1949 – Dire Straits – Single handed sailor (1979)

 

Escrita por Mark Knopfler, foi gravada entre 28 de novembro e 12 de dezembro de 1978, no Compass Point, em Nassau e lançada em 5 de junho de 1979 no disco Communiqué, o segundo disco da banda. Foi produzida por Barry Beckett e Jerry Wexler. Mark Knopfler cantou, tocou guitarra solo e base. David Knopfler tocou guitarra base e fez backing vocals. John Illsley tocou baixo e fez backing vocals. Pick Withers tocou bateria. Barry Beckett tocou teclado.

A letra:

Two in the morning, dry-dock town
The river roll away in the night
Little gypsy moth, she's all tied down
She quiver in the wind and the light

Yeah, and the sailing ship just held down in chains
From the lazy days of sail
She's just a lying there, silent in pain
He lean on the tourist rail

A mother and her baby and the college of war
In the concrete graves
You never wanna fight against the river law
Nobody rules the waves

Yeah, and on a night when the lazy wind is a-wailing
Around the Cutty Sark
The single-handed sailor goes sailing
Sailing away in the dark

He's up on the bridge on the self-same night
The mariner of dry dock land
Two in the morning but there's one green light
And a man on a barge of sand

She's a gonna slip away below him
Away from things he's done
But he just shouts, "Hey man, what you call this thing?"
He could have said "Pride of London"

On a night when the lazy wind is a-wailing
Around the Cutty Sark
Yeah, the single-handed sailor goes sailing
Sailing away in the dark

A versão do Dire Straits:

A versão de José Churruca: