The Pirate's Original Shanties on YouTube

Losing You To Me

They're called the blues

An American Song

Crosses

Kyrstin's Song

Somewhere There

The Yellow Roses of Texas

Coconut Martini

Fallen Angels Without Wings

I'm Just A Fool Again

When I Can Hold Her Again

For Love

I'll Be With You Tonight

The Dream

God Of My Father

Bloodstained Footprints

Section One:

Section Two:

A Deeper Dive into the Videos Above

Losing You To Me

Recorded in 2017, "Losing You To Me" was The Pirate's favorite original shanty and his first project in Darren Sher's Omnitone Studio. Sparing no expense, Darren brought in his best talent and even got the World-renowned and Grammy nominated mixologist, Jeff Juliano, to do the final mix. The multi-talented and highly skilled keyboardist, Darren Sher, produced and mixed the recording. The amazingly talented Ryan Bull and Walter Jones handled all the guitars. The Nationally awarded Steve Skinner handled those beautiful string arrangements, and The Pirate did all the vocals.

The Pirate did all the video work at home during Covid lockdown. It took a great deal of time and green screen work to accomplish because it was his first effort and there's a huge learning curve. The goal? Would it be possible to produce a quality music video at home without anyone else assisting. The Pirate will let you be the judge.

"Losing You To Me" is a shanty The Pirate wrote as a warning to all those wrapped up in busy lives so much they forget to live and appreciate those around them that are dearest to their hearts. Not heeding the advice in the shanty might have one waking up one day to find themselves alone not by any hand of another, but by their own actions.

A few notes: It's obvious to any Elton John Fan that he was a great influence on The Pirate and his music. The Pirate even tries his best to sound somewhat like Elton John singing this song. The similarities are also obvious in the "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" theme playing out here in the Wizard of Oz allegory. The Pirate was also a huge fan of Andrew Lloyd Webber and his "Phantom of The Opera" musical as is blatantly obvious in the video above.

I’M MADE OF STRAW SO I CAN’T THINK OF EVERY LINE. MY BRAIN’S TOO TIRED BUT I DON’T SLEEP.

THE YELLOW ROAD BEFORE ME NEVER YIELDS A SIGN. SOMEBODY TELL ME WHAT THAT MEANS.

MY FRIENDS ALL TALK ABOUT ME, SAY I’M GOING BLIND. A LIGHT AT HOME THAT I CAN’T SEE.

I’M NAKED STANDING IN THE RAIN THAT’S FALLING DOWN. NOBODY RECOGNIZES ME.

WHILE I’M LOSING MY MIND, TRYING TO FIND, SOME PLACE MY INTUITION TELLS ME I SHOULD BE

AT THIS TIME OF LIFE, WITH YOU IN MY LIFE, BUT I DON’T RECOGNIZE THIS PLACE, I’M BLIND TO SEE, I’M LOSING YOU TO ME.

PAY YOU NO NEVER MIND THE CURTAIN OVER THERE, NOR THE MAN BEHIND IT NO ONE KNOWS.

HE HIDES IN SOLITUDE FROM WORDS HE’LL NEVER SHARE, SO I MUST FIND THEM ON MY OWN.

WHILE I’M LOSING MY MIND, TRYING TO RHYME, MY INTUITION TELLS ME THAT I’M LOSING YOU TO SOMEBODY ELSE,

WHO LOOKS JUST LIKE ME. MY MIRROR MELTS AWAY THE BLAME, AND NOW I SEE, I’M LOSING YOU TO ME.

I CLOSE MY EYES WE’RE ALONE ON THE FLOOR. OUR FAVORITE SONGS AND WE’RE DANCING ONCE MORE.

I HOLD YOU CLOSER THAN EVER BEFORE, SUDDENLY, IN YOUR EYES I SEE.

I’M NOT LOSING MY MIND, TRYING TO RHYME, MY INTUITION TELLS ME STOP, BEFORE I LOSE TO SOMEBODY ELSE,

WHO’S NOT REALLY ME. I’LL HAVE NOBODY ELSE TO BLAME, SO NOW I’LL CHANGE,

AND THEN YOU’LL SEE, I’M NOT LOSING YOU TO ME.

