Released: August 13, 2013
Songwriter: Sting
Producer: Sting Rob Mathes
[Verse 1]
This town, this stain on the sunrise
Disguised in the mist this morning
It's 8 a.m., a seagull shouts a sailor's warning
This sky, this bend in the river
Slows down and delivers me, the tide rolls back
And all my memories fade to black
[Chorus]
And yet, and yet, I'm back
[Verse 2]
This town has a strange magnetic pull
Like a homing signal in your skull
And you sail by the stars of the hemisphere
Wondering how in the Hell did ye end up here?
It's like an underground river, or a hidden stream
That flows through your head, and haunts your dreams
And you stuffed those dreams in this canvas sack
And there's nothing round here that the wide world lacks
[Chorus]
And yet, and yet, you're back
[Verse 3]
Some nights I'd lie on the deck and I'd stare at the turning of the stars
Those constellations hanging up there from the cables and the rigging
I'd wonder if she saw the same, or managed to recall my name
But why would she ever think of me? Some boy she loved who fled to sea?
And why waste time debating whether she'd be waiting for the likes of me?
So you drift into port with the scum of the seas
To the dance halls and the brothels where you took your ease!
And the ship's left the dock but you're half past caring
And you haven't got a clue whose bed you're sharing
And your head's like a hammer on a bulkhead door
And it feels like somebody might have broken your jaw
And there's bloodstains and glass all over the floor
And you swear to God you'll drink no more
And yet, and yet...
In truth, it's too late to find her
Too late to remind her at some garden gate
Where a servant tells me I should wait
And perhaps a door's slammed in my face
My head must be in outer space
[Bridge]
And yet, and yet
Before the sun has set
Before the sea
There may be something else that's waiting for
The likes of me
[Outro]
This town, this stain on the sunrise
This town, this stain on the sunrise
Disguised in the mist this morning
It's 8 a.m., a seagull shouts a sailor's warning
This sky, this bend in the river
Slows down and delivers me, the tide rolls back
And all my memories fade to black
[Chorus]
And yet, and yet, I'm back
[Verse 2]
This town has a strange magnetic pull
Like a homing signal in your skull
And you sail by the stars of the hemisphere
Wondering how in the Hell did ye end up here?
It's like an underground river, or a hidden stream
That flows through your head, and haunts your dreams
And you stuffed those dreams in this canvas sack
And there's nothing round here that the wide world lacks
[Chorus]
And yet, and yet, you're back
[Verse 3]
Some nights I'd lie on the deck and I'd stare at the turning of the stars
Those constellations hanging up there from the cables and the rigging
I'd wonder if she saw the same, or managed to recall my name
But why would she ever think of me? Some boy she loved who fled to sea?
And why waste time debating whether she'd be waiting for the likes of me?
So you drift into port with the scum of the seas
To the dance halls and the brothels where you took your ease!
And the ship's left the dock but you're half past caring
And you haven't got a clue whose bed you're sharing
And your head's like a hammer on a bulkhead door
And it feels like somebody might have broken your jaw
And there's bloodstains and glass all over the floor
And you swear to God you'll drink no more
And yet, and yet...
In truth, it's too late to find her
Too late to remind her at some garden gate
Where a servant tells me I should wait
And perhaps a door's slammed in my face
My head must be in outer space
[Bridge]
And yet, and yet
Before the sun has set
Before the sea
There may be something else that's waiting for
The likes of me
[Outro]
This town, this stain on the sunrise
more tracks from the album
The Last Ship
- The Last Ship
- Peggy’s Song
- Jock the Singing Welder
- Show Some Respect
- Sky Hooks and Tartan Paint
- Hadaway
- It’s Not the Same Moon
- The Last Ship (Reprise)
- So to Speak
- I Love Her But She Loves Someone Else
- What Have We Got?
- Ballad of the Great Eastern
- Practical Arrangement
- Language of Birds
- And Yet
- Practical Arrangement (Full Original Duet)
From the album
- The Last Ship (2013)
Sting popular songs
- Shape of My Heart
- Englishman in New York
- Desert Rose
- Fields of Gold
- Fragile
- Russians
- It’s Probably Me
- If I Ever Lose My Faith in You
- Brand New Day
- Seven Days
- Mad About You
- A Thousand Years
- Soul Cake
- I Can’t Stop Thinking About You
- If You Love Somebody Set Them Free
- All This Time
- When We Dance
- If It’s Love
- The Last Ship
- Fortress Around Your Heart
- Children’s Crusade
- Moon Over Bourbon Street
- Synchronicity I
- Giacomo’s Blues