Sheldon Posen 1996
Finest Kind wrote "About the recent calamitous demise of the 500-year-old Newfoundland cod fishery. The song is modelled on Coal Not Dole, Kay Sutcliffe's lament for the coal mining industry in Great Britain, as sung by Coope, Boyes, and Simpson. A reach is a sea inlet or channel. A stage was the shed where in former times inshore cod fishermen landed, split, washed, and salted their catch. A flake was a rough pole-and-bough platform on which salt cod was dried in sun and wind before being exported."
Finest Kind: https://ianrobb1.bandcamp.com/track/no-more-fish-no-fishermen
Out along the harbour reach Boats stand dried up on the beach
Ghost-like in the early dawn Empty, now the fish are gone.
What will become of people now? Try to build a life somehow
Hard, hard times are back again No more fish, no fishermen.
No more shoppers in the stores Since the fish plant closed its doors
Men who walked a trawler’s decks Now line up for welfare cheques.
There’s big “For Sale” signs everywhere Pockets empty, cupboards bare
See it on the news at ten No more fish, no fishermen.
Once from Ship Cove to Cape Race Port aux Basques to Harbour Grace
Newfoundlanders fished for cod Owing merchants, trusting God.
They filled their dories twice a day They fished their poor sweet lives away
They could not imagine then No more fish, no fishermen.
Back before the Second War We could catch our fish inshore
Boats were small and gear was rough We caught fish, but left enough.
And now there’s no more fish because The trawler fleets took all there was
We could see it coming then No more fish, no fishermen.
Farewell now to stage and flake Get out for the children’s sake
Leave all friends and kin behind Take whatever job you find.
There’s some that say things aren’t so black They say the fish will all come back
Who’ll be here to catch them then? No more fish, no fishermen.