Ryan Bull Shows Off!

The Pirate spent a great deal of his career singing and writing Country Music Shanties. Big influences were some of the earlier singer/songwriters like Willie Nelson. "They're Called The Blues" was a shanty The Pirate wrote hoping Willie would record it one day. Darren Sher and his talented ensemble pitched in to help The Pirate make a professionally recorded rendition you hear here. All of the guitar work was done courtesy of the very talented Ryan Bull. Harmonica was added thanks to Darren. As a side note, The Pirate's good friend, the super talented Jeff Bowen liked the tune enough to record his own take. The Pirate would later call on Jeff to help him record some other songs. The Pirate includes a cut of Jeff's Facebook video below along with an additional lyric video. Willie, if you're out there, The Pirate would love to hear you do it.

"They're Called The Blues" is a shanty The Pirate wrote to express the loneliness he feels away from those he loves. The video above allowed The Pirate the chance to write an opening script and even benefited by the vocal talents of famous voice actor, Steven Blair, a.k.a. The Vocal Hatter!

THEY FOLLOW BEHIND ME, WHEN YOUR LOVE IS AROUND.

BUT WHENEVER YOU STRAY FAR FROM ME, THEY ALWAYS CHASE ME DOWN.

THEY’RE CALLED THE BLUES, SOME OF MY CLOSEST FRIENDS.

BUT FRIENDS AREN’T WHAT I NEED RIGHT NOW, I NEED YOUR LOVIN’ NOW AND THEN.

BUT WHEN YOU WERE BY MY SIDE, THE BLUES THEY’D RUN AND HIDE.

BUT THEN YOU WENT AWAY, NOW MY FRIENDS ARE BACK TO STAY.

THEY’RE CALLED THE BLUES, SOME OF MY CLOSEST FRIENDS.

BUT FRIENDS AREN’T WHAT I NEED RIGHT NOW, I NEED YOUR LOVIN’ ARMS AGAIN.

BUT WHEN YOU WERE BY MY SIDE, THE BLUES THEY’D RUN AND HIDE.

BUT THEN YOU WENT AWAY, NOW MY FRIENDS ARE BACK TO STAY.

THEY’RE CALLED THE BLUES, SOME OF MY CLOSEST FRIENDS.

AND THANK GOD FOR MY FRIENDS, YOU’RE GONE, SO LONG, THEY’LL GET ME THROUGH AGAIN.

They're Called The Blues Lyric Video...

They're called the blues

CROSSES

"Crosses" is likely The Pirate's most somber shanty to date and some of the lines were painful to write. On the morning of October 2nd, 2017, The Pirate's uncle called him to say how sorry he was about what happened. The Pirate hadn't seen the news yet. On the evening of the 1st, in Las Vegas, Nevada, a mass shooter selfishly took 60 lives as he rained down shots randomly into a Country Music festival from his 32nd floor suite in Mandalay Bay. The Pirate will not write his name here, but you can look up all the details on Wikipedia. The incident was the deadliest mass shooting by a lone gunman in U.S. history.

Shortly after the event, The Pirate was busy driving to a recording session in Las Vegas when the route took him down a short stretch of Las Vegas Blvd. That stretch just happened to be littered with makeshift crosses erected and bearing the names of each victim. That tore at The Pirate's heartstrings and a shanty began to form in his mind. That night he went home and wrote "Crosses". The next day he begged the studio producer to freeze the shanty he was working on and record a piano only version you can hear below.

The crosses that The Pirate drove past were erected by the late Greg Zanis and you can read all about him on Wikipedia.

"Crosses" ended up being the first of a few political shanties The Pirate wrote about the same time. Most of The Pirate's shanties have been love songs, but time and events have a way of impacting all of us and The Pirate had something to say. Unfortunately, The Pirate's words seem to have fallen on deaf ears. In the studio version of "Crosses", the opening whispers are impossible to make out on purpose. The Pirate whispered the names of each victim packed into a few seconds followed by the words...Never Forget. The Pirate wanted each of their names to be included in his shanty.

