Subject: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: Jeri Date: 09 Oct 00 - 12:53 PM I got the lyrics and tune from a radio broadcast. I'm missing a great deal of information, and hope someone can help.
Title?
Oh the southern ocean is a lonely place |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: MartinRyan Date: 09 Oct 00 - 04:53 PM "molly-morg" is probably mollyhawk - type of albatross? Regards |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: Linda Kelly Date: 09 Oct 00 - 05:03 PM It's a song that is sung by the Keelers to great effect, and is recorded on their album On the north Sea Ground. (Keel Music 1998). the song was written by Bob Watson and is called Mollymauk- another name for the Albatross. The Keelers are an excellent group from the North East of england and headed up by Jim Magean who also performs with Johnny Collins. |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: MartinRyan Date: 09 Oct 00 - 05:37 PM Yes- both -hawk and -mawk are used. "mawk" is better since the word seems to come from the Dutch "mok" for gull. regards |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: Jeri Date: 09 Oct 00 - 06:41 PM Thank you! I thought it was "morg" because the singers had accents. (Or I was hearing with an accent.) Any help on the last verse? |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: MartinRyan Date: 09 Oct 00 - 07:24 PM "weary" rather than "weedy"? Regards |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: Jeri Date: 09 Oct 00 - 09:13 PM I appreciate your help very much. Cheers, Martin. Ickle Dorrit, thanks for the title and recording. Still trying to figure out that last bit, and no matter how many times I listen, I can't make sense of it. |
Subject: Serendipity From: Jeri Date: 13 Oct 00 - 11:47 PM Not only is it Friday the 13th, but there's also a full moon. The Portsmouth Maritime Festival starts tomorrow, and a bunch of the performers came to our session tonight. Before things got too rowdy, I decided to do a the above song. I only learned it yesterday, and knew I was probably going to make mistakes. Well it happened - halfway throught the first verse, I lost the words. A voice from another table quietly got me started again. I messed up one more time with the same result. I'd said something earlier to Jeff Warner about the song - that I'd learned it from the radio and didn't have the name of the author handy, but he just had to hear it because it was a great song. When I got finished, Jeff, who'd been sitting next to my savior, came over. He squatted next to my chair, pointed at the man and said "that's your source." It was Danny McCleod, who's in both the Keelers and Salt of the Earth. (I think maybe Salt of the Earth was the group that recorded the song.) He was pleasantly surprised to hear the song in a pub in the US, and said he'd be sure to tell the author, Bob Watson. Said Bob would be tickled to hear his song had made it across the pond. Oh, and the last purple word, in the line " Let my bones sink better___" should be "let my bones sink to the bottom." All in all, a very weird and wonderful night!
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Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: Sorcha Date: 13 Oct 00 - 11:50 PM How very wonderful, Jeri!! I am pleased for you!! What a rush! |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: GUEST,Barry Finn Date: 14 Oct 00 - 07:21 AM Don't let Jeri paint you a picture of her not doing a great job of it,before she was finished she had at least 15 voices joining in on the chorus & she did do a wonderful job of it. She started off what turned into a singing session that you only sometimes read about. Danny & Joyce McLeod (ex Salt of the Earth), Lou Killen, Jeff Warner, all the regular locals & then there were the creatures (like myself) that knowingly crawled out of the walls, what a fine time. Barry |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: Jeri Date: 14 Oct 00 - 10:09 AM Barry, it would have begun at some time anyway - we had reached critical mass when it comes to singers. I did ask Danny if I'd messed up any words, and he volunteered to move to a back table with me and tell me about the song. I was having too much fun singing. I'm going to see him again at the festival and ask him about the song - maybe even ask him to sing it if he's not already planning to. Barry, I'll see you at the chantey blast if not before. I'm still 'floating' over the weirdness of last night - singing a song for the first time and finding the person I learned it from (who sings on the only recording of the song) is sitting 6 feet away... The rest of the night was pretty incredible, too. Maybe I should have started a new thread, but will do after the festival if someone doesn't beat me to it. |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: Jeri Date: 17 Oct 00 - 09:11 PM The following contains corrections. MOLLYMAUK (Bob Watson) Oh the southern ocean is a lonely place Where the storms are many and the shelter's scarce Down upon the southern ocean sailing Down below Cape Horn On the restless water and the troublin' skies You can see that mollymauk wheel and