White Squall
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"White Squall" is a song written by Canadian folk legend Stan Rogers, released on his posthumous 1984 album From Fresh Water. The Longest Johns released a YouTube cover of the song on 28 January 2026.
Factoids
The Soo Locks are a set of locks on the St. Marys River between the twin cities of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, and Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, which allow ships to travel between Lakes Huron and Superior.
Wiarton is a town on the Bruce Peninsula on the eastern side of Lake Huron.
Lyrics
As performed in the video.
Now, it's just my luck to have the watch, with nothing left to do
But watch the deadly waters glide as we roll north to the Soo
And wonder when they'll turn again and pitch us to the rail
And whirl off one more youngster in the gale
Well, the kid was so damn eager, it was all so big and new
You never had to tell him twice or find him work to do
And evenings on the mess deck, he was always first to sing
Show us pictures of the girl he'd wed in spring
{Chorus}
But I told that kid a hundred times, "Don't take the Lakes for granted
They go from calm to a hundred knots so fast they seem enchanted"
But tonight, some red-eyed Wiarton girl lies staring at the wall
And her lover's gone into a white squall
Now, it's a thing that us old-timers know, in a sultry summer calm
There comes a blow from nowhere, and it goes off like a bomb
And a fifteen thousand tonner can be thrown upon her beam
While the gale takes all before it with a scream
The kid was on the hatches, lying staring at the sky
From where I stood, I swear I could see tears fall from his eyes
So I hadn't the heart to tell him that he should be on a line
Even on a night so warm and fine
{Chorus}
When it struck, he sat up with a start; I roared to him, "Get down!"
But for all that he could hear, I could as well not made a sound
So I clung there to the stanchions, and I felt my face go pale
As he crawled hand over hand along the rail
I could feel her heeling over with the fury of the blow
I watched the rail go under then, so terrible and slow
Then, like some great dog, she shook herself and roared upright again
Far overside, I heard him call my name
{Chorus}
So it's just my luck to have the watch, with nothing left to do
But watch the deadly waters glide as we roll north to the Soo
And wonder when they'll turn again and pitch us to the rail
And whirl off one more youngster in the gale
{Chorus 2}
But I tell these kids a hundred times, "Don't take the Lakes for granted
They go from calm to a hundred knots so fast they seem enchanted"
But tonight, some red-eyed Wiarton girl lies staring at the wall
And her lover's gone into a white squall
Recordings
YouTube Videos
Full Band Streams
- Streaming John Malkovich (11 Feb 2026)
- Stream Eggs and Ham (16 Apr 2026) - this tune, but the lyrics are To the Ends of the Block. Because Sam.