The Watchman's Gone Lyrics
We too have followed the golden sun
It feels so good,
Knowin' the watchman's gone
If I give you a rose, buddy
Would you please bury it in the fields?
I seen a rose
Watchin' it all fold out
It's come to carry my bones away
Two engines on
Twenty-one coaches long
End to end
Twenty-one coaches bend
The watchman's out
Kickin' the bums about
You can bet I'll climb aboard unseen
I've done it before
I know I can do it in my sleep
Kickin'the bums about
The watchman's out
Kickin' your dreams about
Got one more nothin' I'd like to say
"You don't know me
A son of the sea am I"
As I say to you, my brother
If you live to follow the golden sun
You better beware
Knowin' the watchman's always there
Please turn my face up to the sky
And leave me be
Watchin' the moon roll by
Whatever I was
You know it was all because
I've been on the town
Washin' the bullshit down
Kickin' your dreams about
It feels so good
Knowin' the watchman's gone
It's like a song
Knowin' the watchman's gone
One of the greatest tunes written by Gord. Uplifting song about the serenity of dying.
The third verse about the train is very specific regarding the 21 coaches drawn by two engines. Who in history had such a train to carry their bones away? Robert F. Kennedy.
"On June 8, 1968, the 21 car funeral train of Robert F. Kennedy left New York City for Washington, DC. The train was led by GG1 number 4901 with number 4903 trailing, and ended with Penn Central open-platform business car number 120 carrying the body of the late Senator."
The line "21 coaches bend" also seems to be another reference to the event in that a tragic occurrence happened to spectators who stood on an adjacent track to get a better look at the special train as it rounded a curve that day:
"At Elizabeth, NJ, the crowd moved onto the tracks to get a view of the special train, just as "The Admiral", heading to New York City from Chicago, was rounding a curve. "The Admiral's" GG1 sounded its horn, but some of the people in the crowd did not clear the track in time and sadly two were killed and four seriously injured."