[Intro] [Low solo voice, unaccompanied] Oh, haul her hard, boys, haul her wide, (Heave her over!) Black water waits on the dead man's tide, (Heave her over!) No bell will toll where sailors lie, No priest will hear a drowned man's cry, So grip that rope and hold her true, The sea wants me, and the sea wants you. [Verse 1] We left the shore in a morning grey, With rum in the hold and a debt to pay, The wind came hard and the mast bent low, But a sailor goes where the black winds blow, There's gold in the east and blood in the west, Salt on the tongue and scars on the chest, We curse the storm and we curse the sky, For the sea takes every man by and by. [Chorus] Heave, boys, heave, let the old ship ride, (Heave her over!) Through the foam on the dead man's tide, (Heave her over!) No king, no priest, no gallows high, Will own our bones when the storm rolls by, So haul, boys, haul till the ropes run red, We sail with the living and drink with the dead. [Verse 2] Old Jack went down off Trinidad, The meanest bastard this crew ever had, He laughed when the green sea swallowed him whole, Save me some rum and to hell with my soul, Young Tom saw lights where no lights burned, Three nights passed and he never returned, Now some swear they hear beneath the keel, His voice in the dark where the cold things kneel. [Chorus] Heave, boys, heave, let the old ship ride, (Heave her over!) Through the foam on the dead man's tide, (Heave her over!) No king, no priest, no gallows high, Will own our bones when the storm rolls by, So haul, boys, haul till the ropes run red, We sail with the living and drink with the dead. [Bridge] [Half-time, crew stamping slowly] Who owns the wind? (No man!) Who owns the sea? (No man!) Who owns the blood in a sailor's veins? (No man but me!) Then pull, you dogs, while breath remains, The Devil can wait till he knows our names. [Final Chorus] [Entire crew, loud and ragged] Heave, boys, heave, let the old ship ride, (HEAVE HER OVER!) Through the foam on the dead man's tide, (HEAVE HER OVER!) No king, no priest, no gallows high, Will own our bones when the storm rolls by, So haul, boys, haul till the ropes run red, We sail with the living and drink with the dead. [Outro] [Slower, voices gradually dropping away] Oh, haul her hard, boys, haul her wide, (Heave her over...) Black water waits on the dead man's tide, (Heave her over...) And when this old ship sails no more, We'll raise our cups on the other shore, One last drink and one last breath, Then down we sail to the halls of death. Title: Dead Man's Tide Style: Traditional pirate sea shanty, fully a cappella, rough weathered male voices, deep gravelly lead singer, large unruly crew response, authentic call-and-response work song, heavy boot stomps and hand claps only, absolutely no instruments, slow muscular rhythm, imperfect timing, audible breathing, creaking wooden ship atmosphere, dark maritime folklore, ominous but triumphant, voices should sound like hardened sailors rather than trained singers
