taking the silver cup, he runs off, but is brought back by two constables]


Policeman - Valjean Arrested/Valjean Forgiven Lyrics

[CONSTABLE ONE]
Tell his reverence your story

[CONSTABLE TWO]
Let us see if he's impressed

[CONSTABLE ONE]
You were lodging here last night

[CONSTABLE TWO]
You were the honest Bishop's guest.

[CONSTABLE ONE]
And then, out of Christian goodness

[CONSTABLE TWO]
When he learned about your plight

[CONSTABLE ONE]
You maintain he made a present of this silver.

[BISHOP]
That is right.
But my friend you left so early
Surely something slipped your mind

[The bishop gives Valjean two silver candlesticks]

You forgot I gave these also
Would you leave the best behind?
So, Messieurs, you may release him
For this man has spoken true
I commend you for your duty
And God's blessing go with you.

Fantine & Valjean - Fantine's Arrest + Come to Me (Fantine's Death) Lyrics



[Fantine is lying in a hospital bed, deliriously dreaming of her daughter Cosette]

[FANTINE]
Cosette, it's turned so cold
Cosette, it's past your bedtime
You've played the day away
And soon it will be night.

Come to me, Cosette, the light is fading
Don't you see the evening star appearing?
Come to me, and rest against my shoulder
How fast the minutes fly away and every minute colder.

Hurry near, another day is dying
Don't you hear, the winter wind is crying?
There's a darkness which comes without a warning
But I will sing you lullabies and wake you in the morning.

[Valjean enters]

[VALJEAN]
Oh, Fantine, our time is running out
But Fantine, I swear this on my life

[FANTINE]
Look, M'sieur, where all the children play

[VALJEAN]
Be at peace, be at peace evermore.

[FANTINE]
My Cosette...

[VALJEAN]
Shall live in my protection

[FANTINE]
Take her now

[VALJEAN]
Your child will want for nothing

[FANTINE]
Good M'sieur, you come from God in Heaven.

[VALJEAN]
And none shall ever harm Cosette
As long as I am living.

[FANTINE]
Take my hand. The night grows ever colder.

[VALJEAN]
Then I will keep you warm.

[FANTINE]
Take my child. I give her to your keeping.

[VALJEAN]
Take shelter from the storm

[FANTINE]
For God's sake, please stay till I am sleeping
And tell Cosette I love her
And I'll see her when I wake...

[She dies with a smile. Javert arrives]

=============

[BAMATABOIS]
Here's something new. I think I'll give it a try.
Come closer you! I like to see what I buy...
The usual price, for just a slice of your pie

[FANTINE]
I don't want you. No, no, m'sieur, let me go.

[BAMATABOIS]
Is this a trick? I won't pay more!

[FANTINE]
No, not at all.

[BAMATABOIS]
You've got some nerve, you little whore
You've got some gall.
It's the same with a tart as it is with a grocer
The customer sees what he gets in advance
It's not for the whore to say `yes sir' or `no sir'
It's not for the harlot to pick and to choose
Or lead me to a dance!

[He hits her with his stick, she claws at his face, drawing blood]

[FANTINE]
I'll kill you, you bastard,
try any of that!
Even a whore who has gone to the bad
Won't be had by a rat!

[BAMATABOIS]
By Christ you'll pay for what you've done
This rat will make you bleed, you'll see!
I guarantee, I'll make you suffer
For this disturbance of the peace
For this insult to life and property!

[FANTINE]
I beg you, don't report me sir
I'll do whatever you may want

[BAMATABOIS]
Make your excuse to the police!

[Javert enters, accompanied by constables]

[JAVERT]
Tell me quickly what's the story
Who saw what and why and where
Let him give a full description
Let him answer to Javert!
In this nest of whores and vipers
Let one speak who saw it all
Who laid hands on this good man here?
What's the substance of this brawl?

[BAMATABOIS]
Javert, would you believe it
I was crossing from the park
When this prostitute attacked me
You can see she left her mark

[JAVERT]
She will answer for her actions
When you make a full report
You may rest assured, M'sieur,
That she will answer to the court.

[FANTINE]
There's a child who sorely needs me
Please M'sieur, she's but that high
Holy God, is there no mercy?
If I go to jail she'll die!

[JAVERT]
I have heard such protestations
Every day for twenty years
Let's have no more explanations
Save your breath and save your tears
`Honest work, just reward,
That's the way to please the Lord.'

[Fantine gives a last despairing cry as she is arrested by the constables. Valjean emerges from the crowd]

[VALJEAN]
A moment of your time, Javert
I do believe this woman's tale

[JAVERT]

[VALJEAN]
You've done your duty, let her be
She needs a doctor, not a jail.

[JAVERT]
But M'sieur Mayor!

[FANTINE]
Can this be?

[VALJEAN]
Where will she end -
This child without a friend?

I've seen your face before
Show me some way to help you
How have you come to grief
In a place such as this?

[FANTINE]
M'sieur, don't mock me now, I pray
It's hard enough I've lost my pride
You let your foreman send me away
Yes, you were there, and turned aside
I never did no wrong

[VALJEAN]
Is it true, what I have done?

[FANTINE]
My daughter's close to dying...

[VALJEAN]
To an innocent soul?

[FANTINE]
If there's a God above

[VALJEAN]
Had I only known then...

[FANTINE]
He'd let me die instead

[VALJEAN]
In His name my task has just begun
I will see it done!

[JAVERT]
But M'sieur Mayor!

[VALJEAN]
I will see it done!

[JAVERT]
But M'sieur Mayor!

[VALJEAN]
I will see it done!

[VOICES]
Look out! It's a runaway cart!

Javert & Valjean - Confrontation Lyrics



[JAVERT]
Valjean, at last,
We see each other plain
`M'sieur le Mayor,'
You'll wear a different chain!

[VALJEAN]
Before you say another word, Javert
Before you chain me up like a slave again
Listen to me! There is something I must do.
This woman leaves behind a suffering child.
There is none but me who can intercede,
In Mercy's name, three days are all I need.
Then I'll return, I pledge my word.
Then I'll return...

[JAVERT]
You must think me mad!
I've hunted you across the years
A man like you can never change
A man such as you.

[VALJEAN (in counterpoint)]
Believe of me what you will
There is a duty that I'm sworn to do
You know nothing of my life
All I did was steal some bread
You know nothing of the world
You would sooner see me dead
But not before I see this justice
done
I am warning you Javert
I'm a stronger man by far
There is power in me yet
My race is not yet run
I am warning you Javert
There is nothing I won't dare
If I have to kill you here
I'll do what must be done!

[JAVERT (in counterpoint)]
Men like me can never change
Men like you can never change
No,
24601
My duty's to the law - you have no
Rights
Come with me 24601
Now the wheel has turned around
Jean Valjean is nothing now
Dare you talk to me of crime
And the price you had to pay
Every man is born in sin
Every man must choose his way
You know nothing of Javert
I was born inside a jail
I was born with scum like you
I am from the gutter too!

[Valjean breaks a chair and threatens Javert with the broken piece. Turns to Fantine]

[VALJEAN]
[to Fantine] And this I swear to you tonight

[JAVERT]
[to Valjean] There is no place for you to hide

[VALJEAN]
Your child will live within my care

[JAVERT]
Wherever you may hide away

[VALJEAN]
And I will raise her to the light.

