TIE IT UP AND LET IT ROT
by Mary Garvey
Sung by Mary Garvey



Inspired by a boat Mary saw near
Puget Island on the Columbia River

Tie it up and let it rot for it soon will be forgot
That there ever were the boats to match these men
Puget Island born and bred to the gray skies overhead
And we'll never see the likes of them again

Tie it up and let it rot for the last fish that I caught
Did not bring enough to buy the gas that day
When you're going after salmon it is feast or it is famine
And it looks like Mr. Famine's here to stay

Tie it up and let it rot for think it matters not
Where my father's father's father fished before
From the river to the sea now it ends right here with me
There will be no Larsons fish here any more

Tie it up and let it rot for the sons that I begot
Have earned their fame and fortune on the land
And they laugh when they explain they don't
miss the wind and the rain
But it's just not in my blood to understand

Tie it up and let it rot for I found a pretty spot
And I can't afford to lose another dime
And if the floods wash her away then who am I to stay
And she'll run this mighty river one last time