About The Song
After four No. 1 singles from his debut album, A Thousand Winding Roads, Joe Diffie previewed his sophomore set with “Is it Cold in Here,” which went top five. The next release became the only number one single from Regular Joe.
For those of you waiting for Joe Ditty to arrive, you’re going to have to be patient.
“Ships That Don’t Come In” is an extraordinary ballad about a heart-to-heart conversation between two guys who are down on their luck, but take the time to appreciate the opportunities afforded them that others never had.
It’s moving, empathetic, and more than a little heartbreaking. The early nineties recession produced a few great songs in this vein – Pirates of the Mississippi had “Feed Jake” and “A Streetman Named Desire,” while Sawyer Brown had “Café on the Corner” – but this was the only one that made it to the top.
It’s as powerful and resonant today as it’s ever been, and deserves to be as highly regarded and frequently streamed as “Pickup Man” and “Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox (If I Die).”
Diffie missed the top ten with his next three singles: “Next Thing Smokin’” and “Startin’ Over Blues” from Regular Joe, and “Not Too Much to Ask,” a duet with Mary Chapin Carpenter. However, Regular Joe still became Diffie’s first gold album. His next set, Honky Tonk Attitude, did even better, selling platinum on the strength of its three top five hits: the title track, “Prop Me Up,” and “John Deere Green.”
Diffie would finally return to the top with the lead single from his fourth studio set. We’ll cover it when we get to 1994.
Video
Lyrics
I could tell he’d had a tough life
By the way he sat and stared
And me, I’d come to push and shove
So I pulled up a chair
We talked of roads untraveled
We talked of love untrue
Of strings that come unraveled
We were kings and kindred fools
And just when I’d hit bottom
That old man raised his glass
Said at least we’ve had our chances
There’s those who never have
So here’s to all the soldiers
Who have ever died in vain
The insane locked up in themselves
And the homeless down on Main
To those who stand on empty shores
And spit against the wind
And those who wait forever
For ships that don’t come in
He said it’s only life’s illusions
That bring us to this bar
To pick up these old crutches
And compare each other’s scars
‘Cause the things we’re calling heartaches
Hell, they’re hardly worth our time
We bitch about a dollar
When there’s those without a dime
As he ordered one last round
He said, I guess we can’t complain
‘Cause God made life a gamble
And we’re still in the game
So here’s to all the soldiers
Who have ever died in vain
The insane locked up in themselves
The homeless down on Main
To those who stand on empty shores
And spit against the wind
And those who wait forever
For ships that don’t come in
And those who wait forever
For ships that don’t come in