Quay Cur
The Fiery Furnaces Lyrics


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I had a locket, a little silver charm,
Given to me so to keep me out of harm.
Canvasing the quayside trying to earn my keep,
A killick tore it off my neck and threw it in the deep.
And now I'll never, never, never feel like I am safe again
And now I'll never, never, never feel like I am safe again
And now I'll never, never, never feel like I am safe again.
Up to the quarentine, late night aboard,
Try to raise our fees but we get what they afford.
Busy work below deck according to form;
Waiting for the clear to leave but then comes up a storm.
We hid beneath the barrels of blubber hoping that the rain had passed
But when the wind kept up the rats cut down the rigging off the mast
And then the rust chewed through the anchor chain and out to sea we're cast.
The clouds dried and cracked
It was calm in fact
The ship had been towed,
By sea Dyaks towed
So we're sold Kolaba
'n sent -- I let out a sob, a
cry oh no it's disaster -- T-Ranter Bay Madacascar.
Great gulps of Greek fire get us in;
Sling sticks at the stockade Fort Dauphin;
A guardsman gave a griffin said grease my duke:
Down by the chimney and out through the fluke.
A looby, a lordant, a lagerhead, lozel,
a lungio lathback made me a proposal:
Straight sail, top mast, astrolabe prospected
down in his dry dock erected infected;
Mocked up with silk strings and taffeta tricked
with nails out of driftwood already iron sicked:
now spy out the glass at whatever missteps me
and the press gang warrant's signed Sir Edward Pepsi.
Course it wasn't long till I caught the croup,
Dawding on the drizzy deck of my majesty's sloop.
If only the hlmsman would turn from his whip staff
With my azimuth compass I'd go by the hectograph
Up to the whaling fleet in Gilbert sound
Then back in the hull when we come around
With 100 seats and 2 polar bears
Nearly in the harbor without any cares,
But then:
A looby, a lordant, a lagerhead, lozel,
a lungio lathback made me a proposal:
Straight sail, top mast, astrolabe prospected
down in his dry dock erected infected;
Mocked up with silk strings and taffeta tricked
with nails out of driftwood already iron sicked:
now spy out the glass at whatever missteps me
and the press gang warrant's signed Sir Edward Pepsi.
Half hour sandglass
Seven saker round shot
Ice for the moonshine
And chichsaneg.
Canyglow, canyglow, canyglow don't say nugo
Tie tight my sugnacoon
In comes the tucktodo
Aba in aob aginyoh.
Look awennye
Get out my sawygmeg
Yliaout, yliaout
Weave us on shore
Unuiche quoysah
Maconmeg
And I gave a sasobneg.
Canyglow, canyglow, canyglow don't say nugo
Tie tight my sugnacoon
In comes the tucktodo
Aba in aob aginyoh.
And now we live by muskles, water weeds with small relief in store
And all the sick men in the Galean were then put upon the shore
And on the 22nd we didn't see our general any more.
Down came our trestle-trees, no pitch tar or nails;
Fore shrouds break no rope we trust;
Only shift of sails.
Drink my Rosa Solis; struck suddenly ahull
Yield ourselves we spoomed, my sinews stiff,
My eyes were dull.
And now I'll never, never, never feel like I am safe again
And now I'll never, never, never feel like I am safe again
And now I'll never, never, never feel like I am safe again.
And as we pass the equinoctial only 5 of us could stand




And while the capsten without sheets or tacks by all of us was manned
And on the 11th day of June ran in at Barehaven to land.

Overall Meaning

The Fiery Furnaces’ song “Quay Cur” is a sea shanty that tells the tale of a sailor's misfortunes while traversing across the sea. The song opens with the sailor reminiscing about a little silver locket that was given to them as a gift to keep them safe from harm. However, while working on the quayside to earn their keep, the locket was torn off by a killick and thrown into the deep waters, leaving the sailor feeling unsafe and vulnerable. As the song progresses, it describes the sailor's encounters with storms, rats, and pressing gangs that force them into a life of uncertainty and danger.


The chorus of “And now I'll never, never, never feel like I am safe again” highlights the sailor's loss of security as they face the perils of life at sea. The song uses vivid imagery to paint a picture of the harsh realities that sailors of old had to endure during their voyages. The lyrics are filled with nautical jargon and slang, which adds to the authenticity and realism of the song.


