Light On Dark Water

Pat Metheny: Ferry Cross the Mersey

Weekend Music

From the time I heard it as a teenager I've always thought this early British Invasion song had a beautiful tune, and am sort of pleased that guitar master Pat Metheny apparently thinks so too.

 

And if you don't remember or never heard the original, or just would like to hear it again:

 

It's striking what a downbeat and rather conservative song it is, especially considering the times:

Life
Goes on day after day
Hearts
Torn in every way
So ferry, cross the Mersey,
'cause this land's the place I love
And here I'll stay.

Maclin Horton

12 responses to “Pat Metheny: Ferry Cross the Mersey”

  1. Janet

    I really like that song, and I really used to like Gerry and the Pacemakers–maybe more than anyone but the Beatles. Strangely enough, though, I can’t remember a single other song of theirs, although I must have listened to that album a million times. I guess I would remember them if I heard them again.
    I love ferries too. I remember once when we were taking a new route to Louisiana, we found at the end of a very long day at a ferry in St. Francisville, LA. I stood outside the whole way and thought that the people on their way home from work who were reading their papers were crazy. It was so lovely. I guess, though, that if I rode on it everyday, I would soon learn to stay in the car.
    AMDG

    Reply
  2. Mac

    Yeah, it’s sorta like sitting by the window in an airplane. I used to think it was a shame for somebody to have a window seat and never look out, but now I do it sometimes, too. And I don’t fly all that much. I have some fond memories of ferries, too, but they’re all to do with my one and only trip to Europe, when I was 19.
    Funny you say that about Gerry & the Pacemaker’s other songs: I was thinking that, too. Although I never bought one of their albums, I think they had other hits, but all I could think of were Dave Clark 5 songs.
    Hmm, well, not that many, but I can’t believe I forgot “Don’t Let the Sun Catch You Crying”.
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerry_and_the_Pacemakers

    Reply
  3. janet

    Oh, goodness yes.
    AMDG

    Reply
  4. Peter

    There really is something – I can’t come up with the specific term, but “different” – about traveling on a ferry, not found on other modes of transportation. Every so often I ride the Bridgeport/Port Jefferson ferry across Long Island Sound, about a 75-minute trip, but when I get to my destination it somehow feels like a much longer passage.

    Reply
  5. Janet

    Maybe that’s because you traveled across in another world. I know that the word “ferry” probably comes from the Latin word for “carry” and that fairies probably don’t need ferries, but to me there is something almost magical about a ferry. The longest ferry ride I’ve ever taken is the one I talked about above. It was probably about 20 minutes, and there was probably room for about 15 cars on the ferry. My shortest ferry ride was at a living history museum in Lafayette, LA where I was ferried across a river that was perhaps 40 yards wide by a man who pulled the ferry across with ropes. Both trips were delightful. I’d like to ride on one of those big ferries like the one in the videos.
    AMDG

    Reply
  6. Mac

    The different-ness has got something to do with being on the water, too. And crossing Long Island sound would probably feel a bit like a sea voyage, too.
    I wish there were still a ferry across Mobile Bay. Though it would probably be too long a ride for a daily commute. Actually I think there may still be one that crosses the very mouth of the bay. I know there was 20 years ago. But in any case it was mostly a tourist thing, as a need for that crossing is not part of the workaday world for many people.

    Reply
  7. Grumpy

    I never heard this song before. A charming video.

    Reply
  8. Mac

    I was about to express surprise that you haven’t heard it and then I remembered you’re somewhat younger. Since this was the very beginning of “the Sixties” (i.e. 1964), I guess it’s not surprising. Also because the group faded away pretty quickly.

    Reply
  9. Paul

    I’m younger still, and I’m absolutely astounded that anybody in the Western world can have grown to adulthood without having heard this song. There was a cover by an ensemble of pop stars of variable luminosty released in 1989.

    Reply
  10. Paul

    It’s the Scouse national anthem, as it were.

    Reply
  11. Mac

    Rather overblown compared to the original, but that’s what you would expect from a multi-star performance. I had to look up Scouse, of course, though I had noticed when I was looking for the song on YouTube that it had become a Liverpool football anthem.
    Which reminds me: on Pink Floyd’s album Meddle there’s a great song called “Fearless” which ends with a crowd singing “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” I always assumed this to be from some fairly important and moving historical moment, and was a bit let down to discover (also while looking for “Ferry”) that this song also is a football anthem and the recording was made at a game.

    Reply
  12. Grumpy

    Sorry, the only time I ever heard of this group is ironic references by other pop groups!

    Reply

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