Track 6 of the EP The Quiet Hands · 2014
The Ferry Bell Rings Through the White
“Fog over a harbour, and a bell that sounds like someone calling you home. We used a real ship's bell for the toll.”
neoclassical · neoclassical · nocturne · 2:40
Lyrics
The harbour lies beneath a sheet Of cold and weightless wool The gulls are only voices now The water, deep and full I carry one small leather bag And one unfinished word The ramp is slick, the rope is wet The engine's low and stirred The ferry bell rings through the white A slow and faithful sound It calls to those who cannot see That someone's homeward bound Steady as a father's hand It tells me where the shore will stand A lantern swings above the rail A coat is pulled up tight We cross a country made of mist With nothing but the light I used to fear the blinded hours The not-knowing of the way But a bell is only patience Ringing till the break of day The ferry bell rings through the white A slow and faithful sound It calls to those who cannot see That someone's homeward bound Steady as a father's hand It tells me where the shore will stand Ring on, ring on, through the white The shore will stand tonight