S$# 022 Split Enz | Six Months In A Leaky Boat

New Zealand sensations Split Enz had been around for several years, and undergone several key personnel changes and stylistic shifts, before they hit it big in North America in the early 80s. By the time the Time And Tide album came out in 1982, it was the apex of Split Enz on the pop radar in North America.

Six Months In A Leaky Boat, a single from T&T, hit the top 10, and I think it's an interesting pick for this week's song spotlight.

It's a catchy pop tune. But what is writer Tim Finn up to lyrically? Is the song a novelty hit, a simple ode to sea travel, or a metaphor for the ups and downs of life's journey? It's all in the ear of the listener.

When I was a young boy
I wanted to sail around the world
That's the life for me, living on the sea
Spirit of a sailor, circumnavigates the globe
...

At the bottom of the world
The tyranny of distance
Didn't stop the cavalier
So why should it stop me
I'll conquer and stay free
Ah c'mon all you lads
Let's forget and forgive
There's a world to explore
Tales to tell back on shore
I just spent six months in a leaky boat
Six months in a leaky boat

Interestingly, the BBC took quite a serious view of the song. Its chart journey coincided with the Falklands War, so the powers that be at the mother corp banned it, because they found the title "too provocative" or something like that.

Originally on Time And Tide, 6MIALB is also available on several Split Enz compilations.