Some time ago, someone told me about an Irish grandfather’s migration to North America. It appeared he travelled as a prisoner. The ship’s spiteful skipper threw him and other prisoners overboard a short distance from the coast. Somehow in his shackles, the grandfather made it to shore – but not all of his shipmates did. When the ship finally docked, it was abandoned and haunted his mates.
This is the story of that ship, the crow who guards it and the secrets it contains.
lyrics
Verse 1:
[Asus2]A fog cloaks the Minkar, [F#mM7-5]her sails long rotted away
[Asus2]Her mizzen off kilter, [F#mM7-5]her main torn clear from its stay
[Asus2]In her abandon, [F#mM7-5]a warning encased in the drab
[Asus2]The secret it holds, [F#mM7-5]the guard of the old Algorab
Verse 2:
Inside her were whispers, memories of metal and pain
When 88 prisoners, sailed for a land of constraint
Their lives were entrusted, their destination well within sight
Ten miles off the shoreline, the skipper threw them clear from her side
Chorus:
[Am]How many died there
[F]How many made it to shore
[Am]You can hear their faint voices
[F]Deep in Minkar's core
Verse 3:
Now Algorab sat there, perched on the ship’s broken spar
Daring a traveller, come see the answer's not far
Learn of their outcome, reap their story to share
I bid you to visit, see what was theirs
Verse 4:
I think I can trust you. What can you do anyway?
Then crossing the gangplank, our traveller made way
To the bowels of the vessel, through each festering pore
To the site of inscription, etched on the floor.
Chorus:
How many died there
How many made it to shore
You can hear their faint voices
Deep in Minkar's core
Verse 5:
Straining to see it, in the ship's fast dimming light
“Revenge is awaiting” the words came into sight
"Whoever shall enter, prisoner surrender your soul."
Just then the planks opened, water engulfing the floor.
Verse 6:
The traveller would perish, but before one last gulp of air
The echoes of prisoners, this time with a warning to share
“To trust is a gamble, to act a venture in fate
Beware Algorab, or be duped at the gate
Chorus:
How many died there
How many made it to shore
You can hear one more voice
Deep in Minkar's core
credits
from Stories,
released September 1, 2015
Thank you to a talented murder of crows who happened to be perched one morning outside Marathon's Lakeview Manor B&B (www.bbcanada.com/3917.html) and to a few from the Nickel District Conservation Authority. Water sounds are from Pebble Beach, Marathon, and Ramsey Lake, Sudbury. And a big thank you to David Hay, a man who inspires and embodies creativity.
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