Petula Clark (born 15 November 1932) is a British singer, actress, and song… Read Full Bio ↴Petula Clark (born 15 November 1932) is a British singer, actress, and songwriter. She started her professional career as a child performer and has had one of the longest careers of any British entertainer, spanning more than eight decades. Clark's professional career began during the Second World War as a child entertainer on BBC Radio. In 1954 she charted with "The Little Shoemaker", the first of her big UK hits, and within two years she began recording in French. Her international successes have included "Prends mon cœur", "Sailor" (a UK number one), "Romeo", and "Chariot". Hits in German, Italian, and Spanish followed. In late 1964 Clark's success extended to the United States with a four-year run of career-defining, often upbeat singles, many written or co-written by Tony Hatch and Jackie Trent. These include her signature song "Downtown" (US number one), "I Know a Place", "My Love" (US number one), "A Sign of the Times", "I Couldn't Live Without Your Love", "Who Am I", "Colour My World", "This Is My Song" (by Charlie Chaplin) (a UK number one), "Don't Sleep in the Subway", "The Other Man's Grass Is Always Greener" and "Kiss Me Goodbye". Between January 1965 and April 1968 Clark charted with nine US Top 20 hits in the US, where she was sometimes called "the First Lady of the British Invasion".

Clark has sold more than 68 million records. She has also enjoyed success in the musical film Finian's Rainbow and in the stage musicals The Sound of Music, Blood Brothers, Sunset Boulevard, and Mary Poppins.

Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petula_Clark

Discography
Petula Clark Sings (1956)
A Date with Pet (1956)
You Are My Lucky Star (1957)
À Musicorama (1958)
Petula Clark in Hollywood / Pet Clark (1959)
Prends mon coeur (1959)
Tête à tête avec Petula Clark (1961)
Rendez-vous avec Petula Clark (1962)
In Other Words (1962)
Petula (1962)
Le soleil dans les yeux (1963)
Ceux qui ont un coeur (1964)
Hello Paris (1964)
Petula au Canada (1964)
Downtown (1965)
I Know a Place (1965)
The World's Greatest International Hits (1965)
Petula '65 (1965)
My Love (1966)
I Couldn't Live Without Your Love (1966)
Petula Clark '66 (1966)
Colour My World (1967)
These Are My Songs (1967)
C'est ma chanson (1967)
Petula Italiana (1967)
The Other Man's Grass Is Always Greener (1968)
Petula (1968)
Portrait of Petula (1969)
Just Pet (1969)
Memphis (1970)
Warm and Tender / The Song of My Life (1971)
Comme une prière (1972)
La chanson de Marie-Madeleine (1972)
Now (1972)
Come On Home (1974)
I'm The Woman You Need (1975)
Je reviens (1977)
Destiny (1978)
Where The Heart Is (1998)
Here For You (1998)
Solitude & Sunshine: The Songs of Rod McKuen (2007)
Lost in You (2013)
From Now On (2016)
Living For Today (2017)
Vu d'ici (2018)

My Friend the Sea
Petula Clark Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Oh you great ocean so deep, Oh you ocean so wide
I feel you are my friend so in you I confide
You know the world, every land, every shore
There's not a place you don't explore

Send every wave as it rolls on it's way
Searchin' high, searchin' low, searchin' each little bay
Send out a plea to the whole of seven seas

Where is the one I adore?

My friend the sea, be true to me
My love, one day sailed far away
My friend the sea, please ask the tide
To bring my love home to my side

Oh you great ocean so deep, Oh you ocean so wide
There are hearts you unite, There are hearts you divide
You know the world; Every river, mountain, stream
Look everywhere you've ever been

Ask all the fish as they swim out to sea
Would they pass on the word as a favor to me
Maybe they'll look out some little brook
And find the one I adore

My friend the sea, be true to me
My love, one day sailed far away

My friend the sea, please ask the tide
To bring my love home to my side

Overall Meaning

"My Friend the Sea" by Petula Clark is a song about feeling a deep connection to the ocean, and turning to it for help finding a lost love. The singer speaks directly to the ocean, expressing trust in it as a friend and confidant. The ocean is presented as a vast, wise entity that has knowledge of every land and shore, and is therefore capable of helping the singer find the person they love. The lyrics use personification to make the ocean seem like a reliable and powerful force, capable of sending out waves and asking fish for help. The ocean is also presented as having the power to unite or divide hearts.

The chorus of the song focuses on the singer's plea for the ocean to help them find their lost love. They ask the ocean to "be true" to them, and to ask the tide to bring their love back to their side. There's a sense of desperation in the singer's voice, but also a deep trust in the ocean's strength and ability to help them.

Overall, "My Friend the Sea" is a beautifully crafted song that embodies a sense of longing, love, and trust in the power of nature to guide us through difficult times.

Line by Line Meaning

Oh you great ocean so deep, Oh you ocean so wide
The singer expresses admiration for the vastness and depth of the ocean.

I feel you are my friend so in you I confide
The singer feels a strong connection to the ocean and shares their innermost thoughts and feelings with it.

You know the world, every land, every shore
The singer acknowledges the vast knowledge of the ocean, having explored every corner of the world.