fly Down upon the southern ocean sailing Down below Cape Horn Won't you ride the wind and go, white seabird Won't you ride the wind and go, mollymauk Down upon the southern ocean sailing Down below Cape Horn See the mollymauk floatin' on his wide white wings And lord, what a lonely song he sings... And he's got no compass and he's got no gear And there's none can tell you how the mollymauks steer He's the ghost of a sailor-man as I've heard say Whose body sank, and his soul flew away... And he's got no haven and he's got no home He's bound evermore for to wheel and roam When I gets too weary for to sail no more Let my bones sink to the bottom far away from shore... You can cast me loose and leave me driftin' free And I'll keep that big bird company |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: radriano Date: 18 Oct 00 - 05:00 PM "Mollymauk" is indeed on Salt of the Earth's album Tomorrow's Tide. I obtained a copy when Salt of the Earth did a concert at the Castle Folk Club here in San Francisco last year. They sang "Mollymauk" that evening - great song. I know you can get the album from Ken and Jan Lardner's website called "The Chantey Cabin." If anyone here in the States wants to get the recording, I'll track down the actual website address. It's the only source I know of that carries it. I don't suppose anyone had a tape recorder going at that song session? Hint, hint, nudge, nudge. Richard |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: Jeri Date: 18 Oct 00 - 05:17 PM No - no one got ME singing it! I was a complete idiot for not bringing the recorder to the session. Someone did get most of Danny McCleod doing it. Someone didn't turn their minidisc recorder on quickly enough. And someone would probably get their butt kicked if someone "bootlegged" it. Someone also got me leading a shanty at some point, and I...er, someone may do an MP3 of it, even if I did forget the words for a moment. Everybody was messing up a bit. Lou Killen gets the award for funniest mess up. He got cross threaded on the concertina, and played just a few more chords (more like combinations of random notes) while keeping in rhythm and laughing, stopped and started up again. Someone also got Finn & Haddie recorded, and has actually threatened Finn with sending an MP3 to Max. The CD, by the way, as well as the Pinch of Salt CD, is fabulous. Someone...I mean I bought the CD, which is marvelous. I could send it to Max to play on the radio, but he's gone all live and probably wouldn't know what to do with contributions. |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: radriano Date: 18 Oct 00 - 06:33 PM Jeri, I was just refering to a tape of an informal singing session. "Bootlegging" usually means an unauthorized copy of a copywrited recording. I don't want to cause any problems here so let's just forget I mentioned it, okay? This seems like a perfect opportunity for me to try and make my first blue clicky thing. Here's a link to the Chantey Cabin website which has a lot of good stuff on it. |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: Barbara Date: 18 Oct 00 - 06:50 PM Funny thing, you could have asked me for the words... I have that Salt of the Earth CD. I was sitting with Dick Holdstock and Merritt Herring at the Seattle Folksong society campout last February, and they decided between them that I had to have that CD. I may still owe Dick for it, I can't remember, but he'd brought them to camp, and together they pried open my hands and stuck the CD in. Wish I'd been at your session, sounds magical, Jeri. Blessings, Barbara |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: Jeri Date: 19 Oct 00 - 01:35 PM Radriano, I wasn't getting all shirty or anything, and didn't mean "bootleg" as a real bootleg - why I put it in quotation marks. I hoped to convey a bit of humor with that post. Sorry. If I had recorded anything at the session, I could have done an MP3 of it. The recordings I got during the festival all sound horrible because 1) I usually chopped off the first part 2)There's a lot (I mean tons) of background noise, and 3) There was some annoying woman who stood too close to the mic trying out various harmonies every place I went. |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: radriano Date: 19 Oct 00 - 02:39 PM Thanks for the clarification, Jeri. I guess I just don't know you well enough yet to catch on to when you're joking. Before too long you'll catch on to my own rather bizzare sense of humor. Sounds like a great time was had at the session - wish I could have been there. Richard |
Subject: Mollymauk From: GUEST,Old bones Date: 16 Jun 01 - 02:11 PM Help with the tune/chords please. I htnik I've got the chorus fixed, but how do the verses go? |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Mollymauk From: Sorcha Date: 16 Jun 01 - 02:36 PM Verses and chorus here, sorry I can't help with the tune/chords. |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Mollymauk From: Noreen Date: 17 Jun 01 - 11:00 AM I wrote out the melody not long ago for my brother-in-law. I'll scan it in and send to MMario for mudcat purposes. If it would help, Old bones, I can e-mail the scanned image to you. Noreen |
Subject: Tune Add: MOLLYMAUK (Bob Watson) From: MMario Date: 18 Jun 01 - 12:10 PM MIDI file: molymauk.mid Timebase: 192 Name: MOLLYMAUK This program is worth the effort of learning it. To download the March 10 MIDItext 98 software and get instructions on how to use it click here ABC format: X:1
NWC file sent to Joe |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Mollymauk From: Walter Corey Date: 18 Jun 01 - 04:46 PM Just to let you know that there are still people who appreciate getting the ABC versions of these songs. Thanks |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Mollymauk From: MMario Date: 18 Jun 01 - 09:53 PM no problem. |
Subject: Tune Add: MOLLYMAUK (Bob Watson) From: Jeri Date: 18 Jun 01 - 10:59 PM MMario and others, please note that the tune you have is a bit different from the way I learned it, which is presumably how Bob wrote it. Here's the tune I got from the Salt of the Earth CD (to the best of my ability): MIDI file: MOLYMAUK.MID Timebase: 192 Name: MOLLYMAUK This program is worth the effort of learning it. To download the March 10 MIDItext 98 software and get instructions on how to use it click here ABC format: T:MOLLYMAUK
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Subject: RE: Tune Req: Mollymauk From: MMario Date: 19 Jun 01 - 08:34 AM Thanks Jeri. Nutty did say she had transcribed from memory - so it must be that dang "folk process" at work again. *grin*
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Subject: RE: Tune Req: Mollymauk From: MMario Date: 19 Jun 01 - 08:36 AM whoops! NOREEN, I meant Noreen! (Sorry!) *I'm SO confused* |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Mollymauk From: Noreen Date: 19 Jun 01 - 08:48 AM Thanks, Jeri. |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Mollymauk From: Jeri Date: 19 Jun 01 - 05:18 PM No problemo. The one I wrote out may still have some boo-boos in it. It's funny - some people "folk process" tunes or lyrics in their head rather quickly. They make a mistake or forget something and fill in, or their brains tell them another word or note is the right one, and that's how they remember it. I'm afraid I always (ok, well, "usually") remember the way I originally learned it. Not saying either way is better. What matters is singing the song! |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: GUEST,Doxy Date: 14 Jan 07 - 11:47 AM Hi All, I have been trying to track down a version of Bob watson's Mollymawk that I heard. So far I have come up with this, which is nice, but is not the variant I' remember. I know he ran through a couple of other versions first before coming up with this one. Was I just tipsy (I'm a nice girl I don't EVER get drunk) & remember a version that didn't happen? Does anyone out there have any other versions or variants?. Mollymawk Now the southern ocean is a lonely place The storms are many and the shelters scarce. Down upon the Southern Ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn Over troubled waters under restless skies You'll see those Mollymawks rise and dive Down upon the Southern Ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn Won't you ride the wind and go white sea bird Won't you ride the wind and go Mollymawk Down upon the southern ocean sailing Down below Cape Horn Down upon the southern ocean sailing Down below Cape Horn Now the mollymawk glide on the great white wings And Lord what a lonesome song he sings Down upon the Southern Ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn He's got no compass and he's got no gear There's nobody knows where the mollymawk steers Down upon the Southern Ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn chorus He's the ghost of a sailor so I've heard say His body sank and his soul flew away Down upon the Southern Ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn He's got no haven and he's got no home Bound evermore to wheel and roam Down upon the Southern Ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn Chorus When I gets too old and can sail no more Set me adrift far away from shore Down upon the Southern Ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn You can cut me loose you can set me free I'll keep that big bird company Down upon the Southern Ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn Post from new thread added to this thread. |
Subject: Lyr Add: MOLLYMAWK (Bob Watson via Kimber's Men) From: GUEST,doxy Date: 14 Jan 07 - 03:32 PM Hi Guys, I'm trying to track down a variant of Mollymawk that I heard someone sing. I have found the version below, but I believe Bob Watson wrote several versions before this one. Anyone got any other words? MOLLYMAWK As recorded by Kimber's Men on "See You When the Sun Goes Down" (2010) 1. Now the southern ocean is a lonely place; The storms are many and the shelters scarce. Down upon the southern ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn. Over troubled waters, under restless skies, You'll see those mollymawks rise and dive, Down upon the southern ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn. CHORUS: Won't you ride the wind and go, white sea bird; Ride the wind and