Track Insight / Lyrics
I drove the cab through rain for thirty years
I know the smell of salt and rust and tears
The ferry horn is groaning out its sound
Another day the water pulls me down
Salt and rust on everything I touch
The wind will take it all and that's too much
I'm standing on the pier and coming loose
The harbor owns my bones, I pay my dues
I watch the deckhand stumble on the plank
His hands are shaking, everything is blank
The ropes are frayed and so am I today
The tide don't care what either of us say
Salt and rust on everything I touch
The wind will take it all and that's too much
I'm standing on the pier and coming loose
The harbor owns my bones, I pay my dues
I've seen men break like waves against the stone
They work the boats and end up all alone
The gulls are screaming something I can't hear
The fog is rolling in and I am here
My father said the sea don't owe you nothing
You take the work and keep your mouth shut tight
But every night I hear that ferry running
And wonder why I never learned to fight
The deckhand's eyes are wide and full of doubt
He's trying hard to find a way to shout
I tell him son, the harbor takes its toll
You keep your feet and never lose control
Salt and rust on everything I touch
The wind will take it all and that's too much
I'm standing on the pier and coming loose
The harbor owns my bones, I pay my dues
The morning comes and we are still alive
The ferry leaves at seven forty-five
I drive my cab and he will sail away
We're both just trying to make it through the day
Salt and rust on everything I touch
The wind will take it all and that's too much
I'm standing on the pier and coming loose
The harbor owns my bones, I pay my dues
Salt and rust, salt and rust
The harbor keeps us, that's enough
