The version of this song feat. Natalie Merchant in collaboration with Lunasa is one of the sweetest songs I've ever heard. It is a story about a boy who grows into a man during a war. (I'm presuming it to be the 100 Years War in England, but I could be wrong). In the beginning of the song, the boy is hanging out on the docks looking to trade with sailors on a merchant freighter which is about to set sail. A young sailor promises him to bring him a fez, a drum, a sword, and a parakeet. Three years go by, in which time the ship was attacked during it's voyage. The boy is no longer a boy after 3 years but has turned into a man. Keeping to his word, the sailor makes it back with the things he promised the boy, only to find out that the boy doesn't even recognize him anymore, having grown up. The sailor must have been through such an ordeal that it changed his appearance. The young boy who is now a man notices that the children who used to be on the ship are no longer there, which means they either didn't survive the voyage or were captured. This is a song about growing up and forgetting about who you used to be when you were young. How age and experience changes you.
@Joeknob11 To correct myself. This song is set in WW1. I've read other interpretations as the ship returning being a "ghost ship" and that the sailor is dead and the person bringing the presents is a stranger. It represents the loss of innocence, as the world has been forever changed
@Joeknob11 To correct myself. This song is set in WW1. I've read other interpretations as the ship returning being a "ghost ship" and that the sailor is dead and the person bringing the presents is a stranger. It represents the loss of innocence, as the world has been forever changed
"The young boy who is now a man notices that the children who used to be on the ship are no longer there, which means they either didn't survive the voyage or were captured. "
"The young boy who is now a man notices that the children who used to be on the ship are no longer there, which means they either didn't survive the voyage or were captured. "
I thought it mean that the children had also grown up.
I thought it mean that the children had also grown up.
The version of this song feat. Natalie Merchant in collaboration with Lunasa is one of the sweetest songs I've ever heard. It is a story about a boy who grows into a man during a war. (I'm presuming it to be the 100 Years War in England, but I could be wrong). In the beginning of the song, the boy is hanging out on the docks looking to trade with sailors on a merchant freighter which is about to set sail. A young sailor promises him to bring him a fez, a drum, a sword, and a parakeet. Three years go by, in which time the ship was attacked during it's voyage. The boy is no longer a boy after 3 years but has turned into a man. Keeping to his word, the sailor makes it back with the things he promised the boy, only to find out that the boy doesn't even recognize him anymore, having grown up. The sailor must have been through such an ordeal that it changed his appearance. The young boy who is now a man notices that the children who used to be on the ship are no longer there, which means they either didn't survive the voyage or were captured. This is a song about growing up and forgetting about who you used to be when you were young. How age and experience changes you.
@Joeknob11 To correct myself. This song is set in WW1. I've read other interpretations as the ship returning being a "ghost ship" and that the sailor is dead and the person bringing the presents is a stranger. It represents the loss of innocence, as the world has been forever changed
@Joeknob11 To correct myself. This song is set in WW1. I've read other interpretations as the ship returning being a "ghost ship" and that the sailor is dead and the person bringing the presents is a stranger. It represents the loss of innocence, as the world has been forever changed
"The young boy who is now a man notices that the children who used to be on the ship are no longer there, which means they either didn't survive the voyage or were captured. "
"The young boy who is now a man notices that the children who used to be on the ship are no longer there, which means they either didn't survive the voyage or were captured. "
I thought it mean that the children had also grown up.
I thought it mean that the children had also grown up.