Southern Cross (Crosby, Stills and Nash song)
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"Southern Cross" is a song written by Stephen Stills, Rick Curtis and Michael Curtis and performed by the rock band Crosby, Stills & Nash. It was released in 1982 on the band's Daylight Again album. Stephen Stills sings lead vocals throughout, with Graham Nash joining the second verse.
The song, which peaked at #18, is about a man who sails the world following a failed love affair. During the voyage, the singer takes comfort in sailing ("We got eighty feet of waterline. / Nicely making way."), in the beauty of the sea, and particularly in the Southern Cross, a constellation by which sailors in the Southern Hemisphere have traditionally navigated. But his final consolation is music ("I have my ship / And all her flags are a flyin' / She is all that I have left / And music is her name.").
Southern Cross is based on the song "Seven League Boots" by Rick and Michael Curtis. Stills explained, "The Curtis Brothers brought a wonderful song called 'Seven League Boots,' but it drifted around too much. I rewrote a new set of words and added a different chorus, a story about a long boat trip I took after my divorce. It's about using the power of the universe to heal your wounds. Once again, I was given somebody's gem and cut and polished it."[1][2]
Original recording
- Stephen Stills - lead vocals and acoustic guitar, co-writer
- Graham Nash - vocals
- Michael Finnigan - keyboards and additional vocals
- Michael Sturgis - acoustic guitar
- George "Chocolate" Perry - bass
- Joe Lala - percussion
- Joe Vitale - drums
- Timothy B. Schmit - backing vocals
- Art Garfunkel - backing vocals
- Rick Curtis - co-writer
- Michael Curtis - co-writer
Cover versions
"Southern Cross" has also been covered by:
- Jimmy Buffett, whose version first appeared on the Live album, Buffett Live: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays; the song became a staple at many of Buffett's concerts and corresponding "Live" releases.
- British artist Dave Mason.
- Pat McGee, on his debut album From the Wood.
- Sludge metal band Weedeater, on their debut album ...And Justice for Y'all.
- Kappa Danielson and her two girls perform an acoustic version with vocals, guitar, mandolin and violin.
Locations
The song mentions a number of locations that one may visit on a sailing voyage from Southern California to the South Pacific, following the "Coconut Milk Run".[3] In order of appearance in the song (and reverse order of the sailor's southwestward journey), they are:
- Southern islands - referring to Polynesia
- Papeete - capital of French Polynesia on the island of Tahiti
- Marquesas - group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, northeast of Tahiti
- Avalon - Avalon, California, an island city on Santa Catalina Island, California
Notes
- See also: Seven-league boots in European folklore.
- ^ CSN Boxed Set
- ^ "Southern Cross by Crosby, Stills & Nash". songfacts.com. Retrieved 3 October 2011.
- ^ "A starlit revel on the Coconut Milk Run". OceanNavigator.com. Retrieved 3 October 2011.