[VALJEAN AND JAVERT]
I swear to you, I will be there!

[They fight, Javert is knocked out. Valjean escapes]

Cosette - Castle on a Cloud Lyrics



[Young Cosette is working as a drudge in the Thénardier's inn at Montfermeil]

[YOUNG COSETTE]
There is a castle on a cloud,
I like to go there in my sleep,
Aren't any floors for me to sweep,
Not in my castle on a cloud.

There is a room that's full of toys,
There are a hundred boys and girls,
Nobody shouts or talks too loud,
Not in my castle on a cloud.

There is a lady all in white,
Holds me and sings a lullaby,
She's nice to see and she's soft to touch,
She says "Cosette, I love you very much."

I know a place where no one's lost,
I know a place where no one cries,
Crying at all is not allowed,
Not in my castle on a cloud.

Oh help! I think I hear them now,
and I'm nowhere near finished sweeping and
scrubbing and polishing the floor.
Oh, it's her! It's Madame!

[MME. THENARDIER]
Now look who's here
The little madam herself!
Pretending once again she's been `so awfully good,'
Better not let me catch you slacking
Better not catch my eye!
Ten rotten francs your mother sends me
What is that going to buy?
Now take that pail
My little `Mademoiselle'
And go and draw some water from the well!

We should never have taken you in in the first place
How stupid the things that we do!
Like mother like daughter, the scum of the street.
Eponine, come my dear, Eponine, let me see you
You look very well in that new little blue hat
There's some little girls who know how to behave
And they know what to wear
And I'm saying thank heaven for that.

Still there Cosette?
Your tears will do you no good!
I told you fetch some water from the well in the wood!

[YOUNG COSETTE]
Please do not send me out alone
Not in the darkness on my own!

[MME. THENARDIER]
Enough of that, or I'll forget to be nice!
You heard me ask for something,
And I never ask twice!

[Young Eponine pushes Cosette out. Thénardier says good night to his daughter as the inn fills up for the evening]

M. & Mme. Thenardie - Master of the House Lyrics



DRINKER THREE
Come on you old pest

DRINKER TWO
Fetch a bottle of your best

DRINKER ONE
What's the nectar of the day?

(Thenardier enters with a flask of wine)

THENARDIER
Here, try this lot
Guaranteed to hit the spot
Or I'm not Thenardier

DRINKERS
Gissa glass a rum
Landlord, over here!

THENARDIER
Right away, you scum (to himself)
Right away, m'sieur (to customer)

DINER ONE
God this place has gone to hell

DINER TWO
So you tell me every year

DRINKER SIX
Mine host Thenardier
He was there so they say,
At the field of Waterloo

DRINKER SEVEN
Got there, it's true
When the fight was all through

DRINKER ONE
But he knew just what to do
Crawling through the mud
So I've heard it said
Picking through the pockets
Of the English dead

DRINKER EIGHT
He made a tidy score
From the spoils of war

THENARDIER
My band of soaks
My den of dissolutes
My dirty jokes, my always pissed as newts.
My sons of whores
Spent their lives in my inn
Homing pigeons homing in
They fly through my doors
And their money's as good as yours

DINER ONE
Ain't got a clue
What he put in this stew
Must have scraped it off the street

DINER TWO
God what a wine!
Chateau Neuf de Turpentine
Must have pressed it with his feet

DRINKERS
Landlord over here!
Where's the bloody man?
One more for the road!
Thenardier, one more slug o' gin.

GIRL
Just one more, or my old man is gonna do me in.

(Thenardier greets a new customer)

THENARDIER
Welcome, M'sieur
Sit yourself down
And meet the best
Innkeeper in town
As for the rest,
All of 'em crooks
Rooking their guests
And cooking the books.
Seldom do you see
Honest men like me
A gent of good intent
Who's content to be

Master of the house
Doling out the charm
Ready with a handshake
And an open palm
Tells a saucy tale
Makes a little stir
Customers appreciate a bon-viveur
Glad to do a friend a favor
Doesn't cost me to be nice
But nothing gets you nothing
Everything has got a little price!

Master of the house
Keeper of the zoo
Ready to relieve 'em
Of a sou or two
Watering the wine
Making up the weight
Pickin' up their knick-knacks
When they can't see straight
Everybody loves a landlord
Everybody's bosom friend
I do whatever pleases
Jesus! Won't I bleed 'em in the end!

THENARDIER & CHORUS
Master of the house
Quick to catch yer eye
Never wants a passerby
To pass him by
Servant to the poor
Butler to the great
Comforter, philosopher,
And lifelong mate!
Everybody's boon companion
Everybody's chaperone

THENARDIER
But lock up your valises
Jesus! Won't I skin you to the bone!

(To another new customer)

THENARDIER
Enter M'sieur
Lay down your load
Unlace your boots
And rest from the road

(Taking his bag)

This weighs a ton
Travel's a curse
But here we strive
To lighten your purse
Here the goose is cooked
Here the fat is fried
And nothing's overlooked
Till I'm satisfied...

Food beyond compare
Food beyond belief
Mix it in a mincer
And pretend it's beef
Kidney of a horse
Liver of a cat
Filling up the sausages
With this and that

Residents are more than welcome
Bridal suite is occupied
Reasonable charges
Plus some little extras on the side!

Charge 'em for the lice
Extra for the mice
Two percent for looking in the mirror twice
Here a little slice
There a little cut
Three percent for sleeping with the window shut
When it comes to fixing prices
There are a lot of tricks he knows
How it all increases
All those bits and pieces
Jesus! It's amazing how it grows!

THENARDIER AND CHORUS
Master of the house
Quick to catch yer eye
Never wants a passerby
To pass him by
Servant to the poor
Butler to the great
Comforter, philosopher,
And lifelong mate!
Everybody's boon companion
Gives 'em everything he's got

THENARDIER
Dirty bunch of geezers
Jesus! What a sorry little lot!

MME. THENARDIER
I used to dream
That I would meet a prince
But God Almighty,
Have you seen what's happened since?
`Master of the house?'
Isn't worth me spit!
`Comforter, philosopher'
- and lifelong shit!
Cunning little brain
Regular Voltaire
Thinks he's quite a lover
But there's not much there
What a cruel trick of nature
Landed me with such a louse
God knows how I've lasted
Living with this bastard in the house!


THENARDIER & CHORUS
Master of the house.

MME. THENARDIER
Master and a half!

THENARDIER & CHORUS
Comforter, philosopher

MME. THENARDIER
Ah, don't make me laugh!

THENARDIER & CHORUS
Servant to the poor. Butler to the great.

MME. THENARDIER
Hypocrite and toady and inebriate!

THENARDIER & CHORUS
Everybody bless the landlord!
Everybody bless his spouse!

THENARDIER
Everybody raise a glass

MME. THENARDIER
Raise it up the master's arse.

ALL
Everybody raise a glass to the master of the house!

M. & Mme. Thenardie - The Thenardier Waltz of Treachery Lyrics



THENARDIER
What to do? What to say?
Shall you carry our treasure away?
What a gem! What a pearl!
Beyond rubies is our little girl!
How can we speak of debt?
Let's not haggle for darling Cosette!

