Letra Shams de Brazzaville original

Ali was a sailor’s son
Joined the merchant fleet at twenty-one
Dreams of ports in distant lands
A bag of figs and some low-grade heroin

As the years rolled by at sea
Ali thought about his destiny
Tired of the sailor’s life
Ali thought he’d find himself a wife

Lisbon, Guangzhou, Taipei, Bandung,
Naples, Brunei, Capetown, Shanghai,
Bangkok, Pusan, Dublin, Luzon,
Lima, Dakar, Cypress, Malta

Sometimes things aren’t what they seem
Late one night our sailor had a dream
A queen of Indonesian lore
A voice he’d loved a thousand years or more

Lisbon, Guangzhou, Taipei, Bandung…

When the typhoon struck at dawn
Ali had his finest civvies on
All the crew were cramped below
And with a smile into the sea he dove

Lisbon, Guangzhou, Taipei, Bandung…