Seabirds

Seabirds  3:47
Studio recording late March 1969 
* Unreleased

Production
Written by Roger Waters
Produced by the Pink Floyd
Recorded in France over eight days in late March
Recording supervised by Barbet Schroeder

Lyrics:
I can hear the sound of seabirds in my ear
And I can see you smile
The surf comes rushing up the beach
Now it will reach the castle wall, and will it fall?
The catfish dappled, the river flashing
Dogfish puffing bubbles in my deep

The surf is high and the sea is awash
With a haze of candy floss, glitter and beads
Rock that we sat on and watched in the sun
That was hot to the touch
And the sea was an emerald green
I can hear the sound of seabirds in my ear
And I can see you smile
(Chorus repeats 5x)

Lead vocals: Roger Waters (verses), David Gilmour (chorus)

Recorded for the More soundtrack, Seabirds is a great unreleased song that was used in the film but never appeared on record. The lyrics evoke a day at the seaside highlighted by sand castles menaced by the oncoming tide, candy floss (cotton candy in the US), the nearby river flowing into the ocean, a smiling loved one, and of course the sound of seabirds. An additional verse was written for this song but wasn't used in the recording, later appearing in a book of Pink Floyd sheet music (The Pink Floyd Song Book, Lupus Music, 1976):

Mighty waves come crashing down
The spray is lashing high into the eagle's eye
Shrieking as it cuts, the devil wind
Is calling sailors to the deep

This verse lends a slightly darker feel, which may be why it wasn't used in this upbeat song. The chorus to Seabirds is soothing and pretty; the verses are fast and rocking, as are the instrumental bridges between them. This song appeared in the film in the scene where Stefan sees Estelle for the first time at a Paris party, and it's love at first sight.