Finally, some of the lines in "Crosses" came directly from news stories that impacted The Pirate. He felt he needed to add them to "Crosses". Gun violence impacts everyone in the World. The United States isn't unique in using guns to commit violent acts, it's just unique in its sheer numbers of gun-related mass murder incidents as well as capacity to use these weapons to violate human rights for certain groups. The Pirate reflected that in the Bridge of "Crosses". Taking a knee became a symbol for this and thus it was added to the shanty. While finishing up "Crosses", The Pirate was also inspired to say something about another injustice being served up to his fellow countrymen in Puerto Rico as Hurricane relief efforts fell far short of what The Pirate felt they might have been on the mainland to non-Puerto Ricans. Another bit of interesting trivia around "Crosses" came about thanks to an observation Sarah Chaffe, the cellist, made when she showed up to the studio to lay down her tracks. She asked me if I realized the chord progression for the song spelled out the word "DEAD". I did not. Sarah has really broadened her career since I last saw her and you should check out her website link by clicking on her name or either picture below.

One more thing: IMHO...If we didn't have the balls enough to do something about these mass shootings after Newtown, we probably never will.

"Somebody's comin' for the children. Go write the numbers on their arms."

TOO MANY CROSSES IN THE STREET. TOO MANY FLOWERS AT THEIR FEET.

HOW MANY SOULS WILL JESUS SAVE, IN THIS LAND OF THE FREE, HOME OF THE BRAVE.

I HEADED OFF TO WAR THIS MORNIN’, GUITAR AND RIFLE BY MY SIDE.

WE SANG SO LOUD WE DROWNED THE THUNDER. THE RAIN FELL HARD NO PLACE TO HIDE.

NOW THERE'S TOO MANY CROSSES IN THE STREET. TOO MANY FLOWERS AT THEIR FEET.

HOW MANY SOULS WILL JESUS SAVE, IN THIS LAND OF THE FREE, HOME OF THE BRAVE.

I HEARD ABOUT A PLACE CALLED NEWTOWN, A PLACE WHERE PEOPLE KNOW NO HARM.

SOMEBODY’S COMIN’ FOR THE CHILDREN. GO WRITE THE NUMBERS ON THEIR ARMS.

NOW THERE'S TOO MANY CROSSES IN THE STREET. TOO MANY FLOWERS AT THEIR FEET.

HOW MANY SOULS WILL JESUS SAVE, IN THIS LAND OF THE FREE, HOME OF THE BRAVE.

I SEE THEM MARCHING FOR FREEDOM, ON LINCOLN’S NATIONAL MALL.

THEIR VOICES CRY OUT IN ANGER, A LITTLE JUSTICE, FOR US ALL.

I SAW THEM TAKE A KNEE ON SUNDAY, THE DAY THE RAIN FELL FROM THE SKY.

NOBODY UNDERSTANDS THEIR HEARTACHE. NOBODY DARES TO ASK THEM WHY.

THE MAYOR LOOKED OUT ON HER CITY. WHERE LINES GROW LONG WHEN WELLS RUN DRY.

WHEN STORES OF THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS GO EMPTY? WHAT ‘COMES OF HEROES WHEN THEY DIE? (they’re on)

TOO MANY CROSSES IN THE STREET. TOO MANY FLOWERS AT THEIR FEET.

HOW MANY SOULS WILL JESUS SAVE, IN THIS LAND OF THE FREE, AND THE HOME OF THE BRAVE.

CROSSES...Unplugged

SARAH CHAFFEE THEN

SARAH CHAFFEE TODAY

Sarah shines in the studio!

Ryan harmonizes with himself!

Darren Sher and Walter Jones at work!

AN AMERICAN SONG

"An American Song" is a modern American anthem paying tribute to what makes our nation great, its immigrants. We are a nation made up almost entirely of immigrants that, at one time or another, came to this great nation seeking a better life. Many came here out of free will, and many because they had no other choice. Either way, all of them are who we are, and nobody should ever stop the desire of anyone seeking to become an American.

"An American Song" captures the story of three immigrants over the last 100 years that have three different stories. The first is a Jewish family escaping 1930's Germany at the rise of Hitler. The second is a woman from a war torn Middle Eastern nation. The third is an Hispanic family from Central America looking for a brighter future for themselves and their children.

Immigrants have migrated to America from all over the World. The Pirate captures only three here and still ended up needing seven minutes to tell their story. I hope you'll take those minutes and reflect on their story, as well as others you might know.

