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Tidewaiter (feat. Carol Keogh)

from Old Ghosts In The Water by SJ McArdle

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about

A retiring customs officer (a ‘tidewaiter’) looks back on the glory days of his youth, rummaging the incoming vessels at the old customs station at Queensborough, sniffing out contraband and unpaid dues in the name of the King.

lyrics

We used to wait out at Queensborough
Where the dippers sing in the hiss of the reeds,
Dawn spreads slowly over the mud banks
And the shearwaters silently wheel on the breeze

And the ships would come in, and expertly we’d gauge them
Mark them by their lie and their flag and their name
We’d approach in our boats and loudly we’d hail them
With authority board them in the King’s name

Saying “Show me the wood and the iron
Show me what lies unseen
Show me the saltwort and barilla
Show me your hands are clean”

Yes I worked in the Waterguard as a tidewaiter
I rummaged the ships in the Port, on the quay
Looking for anything hidden within there
I was a bloodhound - nothing escaped me

Saying “Show me the wood and the iron
Show me what lies unseen
Show me the saltwort and barilla
Show me your hands are clean”

We board your ships
We know your hiding places
We read your packing lists
We read your faces
And nothing gets by us

On Sundays it’s quiet all along the dockside
And we’re not as busy as we used to be
Early June and the cool of the river
Morning tide pushing up on the lee

credits

from Old Ghosts In The Water, released July 1, 2022
Written by SJ McArdle

Carol – lead vocal
SJ – harmony vocal, acoustic guitars, 6 and 12 string electric guitars, mandolins
John – harmony vocal
Trevor – double bass
Dermot – accordion

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about

SJ McArdle image

SJ McArdle Drogheda, Ireland

SJ McArdle is an Irish songwriter and musician who has toured internationally, had several songs in movies and has released four solo albums.

He is known in part for his former work with Kern and with Long Woman's Grave with Nuala Kennedy & Trevor Hutchinson.

“Bravo for an artist who has taken contemporary Irish music to parts it far too seldom reaches” – Hot Press

Artist photos: Brian Connolly ... more

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