Dear Fantine, gone to rest...
Have we done for her child what is best?
Shared our bread. Shared each bone.
Treated her like she's one of our own!
Like our own, Monsieur!

VALJEAN
Your feelings do you credit, sir
And I will ease the parting blow
He pays them.
Let us not talk of bargains or bones or greed
Now, may I say, we are agreed?

MME. THENARDIER
That would quite fit the bill
If she hadn't so often been ill
Little dear, cost us dear
Medicines are expensive, M'sieur
Not that we begrudged a sou
It's no more than we Christians must do!

M. & MME. THENARDIER
One thing more, one small doubt
There are treacherous people about
No offense. Please reflect.
Your intentions may not be correct?

VALJEAN
No more words. Here's your price.
Fifteen hundred for your sacrifice.
Come, Cosette, say goodbye
Let us seek out some friendlier sky.
Thank you both for Cosette
It won't take you too long to forget.

(Valjean and Cosette leave the inn)

Come, Cosette, come, my dear
From now on I will always be here
Where I go, you will be.

YOUNG COSETTE
Will there be children and castles to see?

VALJEAN
Yes, Cosette, yes, it's true.
There's a castle just waiting for you.

VALJEAN & YOUNG COSETTE
La la la la la...

Gavroche & The Begg - Look Down Lyrics



1832. The teeming, squalid streets of Paris. Beggars, urchins, prostitutes, students, etc.

BEGGARS
Look down and see the beggars at your feet
Look down and show some mercy if you can
Look down and see the sweepings of the street
Look down, look down,
Upon your fellow man!

GAVROCHE
'Ow do you do? My name's Gavroche.
These are my people. Here's my patch.
Not much to look at, nothing posh
Nothing that you'd call up to scratch.
This is my school, my high society
Here in the slums of Saint Michele
We live on crumbs of humble piety
Tough on the teeth, but what the hell!
Think you're poor?
Think you're free?
Follow me! Follow me!

BEGGARS
Look down and show some mercy if you can
Look down, look down, upon your fellow man!

(An old beggar woman finds a young prostitute occupying her pitch)

OLD BEGGAR WOMAN
What you think yer at?
Hanging round me pitch?
If you're new around here, girl
You've got a lot to learn!

YOUNG PROSTITUTE
Listen you old bat...
Crazy bloody witch...
'Least I give me customers
Some pleasure in return!

OLD BEGGAR WOMAN
I know what you give!
Give 'em all the pox!
Spread around your poison
Till they end up in a box.

PIMP
Leave the poor old cow,
Move it, Madeleine.
She used to be no better
Till the clap got to her brain.

BEGGARS
When's it gonna end?
When we gonna live?
Something's gotta happen now or
Something's gonna give
It'll come, it'll come, it'll come
It'll come, it'll come, it'll come

ENJOLRAS
Where the leaders of the land?
Where are the swells who run this show?

MARIUS
Only one man - and that's Lamarque
Speaks for these people here below.

BEGGARS
See our children fed
Help us in our shame
Something for a crust of bread
In Holy Jesus' name

URCHIN
In the Lord's Holy name.

BEGGARS
In his name, in his name, in his name...

MARIUS
Lamarque is ill and fading fast!
Won't last the week out, so they say.

ENJOLRAS
With all the anger in the land
How long before the judgement day?
Before we cut the fat ones down to size?
Before the barricades arise?

GAVROCHE
Watch out for old Thenardier
All of his family's on the make
Once ran a hash-house down the way
Bit of a swine and no mistake
He's got a gang
The bleeding layabout
Even his daughter does her share
That's Eponine, she knows her way about
Only a kid, but hard to scare
Do we care?
Not a cuss
Long live us.
Long live us!

BEGGARS
Look down and show some mercy if you can
Look down, look down upon your fellow man!

Javert - Stars Lyrics



JAVERT
There, out in the darkness
A fugitive running
Fallen from grace
Fallen from grace
God be my witness
I never shall yield
Till we come face to face
Till we come face to face

He knows his way in the dark
Mine is the way of the Lord
And those who follow the path of the righteous
Shall have their reward
And if they fall
As Lucifer fell
The flame
The sword!

Stars
In your multitudes
Scarce to be counted
Filling the darkness
With order and light
You are the sentinels
Silent and sure
Keeping watch in the night
Keeping watch in the night

You know your place in the sky
You hold your course and your aim
And each in your season
Returns and returns
And is always the same
And if you fall as Lucifer fell
You fall in flame!

And so it has been and so it is written
On the doorway to paradise
That those who falter and those who fall
Must pay the price!

Lord let me find him
That I may see him
Safe behind bars
I will never rest
Till then
This I swear
This I swear by the stars!

GAVROCHE
That inspector thinks he's something
But it's me who runs this town!
And my theater never closes
And the curtain's never down
Trust Gavroche, have no fear
Don't you worry, auntie dear,
You can always find me here!

Enjolras, Marius & - Red and Black - The ABC Cafe Lyrics



(The ABC Cafe, where the students, led by Enjolras, meet to discuss their revolutionary plans)

COMBEFERRE
At Notre Dame the sections are prepared!

FEUILLY
At rue de Bac they're straining at the leash!

COURFEYRAC
Students, workers, everyone
There's a river on the run
Like the flowing of the tide
Paris coming to our side!

ENJORAS
The time is near
So near it's stirring the blood in their veins!
And yet beware
Don't let the wine go to your brains!
For the army we fight is a dangerous foe
With the men and the arms that we never can match
It is easy to sit here and swat 'em like flies
But the national guard will be harder to catch.
We need a sign
To rally the people
To call them to arms
To bring them in line!

(Marius enters)

Marius, you're late.

JOLY
What's wrong today?
You look as if you've seen a ghost.

GRANTAIRE
Some wine and say what's going on!

MARIUS
A ghost you say... a ghost maybe
She was just like a ghost to me
One minute there, and she was gone!

GRANTAIRE
I am agog!
I am aghast!
Is Marius in love at last?
I've never heard him `ooh' and `aah'
You talk of battles to be won
And here he comes like Don Ju-an
It's better than an o-per-a!

ENJOLRAS
It is time for us all
To decide who we are
Do we fight for the right
To a night at the opera now?
Have you asked of yourselves
What's the price you might pay?
Is it simply a game
For rich young boys to play?
The color of the world
Is changing day by day...

Red - the blood of angry men!
Black - the dark of ages past!
Red - a world about to dawn!
Black - the night that ends at last!

MARIUS
Had you been there tonight
You might know how it feels
To be struck to the bone
In a moment of breathless delight!
Had you been there tonight
You might also have known
How the world may be changed
In just one burst of light!
And what was right seems wrong
And what was wrong seems right!

GRANTAIRE
Red...

MARIUS
I feel my soul on fire!

GRANTAIRE
Black...

MARIUS
My world if she's not there!

ALL
Red...

MARIUS
The color of desire!

ALL
Black...

MARIUS
The color of despair!

ENJOLRAS
Marius, you're no longer a child
I do not doubt you mean it well
But now there is a higher call.
Who cares about your lonely soul?
We strive toward a larger goal
Our little lives don't count at all!

