Against the Grain

Well, Captain Philo Jones

Was the captain of his home

Finest vessel never set to sea

He built her from the ground

And every plank from stern to bow

Was dry-docked in a landlocked field of wheat

He loved boats but he feared the water

Quoted Melville, hated Faulkner

Longed to smell the salty ocean breeze

By the sun, he knew the time

By the moon, he knew the tides

And by the stars, he'd chart his course into his dreams

And he sailed against the grain

Far beyond the Kansas plains

Floating on the amber waves

He sailed against the grain

Well, the Captain told tall tales

Of mermaid songs and whales

Creatures from the deep that he'd dreamed of

The only time he'd seen the sea

He started trembling in his knees

And he wondered, was it fear or was it love?

And he sailed against the grain

Far beyond the Kansas plains

Floating on the amber waves

He sailed against the grain

He sailed against the grain