Lyrics: Klondike Gold
In the winter months of ‘98
The Klondike saw the profligate
Those men who came to navigate
For Yukon River gold
They came by boat and overland
To Skagway town to start their plans
And dream of rivers where they’d pan
For Yukon River gold
Many came keen
And many came lean
And many just came to know
That trail for gold was growin’ cold
So many long years ago
There were good ole boys and real McCoys
And men ya had to please
There were hard, hard times
And harder men than these
But the men who chose the Dead Horse Trail
Would live to tell a different tale
The ones who made it through the gale
To Yukon River gold
Cuz they found it in Bonanza Creek
And stakes were claimed within a week
Stampeders searched for yellow streaks
Of Yukon River gold
Many came keen
And many came lean
And many just came to know
That trail for gold was growin’ cold
So many long years ago
There were good ole boys and real McCoys
And men ya had to please
There were hard, hard times
And harder men than these
‘Cuz the men who joined in the Klondike rush
Were blown away like the golden dust
When the wind went cold
And the men went bust
For the Yukon River gold
In Dawson Creek in the midnight sun
With a pound of gold and a day’s work done
There was Mountain Molly worth a ton
Of Yukon River gold
And sweaty men in calico
Would gussy up and tally-ho
To Soapy Smith’s Saloon they’d go
With Yukon River gold
‘Cuz the men who joined in the Klondike rush
Were blown away like the golden dust
When the wind went cold
And the men went bust
For the Yukon River gold
Story
In 1974 my wife and I set off to travel the world. First stop - Lewisham, England (suburb of London) where we spent 6 months of our year-and-a-half long trip. I went to the local library in Catford, and borrowed a book by Pierre Burton: “Klondike - The Last Great Gold Rush”. Read it and wrote this song! In its current iteration I left out one verse to make the tune shorter, but the story line is “Pierre Burton” factual. Cheers!
Credits
Pete Thorne – Words and Music
Sean Roberts - Acoustic Guitar/Harmonica
Alex Paris - Electric Bass