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When the Newts Cross South Park Drive

from Songs from a Local Universe by Luminous Newts

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Lyrics and music by Thea Kelley

Diminutive Heroics:
One of the local oddities of the San Francisco Bay Area is the annual newt migration in the hills above Berkeley. Little-celebrated and observed mostly by the closure of South Park Drive to vehicle traffic, these adamant amphibians journey from the high places down to the wet places to mate and lay their eggs. In the past they had to brave the oncoming tires of objects 297,000 times their size to cross the road and fulfill their quest. Their hopes were frequently crushed. Who can blame them if they accept official protection, if their journey is easier now? Not us, certainly. The more newts the merrier.

Credit:
The spoken word text during the instrumental section is a quote from John Vinycomb's article "The Salamander" on sacredtexts.com:

"The newt is a type of salamander, an animal immemorially credited with certain fabulous powers. Less than a century ago it was described, in all seriousness, as a 'spotted lizard, which will endure the flames of fire.' While in ancient times, it was described as a creature in the shape of a man, which lived in fire…

"…This was a widespread belief in the time of Roman naturalist Pliny, as paraphrased by Swift:

" 'Further, we are by Pliny told
This serpent is extremely cold;
So cold that, put it in the fire,
’Twill make the very flames expire.'

"And so this creature was to certain ancient peoples a symbol of enduring faith. In fact, its heraldic signification was that of a brave and generous courage that the fire of affliction cannot destroy or consume."

lyrics

in summertime the livin' is easy
under a log or in some kind of hole
but when the rain begins to fall
the newts all hear the call
they feel it in each slippery little soul

they're steppin' out
they will survive
and they're glad
to be alive
yeah those newts
go crossing South Park Drive
in the hills of Berkeley

well, sometimes homo sapiens look both ways before we cross
and some will wait until the light turns green
and some have glowing sneakers
but these naked little creatures
are not luminous, and not so easily seen

they're steppin' out … etc.

they're looking for love in all the right places
in the streams and ponds they'll do that mating dance
but there's a big road to cross
on tiny little paws
so let’s give those naked newts a fighting chance

they're steppin' out … etc.

they'll go truckin' cross the drive
try their luck and cross the drive
they will finally cross the drive
in the hills of Berkeley

credits

from Songs from a Local Universe, released September 6, 2018

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Luminous Newts Berkeley, California

Eclectic, original, melodic prog-pop-rock group headed by two singer-songwriters. Based in Berkeley, California.

Not derivative and not predictable. Not good at describing ourselves. Interested in hearing your take on it.

www.luminousnewts.com ... more

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