Ship 🚢 | 3 to 5 BOPS

Ship 🚢: 3 to 5 BOPS No. 51 (2023), features musical BOPS courtesy of Florence + The Machine, The O’Jays, Pastor T.L. Barrett, serpentwithfeet, and Weyes Blood.

Ah, you know what time it is! It’s 3 to 5 BOPS time – WOO! On 3 to 5 BOPS, it’s all about brevity and sweetness… for the most part! There’s a theme/topic, 3, 4, or 5 songs, and a blurb – two paragraphs or less.  3 to 5 BOPS, hence, is a mini playlist that shouldn’t take much time to consume.  In the 51^st edition of 3 to 5 BOPS (2023), we select songs that are associated with SHIP 🚢 in some form or fashion. The BOPS arrive courtesy of 🎙 Florence + The Machine, 🎙 The O’Jays, 🎙 Pastor T.L. Barrett, 🎙 serpentwithfeet, and 🎙 Weyes Blood. Okay, let’s get into it!

via GIPHY

1. Florence + The Machine, “Ship To Wreck”

💿 How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful • 🏷 Island • 📅 2015

“And, ah, my love remind me, what was it that I said? / I can’t help but pull the earth around me to make my bed / …Did I build a ship to wreck?” It’s clear on the energetic 🎵 “Ship to Wreck,” a highlight from the 2015 🎙 Florence Welch + The Machine album, 💿 How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful that 🎙 Florence Welch has seen her relationships go to hell. Welch is no stranger to tackling matters of the heart, and she does so masterfully on “Ship to Wreck.” “To wreck, to wreck, to wreck / Did I build this ship to wreck?” Welch simply wants to know exactly what she did to cause the love – the relationship – to go south.  She uses poetic, metaphorical lyrics related to the ocean to intensify the tenuous nature of the relationship.  In the first verse, she sings, “Dredging up great white sharks, swimming in the bed / And here comes a killer whale, to sing me to sleep / Thrashing the covers off, has me by its teeth.”  In the second, a key metaphorical moment occurs as Welch sings, “The chair is an island, darling, you can’t touch the floor.” “Ship to Wreck” is one of the best songs from her catalog, period.

Appears in 🔻:

• 11 Songs That Are Nothing Short of a Wreck (2018)
• 11 Incredibly Interesting Songs About Boats (2019)

2. serpentwithfeet, “Sailor’s Superstition”

💿 DEACON • 🏷 Secretly Canadian • 🗓 2021

🎵 “Sailor’s Superstition” gives 💿 DEACON, the sophomore album by 🎙 serpentwithfeet (Josiah Wise), a change of pace. A notable part of the contrast is who sits in the producer’s chair: the talented 🎛 Take A Daytrip.“Sailor’s Superstition” embraces modern R&B with hip-hop influence. Regardless of the shift in sound contextually, serpentwithfeet nails it, unsurprisingly. The quick, rhythmic nature of the lyrics stands out. Wise sings with ease. The harmonized vocals and vocal layers shine.  Adding to the picturesque nature of “Sailor’s Superstition” is the simple yet irresistible chorus, which, fittingly, references the ship: “Don’t whistle on the ship / We don’t wanna rouse the wind.”

3. Weyes Blood, “Titanic Rising” 

💿 Titanic Rising • 🏷 Sub Pop • 📅 2019

🎙 Weyes Blood (Natalie Laura Mering) had a critically acclaimed album on her hands with 💿 Titanic Rising, released in 2019.  What’s interesting about Titanic Rising is that 🎵 “Titanic Rising,” the fifth track, is incredibly brief (an interlude essentially). Obviously, the Titanic is a ship, hence why “Titanic Rising” fits the parameters of this miniature playlist.  In addition to its brevity, “Titanic Rising” happens to be instrumental.  It is a truly gorgeous, expressive instrumental.  The record ticks boxes when it comes to exemplifying an effective tone poem. Contextually on the album, “Titanic Rising” is situated between 🎵 “Something to Believe in” and 🎵 “Movies”.

