There’s More to Building Ships 		Findlay Napier

There’s more to building ships than smashing champagne off the stern
Than royals and the crowds and the blaring of the horn
There’s someone counting pennies and there’s someone needs new shoes
And there’s someone up the pawn-shop buying back their weekend suit

There’s more to building ships than nostalgia, ache and pride
Of watching hulks slide down the dock and turn into the Clyde
There’s ten guys in the hospital, four men in the ground
And everyone worked there breathed that dust into their lungs
And everyone worked there breathed that dust into their lungs


There’s more to building ships than shaping steel into a hull
There’s labourers and managers, flying flags and fighting wars
From the draughtsman in the office to the man who welds the plate
Everyone among them should get fair and equal pay

It’s more than building ships it’s their every working day
They stand there on the dockside and they watch them sail away
There’s someone in the government who wants to make their name
They scupper it and cut it, and the unions take the blame
They scupper it and cut it, and the unions take the blame

They watch them sail away.

From a conversation about reopening Scotland’s shipyards with my Dad. He was a marine engineer and occasional builder of ships. It became clear to me that without a long plan, agreed on by all political parties, we’ll never see industry like that in Glasgow again.

Glasgow

There's More to Building Ships

Findlay Napier is one of the most highly-regarded performers and creative forces on the Scottish music scene – thoroughly active and truly energised with a heart-warming zing.

He made his name touring and recording with multi- award winning traditional Scottish folk band Back of
the Moon. In his more recent projects “Queen Anne’s Revenge” and “The Bar Room Mountaineers” his song- writing took centre stage and was described by The Sunday Herald as “Genuine songcraft and wit following in the Difford & Tilbrook tradition”. Findlay is also well known for hosting Glasgow’s premier open mic night at Bar Bloc, as the host of Celtic Connections’ Late Night Sessions and for his Hazy Recollections concert series which showcases the very best in new roots music.