The Gulf Of Mexico
Steve Earle Lyrics
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And a tale to you I'll tell
Of my father and his father
In the days before the spill
With an endless sky above 'em
And a restless sea below
And every blessin' flowing from the Gulf of Mexico
From the time that he was grown
And he scrimped and saved and bought himself
A trawler of his own
He was rough and he was ready
And he drank when he was home
But he made his family's livin' on the Gulf of Mexico
He was rollin'
He was rollin'
'Cross the deep blue water
He was rollin'
Well my Daddy drove a crew boat
Haulin' workers to the rigs
He was sick of mendin' nets
And couldn't stand the smell of fish
So he drew a steady paycheck
Twenty years from Texaco
When he died we spread his ashes
On the Gulf of Mexico
He was rollin'
He was rollin'
'Cross the deep green water
He was rollin'
As for me I dreamed of nothing
Any grander than the day
That I stepped out on the drillin' floor
To earn a roughneck's pay
Then one night I swear I saw the devil
Crawlin' from the hole
And he spilled the guts of hell out in the Gulf of Mexico
We were rollin'
We were rollin'
'Cross the blood-red water
We were rollin'
In Steve Earle's song The Gulf Of Mexico, he tells the story of his family's connection to the Gulf of Mexico. He begins by speaking to a group of people and recounting the days before the BP oil spill disaster, when the Gulf was a place of endless opportunity and blessing. He then goes on to speak of his grandfather who worked on a shrimp boat and scrimped his way to owning his own trawler. Although rough and ready, he provided for his family on the Gulf. Steve then tells of his own father who drove a crew boat and hauled workers to the rigs, not happy with the smell of fish. He worked for years at Texaco and his ashes were spread on the Gulf when he passed away.
Steve then moves on to speaking about himself and his dreams of working on the drilling floor and earning a roughneck's pay. However, one night he witnessed something horrifying - the devil crawling out of a hole and spilling the guts of hell into the Gulf of Mexico. The final verse speaks to the tragedy of the BP oil spill disaster, with the blood-red water symbolizing the great loss and destruction that have occurred.
The song explores the theme of heritage and the deep connections families can have to a particular place. It also touches on the environmental devastation of the BP oil spill disaster and the impact it had on people's lives and the natural world.
Line by Line Meaning
Come and gather 'round me people
Attention everyone, come closer to hear my story
And a tale to you I'll tell
I have a story to share with you
Of my father and his father
This is a story about my grandfather and my father
In the days before the spill
This story takes place before a tragic event occurred
With an endless sky above 'em
The sky seemed infinite above their heads
And a restless sea below
The sea was constantly moving beneath them
And every blessin' flowing from the Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico provided them with great benefits
Well my Granddad worked the shrimp boats
My grandfather's job was to work on shrimp boats
From the time that he was grown
He started working on them when he became an adult
And he scrimped and saved and bought himself
He saved every penny until he could afford
A trawler of his own
To purchase his own fishing boat
He was rough and he was ready
He was tough and always prepared
And he drank when he was home
But he liked to drink when he wasn't working
But he made his family's livin' on the Gulf of Mexico
Despite his faults, he was able to provide for his family thanks to the Gulf of Mexico
He was rollin'
He was out at sea
He was rollin'
He was out at sea
'Cross the deep blue water
Traveling across deep blue waters
He was rollin'
He was out at sea
Well my Daddy drove a crew boat
My father's job was to drive a boat for a crew
Haulin' workers to the rigs
He transported employees to the oil rigs
He was sick of mendin' nets
He was tired of repairing fishing nets
And couldn't stand the smell of fish
The odor of fish was unbearable for him
So he drew a steady paycheck
He managed to earn a consistent salary
Twenty years from Texaco
He worked for 20 years for the company Texaco
When he died we spread his ashes
After his death, we scattered his ashes
On the Gulf of Mexico
We dispersed his ashes on the waters where he used to work
As for me I dreamed of nothing
I didn't aspire to anything else
Any grander than the day
Anything greater than the moment
That I stepped out on the drillin' floor
When I started working on the oil rig
To earn a roughneck's pay
To receive the wages of a roughneck
Then one night I swear I saw the devil
I had a frightening experience and believed I saw the devil
Crawlin' from the hole
Emerging from the drilling hole
And he spilled the guts of hell out in the Gulf of Mexico
Something terrible happened, and it negatively impacted the Gulf of Mexico
We were rollin'
We were out at sea
We were rollin'
We were out at sea
'Cross the blood-red water
Traveling across water that has turned red due to the spill
We were rollin'
We were out at sea
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: STEVE EARLE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind