The Skinner's Pond Eclipse

The Skinner’s Pond Eclipse

They told me young Tom Connors fired a spud into the sky

When he was just a little lad in fair old PEI

With guitar strings and hockey sticks a slingshot he devised

Then grabbed the biggest tater that his tiny hands could find

The spud went into orbit, just a little radar blip

‘Til the Skinner’s Pond Eclipse

That spud flew ‘round the Earth while Tom hitched all across this land

He even rode a coal-train with a guitar in his hand

While back at home the people gathered up the Irish Moss

And on the sea the lobster boats were ever-gently tossed

They never knew that crowds would one day make a westward trip

For the Skinner’s Pond Eclipse

As Connor’s star was rising on the Horseshoe Tavern stage

The tater in the sky was getting larger every day

And a juicy bit of gossip from the rumour mill was spun

That if the spud kept growing it might cover up the sun

A scientist said ‘24 would be the year to glimpse

At the Skinner’s Pond Eclipse

With a stomp that splintered plywood, Tom went down in history

His songs had brought to Canada a sense of unity

So everybody gathered in the year of ‘24

To have a great big party all along the western shore

And from the whiskey bottle all the boys were taking nips

At the Skinner’s Pond Eclipse

With funny glasses on our heads, we saw the spud drift by

And as it closed in on the sun the air smelled like french fries

Low and behold the sun itself began to disappear

Some folks began to laugh while others’ hearts filled up with fear

The seagulls shrieked as people gasped and tried to come to grips

With the Skinner’s Pond Eclipse

Then the world fell into darkness and the air was strange and cold

There was nothing but an onion ring of light left to behold

We realized how small we were in this strange universe

The deep blue haze around us felt a little like rebirth

Yet similarly felt akin to the apocalypse

At the Skinner’s Pond Eclipse

Then ketchup drips of light came back as Tom’s potato burned

Our trance was softly lifted as the warmth of day returned

And as we filed out from the beach I felt like I had wings

There was harmony among the crowd that only wonder brings

To celebrate the day we had a feed of fish and chips

At the Skinner’s Pond Eclipse