Lyrics Quay Cur - The Fiery Furnaces

Quay Cur

I had a locket, a little silver charm
Given to me for to keep me safe from harm
Canvassing the quayside, trying to earn my keep
A killick tore it off my neck and threw it in the deep
And now I’ll never never never feel like I’m safe again
And now I’ll never never never feel like I’m safe again
And now I’ll never never never feel like I’m safe again
Up to the quarantine, late night aboard
Try to raise our fees, but we get what they afford
Busy work below deck, according to form;
Waiting for the clear to leave, but then comes up a storm
We hid beneath the barrels of blubber hoping that the rain had passed
But when the wind kept up the rats cut down the rigging of the mast
And then the rust chewed through the anchor chain and out to sea we’re cast
The clouds dried and cracked
It was calm and in fact
The ship had been towed
By sea Dyaks rode
So we’re sold at Kolaba
'n sent--I let out a sob, a
Cry oh no it’s disaster
T’Ranter Bay Madagascar
Great gulps of Greek fire get us in
Sling sticks at the stockade of Fort Dauphin
A guardsman gave a griffin said grease my duke
Down by the chimney and out through the fluke
A looby, a lordant, a lagerhead, lozel
A lungio, lathback made me a proposal:
Straight sail, top mast, astrolabe prospected
Down in his dry dock, erected, infected
Mocked up with silk strings and taffeta tricked
With nails out of driftwood already iron sicked
Now spy out the glass at whatever missteps me
And the press-gang's warrant’s signed Sir Edward Pepsi
'Course it wasn’t long till I caught the croup
Dawdling on the drizzy deck of my majesty’s sloop
If only the helmsman would turn from his whip staff
With my azimuth compass I go by the graph
Up to the whaling fleet in Gilbert sound
Then back in the hull when we come around
With one hundred seals and two polar bears
Nearly in the harbor without any cares, but then:
A looby, a lordant, a lagerhead, lozel
A lungio, lathback made me a proposal:
Straight sail, top mast, astrolabe prospected
Down in his dry dock, erected, infected
Mocked up with silk strings and taffeta tricked
With nails out of driftwood already iron sicked
Now spy out the glass at whatever missteps me
And the press-gang's warrant’s signed Sir Edward Pepsi
Half-hour sandglass
Seven saker round shot
Ice for the moonshine
And chichsaneg
Canyglow, canyglow, canyglow, don’t say nugo
Tie tight my sugnacoon
In comes the tucktodo
Aba in aob abinyoh
Look awennye
Get out my sawygmeg
Yliaout, yliaout
Weave us on shore
Unuiche quoysah
Maconmeg
And I gave a sasobneg
Canyglow, canyglow, canyglow, don’t say nugo
Tie tight my sugnacoon
In comes the tucktodo
Aba in aob abinyoh
And now we live by muskles, water weeds, with small relief in store
And all the sick men in the Galean were then put upon the shore
And on the 22nd we didn’t see our general anymore
Down came our trestle-trees, no pitch tar or nails
Fore shrouds break no rope we trust
Only one shift of sails
Drink my Rosa Solis;
struck suddenly ahull
Yield ourselves we spoomed, my sinews stiff, my eyes were dull
And as we cross the equinoctial only five of us could stand
And while the capstan without sheets or tacks by all of us was manned
And on the 11th day of June ran in at Barehaven to land
And now I’ll never never never feel like I’m safe again
And now I’ll never never never feel like I’m safe again
And now I’ll never never never feel like I’m safe again