From the recording Twelve Children (CD-quality WAV)
This song is based off a tragically beautiful poem by Deborah Golden - which struck me profoundly. Deborah was a dear college friend (through my wife Cordelia), and we sang together at time in a small apartment overlooking Riverside Park near 101st street. She has a keen eye for finding poetry in the world, and she has an amazing ability to share that sight with her loved ones. It remains heartbreaking for me to think of someone wanting only to share something so rich and beautiful as the sound of the waves -- Susurrus -- only to have that sharing fall on arrogant, deaf ears.
Joe Colgan's guitar work and Tim Kemp's keyboard work absolutely helped this song find itself, highlighting what I love most about the collaborative studio process -- sharing the skeleton of an idea, a motif, and having a small group of talented musicians give birth to a full, richly layered piece of art.
Lyrics
Wanted to give you the ocean
Wanted to say tide, blood, moon, salt
Want to whisper sussurus
Murmer endless, endless
Offer you both truth and story
But you knew this, already, all of it
I've shared before, too many times
Even then, this is the kind of thing
You've always known before me
You've always known before me
Before words, even words
The sea was never mine to give
But, if I could, I would take it in
Weight, the glory, the terror
Allow it to eclipse even the shadow of what I was
To give it back to you new
To see you see it for the first time
To give it back to you new
Watching the shine of it overtake you
To hear your voice say glimmer
To hear your voice say salt
Say Ocean, meaning yes, yes, yes, yes
Tide, blood, moon, and salt
I want to give you the Ocean