Appears in 🔻:

• Titanic: 5ive Songs No. 10 (2020)
• 13 Songs That Encourage All to Rise Up (2021)

4. The O’Jays, “Ship Ahoy”

💿 Ship Ahoy • 🏷 Sony Music Entertainment • 🗓 1973

“Can’t you feel the motion of the ocean / Can’t you feel the cold wind blowing by? / There’s so many fish in the sea…” 🎵 “Ship Ahoy” appears as the second track from 💿 Ship Ahoy, the 1973 critically acclaimed album by iconic soul collective, 🎙 The O’Jays.  “Ship Ahoy” is never in a rush, clocking in more than nine-and-a-half minutes in duration.  The track opens with a number of sound effects, including sound effects from a ship.  Not just any ship, of course…  Notably, the first vocals don’t enter until after the one-and-a-half-minute mark. Even then, it’s mostly agonizing, expressive ad-libs as opposed to traditional vocals. Following a two-and-a-half-minute build-up, “Ship Ahoy” evolves into a more traditional song.  The chorus is the first traditional section of the song heard (“Ship Ahoy! Ship Ahoy! Ship Ahoy! Ship Ahoy”).

After the chorus, we get the first verse, which sets up the intent, meaning, and theme of the song: “As far as your eyes can see / Men, women, and baby slaves / Coming to the land of liberty.” Clearly, “Ship Ahoy” is about the slave ships traveling to America from Africa – heavy, troubling, but truly historic, socially conscious subject matter. “They’re coming by the hundreds / They’re coming by the thousands, too,” The O’Jays sing, continuing, “Look over the horizon, see the sun / Shining down on you…” The vocals by The O’Jays are on fire – locked and loaded, baby! The authenticity and degree of soulfulness is awe inspiring.  Furthermore, the music is celestial despite the heavy subject matter! Of course, do we expect any less from the songwriting and production team of 🎼 ✍ 🎙 Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff! The palette consists of big drums, electrifying guitar, biting horns, and soaring strings. So much can be said of this 10-minute masterpiece.  That said, it is better experienced through listening rather than a written description.  🎵 “Ship Ahoy” is easily one of the very best songs from The O’Jays.

via GIPHY

Appears in 🔻:

• The O’Jays, “Ship Ahoy”: Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 43 (2023)

5. Pastor T.L. Barrett and the Youth for Christ Choir, “Like A Ship”

💿 Like a Ship (Without a Sail) • 🏷 Numero Group • 📅 1971

“Just like a ship / Without a sail / But I’m not worried because I know / But I know we can take it…” Oh, the confidence 🎙 Pastor T.L. Barrett and the Youth for Christ Choir have on 🎵 “Like A Ship”! Why does the pastor and choir believe they can persevere despite adverse circumstances, and arduous situations? Well, it is thanks to the all-knowing, all-powerful, and the merciful, GOD.  What is interesting about this gospel song from the 1971 album, 💿 Like a Ship (Without a Sail) is the fact that God is mostly implied as opposed to named explicitly (Barrett does sing, “Lord knows I don’t have a sail” eventually).  Don’t get it twisted though, this is a faith-based, religious record.

“I sail for pleasure / But I found pain,” Pastor T.L. Barrett asserts at one point, following up with “I look for sunshine / … But I found rain.” Essentially, we hope or expect when we do something, it will go swimmingly, without a hitch.  Often, however, we encounter bumps in the road, many of which have the propensity to break our spirit.  Pastor Barrett continues serving up those bumps in the road, with the Youth for Christ Choir offering up the response to his call.  Ultimately, despite being “like a ship without a sail,” the pastor, choir, and those who believe have the ultimate way maker when it seems impossible, something the marvelous 🎵 “Like A Ship” illustrates perfectly 🙌.

Appears in 🔻:

• Pastor T.L. Barrett and the Youth for Christ Choir, “Like A Ship”: Music Lifts 🎶 🏋 33 (2023)

Ship🚢: 3 to 5 BOPS No. 51 (2023) [📷: Brent Faulkner, The Musical Hype; Island, Numero Group, Secretly Canadian, Sony Music Entertainment, Sub Pop; Matthew Barra from Pexels]