The Pirate had the good fortune to record this duet with one of Las Vegas' finest singers, G.C. Eccentric. Her electrifying voice was exactly what The Pirate had in mind when he wrote this song, and she truly brought it to life. Many thanks to Darren Sher and others over at The Omnitone for their hard work and outstanding talent in making this song possible. I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as The Pirate enjoyed making it.

"An American Song" ended up being another of The Pirate's political shanties. Most of The Pirate's shanties have been love songs, but the political environment in America when he wrote this song was leaning hard against immigrants and it weighed heavily on The Pirate's mind.

I CAME OVER ON A SHIP, BACK IN 1933, JUST MY MOM, DAD AND ME.

FIRST TIME I SAW HER TORCH I CRIED. I LOOKED INTO THOSE EYES, KNEW I COULD FLY

NOW, YOU DON’T TALK LIKE WE DO, BUT WE’RE WELCOMING YOU.

MY FATHER SIGNED UP FOR THE CORP, AND HE WENT OFF TO THE WAR, TO FIGHT SOME MORE.

ONE DAY SOME SOLDIERS CAME TO CALL, AND THEY SAID HE GAVE HIS ALL, AND SAVED US ALL.

NOW YOU DON’T TALK LIKE WE DO, BUT WE’RE THANKFUL FOR YOU.

SO LAY ME DOWN UPON THIS LAND, WHERE BONES TURN INTO SAND.

TELL MY CHILDREN NOT TO CRY, FOR FREEDOM I WILL DIE.

IN A PLACE WE ALL CALL HOME. IN A PLACE WE’RE NE’ER TO ROAM.

IN A PLACE OF IMMIGRANTS, WE’RE ALL AMERICANS.

LOOK AT THE SOUL OF A MAN. LOOK AT THE SCARS IN HER HANDS.

LOOK AT THE SOUL OF A MAN. LOOK AT THE SCARS IN HER HANDS.

I WATCHED MY CHILDREN PLAY EACH DAY, IN A GARDEN WHERE WE PRAYED, SO FAR AWAY.

YOU’LL NEVER KNOW THE THINGS YOU’LL DO, ‘TILL IT’S HAPPENING TO YOU, WHAT BOMBS CAN DO.

NOW, YOU DON’T PRAY LIKE WE DO, ARE WE FRIGHTENED OF YOU.

SO LAY ME DOWN UPON THIS LAND, WHERE BONES TURN INTO SAND.

TELL MY CHILDREN NOT TO CRY, FOR FREEDOM I WILL DIE.

IN A PLACE WE ALL CALL HOME. IN THIS PLACE WE’RE NE’ER TO ROAM.

IN THIS PLACE OF IMMIGRANTS, WE’RE ALL AMERICANS. WE'RE ALL AMERICANS.

LOOK AT THE SOUL OF A MAN. LOOK AT THE SCARS IN HER HANDS.

LOOK AT THE SOUL OF A MAN. LOOK AT THE SCARS IN HER HANDS.

JESÚS WAS HUNGRY, HE WAS POOR, AND HIS FAMILY THEY MOVED NORTH, TO FIND SOME MORE.

TOOK HIS CHANCES IN THIS LAND, BUILT A HOME HERE WITH HIS HANDS, AMERICAN.

BUT, YOU DON’T LOOK LIKE WE DO. BUT YOU'RE AMERICAN TOO?

SO LAY ME DOWN UPON THIS LAND, WHERE BONES TURN INTO SAND.

TELL MY CHILDREN NOT TO CRY, FOR FREEDOM I WILL DIE.

IN A PLACE WE ALL CALL HOME. IN THIS PLACE WE’RE NE’ER TO ROAM.

IN THIS PLACE OF IMMIGRANTS, WE’RE ALL AMERICANS. WE’RE ALL AMERICANS.

LOOK AT THE SOUL OF A MAN. LOOK AT THE SCARS IN HER HANDS.

LOOK AT THE DEEDS THAT THEY DO, NOT AT THE DEEDS OF A FEW.

LOOK AT THE SOUL OF A MAN (LOOK AT THE SOUL). LOOK AT THE SCARS IN HER HANDS (LOOK AT HER SCARS).

