Stephen Flaherty - A Man of No Importance lyrics

[ALFIE BYRNE, spoken] "How beautiful is the Princess Salome tonight! She is like the shadow of a white rose in a mirror of silver. She is like a dove that has strayed. She is like a narcissus trembling in the wind. She is like a silver flower." [TROUPE MEMBERS] It's a rainy Dublin morning. Sky a leaden gray. Black umbrellas pa**in'. Just your normal day. [LILY] A woman is sliding two eggs on a plate, Calling her brother: "Now Alfie, You're late!" [TROUPE MEMBERS] And a man Is brushing the lint from his vest. Just a man His uniform dutifully pressed. Now the man Remembers a poem that makes his heart yearn. [LILY] But his sister says "Straighten your tie!" [CARNEY] And the butcher next door waves goodbye. [ALL, but AlLFIE] To a man of no importance. (Sound of a bell.) [ROBBIE FAY] Enter Robbie Fay, Driver of the bus. Just another day For the two of us. [TROUPE MEMBERS] Now the man Greets pa**engers boarding the bus And the bus Becomes something more than a bus As the man Takes tickets and gives them a verse in return. [ALL] And a few simple hearts are thus warmed As a gray Dublin day is transformed By a man of no importance. [ALFIE] What we had was something; What we had was rare. Poetry and art in the air And friends... [ALFIE, spoken] Good morning, my dear friends. [ALL, spoken] Good morning, Mr. Byrne. [ALFIE, spoken] With your permission, I will begin today's reading with "The Harlot's House" by Dublin's own immortal Oscar Wilde. "We caught the tread of dancing feet, We loitered down the moonlit street, And stopped beneath the harlot's house." [ALL, but ALFIE] Picture the bus As it moves down a street Past a window of fish And a priest on a bike. A handful of people With journeys to make Leaving the everyday World in their wake. Then it's break. [ROBBIE] One little Guinness; It's always the same. [ALFIE, spoken] A Guinness a day keeps the doctor away. [ROBBIE, spoken] You sound like me old man. [ROBBIE] Safe and sound, That's the name of your game. [ALFIE, spoken] It's good for you. Build up your muscles. [ROBBIE, spoken] Hasn't done much for you. [ROBBIE] There's got to be more to life Than one pint or the Pope Too late for my Da, But for you, mate, there's hope! And what kind of sandwich is this? [ALFIE, spoken] Cucumber. [ROBBIE, spoken] Cucumber? [ALFIE, spoken] An ordinary sandwich immortalized in "The Importance of Being Earnest" at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket, on February 14, 1895 -- a night the mundane became sublime. That was a first performance, my friend. [CARSON, spoken] What's going on here? [ALFIE, spoken] Damn, it's Carson! You look like you could use a Guinness, Mr. Carson! [CARSON, spoken] You're eight minutes behind schedule! The Dublin Transit System doesn't take this laxness lightly. I'm warning you, Byrne. [ALL, but ALFIE] Picture the bus As it moves down the street Past a nun with a sack And a boy with a dog. A bus in the rain And the humblest of men Bringing his pa**engers Home once again. [ALFIE, spoken] Good afternoon, my dear friends. [ALL, spoken] Good afternoon, Mr. Byrne. [ALFIE, spoken] With your permission, I will continue with "The Harlot's House"... "Then turning to my love I said The dead are dancing with the dead. The dust is whirling with the dust. But she, she heard the violin And left my side, and entered in; Love pa**ed into the house of Lust." [ADELE RICE] A blue-coated girl No one has noticed before Enters the bus, Takes a seat by the door. [ALFIE, spoken] My friends, we have a new face. Permit me on your behalf to welcome her into our little circle. Welcome, my dear, welcome, Miss...? [ADELE, spoken] Rice. [ALFIE, spoken] Miss Rice. Miss Rice's entrance matches perfectly the lines of our poem, our little rhyme. "Then suddenly the tune went false, The dancers wearied of the waltz, The shadows ceased to wheel and whirl, And down the long and silent street The dawn with silver sandaled feet Crept like a frightened girl." [ERNIE, spoken] Fair play to you, Mr. Byrne, fair play! [ALL, but ALFIE] Just a man Conducting his bus through the day But the day Is now something more than a day As the man takes tickets And looks at the girl dressed in blue. [ROBBIE] Then his driver yells, [ROBBIE, spoken] Alf, you okay? [ALL, but ALFIE] And the bus lumbers off on its way. [GROUP 1] As a man of no importance A man of no importance [GROUP 2] A man of no importance A man of no importance [ALL, but ALFIE] A man of no importance Ends his day. [ALFIE, spoken] Home, James. Take the scenic route. Through Phoenix Park, past Parliament House and straight on to Dreamland. [ROBBIE] You and your fancies, They're always a grin. [ROBBIE, spoken] I wish I had your imagination, mate. [ALFIE, spoken] You do, you just don't use it. [ROBBIE] I'll bet you fancy That girl who got in. [ALFIE, spoken] Never mind the girl. And I've done the report. [ROBBIE] For a fella who's got his head In the clouds such as you, You're damn fine to work with And I'm glad I do. [ALFIE, spoken] Thanks Robbie. I like you, too. [ROBBIE] I'm off to the pub then. [ALFIE] Good luck at the snooker. [ROBBIE] Don't walk into walls, Alf, That girl is a looker. [ALFIE] I'll see you tomorrow, [BOTH] At seven. [ALFIE] It's a rainy Dublin evening, Lamps are going on. Black umbrellas pa**in', People come and gone. A uniformed man Hurries home through the night -- Three blocks down Collins, A left, then a right. And nothing is different, Save one ray of light, For a man of no importance.