The band's most famous songs have been renditions of the folk music classics "The Log Driver's Waltz" and "Drunken Sailor", as well as a cover of the Arrogant Worms' "The Last Saskatchewan Pirate". This song has become so popular that many fans believe, wrongly, that is of their own creation.
This Time Tomorrow
Captain Tractor Lyrics
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We used to listen to the radio and stare out at the sea
I know you don't recall that song we heard
But I haven't forgotten a single word
It's nothing to you it was everything to me
I'm weary of this tired town and wary of its vices
And we were finished years ago, I'm sure that you'd agree
"Don't know you anymore," is all you say
Did you rehearse how you would say how you'd been missing me?
REFRAIN:
Not bound to this desolate place
This time tomorrow I'll be gone
1400 miles and moving
Leave these troubled streets behind
Forget the look on your desolate face
This time tomorrow I'll be no one
Nothing but a ghost of something fading in the dust
Of all you have and all you know and all you see
All you'll have is this memory of me
I've nothing left to leave with you -
Just leave you with your silence
But I would give a fortune to know
What's churning in your head
Because the sentiment of your silent smile
Has silently been killing me all the while
What I would give to get inside your skull
Sort through all the things you haven't said
REFRAIN
It's what you haven't said
And what you haven't done
And all the things you haven't mentioned
REFRAIN
Captain Tractor's song "This Time Tomorrow" is a poignant and introspective ballad about a former couple meeting up for the first time in a while. The lyrics describe the scene of their reunion, which takes place in a rundown harbor. The singer reminisces about their past, recalling how they used to listen to the radio and watch the sea together. The singer still remembers the lyrics to a song they heard, even though their ex seems to have forgotten. This disparity highlights the divergent paths their lives have taken since they parted ways, with the singer feeling everything deeply, while their ex appears more detached.
The singer is weary of the town and its vices, and they know that their relationship with their ex is over. However, they still long for some closure or understanding about what might be going through their ex's mind. The ex is uncommunicative, only saying that they don't recognize the singer anymore, and that the singer will be back on the road tomorrow. The refrain, "This Time Tomorrow I'll be gone," highlights the fleeting and transitory nature of life, and how, even if things seem bleak now, they will pass, and tomorrow is a new day.
The singer desires to know what is going on in the ex's head, to sift through the things they haven't said, and to reconcile their differences, but they are left with nothing but silence. The song's final plaintive chorus reinforces how everything is fleeting, that we never know what the future will bring, and that memories are the only things we have to hold onto.
Line by Line Meaning
It's been a while since we met here beside this dirty harbour
It has been a long time since we last met at this dirty harbor.
We used to listen to the radio and stare out at the sea
In the past, we used to listen to the radio and look at the sea.
I know you don't recall that song we heard
I understand that you do not remember the song we heard together.
But I haven't forgotten a single word
However, I remember every word of that song.
It's nothing to you it was everything to me
Even though it means nothing to you, that song was very important to me.
I'm weary of this tired town and wary of its vices
I am tired of this boring place and cautious of its negative qualities.
And we were finished years ago, I'm sure that you'd agree
I am confident that you agree we ended our relationship a long time ago.
"Don't know you anymore," is all you say
You only say, "I do not know you anymore."
"And you're back out on the road tomorrow anyway."
"And you will be leaving on the road again tomorrow anyway."
Did you rehearse how you would say how you'd been missing me?
Did you prepare what to say when you saw me again and acted like you missed me?
Not bound to this desolate place
I am not tied to this bleak location.
This time tomorrow I'll be gone
By this time tomorrow, I will have left.
1400 miles and moving
I will be moving 1400 miles away.
Leave these troubled streets behind
I am leaving these problematic streets behind.
Forget the look on your desolate face
I will forget the expression on your lonely face.
This time tomorrow I'll be no one
By this time tomorrow, I will be no one to you.
Nothing but a ghost of something fading in the dust
I will only be a memory that is slowly disappearing.
Of all you have and all you know and all you see
Despite everything you have, know, and see, all you will have is memories of me.
All you'll have is this memory of me
The only thing you will have is a memory of me.
I've nothing left to leave with you - Just leave you with your silence
I have nothing else to offer you but my silence.
But I would give a fortune to know What's churning in your head
I would pay a great deal to know what is going on in your mind.
Because the sentiment of your silent smile Has silently been killing me all the while
Your smile, which expresses nothing, has been hurting me silently this whole time.
What I would give to get inside your skull Sort through all the things you haven't said
I wish I could get inside your head and understand all the things you have not told me.
It's what you haven't said And what you haven't done And all the things you haven't mentioned
It is all the things you did not say, have not done, and did not mention.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
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