go, mollymawk, Down upon the southern ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn. 2. Now the mollymawk glides on the great white wings, And Lord, what a lonesome song he sings, Down upon the southern ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn. He's got no compass and he's got no gear. There's nobody knows where the mollymawk steers, Down upon the southern ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn. CHORUS 3. He's the ghost of a sailor, so I've heard say. His body it sank and his soul flew away, Down upon the southern ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn. He's got no haven and he's got no home, Bound evermore to wheel and roam Down upon the southern ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn. CHORUS 4. When I get too old and can sail no more, Set me adrift far away from shore, Down upon the southern ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn. You can cut me loose; you can set me free. I'll keep that big bird company, Down upon the southern ocean sailing, down below Cape Horn. CHORUS TWICE |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: bubblyrat Date: 14 Jan 07 - 04:04 PM Having just read Martin Ryan"s posting----I don"t think that Mollymauk DOES come from the Dutch word for gull. Whilst I am not fluent,my Dutch is pretty good, & gull in my book (literally !) is "MEEUW ", not" MOK"----I don"t know, & can"t find, that word in Dutch ( although it could be archaic )--"MOK" is ,in Flemish,(Belgian Dutch ) either a small,round cookie, or a stone or metal MUG used by campers !! But not a Gull !! Het Spijt Mij,Meneer Ryan, Maar U Hebt Een Fuit Gemaakt, Denk Ik !! Signor Tottoff ,aka Bubblyrat.. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: mollymawk From: Charley Noble Date: 14 Jan 07 - 04:09 PM Bob Watson has a longer recitation about mollymauks. Maybe that's what you are thinking of. Most folks are singing something close to what you've posted. Where did you hear the song? Cheerily, Charley Noble |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Southern Ocean From: Charley Noble Date: 14 Jan 07 - 04:16 PM Nothing like trying out a "new" song when the singer you learned it from is present without your knowledge. Life is strange and mysterious. Charley Noble |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: SINSULL Date: 14 Jan 07 - 07:06 PM This has become Jeri's signature piece. Never fails to move me. SINS |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: Bat Goddess Date: 14 Jan 07 - 08:10 PM I probably have it on tape -- I was there when it happened. It's one of those wondrous happenings -- Jeri singing the song she learned from the radio the week before (when WUNH was playing songs by participants in the Portsmouth Maritime Folk Festival) and Danny and Joyce McLeod walked into the Press Room session while she was singing it. Danny, of course, coached her when she stumbled (first time out of the shute). Amazing. Jeri does a fine job of it on her own, and she and Barbara Benn do a great job together. And Danny and Joyce are now friends -- and have been right from that evening. The folk community is a wonderful place. Linn |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: Barry Finn Date: 15 Jan 07 - 12:42 AM "Danny & Joyce are now friends"? That's good because they been singing together for quite a while now, even got the same last names. When did this come about? (He,He) Barry |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: SINSULL Date: 15 Jan 07 - 07:33 AM Do I smack Barry or do you, Linn? |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: Jeri Date: 15 Jan 07 - 08:34 AM Can anyone help Doxy out with different versions of the song? |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: Bat Goddess Date: 15 Jan 07 - 12:16 PM Stop it, both of you! Friends of OURS. geez ;-) Linn |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: GUEST,Doxy. Date: 15 Jan 07 - 04:20 PM Hi Guys, Thanks for tidting things up into one thread. I had a different spelling when I posted first. |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: GUEST,Doxy Date: 15 Jan 07 - 04:24 PM I also pressed the wrong button half way through trying to write this. Bother!!! Any way. Charlie I heard this sung late at night at Priddy last year. I might have been a bit tired and emotional due to all the beer and excitement so it's possible I'm imagining or remembering something through beer tinted specs but I thought there were different words. I don't know who the singer was. Someone we'd met for the first time in Somerset. Nice voice, cracking song! |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: Barbara Date: 17 Jan 10 - 03:57 PM Friends at Harmony this year were surprised I knew this song and sang along. So I fished out the Salt of the Earth CD and here's what it says: 4.MOLLYMAUK (Bob Watson) Mollymauk is the Swedish word for the albatross. This haunting song was written by Bob Watson of Reading and describes the thoughts of the ancient mariners (see also: Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner) who held the albatross in awe. They believed that this mysterious bird, which