LOOK AT THE DEEDS THAT THEY DO, NOT AT THE DEEDS (WE’RE ALL AMERICANS) OF A FEW.

LOOK AT THE SOUL OF A MAN. LOOK AT THE SCARS IN HER HANDS. LOOK AT THE DEEDS THAT THEY DO, NOT AT THE DEEDS OF A FEW.

G.C. Eccentric

KYRSTIN'S SONG

The Pirate wrote "Kyrstin's Song" when his daughter, now Kyrstin Fierst, was ten years old. He wanted to write the shanty in three parts, the first when she was ten years old, the second, imagining her getting married, and the last, the full circle of imagining her with her own children. The Pirate has seen all three parts come to fruition. She has a wonderful husband, Zachary and two children, Anastasia and Athena.

The short clip at the beginning of the video features my song for one of my Granddaughters, titled "Anastasia's Lullabye". I am very proud of my daughter. She has elected to serve our nation in the National Guard and, along with her husband, dedicate their lives to serving and protecting our nation.

Once again, many thanks to all the talented people at The Omnitone and especially a big thanks to the greatly talented violinist, Crystal Yuan.

MONDAY MORNIN’ 6AM. HARD TO WAKE HER UP AGAIN. LITTLE EYES THAT GREET THE DAY AND SMILE.

A SUMMER DAY AND OH HOW CUTE. PONYTAILS AND SWIMMIN’ SUITS.

SHE’LL NEVER STOP TO NOTICE HOW TIME FLIES, WHEN SHE’S…

BREAKIN’ HEARTS AT TEN YEARS OLD. CAKE AND ICE CREAM, COOKIE DOUGH.

CAN I HAVE A PONY DAD? AND LOOK AT THAT OLD PHOTOGRAPH,

OF YOU AND MOMMY YEARS AGO. AND CAN WE GO TO THE PICTURE SHOW?

KYRSTIN SOMEDAY YOU WILL KNOW JUST HOW MUCH I LOVE YOU.

MONDAY MORNIN’ 6AM. WEDDING BELLS RINGIN’ IN HER HEAD. YESTERDAY THEY VOWED TO LOVE NO OTHER.

DADDY WALK ME DOWN THE AISLE. I KISSED HER CHEEK AND STARED A WHILE.

THINKIN’ BACK WHEN MY LITTLE GIRL WAS YOUNGER, WHEN SHE WAS…

BREAKIN’ HEARTS AT TEN YEARS OLD. CAKE AND ICE CREAM, COOKIE DOUGH.

CAN I HAVE A PONY DAD? AND LOOK AT THAT OLD PHOTOGRAPH,

OF YOU AND MOMMY YEARS AGO. AND CAN WE GO TO THE PICTURE SHOW?

KYRSTIN SOMEDAY YOU WILL KNOW JUST HOW MUCH I LOVE YOU.

MONDAY MORNIN’ 6AM. KYRSTIN RISES UP AGAIN. STARES A WHILE AT THE MOTHER IN HER MIRROR.

ANOTHER WORKDAY HAS BEGUN. SHE’LL KISS HER KIDS AND OFF THEY’LL RUN.

BUT HOW THEIR SMILES REMINDS HER OF THAT SUMMER, WHEN SHE WAS…

BREAKIN’ HEARTS AT TEN YEARS OLD. CAKE AND ICE CREAM, COOKIE DOUGH.

CAN I HAVE A PONY DAD? AND LOOK AT THAT OLD PHOTOGRAPH,

OF YOU AND MOMMY YEARS AGO. AND CAN WE GO TO THE PICTURE SHOW?

KYRSTIN SOMEDAY YOU WILL KNOW JUST HOW MUCH DAD LOVES YOU.

Crystal, Darren, and The Pirate

Crystal Yuan

SOMEWHERE THERE

The Pirate often writes shanties with bases on famous movies, stories or other shanties. As with his "Wizard of Oz" incorporation into his shanty, "Losing You To Me", The Pirate also draws from the famous movie, "It's A Wonderful Life", starring Jimmy Stewart to paint a picture in "Somewhere There". The Pirate even uses a famous clip from the movie to kick off the shanty.

