In 1941, a ship called the SS Politician,
bound for Jamaica, ran aground in the
Sea of the Hebrides off the coast of Scotland.
Along with many of her contents,
hundreds of bottles of whiskey were salvaged
by the inhabitants of the nearby island of Eriskay.
The bottled were hidden in various places around the island
to avoid discovery by the customs department,
which objected to the islanders’ initiative.
In recent years, one was found buried in a peat bog
and put on display in the island’s lone pub, Am Politician.
This song is about that bottle.

It was so long ago
I can hardly remember the day that we left
My brothers and I, stored away from the light
In the hold, in the cold
We tossed in the cruel wind and winter’s storm
And just when we thought we’d be lost to the sea
We were carried away, I was given to thee

And you kept me safe, for all of those years
You kept me hidden down there in the dark
And now that I’m gone, I wonder if you
Still remember me
Mo charaid

It’s been years since you left
But still I remember the day that you came
It was just you and I, together side by side
And I’d hold you in the cold
I kept you from cruel winds and winter storms
But one day they came and took you away
Now you’re on a shelf, are you lonely up there by yourself?

‘Cause I kept you safe, for all of those years
I kept you hidden down here in the dark
And now that you’re gone, I wonder if you
Still remember me
Mo charaid