[Verse 1]
The dawn broke red on the rolling tide,
The gulls wheeled low where the breakers cried.
We raised our sail to the morning's light,
With empty holds and an appetite.
[Chorus]
Heave away, lads, hoist the mains!
Wind and thunder, sun and showers!
Where there is a sea, there are pirates!
That's the law of the ocean's powers!
[Verse 2]
A merchant fat with a belly of gold
Crept through the mist both proud and bold.
She flew her flag so neat and fair,
Not knowing wolves were scenting the air.
[Chorus]
Heave away, lads, hoist the mains!
Steel and smoke in the midnight's glare!
Where there is a sea, there are pirates!
Fortune favors the souls who dare!
[Verse 3]
Some curse our names from shore to shore,
Some toast our health in a tavern's roar.
Kings draw borders upon the land,
But the sea obeys no ruler's hand.
[Bridge]
The tide will turn, the winds will veer,
Every sailor knows his fear.
Whether honest, rogue, or privateer's part,
The ocean weighs a sailor's heart.
[Final Chorus]
Heave away, lads, one more time!
Raise your mugs and let bells ring!
Where there is a sea, there are pirates!
As sure as gulls have wings!
[Outro]
So if you spy a distant sail
Riding hard before the gale,
Mind your cargo, mind your charts—
For where there is a sea, there are pirates!