The Ghost Ship Releases Gigs Lyrics

Details

Author
Robyn Hitchcock
Versions
Ghost Ship
Performances
113

Releases

Title Artist Label Type Year
Balloon Man Robyn Hitchcock & The Egyptians A&M Records Single 1988
You & Oblivion Robyn Hitchcock Rhino Records Album 1995

Gigs

Billed As Venue City State Country Date
Robyn Hitchcock & the Egyptians Ronnie Scott's London England UK 02/02/1986
Robyn Hitchcock & the Egyptians Turtle's Records Atlanta Georgia US 03/26/1988
Robyn Hitchcock 9:30 Club Washington DC US 07/24/1988
Robyn Hitchcock McCabe's Santa Monica California US 07/30/1988
Robyn Hitchcock & Peter Buck Paradise Lounge San Francisco California US 03/11/1989
Robyn Hitchcock McCabe's Santa Monica California US 04/25/1989
Robyn Hitchcock Backstage Seattle Washington US 09/27/1989
Robyn Hitchcock Cat's Cradle (Chapel Hill NC) Carrboro North Carolina US 04/27/1990
Robyn Hitchcock Cactus Café Austin Texas US 05/15/1990
Robyn Hitchcock Cactus Café Austin Texas US 05/15/1990
Robyn Hitchcock McCabe's Santa Monica California US 05/26/1990
Robyn Hitchcock Newbury Comics Boston Massachusetts US 04/08/1995
Robyn Hitchcock The Ark Ann Arbor Michigan US 04/14/1995
Robyn Hitchcock 12 Bar Club London England UK 01/05/1996
Robyn Hitchcock 12 Bar Club London England UK 09/03/1996
Robyn Hitchcock Beacon Theatre New York New York US 11/15/1996
Robyn Hitchcock Mountain Stage Charleston West Virginia US 11/17/1996
Robyn Hitchcock Maxwell's Hoboken New Jersey US 12/06/1996
Robyn Hitchcock 40 Watt Club Athens Georgia US 02/24/1997
Robyn Hitchcock Knitting Factory New York New York US 03/12/1997
Robyn Hitchcock Knitting Factory New York New York US 03/15/1997
Robyn Hitchcock 12 Bar Club London England UK 07/16/1997
Robyn Hitchcock Largo Los Angeles California US 07/31/1999
Robyn Hitchcock G2 Glasgow Scotland UK 09/30/1999
Robyn Hitchcock's ROCK ARMADA Cactus Café Austin Texas US 10/23/1999
Robyn Hitchcock's ROCK ARMADA Iron Horse Northampton Massachusetts US 10/31/1999
Robyn Hitchcock Ronnie Scott's Birmingham England UK 01/30/2000
Robyn Hitchcock The Rhythm Room Phoenix Arizona US 02/19/2003
Robyn Hitchcock Largo Los Angeles California US 02/22/2003
Robyn Hitchcock Southbank Centre - Queen Elizabeth Hall London England UK 03/02/2003
Robyn Hitchcock Kitty Kat Club Minneapolis Minnesota US 11/04/2004
Robyn Hitchcock Beachland Ballroom Cleveland Ohio US 11/08/2004
Robyn Hitchcock World Café Live Philadelphia Pennsylvania US 11/15/2004
Robyn Hitchcock Largo Los Angeles California US 03/09/2005
Robyn Hitchcock Club Congress Tucson Arizona US 03/13/2005
Robyn Hitchcock Southpaw New York New York US 03/25/2005
Robyn Hitchcock Maxwell's Hoboken New Jersey US 11/19/2006
Robyn Hitchcock & the Venus 3 TT the Bear's Cambridge Massachusetts US 03/30/2007
Robyn Hitchcock & the Venus 3 Doug Fir Lounge Portland Oregon US 04/07/2007
Robyn Hitchcock & the Venus 3 Spaceland Los Angeles California US 04/12/2007
Robyn Hitchcock & the Venus 3 Club Congress Tucson Arizona US 04/14/2007
Robyn Hitchcock Shank Hall Milwaukee Wisconsin US 11/02/2007
Robyn Hitchcock The Ark Ann Arbor Michigan US 11/11/2007
Robyn Hitchcock The Starlight Club Waterloo Ontario Canada 11/13/2007
Robyn Hitchcock & the Venus 3 Doug Fir Lounge Portland Oregon US 12/01/2007
Robyn Hitchcock El Rey Theatre Los Angeles California US 04/11/2008
Robyn Hitchcock Iron Horse Northampton Massachusetts US 07/09/2008
Robyn Hitchcock The Turning Point Piermont New York US 07/15/2008
Robyn Hitchcock Old Town School of Folk Music Chicago Illinois US 11/15/2008
Robyn Hitchcock Somerville Theatre Somerville Massachusetts US 11/21/2008
Robyn Hitchcock ABC2 Glasgow Scotland UK 02/07/2009
Robyn Hitchcock Brudenell Social Club Leeds England UK 02/10/2009
Robyn Hitchcock The Met Bury England UK 02/13/2009
Robyn Hitchcock Amoeba Records Los Angeles California US 02/25/2009
Robyn Hitchcock & the Venus 3 Triple Door Seattle Washington US 03/21/2009
