| Not Waving but Drowning | Requires . |
Recorded at the Edinburgh Festival in 1965 at a time when the poet was experiencing a resurgence of interest in her work and giving plenty of readings. All that practice didn't however stop her stumbling over the words of this 1953 favourite.
Nobody heard him, the dead man,
Poor chap, he always loved larking
Oh, no no no, it was too cold always
But still he lay moaning:
I was much further out than you thought
And not waving but drowning.
And now he's dead
It must have been too cold for him his heart gave way,
They said.
(Still the dead one lay moaning)
I was much too far out all my life
And not waving but drowning.
Reproduced by permission of Hamish MacGibbon.
