Lyrics to "Marco Polo"

[Liam Hoekenga]

I'm looking for the lyrics to a song called "the Marco Polo", and also
who wrote it. I can probably find the who - I'm fairly certain the album
it's on is called "Language of the Heart" and there are three people's
names in the group.

But... I haven't been able to track the lyrics down. Any help would be
much appriciated.

Thanks,
Liam

li...@umich.edu

[Roger Gawley]

I always thought of this as a Spinners (maybe Liverpool Spinners to you)
song. As the Digital Tradition says it was written by Hugh Jones, I seem
to be right for once. The Spinners recorded it on, "The Singing City", at
least although that is probably deleted.

MARCO POLO

MARCO POLO
by Hugh Jones

The Marco Polo's a very fine ship
Fastest on the sea
On Australia's strand we soon will land
Bully Forbes he can look for me
Going to jump the ship in Melbourne town
Going a digging gold
There's a fortune found beneath the ground
Where the eucalyptus grows

Marco Polo, fastest on the sea
Marco Polo, fastest on the sea

Said the Blackball owner, Mr. Baines
To Bully Forbes one day
"It's up to you to keep your crew
While the gold lures them away"
Said Bully Forbes to mr. Baines
"I have a plan so fine
Leave it to me and you'll agree
I'm the king of the Blackball Line"

When we reached Australia's shore
Bully Forbes declared, "There's scurvy
On this trip you won't leave the ship
Until we reach the Mersey"
Now we lie in Salthouse dock
I'll go to sea no more, sir
Done me time on the Blackball Line
And Captain Bully Forbes, sir

@sailor @Australia
recorded by Cliff Haslam
filename[ MARCOPOL
SF

(DT of April 1995)

[Liam Hoekenga]

(Sorry to everyone.... this may have gone out two other times. Although
pine knows about newsgroups, it doesn't necessarily handle them very well.)

Roger -

I looked in digitrad as well, and unfortunately this isn't the version
I'm looking for.

I remember a couple of lines from the one I'm looking for, but they
aren't in clumps or any particular order.

"Its Liverpool in fifteen days"

"She like a demon passing by"

"And her name is Marco Polo"

The song is a capella if it helps.

Thanks,
Liam

On Mon, 19 Jun 1995, Roger Gawley wrote:
>
> I always thought of this as a Spinners (maybe Liverpool Spinners to you)
> song. As the Digital Tradition says it was written by Hugh Jones, I seem
> to be right for once. The Spinners recorded it on, "The Singing City", at
> least although that is probably deleted.

[stuff from digitrad deleted]

[Jim Stewart]

In article
<Pine.SUN.3.91.950619075625...@stimpy.us.itd.umich.edu
>,

Hi Liam et al. The song you're looking for was written by me
and is part of my "Marco Polo Suite." The Marco Polo was built
here (Saint John, NB, Canada) in 1851. The version you heard was
on the Bok, Muir, Trickett album called "Language of the Heart".
I'll e-mail the lyrics directly to Liam. If anyone else wants
them, give me an electronic holler. Regards, Jim Stewart

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
Rising Tide Music {} Epcom Communications
http://www.cygnus.nb.ca/epcom/index.html
ste...@nbnet.nb.ca {} cha...@nbnet.nb.ca
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

[Thomas D Bending]

In article <Pine.SUN.3.91-941213.95...@draco.dur.ac.uk> Roger Gawley <Roger....@durham.ac.uk> writes:

> On 19 Jun 1995, Liam Hoekenga wrote:
>
> > I'm looking for the lyrics to a song called "the Marco Polo", and also

> > who wrote it.

[snip]
> I always thought of this as a Spinners (maybe Liverpool Spinners to you)
> song. As the Digital Tradition says it was written by Hugh Jones, I seem
> to be right for once. The Spinners recorded it on, "The Singing City", at
> least although that is probably deleted.

[lyrics deleted]

I have a recording of Marco Polo by The Spinners which I thought was
from The Singing City, but I could be wrong. It's essentially the
Digital Tradition's version, but differs in several details - in
particular

When we reached Australia's shore
Bully Forbes declared, "There's scurvy
On this trip you won't leave the ship
Until we reach the Mersey"

becomes

When we reached Australia's shore

The captain declared the scurvy:
"There's a quarantine law and you cannot go ashore
Until we reach the River Mersey"

Probably the song evolved over The Spinners' career.

Thomas Bending JANET: t...@uk.ac.qmw.maths
<a href="http://www.maths.qmw.ac.uk/~tdb/homepage.html">WWW homepage</a>

[slo...@gmail.com]

The version I heard in a bar in Lunnenburg, Nova Scotia, Canada went;
'And now we've reached Van Diemans Land and the crew are down with scurvy
There's a quarantine law and you cannot go ashore, till you reach the River Mersey'