Overall, “Quay Cur” is a captivating song that invites listeners to immerse themselves in a sailor's world, where danger lurks at every corner, and safety is not guaranteed.


Line by Line Meaning

I had a locket, a little silver charm,
I possessed a piece of jewelry, a small silver trinket,


Given to me so to keep me out of harm.
It was given to me with the purpose of keeping me safe.


Canvasing the quayside trying to earn my keep,
I was looking for work along the dock to make a living,


A killick tore it off my neck and threw it in the deep.
A sailor ripped it from my neck and threw it into the water.


And now I'll never, never, never feel like I am safe again
The loss of the locket made me feel that I will never be safe again.


Up to the quarentine, late night aboard,
On the ship, we headed towards a quarantine station, late at night,


Try to raise our fees but we get what they afford.
We attempted to negotiate our fees but had to settle for what was affordable.


Busy work below deck according to form;
As per routine, we were doing our assigned tasks below the deck.


Waiting for the clear to leave but then comes up a storm.
We were waiting for the weather to clear up to leave, but a storm unexpectedly arrived.


We hid beneath the barrels of blubber hoping that the rain had passed
We sought shelter behind the blubber barrels, hoping that the rain would stop.


But when the wind kept up the rats cut down the rigging off the mast
Due to the strong winds, the rats gnawed at the ropes and brought down the rigging from the mast.


And then the rust chewed through the anchor chain and out to sea we're cast.
As the rust corroded through the anchor chain, we were left adrift in the sea.


The clouds dried and cracked
Eventually, the clouds disappeared, and the sky cleared up.


It was calm in fact
In reality, the weather was calm.


The ship had been towed,
Our ship was pulled by another vessel.


By sea Dyaks towed
The ship was pulled by the Sea Dyaks people.


So we're sold Kolaba
We were put up for sale in Kolaba.


'n sent -- I let out a sob, a cry oh no it's disaster -- T-Ranter Bay Madacascar.
I cried and lamented as we were sent off to T-Ranter Bay, Madagascar, fearing disaster.


Great gulps of Greek fire get us in;
We attacked, pouring Greek fire on the enemy.


Sling sticks at the stockade Fort Dauphin;
We threw sticks at the fort's barricades, trying to break through.


A guardsman gave a griffin said grease my duke:
A soldier asked for a bribe and nervously offered a griffin.


Down by the chimney and out through the fluke.
The bribe was handed through the chimney and accepted through the fluke.


Half hour sandglass
A sand timer that measures half-hour intervals.


Seven saker round shot
Seven cannonballs designed for the Saker gun.


Ice for the moonshine
Ice to cool down the illegally distilled liquor.


Canyglow, canyglow, canyglow don't say nugo
An incantation used for good luck or success in a task.


Tie tight my sugnacoon
Secure my backpack.


In comes the tucktodo
Some form of food delivery.


Aba in aob aginyoh.
Some form of unknown magic spell or incantation.


And now we live by muskles, water weeds with small relief in store
Our means of survival are limited to consuming mussels and water weeds with little hope of improvement.


And all the sick men in the Galean were then put upon the shore
Sick people on the Galean were left onshore alone.


And on the 22nd we didn't see our general any more.
On the 22nd day, our general disappeared, and we haven't seen him since.


Down came our trestle-trees, no pitch tar or nails;
Our masts fell, with no pitch tar or nails to prevent them.


Fore shrouds break no rope we trust;
We can't trust any of our ropes or ties.


Only shift of sails.
All we could do was adjust our sails.


Drink my Rosa Solis; struck suddenly ahull
I drank my Rosa Solis but was jolted by a sudden storm, which left us adrift.


Yield ourselves we spoomed, my sinews stiff,
We surrendered ourselves, feeling stiff and unable to move, due to exhaustion.


My eyes were dull.
My eyes lacked vigor or liveliness.


And as we pass the equinoctial only 5 of us could stand
As we crossed the equator alone 5 of us could continue standing.


And while the capsten without sheets or tacks by all of us was manned
When the capstan was operated by all of us despite the lack of ropes or tacks.


And on the 11th day of June ran in at Barehaven to land.
We reached Barehaven and came to land on June 11th.




Lyrics © Downtown Music Publishing
Written by: MATTHEW FRIEDBERGER

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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