There's not a place you don't explore
The artist emphasizes again the all-encompassing nature of the ocean's exploration.

Send every wave as it rolls on its way
The artist implores the ocean to take a message and send it far and wide.

Searchin' high, searchin' low, searchin' each little bay
The singer asks the ocean to thoroughly search every nook and cranny for their lost love.

Send out a plea to the whole of seven seas
The singer urges the ocean to reach out to all corners of the world in their quest to find their love.

Where is the one I adore?
The artist is desperate to find their lost love and pleads with the ocean to help locate them.

My friend the sea, be true to me
The artist trusts the ocean to help find their love and implores it to stay loyal in their pursuit.

My love, one day sailed far away
The artist's love has left them and the artist is still struggling with the loss.

My friend the sea, please ask the tide
The singer asks the ocean to specifically reach out to the tides for help.

To bring my love home to my side
The artist's ultimate goal is to reunite with their love and they hope the ocean can help make that happen.

There are hearts you unite, There are hearts you divide
The singer acknowledges that the ocean has the power to bring people together or keep them apart.

You know the world; Every river, mountain, stream
The singer emphasizes the vast knowledge and experience of the ocean, including every geographic landform.

Look everywhere you've ever been
The singer implores the ocean to leave no stone unturned in their search for their lost love.

Ask all the fish as they swim out to sea
The artist expands their search beyond the ocean itself to ask for help from the creatures that live within it.

Would they pass on the word as a favor to me
The artist asks the fish to spread the message about their lost love to others they may meet along their way.

Maybe they'll look out some little brook
The singer imagines that the fish may find their lost love hidden in a small, unlikely place.

And find the one I adore
The singer's ultimate goal is to find their lost love, no matter where they may be hiding.

Contributed by Jasmine M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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Comments from YouTube:

@johnsamuel1725

20w

Such lovely songs and singers from the past,Great to listen to and reminisce ❤

@marlenesullivan3113

1y↑2

2023. STILL A FAVORITE SONG TO ME💙🎶

@johnsamuel1725

1y↑1

Lovely song and lovely voice

@davidking4059

4y↑2

Used to listen to this often on Magic 1278. Gosh I miss Magic

@VealParmigiana

15y↑5

Beautiful song, one of myfavorite songs of the 60s, and just a blip in Petula's great career.

@bill1952

13y↑4

I too have this lovely song on the Purple Pye 45, a real blast from the past. Beautiful.

@Focusdoll

13y↑5

have not heard it for 40 years, used to love it, still do

@stephenking8754

2y↑1

me too

@twinlorna

15y↑5

Love Petula,the song and the video.

@theresacollins9315

11y↑7

one of my favourite Petula Clark song

@sydneycat22

15y↑2

i still have this one on the old purple 45 pye label,and its scratched to death,good song!

@elsapetersen750

9y↑13

I love this!

@caiyonsiwabessy1843

9y↑1

Not received, but its....my friend the sea be good to ect ect yeb.
beautiful melody also, Elsa

@kingdavideaglehawk9437

7y↑1

Elsa Petersen So Do I, Good Looking! :)😘

@davidking4059

4y↑1

Me too Elsa

@playokay

6y↑1

This song reminds me of another Petula Clark video from the same era called 'Treat Me Right'. It used to be posted on you tube, but its no longer here. The theme was Petula on a boat and her singing alongside these Italian fisherman hauling in their daily catch. It was really a catchy little song.

@mireilleverrilli7906

Petula Méga Star🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

@carmenagius896

Angelic voice l love to hear her songs. Best wishes for her 90th birtday.,,, ❤️

@marlenesullivan3113

SO MANY GREAT SONGS

@robertclarke552

she sings it so well. wonderful catchy song

@marlenesullivan3113

REAL GEM OF A SINGER

@ijusttellthetruth04

4y↑1

I would listen to this when I played FO4

@MrRonnieG

13y↑3

Pet Clark was 20 years old when this recording was made in 1962. Kind of boggles the mind to think that she's still performing @ small venues to this day!

@ashaross7862

and 5 years on still performing!

@ashaross7862

Petula is like her song Never Enough...'some people stay the same but I keep changing and rearranging' and still gets through.

@desmondfitzgerald8063

6y↑2

RON, petula was THIRTY, not twenty, in 1962.

@mireilkeverrilli8254

😘💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕Pétula

@lizprice7913

My mother taught me to.sing this to her

@RCPoems

12y↑3

Written by Jack Fishman who wrote for Petula for decades, one of her biggest UK hits ..bigger than many of the Tony Hatch ones. jack wrote lovely songs like IF I ONLY HAD TIME and THE SONG OF MY LIFE , as well as Petula's film songs from THE HUGGETTS series

@kiwitrainguy

4y↑1

"My friend The Sea" written by Jack FISHman - how appropriate!

@MMTB616

Made it to position 87 in Australia in 1962.

@RCPoems

@Paul Nicholson huge UK hit bigger than many of the Tony hatch later ones

@williamsmith9048

17w

First record i bought

@1948DESMOND

7y↑3

this song was TYPICAL of the pre-beatle era, at least in the u.k.
then the beatles arrived with songs that were more realistic, i suppopse, of true lurve!!