Dark Stars

The Twilight of Atlantic City’s Original Steel Pier

Words & Music by Christopher Kent

The horse jumped from the high-dive stand as seven people watched the show
And down the pier a four-piece band played music from the radio
Toy giraffes and panda bears hung dusty from the walls
And seagulls looked for crushed remains of broken popcorn balls

And all that night the neons burned, though none were there to see
And the sky was filled with silence
There were dark stars in the sea

An old man watched the Ferris wheel and listened to the pilings cry
As shadows moved across the pier beneath a stormy evening sky
Twilight haze rolled in off the sea across the penny arcade
And ran like tears from silent eyes on carousels and poster maids

And all that night the pilings cried like widows, endlessly
And the sky was filled with silence
There were dark stars in the sea

Copyright 1978 by Christopher Kent. All rights reserved.