Lyrks
Lyrks
Sign In
Cover Art

The fish Lyrics by William Bolcom

I Will Breathe a Mountain: A Song Cycle from American Women Poets

0

I caught a tremendous fish
And held him beside the boat
Half out of water, with my hook
Fast in a corner of his mouth
He didn't fight
He hadn’t fought at all
He hung a grunting weight
Battered and venerable
And homely. Here and there
His brown skin hung in strips
Like ancient wallpaper
And its pattern of darker brown
Was like wallpaper:
Shapes like full-blown roses
Stained and lost through age
He was speckled and barnacles
Fine rosettes of lime
And infested
With tiny white sea-lice
And underneath two or three
Rags of green weed hung down
While his gills were breathing in
The terrible oxygen
–the frightening gills
Fresh and crisp with blood
That can cut so badly–
I thought of the coarse white flesh
Packed in like feathers
The big bones and the little bones
The dramatic reds and blacks
Of his shiny entrails
And the pink swim-bladder
Like a big peony
I looked into his eyes
Which were far larger than mine
But shallower, and yellowed
The irises backed and packed
With tarnished tinfoil
Seen through the lenses
Of old scratched isinglass
They shifted a little, but not
To return my stare
–It was more like the tipping
Of an object toward the light
I admired his sullen face
The mechanism of his jaw
And then I saw
That from his lower lip
–if you could call it a lip–
Grim, wet, and weaponlike
Hung five old pieces of fish-line
Or four and a wire leader
With the swivel still attached
With all their five big hooks
Grown firmly in his mouth
A green line, frayed at the end
Where he broke it, two heavier lines
And a fine black thread
Still crimped from the strain and snap
When it broke and he got away
Like medals with their ribbons
Frayed and wavering
A five-haired beard of wisdom
Trailing from his aching jaw
I stared and stared
And victory filled up
The little rented boat
From the pool of bilge
Where oil had spread a rainbow
Around the rusted engine
To the bailer rusted orange
The sun-cracked thwarts
The oarlocks on their strings
The gunnels–until everything
Was rainbow, rainbow, rainbow!
And I let the fish go
Credits
William Bolcom

William Bolcom

About “The fish” by William Bolcom

Read the complete lyrics to "The fish" by William Bolcom from the album "I Will Breathe a Mountain: A Song Cycle from American Women Poets". On Lyrks you can follow along with the full text, explore the artist's discography, and discover related songs. The track is often categorized under Pop.

"The fish" is performed by William Bolcom. from the album "I Will Breathe a Mountain: A Song Cycle from American Women Poets" This page provides the full lyric text for fans who want to sing along, study the songwriting, or compare versions across releases. Lyrks organizes lyrics by artist and song slug so you can bookmark and share a stable URL. Music lyrics help listeners connect with emotion, narrative, and rhythm in a track. Whether you are learning English, researching a favorite chorus, or preparing for karaoke, having accurate line breaks and section labels (verse, chorus, bridge) makes the experience easier. We link to the official artist profile on Lyrks where available, including biography snippets, top songs, and chart placements when we have that data. If you enjoy "The fish", explore more songs by William Bolcom using the links below. Chart and trending pages on Lyrks highlight what listeners are searching for this week. For copyright or correction requests, see our DMCA and contact pages.

View all songs and biography for William Bolcom · Trending lyrics · Billboard Hot 100

Frequently asked questions

"The fish" is credited to William Bolcom. Songwriting credits may include additional writers listed on the release; check the credits section on this page for linked collaborators.

"The fish" appears on "I Will Breathe a Mountain: A Song Cycle from American Women Poets".

Visit the William Bolcom artist page at /artist/william-bolcom for biography, popular tracks, and links to more lyric pages.

Fast, furious
By Strauss
Angels Are the Highest Form of Virtue
Butterflies, hummingbirds
Dream Shadows
Amor
Ballade
Epithalamium
Lyrks
Lyrks

Your gateway to the world of music lyrics.

Product

Features

Company

About

Artists

Trending

Legal

Privacy

Terms

Copyright

Support

Contact

Features

Charts

© 2026 Lyrks. All rights reserved.