Donovan Mele & Perrino: Music
When Ladder 5 Came Through the Door
During the first weeks after 9/11, while New York City courageously endured the largest attack on American soil, we as songwriters started expressing the experience through music to provide comfort and support . Many people and companies donated money, time, and equipment to help produce this album, including the Northeast Blues Association, and the Watervliet Fire Department, all in upstate New York. But nothing could ever equal the priceless contributions made by the NYFD and all the other first responders who protect that great city. These stories were gathered by direct interview with the firefighters at Ladder 5 /Engine 24 in the East Village. They had lost 11 souls. In memory of those lives, we offer this ong as a gift to you.
"When Ladder 5 Came Through the Door"
Donovan/Mele/Perrino
I made a promise to myself whem I was only ten
I wouldn't let this wheelchair hold me back
They say theirs advantages to handicaps
You get the best and the easiest
I never found that to be true
I worked so hard to undo
All those rumours
I earned a job that helped me neter
The top of my field at the world trade center...World Trade Center
Chorus
They never asked me who my God was
Or who I voted for
Strong hands reached out to help
When Ladder 5 came through the door
I was held back that day at the top of the stairs
Hot ashes covered my clothes and my hair
Calling out in the dark alone and scared
Until..I heard the metal door crash and saw the flash light glare
Shoulder to shoulder
Back to back
They fought off the fire's attack
Hand in glove and boot it up
Friendships forged in the heat of danger
Life on the line to save ...a starnger
Chorus repeat....
IN shaking walls and crumbling glass
They stayed with me until the lastAnd the last thing I could clearly see
Was a fireman trying to cover me
(Spoken word: "We'll keep diggin' until we just can't dig anymore. That's what they would've done for us." On Heaven's breath we send our thanks and love to 11 brave souls form Ladder 5 Engine 24 (Memorial bells courtesy of the Watervliet Fire Department, Watervliet New York) "AS God is my witness, I know those guys knew they were in so much trouble when they stopped to help that lady. There's no way they didn't know."
NOw I'm feelin' kinda lonely in this strange and lovely place
Though everywhere I look is a kind and tender face
And I even miss my wheelchair though I don't need it anymore
But wait...the angel light that burns, burns bright now
Since Ladder 5 came through the door.