Old Spice Lyrics

Dust clouds swirl across the floor

As winter blows me through the door

A mariner consigned to shore

Too old to plow the seas

And safe from that New England sleet

That drove me down these narrow streets

I stand inside this dim retreat

Awash in reverie

For though my eyes are old and weak

I recognize the incense sweet

Floating 'round this old boutique

A spice shop, small and fine

These spices were my stock in trade

When as a youth I shipped away

And every scent recalls a day

When Paradise was mine

The smell of nutmeg comes to me

Reviving distant memories

Of sailing down to Amboin'

Across the Banda Sea

And its copper hue recalls a face

A form that moved with supple grace

That held me in her soft embrace

Along the coral beach

I lingered where the breakers rolled

O'er her sarong with threads of gold

I heard her island tales unfold

And hold me in their sway

We whiled away the month of June

Till summer brought the dry monsoons

And I still hear her plaintive tune

That sang our ship away

When we shipped cloves, we sought the harbor

At the port of Zanzibar

Their pleasant fragrance flew so far

We caught it miles from shore

And there among the fertile groves

That lined the hills above the cove

I fell into a greater love

Than I had known before

We lay along the sand and foam

The Southern Cross upon us shone

I nearly made her land my own

But the call to sea came clear

So I cast off on an ebbing tide

The ancient Arab dhows beside

And oh, the salty tears we cried

Still flow through all these years

Now here are ginger, tarragon

Fine cinnamon from old Ceylon

And untold lovers, come and gone

In days of fancy-free

But here's an herb with flowers of blue

Whose namesake's eyes I loved so true

I left the sailor's life I knew

For my sweet Rosemary

Now as I turn to face the storm

Whose winds pierce this old heart like thorns

The thoughts of my dear Rose will warm

These bones like summer wine

But some fine day, once more I'll come

Into this spice emporium

Recalling days when I was young

And Paradise was mine

Yes, some fine day, once more I'll come

Into this spice emporium

Recalling days when I was young

And Paradise was mine