S.O.D. "Nantucket Sleighride" by Mountain

9/15/2016     What a story we have here.  Seems that a Nantucket whaling ship called the Essex was rammed and sunk by a sperm whale in 1820.  Of the 8 survivors, Owen Coffin was the youngest and to whom this song is dedicated.  Talk about picking on the youngest, as his shipmates proceeded to shoot him and have him for dinner.  First mate Owen Chase recorded the event which you can read about in his "Narrative of the Most Extraordinary and Distressing Shipwreck of the Whale-Ship Essex."

     Nantucket is an island off the southern coast of Massachusetts, population 10,172, and is cited by the National Park Service as being the best example of a late 18th century, early 19th century New England seaport town that has been both environmentally and architecturally preserved.  It is an expensive place to travel to.

     The phrase Nantucket sleighride comes from whaling and the part where the whale is harpooned and drags the ship until it becomes exhausted.  Mountain was formed in Long Island New York in 1969. After four break ups and reunions, the group reformed in 2001 and is still active. They are most well-known for their song "Mississippi Queen."