The Streets of London is a folky tune by Ralph McTell with delicate guitar and smoky vocals evocative of Donovan or Bob Dylan. First recorded in 1969, it reeks of that decade's lingering sadnesses and melancholic pursuits of social justice. If you're old enough, you'll remember this song even if you're only hearing it now for the first time.
Its basic lyrical premise is to dissuade an unnamed listener from feeling lonely by pointing out at all the people who are truly lonely, out on the streets of London.
It led me to this thought: I wonder if our device-driven world has deprived us too completely of loneliness. Force feeding us togetherness. Unrelentingly pushing information. Virtually drowning us.
Perhaps we'd be better off if we could once again sit in a crowded cafe too late into an evening, alone and alone in our thoughts, listening to that bloke on stage gently walking his guitar, telling us not to cry by telling us how better off we've got it than those people. It's a strange longing, but not without some merit.
It's here if you want to listen to a version of it.