ALL
Red - the blood of angry men!
Black - the dark of ages past!
Red - a world about to dawn!
Black - the night that ends at last!

ENJOLRAS
Well, Courfeyrac, do we have all the guns?
Feuilly, Combeferre, our time is running short.
Grantaire, put the bottle down!
Do we have the guns we need?

GRANTAIRE
Give me brandy on my breath
And I'll breathe them all to death!

COURFEYRAC
In St. Antoine they're with us to a man!

COMBEFERRE
In Notre Dame they're tearing up the stones!

FEUILLY
Twenty rifles good as new!

(Gavroche rushes in shouting)

GAVROCHE
Listen!

JOLY
Twenty rounds for every man!

GAVROCHE
Listen to me!

JEAN PROUVAIRE
Double that in Port St. Cloud!

GAVROCHE
Listen everybody!

LESGLES
Seven guns in St. Martin!

GAVROCHE
General Lamarque is dead!

ENJOLRAS
Lamarque is dead.
Lamarque! His death is the hour of fate.
The people's man.
His death is the sign we await!

On his funeral day they will honor his name.
It's a rallying cry that will reach every ear!
In the death of Lamarque we will kindle the flame
They will see that the day of salvation is near!
The time is near!
Let us welcome it gladly with courage and cheer
Let us take to the streets with no doubt in our hearts
But a jubilant shout
They will come one and all
They will come when we call!

Enjolras, The Stude - Do You Hear the People Sing? Lyrics



ENJOLRAS
Do you hear the people sing?
Singing a song of angry men?
It is the music of a people
Who will not be slaves again!
When the beating of your heart
Echoes the beating of the drums
There is a life about to start
When tomorrow comes!

COMBEFERRE
Will you join in our crusade?
Who will be strong and stand with me?
Beyond the barricade
Is there a world you long to see?
Courfeyrac:
Then join in the fight
That will give you the right to be free!

ALL
Do you hear the people sing?
Singing a song of angry men?
It is the music of a people
Who will not be slaves again!
When the beating of your heart
Echoes the beating of the drums
There is a life about to start
When tomorrow comes!

FEUILLY
Will you give all you can give
So that our banner may advance
Some will fall and some will live
Will you stand up and take your chance?
The blood of the martyrs
Will water the meadows of France!

ALL
Do you hear the people sing?
Singing a song of angry men?
It is the music of a people
Who will not be slaves again!
When the beating of your heart
Echoes the beating of the drums
There is a life about to start
When tomorrow comes!

Cosette, Valjean, M - In My Life Lyrics



(Cosette stands in her garden on Rue Plumet)

COSETTE
How strange
This feeling that my life's begun at last
This change,
Can people really fall in love so fast?
What's the matter with you, Cosette?
Have you been too much on your own?
So many things unclear
So many things unknown.

In my life
There are so many questions and answers
That somehow seem wrong
In my life
There are times when I catch in the silence
The sigh of a faraway song
And it sings
Of a world that I long to see
Out of reach
Just a whisper away
Waiting for me.

Does he know I'm alive?
Do I know if he's real?
Does he see what I saw?
Does he feel what I feel?

In my life
I'm no longer alone
Now the love in my life
Is so near
Find me now, find me here!

VALJEAN
Dear Cosette,
You're such a lonely child
How pensive, how sad you seem to me
Believe me, were it within my power
I'd fill each passing hour
How quiet it must be, I can see
With only me for company.

COSETTE
There's so little I know
That I'm longing to know
Of the child that I was
In a time long ago...
There's so little you say
Of the life you have known
Why you keep to yourself
Why we're always alone
So dark! So dark and deep...
The secrets that you keep!

In my life
I have all that I want
You are loving and gentle and good
But Papa, dear Papa,
In your eyes I am just like a child
Who is lost in a wood

VALJEAN
No more words
No more words. It's a time that is dead
There are words
That are better unheard,
Better unsaid.

COSETTE
In my life
I'm no longer a child and I yearn
For the truth that you know
Of the years... years ago!

VALJEAN
You will learn
Truth is given by God
To us all in our time
In our turn

(Valjean leaves the garden. Marius and Eponine arrive outside)

MARIUS
In my life
She has burst like the music of angels
The light of the sun
And my life seems to stop
As if something is over
And something has scarcely begun.
Eponine
You're the friend who has brought me here
Thanks to you I am one with the gods
And Heaven is near!
And I soar through a world that is new that is free

EPONINE(to herself)
Every word that he says is a dagger in me!
In my life
There's been no one like him anywhere
Anywhere, where he is...
If he asked... I'd be his

MARIUS & EPONINE
In my life
There is someone who touches my life

MARIUS
Waiting near

EPONINE
Waiting here

A Heart Full of Love


(Marius goes into the garden, leaving Eponine outside the gate)

MARIUS
A heart full of love
A heart full of song
I'm doing everything all wrong
Oh God, for shame
I do not even know your name
Dear Mad'moiselle
Won't you say?
Will you tell?

COSETTE
A heart full of love
No fear, no regret

M,ARIUS
My name is Marius Pontmercy

COSETTE
And mine's Cosette

MARIUS
Cosette, I don't know what to say

COSETTE
Then make no sound

MARIUS
I am lost

COSETTE
I am found!

MARIUS
A heart full of light

COSETTE
A night bright as day

MARIUS
And you must never go away
Cosette, Cosette

COSETTE
This is a chain we'll never break

MARIUS
Do I dream?

COSETTE
I'm awake!

MARIUS
A heart full of love

COSETTE
A heart full of you

MARIUS
A single look and then I knew

COSETTE
I knew it too

MARIUS
From today

COSETTE
Every day

COSETTE & MARIUS
For it isn't a dream
Not a dream after all.


EPONINE(Interjecting)
He was never mine to lose
Why regret what cannot be?
These are words he'll never say
Not to me...
Not to me...
Not to me...

His heart full of love
He will never feel this way...

(Marius and Cosette move away as Montparnasse enters furtively)

Cosette, Marius & E - A Heart Full of Love Lyrics



(Time has passed. Suggest Marius convalescing, encouraged by Cosette who takes his arm as he walks with firmer step)

COSETTE
Every day
You walk with stronger step
You walk with longer step-
`The worst is over.'

MARIUS
Every day
I wonder every day
Who was it brought me here
From the barricade?

COSETTE
Don't think about it, Marius!
With all the years ahead of us!
I will never go away
And we will be together
Every day.
Every day,
We'll remember that night
And the vow that we made:

A heart full of love
A night full of you
The words are old
But always true.
Oh, God, for shame
You did not even know my name!

MARIUS
Dear Mad'moiselle
I was lost in your spell.

(Valjean enters, unnoticed)

COSETTE
A heart full of love
No fear no regret
`My name is Marius Pontmercy'

MARIUS
Cosette, Cosette!

COSETTE
I saw you waiting and I knew.

MARIUS
Waiting for you
At your feet

COSETTE
At your call

BOTH
And it wasn't a dream
Not a dream after all

VALJEAN(interjecting, to himself)
She was never mine to keep.
She is youthful, she is free.
Love is the garden of the young
Let it be... let it be...
A heart full of love
This I give you on this day.

