This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
Passed him by a long time ago
But didn’t stop to pick him up that day even though he was late
We drove by
A year later my family moved, he moved to the same town far away
We became friends, smoked cigs, played ball together in all kinds of weather
We worked on our jump shot
Bucky little wing, you flew away
His name was Charles, he was my friend
We got along, but in the end
Bucky little wing, you flew away
It was tough being weak, while Bucky was strong
His daddy died in a car wreck
And I got sick of being pushed around
Standing my ground when Bucky had my back
Hiding in a bush and it’s okay
We started rolling with a different crew
Before I knew it we drifted to
Bucky little wing you flew away
Once some racist kids, this is what I heard, pushed him underneath a moving truck
It swerved but got his head on accident
They ran like devils in the night
Word was he died. I didn’t cry but oh, oh how I tried
Monday came and he did too, so he didn’t die
Just some violet bruises and one shut eye
Can’t believe that he survived, he was like a ghost after that day
But he was just so mighty you might say
His name was Charles, he was my friend
We got along but in the end
Bucky little wing you flew away
Bucky little wing you flew away
But didn’t stop to pick him up that day even though he was late
We drove by
A year later my family moved, he moved to the same town far away
We became friends, smoked cigs, played ball together in all kinds of weather
We worked on our jump shot
Bucky little wing, you flew away
His name was Charles, he was my friend
We got along, but in the end
Bucky little wing, you flew away
It was tough being weak, while Bucky was strong
His daddy died in a car wreck
And I got sick of being pushed around
Standing my ground when Bucky had my back
Hiding in a bush and it’s okay
We started rolling with a different crew
Before I knew it we drifted to
Bucky little wing you flew away
Once some racist kids, this is what I heard, pushed him underneath a moving truck
It swerved but got his head on accident
They ran like devils in the night
Word was he died. I didn’t cry but oh, oh how I tried
Monday came and he did too, so he didn’t die
Just some violet bruises and one shut eye
Can’t believe that he survived, he was like a ghost after that day
But he was just so mighty you might say
His name was Charles, he was my friend
We got along but in the end
Bucky little wing you flew away
Bucky little wing you flew away
Lyrics submitted by sterile.stars
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i love this song. i think it's about childhood friends splitting as they grow up
where can i find this song?
it's a hidden track on Return To The Sea. it starts to play after about 5 minutes after the last song. i didn't know it was there until i uploaded my cd on to iTunes.
the first five minutes of this song, if you turn it all the way up, you can hear a rainstorm.
Absolutely love this one, and yes i noticed when i was listening to my islands c.d. that it sounded like it was raining so i kept listening and was rewarded with this innocent childhood gem, perfect ending to a solid album.
This might be about Alden.