Robyn Hitchcock & the Venus 3 Antone's Austin Texas US 04/03/2009
Robyn Hitchcock Southbank Centre - Queen Elizabeth Hall London England UK 01/30/2010
Robyn Hitchcock Lemon Tree Aberdeen Scotland UK 04/09/2010
Robyn Hitchcock O2 Academy Liverpool Liverpool England UK 04/12/2010
Robyn Hitchcock Carling Academy Oxford Oxford England UK 04/14/2010
Robyn Hitchcock Coolidge Corner Theatre Brookline Massachusetts US 06/08/2010
Robyn Hitchcock Iron Horse Northampton Massachusetts US 06/09/2010
Robyn Hitchcock The Drake Hotel Toronto Ontario Canada 06/11/2010
Robyn Hitchcock Largo at the Coronet - Little Room Los Angeles California US 03/30/2011
Robyn Hitchcock Komedia Brighton England UK 06/01/2011
Robyn Hitchcock McCabe's Santa Monica California US 01/21/2012
Robyn Hitchcock McCabe's Santa Monica California US 10/05/2012
Robyn Hitchcock Concerts In The Studio Freehold New Jersey US 02/28/2014
Robyn Hitchcock Eddie's Attic Decatur Georgia US 10/31/2014
Robyn Hitchcock The Kessler Theater Dallas Texas US 02/08/2015
Robyn Hitchcock Band on the Wall Manchester England UK 06/02/2015
Robyn Hitchcock Union Chapel London England UK 06/05/2015
Robyn Hitchcock City Winery New York New York US 11/20/2015
Robyn Hitchcock Zambezi River Victoria Falls Zimbabwe 02/16/2016
Robyn Hitchcock Iron Horse Northampton Massachusetts US 03/22/2016
Robyn Hitchcock The Grand Victory New York New York US 04/03/2016
Robyn Hitchcock Daniels Hall @ Swallow Hill Music Denver Colorado US 06/03/2016
Robyn Hitchcock The Marlowe Theatre Canterbury England UK 10/27/2016
Robyn Hitchcock McGonigel's Mucky Duck Houston Texas US 11/15/2016
Robyn Hitchcock City Winery Chicago Illinois US 11/17/2016
Robyn Hitchcock City Winery New York New York US 11/19/2016
Robyn Hitchcock Sellersville Theater Sellersville Pennsylvania US 03/02/2017
Robyn Hitchcock Once Ballroom Somerville Massachusetts US 03/03/2017
Robyn Hitchcock The ArtsCenter Carrboro North Carolina US 05/14/2017
Robyn Hitchcock Duck Room at Blueberry Hill St. Louis Missouri US 11/14/2017
Robyn Hitchcock The Kent Stage Kent Ohio US 11/16/2017
Robyn Hitchcock Randy Now's Man Cave Bordentown New Jersey US 04/04/2018
Robyn Hitchcock One Longfellow Square Portland Maine US 04/11/2018
Robyn Hitchcock Colony Woodstock New York US 11/14/2018
Robyn Hitchcock Hạ Long Bay Hạ Long Vietnam 12/02/2018
Robyn Hitchcock Harlow's Sacramento California US 05/19/2019
Robyn Hitchcock St Paul's Church Birmingham England UK 10/25/2019
Robyn Hitchcock Murmrr New York New York US 11/21/2019
Robyn Hitchcock City Winery Boston Massachusetts US 11/24/2019
Robyn Hitchcock The Casbah San Diego California US 03/05/2020
Robyn Hitchcock & Emma Swift Robyn & Emma's house Nashville Tennessee US 05/27/2020
Robyn Hitchcock & Emma Swift Robyn & Emma's house Nashville Tennessee US 05/29/2020
Robyn Hitchcock & Emma Swift Robyn and Emma's house London England UK 10/28/2020
Robyn Hitchcock & Emma Swift Robyn and Emma's house London England UK 03/19/2021
Robyn Hitchcock Robyn and Emma's house London England UK 06/25/2021
Robyn Hitchcock McNally Jackson Bookstore (Seaport) New York New York US 10/13/2021
Robyn Hitchcock Robyn and Emma's house London England UK 04/06/2022
Robyn Hitchcock Off Broadway St. Louis Missouri US 04/13/2022
Robyn Hitchcock The Back Room @ Colectivo Coffee Milwaukee Wisconsin US 04/20/2022
Robyn Hitchcock Robyn and Emma's house London England UK 06/22/2022
Robyn Hitchcock Robyn and Emma's house London England UK 08/31/2022
Robyn Hitchcock Eddie's Attic Decatur Georgia US 11/12/2022
Robyn Hitchcock Robyn and Emma's house London England UK 12/07/2022
Robyn Hitchcock Robyn and Emma's house London England UK 12/28/2022
Robyn Hitchcock Robyn and Emma's house London England UK 02/01/2023
Robyn Hitchcock Private House Portland Oregon US 03/20/2023
Robyn Hitchcock Unknown Venue London England UK 10/22/2023
Robyn Hitchcock The Armory Fort Collins Colorado US 01/27/2024

