Ten ‘n’ five hundred years afore,
Henry fell’d a forest o’ trees.
Oak to make a ship o’ war,
named for God ‘n’ Queen.
We helmed ‘er broadsides on th’ breeze,
an’ sank ‘er keel in th’ Solent Sea.
Who was she, to lift King’s eye,
who were we to so quickly die?
Chorus
Mary Rose, Mary Rose,
Your salty life is mine.
Two castles strong, guns galore,
jeweled for King ‘n’ rigged for war.
I’m purser, aweighin’ the gold
Me scales ‘n’ coins are sunk in the hold
With our passing I’ll ne’er grow old
Ahoy! what’s yer name?
I’m carpenter, mending the ship
My chests ‘n’ tools were pitched in th’ slip
With our plunge I’ll ne’er reship
Mistress what’s your name?
Chorus
Ar’ dog’s a rogue, he gets the rats
He paced ’n’ pawed under th’ hatch
Our floodin’ was his last dispatch
Ahoy! what’s yer name?
I’m ship’s pilot, I navigate
M’ compass ‘n’ charts ‘re soaked in the strait
She foundered fast, like a leaden weight
Mistress what’s yer name?
Chorus
I’m archer, I bend th’ bow
My strings ‘n’ arrows are coffined below
Ship’s laid low, ‘n’ so ‘s me soul
Ahoy! what’s yer name?
I’m the cook, I stew our meat
My ovens ‘r’ doused in th’ briny deep
A sunken galley is cold defeat
Mistress what’s your name?
Chorus
I’m barber, I tend th’ ill
My combs ‘n’ blades run under th’ swell
With our plight I’ll ne’er resail
Ahoy! what’s yer name?
I’m gunner, I fire th’ rounds
Cannons ‘r’ loose ‘n’ lost aground
From our blunder, I won’t rebound
Mistress what’s your name?
Chorus
I’m bosun, boss o’ th’ deck
My pipes ‘n’ bones are fused to the wreck
With my men, I’ll choke in the black
Ahoy! what’s yer name?
We’re sea-dawgs, we sing to th’ ropes
Our shanties ‘r’ bottled on barnacled slopes
Hand o’r hand, we haul’d dead hopes
Mistress what’s your name?
Chorus
So, we set heavy sail, full to th’ wind
‘n’ heeled gun holes below.
Nets o’ war trapped us within
‘n’ she scuttled our dam-ned bones.
We trimmed ‘er canvas on th’ breeze,
‘n’ drowned ‘er hull in th’ Solent Sea.
Who was she, to wet King’s eye,
who were we to sorrily die?
Last Chorus – altered 2nd line to: “love us to the end”