Mountain - Nantucket Sleighride (To Owen Coffin)

Title: Nantucket Sleighride (To Owen Coffin) (track 03)

Artist: Mountain
Album: Nantucket Sleighride
Year: 1971
Label: Sony, Windfall

Lyrics:

Goodbye, little Robin-Marie
Don't try following me
Don't cry, little Robin-Marie
'Cause you know I'm coming home soon

My ships' leaving on a three-year tour
The next tide will take us from shore
Windlaced, gather in sail and spray
On a search for the mighty sperm whale

Fly your willow branches
Wrap your body round my soul
Lay down your reeds and drums on my soft sheets
There are years behind us reaching
To the place where hearts are beating
And I know you're the last true love I'll ever meet
And I know you're the last true love I'll ever meet



Starbuck's sharpening his harpoon
The black man is playing his tune
An old salt's sleeping his watch away
He'll be drunk again before noon

Three years sailing on bended knee
We found no whales in the sea
Don't cry, little Robin-Marie
'Cause we'll be in sight of land soon

Fly your willow branches
Wrap your body round my soul
Lay down your reeds and drums on my soft sheets
There are years behind us reaching
To the place where hearts are beating
And I know you're the last true love I'll ever meet
And I know you're the last true love I'll ever meet

Category:

Music

Tags:

• mountain
• nantucket
• sleighride
• to
• owen
• coffin
• track
• 03
• three
• title
• title-track
• titletrack
• hard
• rock
• sony
• windfall
• records
• 1971
• '71
• 71

[esf428]

If anyone cares Owen Coffin was a crew member on the Whaleship Essex which was the real life inspiration for Herman Mellville's "Moby Dick". The Essex was out of new Bedford MA and was sunk by an enraged sperm whale in the South Pacific. Most of the crew perished in the ensuing struggle to survive.......quite a few resorted to cannibalism before they were rescued. The story of the Essex, along with the Donner Party are the 2 most infamous episides of cannibalism in U.S. history.

[michaelg662]

I was born in 1959. I had this album when i was in the 5th grade and played the living " " out of it. This was always my favorite cut, plus the Taunta intro, and I never knew what this song was written about. Thank you for the enlightenment. Peace and Love . :)

[AaronTheTullMonger]

@michaelg662 i was born in 81, loved mississppi queen, watched a 'behind the music' on mountain and heard NSR, and thought why on earth is this not being played on the radio.

[alterpost5t]

As very much a happy child in the early 70's one cannot forget, in the UK, instantaneously recognising parts of this song aired on a Sunday dinnertime TV slot, which brings back fond memories of that time!! I dare say, this has been mentioned before somewhere here, especially to those of a similar age - the sound of the song still stands the test of time!! Good Good!!

[MrKirkenstein]

nantucket's a big heroin town.

always has been.

[eltorocal]

@esf428 Oh, come on... enough, already... you've read "ALL" of the other POSTS here which give the history and truth behind both Books, the story(s) and the Band's song... and now your gonna' pass it off as "your" knowledge?

Hey, folks... look up this "poser's" past comments on this subject and you'll see (read) the Post's and the guys (& gals?) who deserve the credit(s).

And, they were considered a '60's Band, not a '70's Band...

[eltorocal]

Hey, "@esf428"... I was just kiddin'... just as Zakk & Leslie did on "That Metal Show" a couple of yrs. ago. They've been calling each other "Father" and "Son" for quite awhile -& Zakk started it because of how much Leslie influenced his guitar playing since childhood. Yes, Zakk's real Father Jerome passed away (bout with cancer) just 3 yrs. ago (next month). He grew up an orphan, was a WWII Vet of D-Day at both Omaha & Normandy.

Sorry to have "pissed" you off... man...

[tomf429]

@esf428 Thanks, I'll give it a read. They mentioned it at the Whaling Museum in Nantucket. Thanks again.

[esf428]

@tomf429-And for the seriously interested (you may be among them) you can read the Penguin Classics edition of "The Loss of the Ship Essex , Sunk by a Whale: First Person Accounts. Which is, as the title suggests, accounts of the disaster by crewmembers who survived......and their weren't many. BTW...it's edited by Nathaniel Philbrick and his father, Thomas Philbrick.

[esf428]

@eltorocal-No he isn't!

[esf428]

@lenapter1 Wrong-a "Nantucket Sleighride" is when the whale is harpooned and drags the whaleboat(s), not the ship, for a period of time till the animal is exhausted or bleeds out.