The Phosphate Blues - A cautionary tale. (2007)

This is not a true story, just a true possibility if we are not careful.
Slideshow by John Parsons 2007
Song written and performed by Lew Dite 2007
Back-up vocals by J.E.Minor

THE PHOSPHATE BLUES

Tired and exhausted I took a little break
A weekend at my cottage beside a pretty lake
Put on my swim suit, took off my shoes
And dove right in to those phosphate blues

CHORUS
I got the blues, I got the blues
I got those awful phosphate blues
I got the blues, I got the blues
I got those awful phosphate blues

I looked through my goggles and what did I see?
Blue-green algae looking back at me
Shocked and bewildered, staggered by the views
I ran from the warf in search of clues

chorus

I tripped on a tree stump just by the water line
Fell upon the grass near the fertilizer sign
Struggled to my feet, my mind was all confuse
Lost in the fog of the phosphate blues

chorus

I ran into the house, dripping with green slime
My heart was a-pounding, it was doing double time
Time was a wasting and I had no time to lose
If I hoped to survive these phosphate blues

chorus

The septic tank needs cleaning, but I don't know where it is
It's old as the devil, God, I need a whiz
I could flush down my sorrow with a little booze
But that won't cure these phosphate blues

chorus

The dishwasher soap in a box upon the sink
Contains lots of phosphates, now that could be a link
If I don't stop now the lake I'm gonna lose
And I'll soon just drown in the phosphate blues

chorus

The moral to this story is a simple thing to tell
You want good water in your lake and in your well
So take corrective action, no more phosphates for you
Leave a buffer zone and start a-new

And loose the blues, lose the blues
Lose those awful phosphate blues
You'll lose the blues, you'll lose the blues
You'll lose those awful phosphate blues

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Lew
• Dite
• save
• our
• lakes
• blue
• green
• algae

[ORBSTEWBALL]

Say

Lew...

Your original here is a perfect compliment to Lorre Wyatt's "Somos El Barco",or perhaps Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi",or Pete Seeger's "Garbage".. BTW...I am looking forward to singing cautionary songs such as yours @ this year's Hudson River Rivival...Pete Seeger's Clearwater Festival in upstate (NY) on Father's day weekend.

Many thanks for this timely environmental awareness song!

Pax,

Stewball

[lewdite]

Thanks for your positive response. I posted the words with the video.

Send me some information regarding Pete Seeger's Clearwater Festival... I'll send you my email address under a separate cover.

[Blues251]

Me and my colleague got the Phosphate Blues because we're trying to precipitate silver-phosphate in the lab and it's quite a tedious thing to do.

[ghabal]

Uhmmm, I hate to say it but wouldn't an explosion of blue-green algae be just the thing to counter rising atmospheric CO2 levels.

[raymondcrooke]

I really enjoyed this one. Reminds me of some of Malvina Reynold's songs.

[hossome]

Great song and video - I wish all fellow cottagers soon get to understand that we are all part of the problem and that we must all be part of the solution.

[Templaria]

What a nice song and video to expose a serious problem... thanks me too i got the blues we can't swim anymore in Canadian lakes...