(They notice Valjean)

MARIUS
M'sieur, this is a day
I can never forget.
Is gratitude enough
For giving me Cosette?
Your home shall be with us
And not a day shall pass
But we will prove our love
To you, whom we shall call
A father to us both
A father to us all.

(Cosette leaves)

Thenardier's Gang & - Plumet Attack Lyrics



EPONINE
'Parnasse, what are you doing
So far out of our patch?

MONTPARNASSE
This house, we're going to do it
Rich man, plenty of scratch
You remember he's the one
Who got away the other day
Got a number on his chest
Perhaps a fortune put away!

EPONINE
Oh Lord, somebody help me!
Dear God, what'll I do?
He'll think this is an ambush
He'll think I'm in it too!

What'll I do, what'll I say?
I've got to warn them here
I've got to find a way.

(Thenardier arrives with the rest of his gang)

THENARDIER
This is his lair
I've seen the old fox around
He keeps himself to himself
He's staying close to the ground
I smell profit here!

Ten years ago
He came and paid for Cosette
I let her go for a song
It's time we settled the debt
This'll cost him dear

BRUJON
What do I care
Who you should rob?
Gimme me my share
Finish the job!

THENARDIER
You shut your mouth
Give me your hand

BRUJON
(catching sight of Eponine)
What have we here?

THENARDIER
(not recognizing her)
Who is this hussy?

BABET
It's your brat Eponine
Don't you know your own kid
Why's she hanging about you?

THENARDIER
Eponine, get on home
You're not needed in this
We're enough here without you

EPONINE
I know this house
I tell you there's nothing here for you
Just the old man and the girl
They live ordinary lives

THENARDIER
Don't interfere
You've got some gall
Take care, young miss,
You've got a lot to say!

BRUJON
She's going soft

CLAQUESOUS
Happens to all

MONTPARNASSE
Go home, 'Ponine,
Go home, you're in the way

EPONINE
I'm gonna scream, I'm gonna warn them here.

THENARDIER
One little scream and you'll regret it for a year.

CLAQUESOUS
What a palaver
What an absolute treat
To watch a cat and its father
Pick a bone in the street

BRUJON
Not a sound out of you!

EPONINE
Well I told you I'd do it, told you I'd do it...

(She screams)

THENARDIER
You wait my girl, you'll rue this night
I'll make you scream, you'll scream all right
Leave her to me, don't wait around
Make for the sewers, go underground!

(The gang scatters. Marius and Cosette run back into the garden and he hurriedly introduces Eponine before she takes
off)

MARIUS
It was your cry sent them away
Once more 'Ponine saving the day
Dearest Cosette - my friend 'Ponine
Brought me to you, showed me the way!
Someone is near
Let's not be seen
Somebody's here!

(Marius leaves quickly as Valjean enters)

VALJEAN
My God, Cosette!
I heard a cry in the dark
I heard the shout of angry voices in the street.

COSETTE
That was my cry you heard, Papa,
I was afraid of what they'd do.
They ran away when they heard my cry.

VALJEAN
Cosette, my child, what will become of you?

COSETTE
Three men I saw beyond the wall
Three men in shadow moving fast

JAVERT
This is a warning to us all
These are the shadows of the past

Must be Javert!
He's found my cover at last!
I've got to get Cosette away
Before they return!

We must get away from shadows
They will never let us be
Tomorrow to Calais...
And then a ship across the sea!

Hurry, Cosette, prepare to leave and say no more,
Tomorrow we'll away!
Hurry, Cosette, it's time to close another door
And live another day!

Company - One Day More! Lyrics



VALJEAN
One day more!
Another day, another destiny.
This never-ending road to Calvary;
These men who seem to know my crime
Will surely come a second time.
One day more!

MARIUS
I did not live until today.
How can I live when we are parted?

VALJEAN
One day more.

MARIUS & COSETTE
Tomorrow you'll be worlds away
And yet with you, my world has started!

EPONINE
One more day all on my own.

MARIUS & COSETTE
Will we ever meet again?

EPONINE
One more day with him not caring.

MARIUS & COSETTE
I was born to be with you.

EPONINE
What a life I might have known.

MARIUS & COSETTE
And I swear I will be true!

EPONINE
But he never saw me there!

ENJOLRAS
One more day before the storm!

MARIUS
Do I follow where she goes?

ENJOLRAS
At the barricades of freedom.

MARIUS
Shall I join my brothers there?

ENJOLRAS
When our ranks begin to form

MARIUS
Do I stay; and do I dare?

ENJOLRAS
Will you take your place with me?

ALL
The time is now, the day is here

VALJEAN
One day more!

JAVERT
One more day to revolution,
We will nip it in the bud!
I will join these little schoolboys,
They will wet themselves with blood!

VALJEAN
One day more!

M. & MME. THENARDIER
Watch 'em run amuck,
Catch 'em as they fall,
Never know your luck
When there's a free for all,
Here a little `dip'
There a little `touch'
Most of them are goners
So they won't miss much!

Students (2 Groups)
1: One day to a new beginning

2: Raise the flag of freedom high!

1: Every man will be a king

2: Every man will be a king

1: There's a new world for the winning

2: There's a new world to be won

ALL
Do you hear the people sing?

MARIUS
My place is here, I fight with you!

VALJEAN
One day more!

MARIUS & COSETTE
I did not live until today.

EPONINE
One more day all on my own!

MARIUS & COSETTE
How can I live when we are parted?

JAVERT(overlapping)
I will join these people's heros
I will follow where they go
I will learn their little Secrets,
I will know the things they know.

VALJEAN
One day more!

MARIUS & COSETTE
Tomorrow you'll be worlds away

EPONINE
What a life I might have known!

MARIUS & COSETTE
And yet with you my world has started

JAVERT(overlapping)
One more day to revolution
We will nip it in the bud
We'll be ready for these

Schoolboys

THENARDIERS(overlapping)
Watch 'em run amok
Catch 'em as they fall
Never know your luck
When there's a free-for-all!

VALJEAN
Tomorrow we'll be far away,
Tomorrow is the judgement day

ALL
Tomorrow we'll discover
What our God in Heaven has in store!
One more dawn
One more day
One day more!

Enjolras, The Stude - AT THE BARRICADE Lyrics



(Enjolras is addressing the revolutionaries)

ENJOLRAS
Here upon these stones
We will build our barricade
In the heart of the city
We claim as our own!
Each man to his duty
And don't be afraid.
Wait! I will need a report
On the strength of the foe.

JAVERT(disguised as a rebel)
I can find out the truth
I know their ways
Fought their wars
Served my time
In the days
Of my youth.

PROUVAIRE
Now the people will fight

GRANTAIRE
And so they might
Dogs will bark
Fleas will bite.

LESGLES
They will do what is right!

(Marius spots Eponine, who is dressed as a boy)

MARIUS
Hey, little boy, what's this I see?
God, Eponine, the things you do!

EPONINE
I know this is no place for me,
Still, I would rather be with you!

MARIUS
Get out before the trouble starts.
Get out, 'Ponine, you might get shot!

EPONINE
I've got you worried now, I have
That shows you like me quite a lot!

MARIUS
There is a way that you can help
You are the answer to a prayer!
Please take this letter to Cosette
And pray to God that she's still there!

EPONINE
Little you know!
Little you care!

