In no particular order some of my favourite music moments. No 17 Shipbuilding by Robert Wyatt.
The first top 40 hit for Rough Trade records, Robert Wyatt‘s version of Shipbuilding was first released in August 1982, but did not trouble the charts until eight months later when it was re-released to coincide with the first anniversary of the Falklands conflict.
With words penned by Elvis Costello, the song evokes the incongruity of shipbuilders enjoying the boost in demand brought by the Falklands War, while constructing the vessels that could soon carry their sons off to join the fighting.
Costello has described the lyric as the best he’s ever written, but it’s Wyatt’s affecting vocal that gives the song its power.
The former Soft Machine founder, wheelchair-bound after being paralysed following a fall from a 4th floor window, adds an air of vulnerability to proceedings – his restrained performance drawing every ounce of emotion from the music.
