Wooden Dolly
Lyrics
From a collier brig's prow taking no food or bed
With unblinking eyes fixed fimly ahead
I coughed and I spluttered in the wake of the spray
Until I was ransomed for a pirate’s pay
Long ago, back in the day
Then they set me to keep constant watch on the Tyne
Gazing across the North Sea for a sign
And they came from their shielings, their saviour to greet
With their pen knives to slice me like a piece of raw meet
From my scalp, through my flanks, to my feet
They took a piece of me here, a piece of me there
A piece from the locks of my long flowing hair
And though my heart was made of wood
I loved them all like a mother should
For they were my flesh and my blood
They were my flesh and my blood
My shoulders gave strength to carry them forth
To safety when storms blew in from the north
My bosom was a pillow on which they could rest
My arms were protection against any test
My lips when kissed would be blessed
But there were some who did not like me
They tortured and raped me, for all to see
They choked me and groped me, tied my hands and feet
And like a piece of dry timber, dragged me through the street
Until my ruin was complete
They took a piece of me here, a piece of me there
A piece from the locks of my long flowing hair
And though my heart was made of wood
I loved them all like a mother should
For they were my flesh and my blood
They were my flesh and my blood
Now I am gone, there’s naught left of me
Just a memory drifting on the breeze o’er the sea
But my younger sisters now stand in my stead
Fishwives burdened with baskets but each with a raised head
In tight bonnets and one in a fine dress of bright red
They took a piece of me here, a piece of me there
A piece from the locks of my long flowing hair
Hoping for luck on a voyage to cling
Just a splinter, a sliver, a tiny thing
A handful of fortune to bring
A piece of me here, a piece of me there
A piece from the locks of my long flowing hair
And though my heart was made of wood
I loved them all like a mother should
For they were my flesh and my blood
They were my flesh and my blood
(Gary Miller)
© 2018 Whippet Records
Copyright Control MCPS/PRS
Notes
Gary wrote 'Wooden Dolly' as a commission for 'The Wooden Dollies of North Shields', a book published by Northern Voices Community Projects to mark marks the 60th anniversary of the unveiling of the wooden dolly in Northumberland Square, North Shields, Tyne & Wear, England, in 2018. Unfortunately, due to an unexpected major personal crisis at the time, and despite the song having already been completed on time, Gary was unable to present it in time to meet the book's publication deadline but it is hoped the song will one day be commercially released in some format, most likely as part of the Northern Grit project.
