We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

Island in the West

from The Going Away by Helen Dorothy

/

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      £1 GBP  or more

     

  • Buy the Full Digital Album

  • Limited Edition Compact Disc
    Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    6-panel cardboard cover (plastic tray). Artwork (collage) by Helen Dorothy.

    Includes unlimited streaming of The Going Away via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

    Sold Out

  • Full Digital Discography

    5
    releases

    Get all 5 Helen Dorothy releases available on Bandcamp and save 30%.

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of No More, Garden of Soul, Light Time & Sound, Watching Ghosts...and Other Songs, and The Going Away. , and , .

    Purchasable with gift card

      £11.90 GBP or more (30% OFF)

     

about

Reflections on a goose survey in the Outer Hebrides...

lyrics

Island in the West
© Helen Dorothy (2005)

On a rocky shoreline, where the sea mists lie
The darkness is rising with the echo of an oystercatcher’s cry
And the ghost of a gull drifts by
And me and Col and Shimmy wait for a boat to take us back to Skye

On this morning in this place I’ve never been
The sky it warms to silver shades of green
The most absorbing light I’ve ever seen
And who would ever guess
A time remembered best
Me and Col and Shimmy at the wharf
On an island in the west

The fields were frosted over, our fingers wrapped in fleece
We ate hot macaroni pies, and filled our flasks with soup and sweetened teas
And we soon forgot the freeze
And me and Col and Shimmy searched the crofts for wild arctic geese

On this morning in this place I’ve never been
The sea reflects my favourite shade of green
It really is an illuminating scene
And who would ever guess
A time remembered best
Me and Col and Shimmy at the wharf
On an island in the west

Found the stag of a red deer not long drowned in a creek
He must have drank the cool water, his antlers locked in the bank when he was weak
It was cruel and it was bleak
And me and Col and Shimmy touched his hide
Not one of us could speak

On this morning in this place I’ve never been
The sun it rises a mystic shiny green
The most beautiful sun I think I’ve ever seen
And who would ever guess
A time remembered best
Me and Col and Shimmy at the wharf
I had no worries
I had no cares
With that lovely big green sun up there
Shining down on me
On an island in the west

credits

from The Going Away, released April 1, 2009
Helen Dorothy - vocals, acoustic guitar
Fiona Smythe - violin

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

Helen Dorothy image

Helen Dorothy New Zealand

Helen Dorothy is “an acoustic folk artist in an honest sense” (NZ Musician, 2009). She writes "beautifully-crafted, intelligent songs rich in memorable imagery" (fRoots Magazine, Jan 2014).

contact / help

Contact Helen Dorothy

Streaming and
Download help

Redeem code

Report this track or account

If you like Helen Dorothy, you may also like:

Bandcamp Daily  your guide to the world of Bandcamp

On Bandcamp Radio

Saxophonist Isaiah Collier chats about his new LP and the influence of Pharoah Sanders.
listen now