St. Francis Dam Disaster, man

I've been listening to a Frank Black & the Catholics song I love a lot lately, 'St. Francis Dam Disaster'. After about the 100th cycle in a month, it occurred to me that this was much more an old school folk song, and that this could be a "real thing".

So, my curious nature found the wikipedia entry on it today.

It was very real- and the fact that it was the second largest catastrophe human casualty-wise in California reintroduces my lack of American history knowledge past Civil War (somehow we just never got there) except my WWII studies on my own.

It also makes these lyrics ten times more poignant- and important a record (read wiki entry 1st- he kept close to facts):

There was a well known water master man
He was the king
He could do anything
The Saint Francis Dam disaster man
Thought she was all right
Until around midnight

Because that water seeks her own
She had a desire to flow
She was looking for somewhere to go

She was a slave to the great metropolis
She was feeling choked
She pushed the wall till it broke

When they heard
The great apocalypse
At power house number two
Well there was nothing they could do

Because that water seeks her own
Five and one half hours she would flow
She had fifty-three miles to go

A cascade down to Santa Clara way
Near sixty feet high
Now she's a mile wide
It was clear she was going far away
And whole towns were too
A few got lucky in Piru

Because that water seeks her own
But four more hours she would flow
She had twenty-nine miles to go

She carried in her every kind of thing
House, trees, and telegraph pole
Some say a thousand souls
At three A.M. she gave Santa Paula a ring
She was still twenty-five feet high
Under a peaceful sky

Because that water seeks her own
But two more hours she would flow
She had nineteen miles more to go

It was a real bad night in little Saticoy
El Rio then Montalvo
How many no one really knows
Ventura Beach was very scary boy
Humanity a pile
She went her final mile

Because that water seeks her own
Into the sea the water flowed
And now for forever she would go

Moved.

Comments

[Chris in Pa.]

Frank Black / Black Francis / Charles Thompson is a ridiculously overlooked songwriter. A few things work against his being a commercial success. His days with the Pixies create certain expectations. He makes too many records, resulting in filler in many of them. He can be a little obtuse. And, I think to a certain extent he doesn't care what people think of his music.

His latest records, Blue Finger and Svn Fngrs, remind me of his early Pixie days. Frank is still a young man. I think he's got lots of good records left in him, and probably one or two great ones.

[العاب فلاش]

The PX- 3600 could quite possibly be the worst Xbox/ PlayStation hybrid knockoff console ever. Sadly,“ it even has those classic 9- pin controller ports you d find on an Atari 2600 or Commodore Vic- 20.” Click here for one more picture.

[tamsen]

I was thinking the same thing...had no idea about the subtext.

[Tim]

That's interesting. Makes me want to watch "Chinatown" again.