Tom: Em
Em D G D
Now I met Sam Jones on dock-side night in a rundown Viking bar,
Em Am Em D Em
A kid of maybe fifteen years at that purely nowhere star
G D C D
He had no ship, he had no skills, No name or family,
Em Am Em D Em
And he looked at me like a thirsty soul at a boundless salty sea
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 2]
Em D G D
"Captain take me with you Captain I'll work for free,
Em Am Em D Em
I was spacer born and stranded here, dock-side’s not for me"
G D C D
Now that tale sure is an old one. Some stationer unwise,
Em Am Em D Em
Had slept with some spacer love and got herself this prize
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 3]
Em D G D
And the kid grows up all restless and dreams of fairing free,
Em Am Em D Em
The stars and worlds and foreign docks and things he'll never see
G D C D
"A Spacer's more than born" I said, "He's trained from infancy
Em Am Em D Em
And you, you've grown up station-side boy you're no use to me"
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 4]
Em D G D
Well I saw him take that hope of his and turn his face away,
Em Am Em D Em
Not give up, no he'd never quit just try further down the way
G D C D
"Hey kid," I said "you're stubborn, If you work with half that will,
Em Am Em D Em
Well our engineer could use a hand we've got a berth to fill"
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 5]
Em D G D
He stood there with that scowling look as if he hadn't heard,
Em Am Em D Em
And then the tears ran down his face but he didn't say a word
G D C D
Now he never was much for talkin' after we took him on board,
Em Am Em D Em
Yes Sir, yes Ma'am, no Sir were all the words that he'd afford
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 6]
Em D G D
Now the engineer Kate Meachum, well her eyes were going bad
Em Am Em D Em
She knew I knew and that kid I sent drove old Kate raving mad,
G D C D
"Out" she'd yell and he'd lie low until old Kate got cool,
Em Am Em D Em
Then back he'd go and he'd do the skut, while Kate would call him a fool
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 7]
Em D G D
In time Kate's eyes got much worse, and every crewman knew,
Em Am Em D Em
But Kate herself, well her heart would stop the day she left that crew
G D C D
That close-mouthed kid would never talk, He just covered Kate's mistakes
Em Am Em D Em
"Kate," He'd say "Check the number four" or "Kate that's nine-point-eight"
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 8]
Em D G D
Now we made our rounds on the ports we used from Haleys to Almar,
Em Am Em D Em
And one jump all of our luck ran out at a little K-class star
G D C D
We hit a rock, a vane went down the ship went kiting through,
Em Am Em D Em
No way to stop and no damn thing that a rescue ship could do
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 9]
Em D G D
"It's the number three bar" Kate Meachum said, "That's broken on that vane"
Em Am Em D Em
"I'll send a man up," I said then, first hope I'd entertained
G D C D
"No way," said Kate "It's outside work, we can't fix that from here,
Em Am Em D Em
And to pull that thing with a high-V charge is the job for the engineer"
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 10]
Em D G D
Now we rode in dust at three quarters sea with our shields all down and null,
Em Am Em D Em
"Kate" I said "It's hell out there, dust is chewing up our hull"
G D C D
"It'll chew a hard suit faster still, Ten minutes is all you'll last,"
Em Am Em D Em
"Die now or later" Old Kate said, "I'll just work a little fast"
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 11]
Em D G D
Well Old Kate put that hard suit on, she went out in the driving hail
Em Am Em D Em
Of High V gas that scoured our hull, with the shriek like a banshee wail
G D C D
Her voice came back so thin and weak that we could hardly hear,
Em Am Em D Em
"I'm on it now, I'm at the vane," I've got the cover clear
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 12]
Em D G D
And silence then a long long while all drowned in static hiss,
Em Am Em D Em
"Damn this thing, my face plate's fogged my sight's gone all to mist"
G D C D
"Kate" I said "Get back inside someone else will go,"
Em Am Em D Em
But then I heard that aft-lock work two levels down below
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 12]
Em D G D
"Steady, Kate" said the kid's low voice then while the minutes ran,
Em Am Em D Em
"Easy Kate, my suit's brand new keep low as ever you can
G D C D
I'll find the pins, you tell me how and I'll get this bastard free,"
Em Am Em D Em
Kate's voice then, we listened hard but about one word in three
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 13]
Em D G D
"Ten minutes gone," we heard Kate say, then we heard the kid's hard breath,
Em Am Em D Em
"I got her, shove the other in hold on for life and death"
G D C D
Said the kid, "My arm's gone numb, Oh that's it now there, Kate, she's in"
Em Am Em D Em
"Get inside fast, get outta here" he went to static then
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
[Verse 14]
Em D G D
"Boy hang on" we heard Kate say, then we heard Kate Meachum swear
Em Am Em D Em
And quiet then, just the static hiss and the stillness in the air
G D C D
Ten minutes more "Power up" I said for we heard no sound back there,
Em Am Em D Em
It was my hand shoved the lever home and the power surged and flared
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
G D Em
[Verse 15]
Em D G D
Our speed ebbed down and ebbed again, as we turned for that K-class sun
Em Am Em D Em
But Kate and the kid went on together on the trip they'd both begun,
G D C D
Old half blind Kate and young Sam Jones made a hell of an engineer
Em Am Em D Em
So turn down a glass for such as they … … … and thank god we're sitting here
[Chorus]
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
G D Em
For Space is wide and good friends are too few
