BLUE MEN OF THE MINCH

[D] We left from [C] Stornoway with the [G] dawn still [A] grey, [D] And the wind like a [C] drunk with a [G] knife that [A] day. [D] The bosun swore he [C] saw shapes in the [G] spray, [A] Blue shadows rising from below. [D] The captain yelled “[C] Trim the sails, boys, [G] trim!” [A] But the sea had a mind of its own. [D] Then a voice rose [C] up from the [G] waters [A] dim, [Em] Like a curse carved [A] deep in [D] stone. [Em] And the waves rolled [G] high, and the [A] deck rolled [D] low, [Em] And the Minch began to [G] roar. [Em] When the Blue Men [G] sing, every [A] sailor knows There’s a [A] reckoning offshore. [D] Hey! [G] Ho! [A] Grip that [C] rail! [D] Blue Men [G] of the [A] Minch want your [A] bones to sail! [D] Shout it [G] loud or the [A] storm won’t [C] fail [Em] Let the devil [A] come pinch by [D] pinch! [D] Hey! [G] Ho! [A] Hold that [C] line! [D] Salt in your [G] teeth and a [A] curse in your [A] spine! [D] Drink to the [G] dead and the [A] next in [C] line [Em] For the Blue [A] Men of the [D] Minch! [D] Their leader rose [C] with a grin of [G] foam and [A] spite, [D] Eyes cold as a [C] winter gale at [G] night. [D] He called our captain [C] by name outright, [G] Spoke a riddle sharp as a [A] blade. [D] “Tell me, sailor, [C] what rules the [G] deep? [A] What master do you obey?” [D] But the captain’s tongue [C] was tangled in [G] sleep, [Em] And the tide began to [A] sway and [D] sway. [Em] And the waves rolled [G] high, and the [A] rigging [D] screamed, [Em] And the storm closed [G] in again. [Em] When the Blue Men [G] chant, every [A] old salt knows There’s no [A] mercy for drowned men. [D] Hey! [G] Ho! [A] Grip that [C] rail! [D] Blue Men [G] of the [A] Minch want your [A] bones to sail! [D] Shout it [G] loud or the [A] storm won’t [C] fail [Em] Let the devil [A] come pinch by [D] pinch! [D] Hey! [G] Ho! [A] Hold that [C] line! [D] Salt in your [G] teeth and a [A] curse in your [A] spine! [D] Drink to the [G] dead and the [A] next in [C] line [Em] For the Blue [A] Men of the [D] Minch! [G] Some say they’re spirits of [A] drowned old crews, [C] Some say they’re the sea made [D] flesh. [G] But I saw truth in the [A] shifting hues [C] Death dancing in the [A] mesh. [G] So I shouted back with a [A] trembling roar, [C] A verse I barely [D] knew: [G] “The sea is queen and [A] forevermore, [Em] We’re only [A] passing [D] through!” [D] Hey! [G] Ho! [A] Grip that [C] rail! [D] Blue Men [G] of the [A] Minch want your [A] bones to sail! [D] Shout it [G] loud or the [A] storm won’t [C] fail [Em] Let the devil [A] come pinch by [D] pinch! [D] Hey! [G] Ho! [A] One last [C] cry! [D] Let the gulls be [G] damned as they [A] circle the [A] sky! [D] If we sink, let the [G] world know [A] why— [C] We sang to the [Em] Blue Men [A] of the [D] Minch!