(She walks to the Rue Plumet, where she meets Valjean)

EPONINE
I have a letter M'sieur
It's addressed to your daughter, Cosette
It's from a boy at the barricade, Sir,
In the Rue de Villette.

VALJEAN
Give me that letter here, my boy.

EPONINE
He said to give it to Cosette

VALJEAN
You have my word that my daughter will know
What this letter contains.

(He gives her a coin)

Tell the young man she will read it tomorrow
And here's for your pains
Go careful now, stay out of sight
There's danger in the streets tonight.

(He opens the letter... and reads it)

"Dearest Cosette, you have entered my soul
And soon you will be gone.
Can it be only a day since we met
And the world was reborn?
If I should fall in the battle to come
Let this be my goodbye...
Now that I know you love me as well
It is harder to die...
I pray that god will bring me home
To be with you.
Pray for your Marius. He prays for you!"

(Valjean goes in, leaving Eponine alone)

Eponine - On My Own Lyrics



EPONINE
And now I'm all alone again
Nowhere to go no one to turn to,
Did not want your money sir
I came out here coz i was told to
And now the night is near
Now I can make believe he's here.

Sometimes I walk alone at night
When everybody else is sleeping
I think of him and then I'm happy
With the company I'm keeping
The city goes to bed
And I can live inside my head.

On my own
Pretending he's beside me
All alone, I walk with him till morning
Without him
I feel his arms around me
And when I lose my way I close my eyes
And he has found me

In the rain the pavement shines like silver
All the lights are misty in the river
In the darkness, the trees are full of starlight
And all I see is him and me for ever and forever

And I know it's only in my mind
That I'm talking to myself and not to him
And although I know that he is blind
Still I say, there's a way for us

I love him
But when the night is over
He is gone, the river's just a river
Without him the world around me changes
The trees are bare and everywhere
The streets are full of strangers

I love him
But every day I'm learning
All my life I've only been pretending
Without me his world will go on turning
A world that's full of happiness
That I have never known!

I love him
I love him
I love him
But only on my own.

Javert, Enjolras & - Javert at the Barricade/Little People Lyrics



GAVROCHE
Liar!
Good evening, dear inspector
Lovely evening, my dear.
I know this man, my friends
His name is Inspector Javert
So don't believe a word he says
'Cause none of it's true
This only goes to show
What little people can do!

And little people know
When little people fight
We may look easy pickings
But we've got some bite
So never kick a dog
Because he's just a pup
We'll fight like twenty armies
And we won't give up
So you'd better run for cover
When the pup grows up!

GRANTAIRE
Bravo, little Gavroche, you're the top of the class!

PROUVAIRE
So what are we going to do
With this snake in the grass?

ENJOLRAS
Tie this man and take him
To the tavern in there
The people will decide your fate
Inspector Javert!

COURFEYRAC
Take the bastard now and shoot him!

FEUILLY
Let us watch the devil dance!

LESGLES
You'd have done the same, Inspector,
If we'd let you have your chance!

JAVERT
Shoot me now or shoot me later
Every schoolboy to his sport
Death to each and every traitor
I renounce your people's court!

COMBEFERRE
Though we may not all survive here
There are things that never die

GRANTAIRE
What's the difference, die a schoolboy,
Die a policeman, die a spy?

ENJOLRAS
Take this man, bring him through
There is work we have to do!

(Javert is bundled away as the first shots ring out.
Eponine enters, wounded)

JOLY
There's a boy climbing the barricade!

MARIUS
Good God! What are you doing?
'Ponine, have you no fear?
Have you seen my beloved?
Why have you come back here?

EPONINE
Took the letter like you said
I met her father at the door
He said he would give it

(She collapses in his arms)

Don't think I can stand any more.

MARIUS
Eponine, what's wrong? I feel...
There's something wet upon your hair

(There is blood on his hands)

Eponine, you're hurt
You need some help!
Oh God, it's everywhere....

Enjolras & Students - The First Attack Lyrics



(Enjolras gives Valjean a gun)

ENJOLRAS
Take this and use it well!
But if you shoot us in the back,
You'll never live to tell.

STUDENT ONE
Platoon of sappers advancing toward the barricade!

STUDENT TWO
Troops behind them, fifty men or more!

ENJOLRAS
Fire!

(Gunfire is heard)

FEUILLY
Sniper!

(Valjean shoots a sniper who is aiming at Enjolras)

LESGLES
See how they run away!

GRANTAIRE
By God we've won the day!

ENJOLRAS
They will be back again,
Make an attack again.
(To Valjean.)
For your presence of mind
For the deed you have done
I will thank you M'sieur
When our battle is won.

VALJEAN
Give me no thanks M'sieur
There is something you can do.

ENJOLRAS
If it is in my power.

VALJEAN
Give me the spy Javert
Let me take care of him!

JAVERT
The law is inside out
The world is upside down

ENJOLRAS
Do what you have to do,
The man belongs to you.

The enemy may be regrouping. Hold yourself in readiness.
Come my friends, back to your positions.
The night is falling fast.

VALJEAN
We meet again.

JAVERT
You've hungered for this all your life;
Take your revenge!
How right you should kill with a knife!

(Valjean cuts the ropes which bind Javert.)

VALJEAN
You talk too much,
Your life is safe in my hands.

JAVERT
Don't understand

VALJEAN
Get out of here.

JAVERT
Valjean, take care!
I'm warning you...

VALJEAN
Clear out of here.

JAVERT
Once a thief, forever a thief
What you want you always steal!
You would trade your life for mine.
Yes, Valjean, you want a deal!
Shoot me now for all I care!
If you let me go, beware,
You'll still answer to Javert!

VALJEAN
You are wrong, and always have been wrong.
I'm a man, no worse than any man.
You are free, and there are no conditions,
No bargains or petitions.
There's nothing that I blame you for
You've done your duty, nothing more.
If I come out of this alive, you'll find me
At number fifty-five Rue Plumet
No doubt our paths will cross again.

(Valjean fires his gun into the air, Javert leaves quickly. Muted applause from the students who think Javert has been shot)

ENJOLRAS
Courfeyrac, you take the watch
They won't attack until it's light
Everybody stay awake
We must be ready for the fight
For the final fight
Let no one sleep tonight!

Eponine & Marius - A Little Fall of Rain Lyrics



EPONINE
Don't you fret, M'sieur Marius
I don't feel any pain
A little fall of rain
Can hardly hurt me now
You're here, that's all I need to know
And you will keep me safe
And you will keep me close
And rain will make the flowers grow.

MARIUS
But you will live, 'Ponine - dear God above,
If I could heal your wounds with words of love.

EPONINE
Just hold me now, and let it be.
Shelter me, comfort me

MARIUS
You would live a hundred years
If I could show you how
I won't desert you now...

EPONINE
The rain can't hurt me now
This rain will wash away what's past
And you will keep me safe
And you will keep me close
I'll sleep in your embrace at last.

The rain that brings you here
Is Heaven-blessed!
The skies begin to clear
And I'm at rest
A breath away from where you are
I've come home from so far
So don't you fret, M'sieur Marius

I don't feel any pain
A little fall of rain
Can hardly hurt me now

That's all I need to know
And you will keep me safe
And you will keep me close

MARIUS(in counterpoint)
Hush-a-bye, dear Eponine,
You won't feel any pain
A little fall of rain
Can hardly hurt you now
I'm here

I will stay with you
Till you are sleeping

EPONINE
And rain...

