Going to Port Washington

Going to Port Washington
Album	The Wedding Record
Released	1995
Artist	the Mountain Goats
Length	2:04
Previous Track	"Secret Wedding" (Stratotanker)
Next Track	"What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" (Franklin Bruno)

Going to Port Washington is the second song on the compilation The Wedding Record. It was re-released on the compilation Ghana.

Lyrics

The trees were all decked out in their best fall colors
There was a snap in the air
When you eased down the window
And the New York sun brought out the highlights in your hair
And gently, gently
The constellations aligned
And as we crossed over the Throgs Neck Bridge I had
Something on my mind

When we rolled down the street
In the cool of the morning
I could feel the new day dawn
And somebody'd gone and turned the waterworks on
And slowly, surely
I saw the whole story unwind
I had never loved anyone like I loved you and I had 
Something on my mind

Comments by John Darnielle About this Song

• "Okay, so those of you who are natives will probably find this amusing at best and horribly tourist-y at worst, but I remember the moment that I got the idea that this had to be this next song. Rachel, my old bassist, and I were driving back from Massachusetts—we had to make Long Island before 4 A.M. so we could get a little sleep and then leave. It was our first time out here. And I saw a sign, and it said "Throgs Neck Bridge". And I thought, you know, I'm from California, our bridge would be called, you know, something Spanish Bridge. And so I was like "Throgs?! These people are from a different universe! Awesome, I gotta use that!' so that was where the genesis of this song was, and then a year later my friend Dan got married, and it was on his wedding 7-inch, and this is called 'Going to Port Washington'." -- 2005-07-02 - Old American Can Factory - Brooklyn, NY
• "This was on a seven-inch single that a friend released to announce his wedding. He's divorced now." -- 2019-09-10 - Aladdin Theater - Portland, OR

Live Shows this Song Was Played at

• 1996-03-21 - Beachcomber - Brighton, England
• 1997-03-xx - New York University - New York, NY
• 1997-04-04 - Duke Coffeehouse - Durham, NC
• 1997-06-17 - Brownie's - New York City, NY
• 1997-06-20 - The Black Cat - Washington, D.C.
• 1998-04-04 - Duke Coffeehouse - Durham, NC
• 1998-04-12 - Brownie's - New York City, NY
• 1999-07-09 - Starfish Room - Vancouver, British Columbia
• 2001-06-23 - Bottom of the Hill - San Francisco, CA
• 2001-10-19 - Mission Space - Baltimore, MD
• 2002-03-11 - The Maintenance Shop - Ames, IA
• 2004-04-20 - Go! Rehearsal Studios, Room 4 - Carrboro, NC
• 2004-08-20 - Durham Music Festival - Durham Armory - Durham, NC
• 2005-07-02 - Old American Can Factory - Brooklyn, NY
• 2007-05-11 - Sound Fix - Brooklyn, NY
• 2008-03-05 - Troubadour - Los Angeles, CA
• 2008-03-19 - Music Hall of Williamsburg - Brooklyn, NY
• 2009-06-14 - Zoop II - Farm Sanctuary - Watkins Glen, NY
• 2009-12-01 - Webster Hall - New York, NY
• 2011-03-28 - Bowery Ballroom - New York, NY
• 2011-04-02 - Castaways - Ithaca, NY
• 2011-06-14 - The Varsity Theater - Minneapolis, MN
• 2012-12-17 - The Showbox - Seattle, WA
• 2016-04-18 - City Winery - New York, NY
• 2016-12-02 - The Pinhook - Durham, NC
• 2017-04-11 - The Toff in Town - Melbourne, Australia
• 2017-10-17 - John Dee - Oslo, Norway
• 2019-04-30 - Brooklyn Steel - Brooklyn, NY
• 2019-08-10 - SummerStage - New York, NY
• 2019-09-10 - Aladdin Theater - Portland, OR

Videos of this Song

• 2009-12-01 - Webster Hall - New York, NY
• 2011-04-02 - Castaways - Ithaca, NY
• 2011-06-14 - The Varsity Theater - Minneapolis, MN
• 2019-04-30 - Brooklyn Steel - Brooklyn, NY