Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Southern Cross



I hope you enjoyed my somewhat belated reports of sailing under the Southern Cross.


Wait. That's the name of a song. And here's something really spooky, possum. That clever Mr Stills included the title of everyone of my recent posts in his song...

Got out of town on a boat
Going to Southern islands.
Sailing a reach
Before a following sea.

She was making for the trades
On the outside,
And the downhill run
To Papeete.

Off the wind on this heading
Lie the Marquesas.
We got eighty feet of the waterline.
Nicely making way.

In a noisy bar in Avalon
I tried to call you.
But on a midnight watch I realized
Why twice you ran away.

Think about how many times
I have fallen
Spirits are using me
larger voices calling.
What heaven brought you and me
Cannot be forgotten.

I have been around the world,
Looking for that woman girl,
Who knows love can endure.
And you know it will.
And you know it will.

When you see the Southern Cross
For the first time
You understand now
Why you came this way.

'Cause the truth you might be running from
Is so small.
But it's as big as the promise
The promise of a coming day.

So I'm sailing for tomorrow
My dreams are a dying.
And my love is an anchor tied to you
Tied with a silver chain.

I have my ship
And all her flags are a flying
She is all that I have left
And music is her name.

Think about how many times
I have fallen

Spirits are using me
larger voices calling.
What heaven brought you and me
Cannot be forgotten.

I have been around the world,
Looking for that woman girl,
Who knows love can endure.
And you know it will.
And you know it will.

So we cheated and we lied
And we tested
And we never failed to fail
It was the easiest thing to do.
You will survive being bested.

Somebody fine
Will come along
Make me forget about loving you.
At the Southern Cross.


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3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Such a great version. I like the Jimmy Buffet version but the original is better

Mal Kiely [Lancelots Pram] said...

You must have been channeling Stephen Stills or something? heh heh

Nice piece of music, certainly. Thanks!

Cyalayta
Mal :)

Carol Anne said...

Ah, that brings memories of the day that Pat and I had our very first sailing lesson. We'd been out learning on the J/24, and then we were using a Catalina 42 as a hotel room. We went below in the Catalina, and I turned on the radio, and "Southern Cross" was playing.

I had always liked the song, but hearing it that time was like hearing a whole new song, now that I knew what all of those sailing terms meant.

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