[INTRO]
[A] [E] [A] [E] [A]
[VERSE 1]
I was broke in [D]old Van[A]couver
Met a mate, an [E]all-time loser
[A]He said he could [D]help me out
So to the [A]tugboat office [E]we set [A]out [E] [A]
[D]Right away, they [A]said, "Me boy,
We'll [E]sign you up this [A]very day"
So [D]to the harbour, unsus[A]pectin'
[E]Ridin' high, I made my [A]way [E] [A]
[VERSE 2]
When first I saw the [D]old Green [A]Cove
Her keel was bent, her [E]pipes were stoved
The [A]decks were leaking [D]on the bunks
And the [A]paint was peelin' [E]off in [A]chunks [E] [A]
The [D]engine-room was thick with [A]grease
The [E]stack with rust, was eaten [A]through
[D]Deck-head, it was all a [A]shambles
[E]Towline broken right in [A]two [E] [A]
[VERSE 3]
I went aboard and the [D]mate was [A]drunk
The skipper passed out [E]in his bunk
The [A]chief was in an awful [D]pain
With a [A]bout of the rheuma[E]tis a[A]gain [E] [A]
[D]In despair, I wandered [A]aft
The [E]bilge in the galley [A]was knee-deep
[D]Dirty dishes in the [A]sink
And the rats around the [E]shelves did [A]creep [E] [A]
[INSTRUMENTAL]
[D] [A] [E] [A] [E] [A]
[VERSE 4]
I'll never know how we [D]made it [A]out
From the dockside in and [E]round about
Past [A]Brockton Point in a terrible [D]fog
The [A]Green Cove ridin' [E]like a [A]log [E] [A]
But the [D]fog in the mate's be[A]fuddled mind
Was [E]thicker than it was out[A]side
As [D]at the wheel he weaved and [A]swayed
[E]We set out on our fateful [A]ride [E] [A]
[VERSE 5]
That night as I heard the [D]mate a-[A]snorin'
Keeping time to [E]teredos borin'
I [A]tried my darnedest not to [D]think
Of the [A]long ride down if the [E]boat should [A]sink [E] [A]
[D]Late that night, a storm come [A]up
The [E]pump gave out and the [A]seas come in
And [D]I had to pump her out by [A]hand
And I [E]swore, by god, that the sea would [A]win [E] [A] [E] [A]
[VERSE 6]
By luck we reached our [D]desti[A]nation
A windswept [E]bay, sheer desolation
[A]Blowin' hard, [D]blowin' cold
[A]Coldest night of the [E]year, I'm [A]told [E] [A]
We [D]tied the tug up to the [A]tow
There wasn't much [E]else that we could [A]do
The [D]skipper says, "Boys, let 'er [A]blow
We'll [E]patch her up as good as [A]new" [E] [A]
[VERSE 7]
Well, three days passed and the [D]wind died [A]down
We set off towin' [E]logs to town
But a [A]mightier wind was yet to [D]blow
But how in the [A]Hell were [E]we to [A]know? [E] [A]
But [D]old Dame Fortune served us [A]well
As [E]past the Refuge we did [A]wind
Po[D]tato Point and Harwood [A]Island
[E]Towin' logs and makin' [A]time [E] [A]
[VERSE 8]
But this good luck that we [D]could not [A]match
Gave out when we reached the [E]Cabbage Patch
Down [A]Malaspina we did [D]trail
A [A]westerly u[E]pon our [A]tail [E] [A]
We [D]rounded Scotch Fir, turned up [A]Jervis
[E]Buckin' tide all [A]on the way
[D]Made poor time over Aga[A]memnon
[E]Had to tie up in Boom [A]Bay [E] [A]
[VERSE 9]
Well, the wind died down and [D]we set [A]off
But the engine soon be[E]gan to cough
And the [A]matched-up seams be[D]gan to leak
And the [A]old boat she did [E]groan and [A]creak [E] [A]
Oh, [D]we was desperate, low on [A]vittles
[E]Had some coffee [A]and some tea