MARIUS
And rain...

EPONINE
Will make the flowers...

MARIUS
Will make the flowers... grow...

(She dies. Marius kisses her, then lays her on the ground)

ENJOLRAS
She is the first to fall
The first of us to fall upon this barricade

MARIUS
Her name was Eponine
Her life was cold and dark, yet she was unafraid.

COMBEFERRE
We fight here in her name

PROUVAIRE
She will not die in vain.

LESGLES
She will not be betrayed.

(They carry her body off)

Grantaire, Students - The night / Drink With Me Lyrics



(The defenders settle down for the night with wine and a song)

ENJOLRAS
Marius, rest.

FEUILLY
Drink with me to days gone by
Sing with me the songs we knew

PROUVAIRE
Here's to pretty girls who went to our heads.

JOLY
Here's to witty girls who went to out beds.

ALL
Here's to them and here's to you!


GRANTAIRE
Drink with me to days gone by
Can it be you fear to die?
Will the world remember you
When you fall?
Could it be your death
Means nothing at all?
Is your life just one more lie?

ALL
Drink with me to days gone by
To the life that used to be

WOMEN
At the shrine of friendship, never say die

MEN
Let the wine of friendship never run dry

ALL
Here's to you and here's to me

MARIUS
Do I care if I should die
Now she goes across the sea?
Life without Cosette
Means nothing at all.
Would you weep, Cosette,
Should Marius fall?
Will you weep, Cosette,
For me?

(Marius settles down to sleep)

Valjean - Bring Him Home Lyrics



(Valjean is standing over Marius at the barricade)

VALJEAN
God on high
Hear my prayer
In my need
You have always been there

He is young
He's afraid
Let him rest
Heaven blessed.
Bring him home
Bring him home
Bring him home.

He's like the son I might have known
If God had granted me a son.
The summers die
One by one
How soon they fly
On and on
And I am old
And will be gone.

Bring him peace
Bring him joy
He is young
He is only a boy

You can take
You can give
Let him be
Let him live
If I die, let me die
Let him live
Bring him home
Bring him home
Bring him home.

Thenardier - Dog Eats Dog Lyrics



(Thénardier is picking through the corpses in the sewers)

THENARDIER
Here's a hint of gold
Stuck into a tooth
Pardon me M'sieur
You won't be needing it no more.
Shouldn't be too hard to sell.
Add it to the pile
Add it to the stock
Here among the sewer rats
A breath away from Hell
You get accustomed to the smell.

Well someone's got to clean 'em up, my friends
Bodies on the highway
Law and order upside down
Someone's got to collect their odds and ends
As a service to the town!

(Valjean arrives, carrying MARIUS.
VALJEAN collapses)

(THENARDIER robs marius)

Here's a tasty ring
Pretty little thing
Wouldn't want to waste it
That would really be a crime
Thank you sir, I'm in your debt
Here's another toy
Take it off the boy
His heart's no longer going
And he's lived his little time
But his watch is ticking yet!

Well, someone's got to clean them up, my friends
Before the little harvest
Disappears into the mud
Someone's got to collect their odds and ends
When the gutters run with blood.

It's a world where the dog eats the dog
Where they kill for bones in the street
And God in His Heaven
He don't interfere
'Cause he's dead as the stiffs at my feet
I raise my eyes to see the heavens
And only the moon looks down
The harvest moon shines down!

(He turns over Valjean's body, recognizes him, and leaves. Eventually, Valjean picks up Marius again and walks
through the sewers. As they emerge, they meet Javert)


VALJEAN
It's you, Javert!
I knew you wouldn't wait too long
The faithful servant at his post once more!
This man's done no wrong,
And he needs a doctor's care.

JAVERT
I warned you I would not give in
I won't be swayed

VALJEAN
Another hour yet
And then I'm yours
And all our debts are paid.

JAVERT
The man of mercy comes again
And talks of justice

JAVERT
Come, time is running short
Look down, Javert
He's standing in his grave
Give way, Javert
There is a life to save.

JAVERT(overlapping)
Take him Valjean,
Before I change my mind
I will be waiting
24601.

(Valjean carries Marius off)

Javert - Javert's Suicide Lyrics



(Javert walks the deserted streets until he comes to a bridge over the river Seine)

JAVERT
Who is this man?
What sort of devil is he
To have me caught in a trap
And choose to let me go free?
It was his hour at last
To put a seal on my fate
Wipe out the past
And wash me clean off the slate!
All it would take
Was a flick of his knife.
Vengeance was his
And he gave me back my life!

Damned if I'll live in the debt of a thief!
Damned if I'll yield at the end of the chase.
I am the Law and the Law is not mocked
I'll spit his pity right back in his face
There is nothing on earth that we share
It is either Valjean or Javert!

How can I now allow this man
To hold dominion over me?
This desperate man whom I have hunted
He gave me my life. He gave me freedom.
I should have perished by his hand
It was his right.
It was my right to die as well
Instead I live... but live in hell.

And my thoughts fly apart
Can this man be believed?
Shall his sins be forgiven?
Shall his crimes be reprieved?

And must I now begin to doubt,
Who never doubted all these years?
My heart is stone and still it trembles
The world I have known is lost in shadow.
Is he from heaven or from hell?
And does he know
That granting me my life today
This man has killed me even so?

I am reaching, but I fall
And the stars are black and cold
As I stare into the void
Of a world that cannot hold
I'll escape now from the world
From the world of Jean Valjean.
There is nowhere I can turn
There is no way to go on....

(He throws himself into the swollen river)

Women Of Paris - Turning Lyrics



WOMAN ONE
Did you see them
Going off to fight?

WOMAN TWO
Children of the barricade
Who didn't last the night?

WOMAN THREE
Did you see them
Lying where they died?
Someone used to cradle them
And kiss them when they cried.

WOMAN FOUR
Did you see them lying side by side?

WOMAN FIVE
Who will wake them?

WOMAN SIX
No one ever will.

WOMAN TWO
No one ever told them
That a summer day can kill.

WOMAN SEVEN
They were schoolboys
Never held a gun...
Fighting for a new world
That would rise up like the sun.

WOMAN THREE
Where's that new world now the fighting's done?

WOMAN FOUR
Nothing changes.

WOMAN SEVEN
Nothing ever will.

WOMAN EIGHT
Every year another brat, another mouth to fill.

WOMAN SEVEN
Same old story. What's the use of tears?

WOMAN FIVE
What's the use of praying if there's nobody who hears?

ALL
Turning, turning, turning, turning, turning
Through the years.

Turning, turning, turning through the years
Minutes into hours and the hours into years.
Nothing changes. Nothing ever can
Round about the roundabout and back where you began.
Round and round and back where you began!

Marius - Empty Chairs at Empty Tables Lyrics



(Marius, recovering from his wounds, imagines he is back at the ABC cafe)

MARIUS
There's a grief that can't be spoken.
There's a pain goes on and on.
Empty chairs at empty tables
Now my friends are dead and gone.

Here they talked of revolution.
Here it was they lit the flame.
Here they sang about `tomorrow'
And tomorrow never came.

