LOCK-KEEPER Stan Rogers Album: From Fresh Water (1984) E You say, "Well-met again, Lock-keeper! C#m B A We're laden even deeper that the time before F#m B E Oriental oils and tea brought down from Singapore." E As we wait for my lock to cycle C#m B A I say, "My wife has just given me a son." F#m B E "A son!" you cry, "Is that all that you've done?" She wears bougainvillea blossoms You pluck 'em from her hair and toss 'em in the tide, Sweep her in your arms and carry her inside. Her sighs catch on your shoulder Her moonlit eyes grow bold and wiser through her tears And I say, "How could you stand to leave her for a year?" chorus: A F#m "Then come with me" you say, "to where the Southern Cross B E Rides high upon your shoulder." C#m B "Come with me!" you cry, A F#m B "Each day you tend this lock, you're one day older C#m B A B While your blood grows colder." E But that anchor chain's a fetter C#m B A And with it you are tethered to the foam F#m B E And I wouldn't trade your life for one hour of home. Sure I'm stuck here on the Seaway While you compensate for leeway through the Trades; And you shoot the stars to see the miles you've made. And you laugh at hearts you've riven, But which of these has given us more love or life, You, your tropic maids, or me, my wife. chorus Ah your anchor chain's a fetter And with it you are tethered to the foam, And I wouldn't trade your whole life for one hour of home. enjoy! Chords are easier transposed to D, capo 2, dropped D tuning optional. All songs from Stan's first four albums are tabbed in "Songs from Fogarty's Cove", but do not include anything from subsequent posthumous albums.