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Boatman Lyrics
Hearts were exploding around us
As we drifted south down the bay
The gray up above and gray down below
Left us with nothing to say
So we drifted along in silence
'Til the tickle of life trickled in
And the rhythm began in the hiss of the sand
We were catching fire again
Oh boatman, I am the river
I am the mountain and the sea
Oh boatman, taker and giver
Can you deliver me
I would forever run free
Yeah we finally caught up with the legends
We were walking along side by side
We worked out a plan
To go out hand in hand
But the long trail just wasn't that wide
The water around us was freezing
We just laughed and threw ourselves in
And although we were old
The sting of that cold
Pumped up the feeling, here it is again
Oh boatman, I am the river
I am the mountain and the sea
Oh boatman, taker and giver
Can you deliver me
I would forever run free
Oh I'm a message in a bottle
Drifting along on a deep blue sea
Waiting for some foreign shore
Ready for something to be
No longer afraid of falling
We cut the strings to the sky
We found level ground
And we put ourselves down
Amazing we all didn't die
We took each moment as given
By second by second they came
The ice and the sun and the thundering guns
Good God I was finally sane
Oh boatman, I am the river
I am the mountain and the sea
Oh boatman, taker and giver
Can you deliver me
I would forever run free
As we drifted south down the bay
The gray up above and gray down below
Left us with nothing to say
'Til the tickle of life trickled in
And the rhythm began in the hiss of the sand
We were catching fire again
I am the mountain and the sea
Oh boatman, taker and giver
Can you deliver me
I would forever run free
We were walking along side by side
We worked out a plan
To go out hand in hand
But the long trail just wasn't that wide
We just laughed and threw ourselves in
And although we were old
The sting of that cold
Pumped up the feeling, here it is again
I am the mountain and the sea
Oh boatman, taker and giver
Can you deliver me
I would forever run free
Drifting along on a deep blue sea
Waiting for some foreign shore
Ready for something to be
We cut the strings to the sky
We found level ground
And we put ourselves down
Amazing we all didn't die
By second by second they came
The ice and the sun and the thundering guns
Good God I was finally sane
I am the mountain and the sea
Oh boatman, taker and giver
Can you deliver me
I would forever run free
Song Info
Submitted by
blink182forever On Dec 27, 2006
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According to JT, this is his brother Livingston's poem about how he saved his marriage.
There is a certain irony, I would say, in the river and the mountain (a river's source) asking the boatman to deliver him.
The lyrics at the end on the original album go "Holy roller, I am the river..." Instead of 'Boatman.' Indicating a certain (perhaps vague) religious idea. Also, consider the meaning of the chorus if you parse the 'I am' as not an instance of the verb 'to be' in the first person singular, but as instead one of the names of God ('I am that I am')
You would have to read more about Livingston Taylor to know for certain if he indeed intends the I AM to be parsed this way, but it makes for an interesting interpretation of the chorus.
@riverc Thanks so much for your clarification! I simply Love this song, melody n words. Yes I agree that the I refers to a higher power, maybe nature. The boat man may be God Great Song!
@riverc Thanks so much for your clarification! I simply Love this song, melody n words. Yes I agree that the I refers to a higher power, maybe nature. The boat man may be God Great Song!