From the table in the corner
They could see a world reborn
And they rose with voices ringing
I can hear them now!
The very words that they had sung
Became their last communion
On the lonely barricade at dawn.

Oh my friends, my friends forgive me

(The ghosts of those who died on the barricade appear)

That I live and you are gone.
There's a grief that can't be spoken.
There's a pain goes on and on.

Phantom faces at the window.
Phantom shadows on the floor.
Empty chairs at empty tables
Where my friends will meet no more.

(The ghosts fade away)

Oh my friends, my friends, don't ask me
What your sacrifice was for
Empty chairs at empty tables
Where my friends will sing no more.

Guests, M. & Mme. T - Wedding Chorale/Beggars at the Feast Lyrics



(Marius and Cosette lead a wedding procession)

CHORUS
Ring out the bells
Upon this day of days!

May all the angels
Of the Lord above

In jubilation
Sing their songs of praise!

And crown this
Blessed time with
Peace and love.

(The procession becomes a dancing celebration. A waltz is played)

MAJOR DOMO
The Baron and Baroness de Thénard wish to pay their respects to the groom!

THENARDIER
I forget where we met
Was it not at the Chateau Lafarge
Where the Duke did that puke
Down the Duchess's de-coll-etage?

MARIUS
No, `Baron de Thénard'
The circles I move in are humbler by far.
Go away, Thénardier!
Do you think I don't know who you are?

MME. THENARDIER
He's not fooled. Told you so.
Show M'sieur what you've come here to show.
Tell the boy what you know!

(Applause from the dancers as the waltz finishes)

MARIUS
When I look at you, I remember Eponine.
She was more than you deserved, who gave her birth
But now she is with God and happier, I hope,
Than here on earth!
The waltz starts up again.

THENARDIER
So it goes, heaven knows
Life has dealt me some terrible blows.

MME. THENARDIER
You've got cash and a heart
You could give us a bit of a start!
We can prove, plain as ink
Your bride's father is not what you think.

THENARDIER
There's a tale I could tell

MME. THENARDIER
Information we're willing to sell...

THENARDIER
There's a man that he slew
I saw the corpse clear as I'm seeing you!
What I tell you is true!

MME. THENARDIER
Pity to disturb you at a feast like this
But five hundred francs surely wouldn't come amiss.

MARIUS
In God's name say what you have to say.

THENARDIER
But first you pay!
What I saw, clear as light,
Jean Valjean in the sewers that night.
Had this corpse on his back
Hanging there like a bloody great sack.
I was there, never fear.
Even found me this fine souvenir.

(Thénardier shows Marius a ring)

MARIUS
I know this! This was mine!
This is surely some heavenly sign!

THENARDIER
One thing more, mark this well
It was the night the barricades fell.

MARIUS
Then it's true. Then I'm right.
Jean Valjean was my savior that night!

(Marius punches Thénardier and then throws money at him)

As for you, take this too!
God forgive the things that we do.
Come my love, come Cosette,
This day's blessings are not over yet!

(Marius and Cosette leave)

====

BEGGARS AT THE FEAST


THENARDIER
Ain't it a laugh
Ain't it a treat?
Hob-nobbin' here
Among the elite?
Here comes a prince
There goes a Jew.
This one's a queer
But what can you do?
Paris at my feet
Paris in the dust
And here's me breaking bread
With the upper crust!

Beggar at the feast!
Master of the dance!
Life is easy pickings
If you grab your chance.
Everywhere you go
Law-abiding folk
Doing what is decent
But they're mostly broke!
Singing to the Lord on Sundays
Praying for the gifts He'll send.

M. & MME. THENARDIER
But we're the ones who take it
We're the ones who make it in the end!
Watch the buggers dance
Watch 'em till they drop
Keep your wits about you
And you stand on top!
Masters of the land
Always get our share
Clear away the barricades
And we're still there!
We know where the wind is blowing
Money is the stuff we smell.
And when we're rich as Croesus
Jesus! Won't we see you all in hell!


(Valjean is alone in the shadows, with a bare wooden cross for company)

VALJEAN
Alone I wait in the shadows
I count the hours till I can sleep
I dreamed a dream Cosette stood by
It made her weep to know I die.
Alone at the end of the day
Upon this wedding night I pray
Take these children, my Lord, to thy embrace
And show them grace.

God on high
Hear my prayer
Take me now
To thy care
Where You are
Let me be
Take me now
Take me there
Bring me home
Bring me home.

(Fantine's spirit appears to Valjean)

FANTINE
M'sieur, I bless your name
M'sieur, lay down your burden
You raised my child in love
And you will be with god.

VALJEAN(interjecting)
I am ready, Fantine
At the end of my days
She's the best of my life.

(Marius and Cosette rush into the room; they do not see Fantine)

COSETTE
Papa, Papa, I do not understand!
Are you alright? They said you'd gone away.

VALJEAN
Cosette, my child, am I forgiven now?
Thank God, thank God, I've lived to see this day.

MARIUS
It's you who must forgive a thoughtless fool
It's you who must forgive a thankless man
It's thanks to you that I am living
And again I lay down my life at your feet.

Cosette, your father is a saint.
When they wounded me
He took me from the barricade
Carried like a babe
And brought me home to you!

VALJEAN(to Cosette)
Now you are here
Again beside me
Now I can die in peace
For now my life is blessed...

COSETTE
You will live, Papa, you're going to live
It's too soon, too soon to say goodbye!

VALJEAN
Yes, Cosette, forbid me now to die
I'll obey,
I will try.
On this page
I write my last confession.
Read it well
When I at last am sleeping.
It's the story
Of those who always loved you.
Your mother gave her life for you
Then gave you to my keeping.

(The other spirits, including Eponine appear)

FANTINE
Come with me
Where chains will never bind you
All your grief
At last, at last behind you.
Lord in Heaven,
Look down on him in mercy.

VALJEAN
Forgive me all my trespasses
And take me to your glory.

FANTINE & EPONINE
Take my hand
And lead me to salvation.
Take my love,
For love is everlasting.

VALJEAN, FANTINE & EPONINE
And remember
The truth that once was spoken
To love another person
Is to see the face of God!

Company - Finale Lyrics



CHORUS
Do you hear the people sing
Lost in the valley of the night?
It is the music of a people
Who are climbing to the light.

For the wretched of the earth
There is a flame that never dies.
Even the darkest night will end
And the sun will rise.

They will live again in freedom
In the garden of the Lord.
They will walk behind the plough-share,
They will put away the sword.
The chain will be broken
And all men will have their reward.

Will you join in our crusade?
Who will be strong and stand with me?
Somewhere beyond the barricade
Is there a world you long to see?
Do you hear the people sing?
Say, do you hear the distant drums?
It is the future that they bring
When tomorrow comes!

Will you join in our crusade?
Who will be strong and stand with me?
Somewhere beyond the barricade
Is there a world you long to see?
Do you hear the people sing?
Say, do you hear the distant drums?
It is the future that they bring
When tomorrow comes...
Tomorrow comes!

Thursday, December 06, 2007

Stay solid and keep shinny

"God allows life to be rocky. His challenge is not to let the rocks grind us into dust, but to polish us to become a diamond. Stay precious as always."