Harry Chapin, who passed away in a car crash in July 1981, had his biggest hits with songs that are sad. In “Cat’s in the Cradle,” he sings about a father’s regrets. In “Taxi,” he sings about a lover’s regrets. And in “The Shortest Story,” he sings one of the world’s most depressing songs about a newborn baby starving to death. Chapin, though, worked to make the world a better place by fighting against world hunger with his Harry Chapin Foundation, which continues his work.
“Corey’s Coming”
I think the contrast with the sad themes in his catalog is what makes me especially love one of his lesser-known songs, “Corey’s Coming.” The song first appeared on Chapin’s album On the Road to Kingdom Come (1976).
Although I see the song as one of Chapin’s happier songs, one might point out that the song still has a death and a funeral. But from the start, the music tells us this song is not going to leave us sad and alone. Yes, the old man dies, but his friend and Corey manage to find a happy ending.
I have friends who named their daughter “Corey” after the song. I thought it was a cool choice, and Wikipedia also reports that a number of fans have named their children “Corey” because they love the wonderful song.
Who is Corey?
But the song itself is somewhat unclear about “Corey.” In the first part of the song, the people who knew the old man think he is referring to a former wife or lover (“his life-long love”).
But by the end of the song, I always thought that the Corey who showed up must be John Joseph’s daughter (“a beautiful young woman”). At the end of the funeral near the end of the song, Corey herself only says, “You could say I’m just a friend.”
They put the cold dirt over him and left me on my own;
And when at last I looked up I saw I was not alone;
So I said, If you’re a relative, he had a peaceful end;
That’s when she said, My name is Corey you can say I’m just a friend.
Some listeners wonder if the townspeople were right and that Corey was just an imaginary figure (“reality is only just a word”). Others surmise that Corey might be an angel of death.
For me, though, the music helps answer the question even if the words are unclear. The key of the song and the melody are too uplifting not to take the singer literally at the end about the arrival of Corey.
Also, Chapin’s songwriting usually was literal and straightforward, which also supports the interpretation with the happy ending of the narrator meeting Corey. After the meeting, the narrator implies that the reason he works in the railroad yard is because he now lives there with Corey (although again, others might instead interpret it as the young man waiting for death).
Can’t you see my Corey’s coming, no more sad stories coming;
My midnight-moonlight-morning-glory’s coming aren’t you girl?
And like he told me, when she holds me she enfolds me in her world.
Inspirations for the Song
Chapin’s brother Tom Chapin has explained that Harry got the idea for the song from a songwriter named John Joseph. And Harry then used “John Joseph” for the name for the old man in the song.
Harry Chapin apparently never explained the ending as far as I know. But the name “Corey” had positive connotations for him. When Chapin was starting out and did not have much money, a couple took him in when he was on the road.
The woman’s name was Corey.
What do you think “Corey’s Coming” is about? Leave your two cents in the comments.
(Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)