And a [D]dozen cans of Campbell's [A]finest
[E]Chicken Noodle and Green [A]Pea [E] [A]
[VERSE 10]
Off Merry Island, [D]late that [A]night
A storm come down, it [E]was a fright
Trail [A]Islands we knew [D]we must reach
Or the [A]tow would soon be [E]on the [A]beach [E] [A]
But the [D]skipper he was reading [A]Climax
[E]Missed the channel [A]in the dark
With a [D]sickenin' grindin' and a [A]crash
He'd [E]piled her up on the Southeast [A]Rock [E] [A]
[VERSE 11]
He piled her up, he [D]bent her [A]wheel
He cracked her sternpost, [E]broke her keel
And [A]off that rock we [D]felt her slide
With a [A]sickenin' list to the [E]starboard [A]side [E] [A]
Well, the [D]winds did howl and the seas did [A]roar
And the [E]Green Cove she went [A]three times round
[D]Whistled us a last fare[A]well
And [E]slithered forty fathoms [A]down [E] [A] [E] [A]
[VERSE 12]
Now the skipper and the mate grabbed the [D]only [A]lifeboat
Rowed like Hell from the [E]sinking tugboat
[A]Rowin' hard for the [D]nearest land
The [A]last they were seen by [E]woman or [A]man [E] [A]
And the [D]chief, that skunk from Campbell [A]River
[E]Grabbed the life-rings, [A]one, two, three
[D]Left me there with a hemlock [A]sliver
[E]Tossin' round on the stormy [A]sea [E] [A]
[VERSE 13]
I was washed up at the [D]break of [A]day
Along the shores of [E]Sargent Bay
The [A]only survivor of that [D]gale
That's [A]left to tell this [E]mournful [A]tale [E] [A]
And [D]now that you have heard my [A]story
You'll know why, for[E]ever [A]more
[D]I'll never go to sea a[A]gain
I'm [E]quite contented here on [A]shore [E] [A]
[A] [E] [A] [E] [A]
[VERSE 1]
I was broke in [D]old Van[A]couver
Met a mate, an [E]all-time loser
[A]He said he could [D]help me out
So to the [A]tugboat office [E]we set [A]out [E] [A]
[D]Right away, they [A]said, "Me boy,
We'll [E]sign you up this [A]very day"
So [D]to the harbour, unsus[A]pectin'
[E]Ridin' high, I made my [A]way [E] [A]
[VERSE 2]
When first I saw the [D]old Green [A]Cove
Her keel was bent, her [E]pipes were stoved
The [A]decks were leaking [D]on the bunks
And the [A]paint was peelin' [E]off in [A]chunks [E] [A]
The [D]engine-room was thick with [A]grease
The [E]stack with rust, was eaten [A]through
[D]Deck-head, it was all a [A]shambles
[E]Towline broken right in [A]two [E] [A]
[VERSE 3]
I went aboard and the [D]mate was [A]drunk
The skipper passed out [E]in his bunk
The [A]chief was in an awful [D]pain
With a [A]bout of the rheuma[E]tis a[A]gain [E] [A]
[D]In despair, I wandered [A]aft
The [E]bilge in the galley [A]was knee-deep
[D]Dirty dishes in the [A]sink
And the rats around the [E]shelves did [A]creep [E] [A]
[INSTRUMENTAL]
[D] [A] [E] [A] [E] [A]
[VERSE 4]
I'll never know how we [D]made it [A]out
From the dockside in and [E]round about
Past [A]Brockton Point in a terrible [D]fog
The [A]Green Cove ridin' [E]like a [A]log [E] [A]
But the [D]fog in the mate's be[A]fuddled mind
Was [E]thicker than it was out[A]side
As [D]at the wheel he weaved and [A]swayed
[E]We set out on our fateful [A]ride [E] [A]
[VERSE 5]
That night as I heard the [D]mate a-[A]snorin'
Keeping time to [E]teredos borin'
I [A]tried my darnedest not to [D]think
