Hurricane
Leon Everette Lyrics
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The bridges are lookin' lower shrimp boats hurryin' home
The old man down in the quarter slowly turns to me
Took another sip of whiskey then he looked at me and said:
Man, I was born in the rain by the Pontchartrain
Beneath that Louisiana moon
Don't mind the strain of a hurricane
And high black water she's the devil's daughter
She's hard and she's cold and she's mean
Nobody's taught her that it takes a lot of water
To wash away New Orleans
A man come down from Chicago gonna set that levee right
He said it's got to be three feet high up or it won't make it through the night
The old man down in the quarter said don't you listen to that boy
The water be down by the mornin' son he'll be on his way back to Illinois
Man, I was born in the rain by the Pontchartrain
Beneath that Louisiana moon
Don't mind the strain of a hurricane
She come's around every June
And high black water she's the devil's daughter
She's hard and she's cold and she's mean
But we finally taught her that it takes a lot of water
To wash away New Orleans
In Leon Everette’s song “Hurricane,” he paints a vivid picture of the fear and warning that comes with the impending arrival of a hurricane. The Gulf Stream is alive with a sound that is ominous and foreboding. Shrimp boats are rushing to make it back to the safety of the docks as the bridges hang low. Amidst this chaos, stands an old man in the quarter who takes a swig of whiskey as he imparts words of wisdom to the singer. The old man cryptically tells him that he was born in the rain by the Pontchartrain beneath that Louisiana moon. The weight of this statement is not lost on the listener. The old man appears to be imparting that he has witnessed the hurricane before and it doesn't always bode well for everyone. The hurricane is portrayed as a powerful entity that no one can control. She appears every June, and the high black water is the devil's daughter. She is hard, cold, and mean. Nobody taught her it takes a lot of water to wash away New Orleans.
The second verse describes a man from Chicago who has come to set the levee right, but the old man dismisses him. He says the water will be down by morning, and the man will be on his way back to Illinois. This illustrates how much trust people have in their own experience and knowledge of the land. The song deals with themes of resilience in the face of natural disasters and the hopes and fears of generations living in New Orleans.
Line by Line Meaning
Thirty miles out in the Gulf Stream I can hear those south winds moan
From a distance in the ocean, I can hear the eerie sound of south winds that signify an impending storm
The bridges are lookin' lower shrimp boats hurryin' home
The bridges seem to be sinking, and the boats are rushing back to the port to seek shelter from the storm
The old man down in the quarter slowly turns to me
An elderly citizen from the neighborhood looks at me, possibly to share his wisdom
Took another sip of whiskey then he looked at me and said:
After having a sip of his whiskey, the old man stared at me and started speaking
Man, I was born in the rain by the Pontchartrain
I was born nearby the Pontchartrain lake, where it rains heavily and frequently dams the region with water
Beneath that Louisiana moon
I was born and raised under the influence of the Louisiana moonlight
Don't mind the strain of a hurricane
I'm accustomed to facing the challenges of hurricanes, and I'm not bothered by its impact anymore
She come's 'round every June
Hurricanes usually arrive in June, around the same time every year
And high black water she's the devil's daughter
The flood caused by the hurricane is the creation of the devil, or an evil force
She's hard and she's cold and she's mean
The hurricane is brutal and merciless, and it does not spare anyone who comes in its way
Nobody's taught her that it takes a lot of water
The hurricane does not understand that it would take a lot of water to wash away all of New Orleans
To wash away New Orleans
It would require an enormous amount of water to destroy New Orleans
A man come down from Chicago gonna set that levee right
An engineer from Chicago has arrived to fix the levee that protects the city from the floodwaters
He said it's got to be three feet high up or it won't make it through the night
The levee has to be three feet high if it were to withstand the storm through the entire night
The old man down in the quarter said don't you listen to that boy
The elderly man advises the singer not to trust the engineer from Chicago and follow his guidance blindly
The water be down by the mornin' son he'll be on his way back to Illinois
The floodwaters will recede by the morning, and the engineer will head back to Illinois
But we finally taught her that it takes a lot of water
We have realized that it requires a vast amount of water to wipe out an entire city
To wash away New Orleans
It would take a lot of water to completely inundate and obliterate New Orleans
Contributed by Victoria B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.