Prompt / Lyrics
[Intro] [Stomps and hands start slow Building] Oh the wind blew cold from the starboard side And it tore at the skin like a hook in a hide [Verse 1] We left from the bay where the fog runs deep Kissed three girls and the fourth did weep “Bring back your bones or don’t come home” Sang the gulls as they circled the foam [Chorus] Haul Boys Haul for the Widow’s Harbor Haul Boys Haul Don’t you steal her sleep Haul Boys Haul for the Widow’s Harbor Every oar stroke cuts our promise deep [Verse 2] First mate swore on an iron ring “Storm or calm I will see the spring” But the sky turned black like a shuttered inn And the waves rolled high to erase our sins [Chorus] Haul Boys Haul for the Widow’s Harbor Haul Boys Haul Don’t you steal her sleep Haul Boys Haul for the Widow’s Harbor Every oar stroke cuts our promise deep [Bridge] There’s a book back home with our names in ink In a widow’s drawer where the candles sink She reads them slow when the church bells cry Leaves one page blank for the last goodbye (hey!) [Chorus] Haul Boys Haul for the Widow’s Harbor Haul Boys Haul Keep your word this time Haul Boys Haul for the Widow’s Harbor Every salt-stung scar is a borrowed sign [Outro] [Stomps fade Voices drop to a hushed unison] If we don’t make that harbor light Scratch out my name in the dead of night And sing this song on the weathered pier So the sea remembers we were here
Tags
folk, Traditional maritime folk sea shanty with powerful a cappella male vocals in tight gang harmonies; heavy wooden stomps and claps driving a swung, work-song pulse. Lead voice raw and weathered, verses almost spoken-then-sung, with the crew answering short refrains. Choruses open into full-throated call-and-response, occasional held unison notes for drama, and a rough-hewn pub-room reverb that feels like low beams and salt-stained timbers., ballad, male vocals, rhythmic, a cappella, raw, shanty
Duration
2:54
Instrumental
No
Created
1/19/2026