Audio
Audio (instrumental)
Lyrics
Sail away
Until the break of day
Dreaming as we sing
Of the homeland of our King
Sail away
Until the break of day
Where the waves grow sweet
Where the sky and water meet
Sail away
Until the break of day
Close your eyes and sleep
As you dream of Reepicheep
Mike Burn
© 2020 Rising Generation Music
Lyric Video
Story behind the song
On our road trip through Texas with friends Stuart and Bethany in March 2020, we picked up a cheap acoustic guitar in a music store so I could do some writing while we travelled. The first time I picked it up, I played a simple finger-picked chord progression which stuck with me for a few days, and I kept playing it round and round. We arrived in San Antonio, and had a high hotel room overlooking the famous river below. I was a bit frustrated that I hadn’t made more progress with the song, and as night fell, I was walking round the room that evening playing the chord progression and trying to find a lyric to get me started.
I looked down at the river, which as night had fallen was lit up, with multi-coloured boats taking tourists along, and it was really pretty. The boats would pass under a bridge and disappear, and I started singing “Sail Away”, which seemed to fit as the start of the song. It felt like a good metaphor for sleeping – we often talk about drifting off to sleep. My mind then wandered around the theme of boats, and the Voyage of the Dawn Treader came to mind, and a recollection of the lullaby that was sung to Reepicheep when he was small:
Where sky and water meet,
Where the waves grow sweet,
Doubt not, Reepicheep,
To find all you seek,
There is the utter East
Voyage of the Dawn Treader by CS Lewis
Reepicheep is such an iconic character and among many people’s favourites from the Narnia stories, and from what was sung to him as a child, he had a strong sense of destiny that stayed with him his whole life. Our hope for these lullabies is that the truth of God’s love, care and purpose for us through all our lives will be comforting and powerful.
This song became the title track and inspiration for the cover of the CD – Reepicheep seeking out “Aslan’s country” throughout his life, and always being guided by the words and light of the King.
Instrumental Track
More beautiful string solos on this track, this time with Jenny Gonde on cello, joined by Amy Jane Hosken at the end. It has been many years since I last heard Jenny play live, and it was an absolute joy to have her visit us over the summer, with Ben engineering, for a socially-distanced session in our garden room.
Jenny spent many years in Africa, and we will be using proceeds from the sale of CDs to continue supporting the school in Harare, so a gentle encouragement to you to think about visiting the online shop to order a CD or two today.