The Island Where I Come From Lyrics - Laurie Anderson

Let me tell you a story about Kokovoko 

The island where I come from 

The beaches are littered with rotten coconuts 

And there are pieces of old skulls lying all around 

Jewels and sand and rising water 

Visions I've seen and cries I've heard 

I can't put these things into words 

Might as well put some beans 

In a hollow gourd and shake it, shake it 

I've floated on an icecap with a white polar bear 

I've floated up and down the golden stairs 

I've seen whales and caught in sails all twiskeetwee 

But me? I don't say much 

Jewels and sand and rising water 

Visions I've seen and cries I've heard 

I can't put these things into words 

Might as well put some beans 

In a hollow gourd 

There are lots of people who talk just to hear the sound 

The sound, the sound of their own voices 

But take an empty shell and put it up to your ear 

You can hear the ocean rumbling around in there 

Ooo the greasy wheel it goes round 

The humming of the breeze it makes a whishing 

and whirring sound 

The sudden silence when the burning sun goes down 

Jewels and sand and rising water 

Visions I've seen and cries I've heard 

I can't put these things into words 

Might as well put some beans 

In a hollow gourd and shake it, shake it