I had wanted to write a song about Christopher Columbus, just because of his bouncy moniker, for a long time. I wrote this for a previous group (called "Uncle Rainbow"), and we did it onstage for a couple of years. I revised it and submitted as a song for Maria McKee ("Lone Justice") after she had requested songs from Brent and me, but I think she thought I was crazy. It remained with me.

Christopher Columbus was a man about your size
Times were hard with his girl, Marie
He moaned and sighed, he thought
"How can she love me without a home in the country?"
And that's a rare thing for a sailor to come by

Marie is a working girl in a seaside bar
It's all for her Columbus sailed so far
Her rent is low, but as things of the heart go
She's the richest girl from Spain to Hispaniola
And in his heart he wants to stay here and keep her and love her
But in his head the voice of ambition keeps saying over and over and over
	Christopher Columbus, you could be a city in Ohio one day
	You could even be a legal holiday
	Christopher Columbus, you could be a city in Ohio one day
	But if his heart could talk, it would tell you that he really wants to stay
Now you know that the Nina, the Pinta, and the Saint Marie
Put up the sails and put out to sea
People must have thought he had some disease
Sailing away to the West just to come back from the East

Larry -- vocal and keyboards
Lyle Workman -- guitars
Michael Urbano -- drum program

Recorded at
Cory's house by Cory Fite