appeared thousands of miles from anywhere, drifting high in the sky, was the carrier of dead sailors' souls on their way to heaven. Now you know. Blessings, Barbara |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: Gurney Date: 17 Jan 10 - 10:56 PM An alternative recording is by The Maritime Crew of NZ. |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: Leadfingers Date: 18 Jan 10 - 07:09 AM I hope Bob is getting regular Royalty cheques ! I havent seen him for at least a month !! |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: Barbara Date: 23 Jan 10 - 06:13 PM Do you have a contact for him, Leadfingers? I'd like to publish the Mollymauk song in the SFFMC newsletter. TIA Blessings Barbara |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: Charley Noble Date: 23 Jan 10 - 08:33 PM Roll & Go learned this song from Jeri and recorded our version in 2006 on Rolling Down to Sailortown. We were able to contact Bob Watson and insist that he accept a royalty check for a release. Here's a link to how we sing it: Click here for lyrics and MP3 Sample! Cheerily, Charley Noble |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: GUEST,Barbara sans cookie Date: 24 Jan 10 - 02:09 AM Ya, I saw and heard your version Charley. Nice. Do you suppose you could PM me -- or email -- how to reach Bob Watson? Blessings, Barbara |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: Charley Noble Date: 24 Jan 10 - 10:21 AM Barbara- I sent you a PM when I posted the above response but now you don't have a cookie. Is your e-mail address still associated with "viclink"? Mine is still "Gwi.com". Charley |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: Barbara Date: 24 Jan 10 - 12:05 PM Thanks all, I will go read my messages. My computer got reset and cleaned out in the process but now I can load some of my stuff back in. Charley, my email is now my first name dot last name at gmail dot com. Last name is spelled millikan. Back after I check, but it appears a number of you told me how to find Bob Watson. Blessings, Barbara |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: GUEST,Bob Watson Date: 24 Jan 10 - 06:11 PM Hi, Barbara . . . Got a message from a friend today saying that you might be looking for me, & your (above) message appears to confirm this. My E-mail address is: watson.bob@tiscali.co.uk Be pleased to hear from you. Bob |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: Barbara Date: 25 Jan 10 - 04:52 PM Email sent. Thanks all for the info. Blessings, Barbara |
Subject: RE: Song Help: Mollymauk (was: Southern Ocean) From: Jim Dixon Date: 09 Feb 10 - 01:58 PM From The Sailor's Word-Book by William Henry Smyth (London: Blackie and Son, 1867), page 465: MALLEMAK, or Mollymauk. A sea-bird; the Procellaria glacialis, called also fulmar (which see). [page 327:] FULMAR. A web-footed sea-bird, Procellaria glacialis, of the petrel kind, larger than the common gull; its eggs are taken in great quantity at St. Kilda and in the Shetlands. [Procellaria glacialis seems to be an obsolete name. My best guess is, it corresponds to Fulmarus glacialis, or Northern fulmar.] |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mollymauk / Mollymawk (Bob Watson) From: Joe Offer Date: 07 Jun 20 - 11:55 PM needs just a little more work |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mollymauk / Mollymawk (Bob Watson) From: Steve Gardham Date: 08 Jun 20 - 10:57 AM And on the Humber among the seamen and rivermen a molly is simply a gull of any description. 'Tulip was a bit of a birdman, when a molly came down on the deck. Its wing was all bent and misshapen and looking a bit of a wreck!' |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mollymauk / Mollymawk (Bob Watson) From: GUEST,Jane Date: 11 Aug 20 - 07:08 PM I'm looking for a recording of Mollymawk which I heard from a group at Yarmouth Maritime Festival about in about ?2006. It was a slower rendition than the recordings I've heard since; I bought the CD at Yarmouth but have mislaid it and would like to buy another copy if I can. All I can remember about the group is there were four of them, two ladies and two gentlemen; the name escapes me. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mollymauk / Mollymawk (Bob Watson) From: Jeri Date: 11 Aug 20 - 08:55 PM In the original post... I learned it from Danny McCleod, in a group "Salt of the Earth", comprised of Danny and Joyce McCloud & Ingrid and Barrie Temple. The song is on a CD titled "Tomorrow's Tide." I haven't hear a fast version of the song, but I think they do it at a reasonable pace. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mollymauk / Mollymawk (Bob Watson) From: GUEST,Jane Date: 14 Aug 20 - 09:32 PM Thanks - I've looked at an image of the Tomorrow's Tide CD, and I don't recognise it ... but I might buy it anyway. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mollymauk / Mollymawk (Bob Watson) From: Jeri Date: 14 Aug 20 - 10:24 PM Try The Keelers - they're down to four members now, and Mollymauk is on "On the North Sea Ground". (It may be on other CDs, too - didn't look at them all.) |
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