Lyrics

The ghost ship haunts the sea
She'll come back and marry me

The rust is where her heart should be tonight
Her face is where her fingers were tonight

A glassy chequered engine room
The speechless silence of the tomb
The manuscripts inside the womb unfurl
A girl
Translucent as a jellyfish
That palpitates upon a dish
She stings you with her gently falling curl

And sinking in the waters green tonight
I wonder where my lover's been tonight

The ghost ship changes tack
And stands becalmed; her sails are slack
The cabinboy lies on his back and sighs
The mayonnaise is oozing down his thighs
The bubbles rising from the deep
Where deadmen sing themselves to sleep
From oak and coral they do seep to say
"OK
You throw open my future like a chart
See through my skin; into my heart
That flutters in my ribcage like a bird"

And the ghost ship sails on into someone's life

The air from bottles forms into
The skeletons of all the crew
In white they dance against the blue and wail
Their curling bodies flail around the sail
The figurehead before the mast
Stares back into the golden past
Across the wrinkled sea so vast she mourns
Forlorn

She flutters 'round me like a moth
That beats against mosquito cloth
And tries to eat her way into my dreams

And sinking in the waters green tonight
I wonder where my love has been tonight

The melons on the riverbank
Are bulging through decaying planks

Their beauty is so warm and dank and light
The captain wears a headless grin tonight

And silhouetted on the blue
The cook, the mate, the captain, too
They know not where or why or what they do at all
They fall
Like masonry in the abyss
That opens every time we kiss
I hear their laughter echo 'round the bay
And the ghost ship sails on into someone's life

<Alternates>
(From the Balloon Man CD3)
Still come back and marry me                   2a
The ghost ship changes course                 14a
And on the deck there stands a horse          15a
Who's munching on sardines and gorse and hay  16a
The Captain trawls a net across the bay       17a
You read my future like a chart               22a
Across the wrinkled sea so vast; forlorn      32a
She mourns                                    33a
The cook, the mate, the bosun, too           44a