From the recording Porthleven (Bay View No.2)
I spent a long time as a child, sitting looking out of my bedroom window. There was always so much of interest going on.
A very special view was from our house, on Bay View terrace in Porthleven, Cornwall.
As the name suggests, you could see out across Mounts Bay to Penzance and Newlyn as well as keeping an eye on the harbour itself.
I loved Porthleven; Its scruffy, workmanlike, nature and I loved all the characters it fostered.
But, like so many coastal towns, it’s been gradually sanitized for tourist consumption.
That's fine, and change is… inevitable.
Where once there were 'Butchers, Bakers, Shipwrights, Shopkeeprs' it now feels a little like a Fishing Harbour 'Theme park'.
A lament for old Porthleven, my hometown.
Lyrics
Roll out, your hometown
It will never be the same
The people have gone
And time has moved on
And now no one knows your name
The cars drive through
But there's no one there now, looking out for you
Up the steps to bay view, No.2
Working boats, anecdotes.
Stories of the past
For sentimentalists like me
Long lost tales, winter gales
Anchored 'down below'
Now there's nothing here to see
The cars drive through
But there's no one here now, looking out for you
Up the steps to bay view, No.2
Butchers, Bakers, Shipwrights, Shopkeepers.
Theme Park gift shop, Gallery restaurant.
Roll out, your hometown
It will never be the same
The people have gone
And time has moved on
And now no one knows your name
The cars drive through
But there's no one here now, looking out for you
Up the steps to Bay View, No.2