big news iii - clutch

(unreleased track from the Elephant Riders sessions)
Off the shore of Laborador
The crew labored to bilge the hold
The stern it floundered in the shoal
The bow bucked up like a bronco
The crew was strong 'til Captain called
"Throw the spermaceti o'er
Throw the spermaceti overboard, overboard"
The captain woke with sandy eyes
"Am I alone?" the old sir cried
"'tis I" he heard a bitter voice reply
"Jason Kip of ?town
I fear the men have all been drowned
And we two are the only to survive, to survive"
Nancy was a pretty girl
Golden hair and eyes of pearl
And she made a pretty bride
For the ancient Captain Bly
Her true love was Jason Kip
Porter on the Captain's ship
Nancy paced the widow's walk
Listening to the widow's talk
She heard "Nancy, do not weep,
The ship is late, but just a week"
"My late husband Captain Pierce
Was gone once for several years.
He returned with silk and spice
Minus one leg and his eyes"
In the end the ocean has its revenge
Whether tomorrow or 100 years
The Captain was a giant man
With miles of intestines
And a stomach larger than
The Persian Gulf
Was not 3 weeks when Bly took chase
And in his sleep untied him
And without a thought he ate him
Clean and whole, clean and whole
As the Captain licked his lips
He was spotted by a ship
Nancy truly was relieved
But for Jason how she grieved
In a carriage they rode home
Any guilt he did not show
As they sat to dine that night
He lacked any appetite
As the two lay in their bed
Captain's gut turned cherry red
With the sounds of gale-force wind
Sprung an angry Jason Kip
In the end the ocean has its revenge
Whether tomorrow or 100 years
It takes limbs and lives
And from the wives an equal ocean of their fallen tears