Of the [A]long ride down if the [E]boat should [A]sink [E] [A]
[D]Late that night, a storm come [A]up
The [E]pump gave out and the [A]seas come in
And [D]I had to pump her out by [A]hand
And I [E]swore, by god, that the sea would [A]win [E] [A] [E] [A]
[VERSE 6]
By luck we reached our [D]desti[A]nation
A windswept [E]bay, sheer desolation
[A]Blowin' hard, [D]blowin' cold
[A]Coldest night of the [E]year, I'm [A]told [E] [A]
We [D]tied the tug up to the [A]tow
There wasn't much [E]else that we could [A]do
The [D]skipper says, "Boys, let 'er [A]blow
We'll [E]patch her up as good as [A]new" [E] [A]
[VERSE 7]
Well, three days passed and the [D]wind died [A]down
We set off towin' [E]logs to town
But a [A]mightier wind was yet to [D]blow
But how in the [A]Hell were [E]we to [A]know? [E] [A]
But [D]old Dame Fortune served us [A]well
As [E]past the Refuge we did [A]wind
Po[D]tato Point and Harwood [A]Island
[E]Towin' logs and makin' [A]time [E] [A]
[VERSE 8]
But this good luck that we [D]could not [A]match
Gave out when we reached the [E]Cabbage Patch
Down [A]Malaspina we did [D]trail
A [A]westerly u[E]pon our [A]tail [E] [A]
We [D]rounded Scotch Fir, turned up [A]Jervis
[E]Buckin' tide all [A]on the way
[D]Made poor time over Aga[A]memnon
[E]Had to tie up in Boom [A]Bay [E] [A]
[VERSE 9]
Well, the wind died down and [D]we set [A]off
But the engine soon be[E]gan to cough
And the [A]matched-up seams be[D]gan to leak
And the [A]old boat she did [E]groan and [A]creak [E] [A]
Oh, [D]we was desperate, low on [A]vittles
[E]Had some coffee [A]and some tea
And a [D]dozen cans of Campbell's [A]finest
[E]Chicken Noodle and Green [A]Pea [E] [A]
[VERSE 10]
Off Merry Island, [D]late that [A]night
A storm come down, it [E]was a fright
Trail [A]Islands we knew [D]we must reach
Or the [A]tow would soon be [E]on the [A]beach [E] [A]
But the [D]skipper he was reading [A]Climax
[E]Missed the channel [A]in the dark
With a [D]sickenin' grindin' and a [A]crash
He'd [E]piled her up on the Southeast [A]Rock [E] [A]
[VERSE 11]
He piled her up, he [D]bent her [A]wheel
He cracked her sternpost, [E]broke her keel
And [A]off that rock we [D]felt her slide
With a [A]sickenin' list to the [E]starboard [A]side [E] [A]
Well, the [D]winds did howl and the seas did [A]roar
And the [E]Green Cove she went [A]three times round
[D]Whistled us a last fare[A]well
And [E]slithered forty fathoms [A]down [E] [A] [E] [A]
[VERSE 12]
Now the skipper and the mate grabbed the [D]only [A]lifeboat
Rowed like Hell from the [E]sinking tugboat
[A]Rowin' hard for the [D]nearest land
The [A]last they were seen by [E]woman or [A]man [E] [A]
And the [D]chief, that skunk from Campbell [A]River
[E]Grabbed the life-rings, [A]one, two, three
[D]Left me there with a hemlock [A]sliver
[E]Tossin' round on the stormy [A]sea [E] [A]
[VERSE 13]
I was washed up at the [D]break of [A]day
Along the shores of [E]Sargent Bay
The [A]only survivor of that [D]gale
That's [A]left to tell this [E]mournful [A]tale [E] [A]
And [D]now that you have heard my [A]story
You'll know why, for[E]ever [A]more
[D]I'll never go to sea a[A]gain
I'm [E]quite contented here on [A]shore [E] [A]
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