The Pirate has only written two Christmas shanties and this one sparked the interest of The Pirate's mother, Leah Ann Hines. She was the reason The Pirate set about recording the shanty in the studio. More can be learned about The Pirate's mother by clicking on the picture at the top of the page or just follow this link.

"Somewhere There" is the story of The Pirate's Grandmother, Lillian Linton. The Pirate loved her dearly and his darkest day was the day she passed away. You can discover more about her and The Pirate's lineage by clicking on the picture at the top of the page or just follow this link.

The Pirate called on Darren Sher and his talents again to do the recording. This time, though, The Pirate asked Darren to find him a children's choir for the background vocals.

GATHER ALL TOGETHER, ‘ROUND THIS CHRISTMAS TREE. AND THE ANGEL ON HIGH, REMINDS US TO LIGHT,

A CANDLE SO BRIGHT, FOR GRANDMA TO SEE.

HOW I LONG TO HOLD HER, AND TO HEAR HER SING. AND I WONDER TONIGHT, IN HER WONDERFUL LIFE,

DID SHE EVER, EARN HER WINGS? AND

SOMEWHERE THERE’S A BELL THAT IS RINGING. SOMEWHERE THERE’S A STRONG MELODY.

LISTEN TO THE WORDS SHE IS SINGING. IN YOUR HEART I’LL ALWAYS BE.

LOOK THERE AND FIND ME, ON THIS CHRISTMAS EVE.

THERE’S NO SILENCE IN HEAVEN TONIGHT. I CAN HEAR THEM SING,

AND FEEL THE BEATING OF WINGS. AND

SOMEWHERE THERE’S A BELL THAT IS RINGING. SOMEWHERE THERE’S A STRONG MELODY.

LISTEN TO THE WORDS SHE IS SINGING. IN YOUR HEART I’LL ALWAYS BE.

LOOK THERE AND FIND ME, ON THIS CHRISTMAS EVE.

The Children's Choir

Sleigh Bells!

THE YELLOW ROSES OF TEXAS

"The Yellow Roses of Texas" is a Country Music shanty The Pirate wrote early in his career about life on the road as a musician. Dreams come with consequences and many times the life of a musician comes with decisions that separate them from loved ones. Sometimes that separation costs a lot and sometimes it can cost you everything. The Pirate was lucky enough to meet the love of his life, Michelle, a.k.a. "Lady", when he played at Blakely's, back in Chesapeake, Virginia. But it was only by a shear stroke of Pirate fortunes, some good and some bad, that they ever came together in the end. The Pirate knew many musician friends that gave up a lot and today have nothing.

"The Yellow Roses of Texas" plays on the old shanty, "The Yellow Rose of Texas", dating back to the 1850s. The Pirate remembers submitting it to publishing companies years ago and getting such rejection responses as "How can a rose turn blue? I don't get it." The Pirate doesn't take it personally. Pirates are outlaws after all. Many of those same publishing and recording companies passed up on bands like Boston. But if The Pirate could right back to that guy that was confused about blue roses, he'd simply say...""If there's a bustle in your hedgerow, don't be alarmed now. It's just a spring clean for the May Queen?" But luck plays a pivotal role in landing songs or making it in the music industry. The other memory The Pirate has about this shanty is having to write the bridge in the studio. He was recording it and the engineer thought it really needed a bridge. The Pirate paused, sat back, took out a pen, and wrote the bridge..."You always told me in time, that all my dreams would come true. But dreams die hard and soon I came to realize, this road I traveled leads me home to you." The engineer was spot on. It really tied the shanty together well. The Pirate also started writing more bridges in his songs after that.

One of The Pirate's dearest musician friends recorded the guitar parts on "The Yellow Roses of Texas", the late Mr. Warren Seaburg. In The Pirate's opinion, the music world lost a great talent the day Warren passed away in 2011. If you'd like to hear more of Warren's talent, he plays a number of shanties on this YouTube page, or you can begin by clicking his video below.

The Pirate believes almost anyone could run with this shanty. He doesn't think it sounds or ever has sounded dated. It's a simple Country love shanty. The Pirate even thinks it would be easy enough to change a few words around and a female artist could do it. So, that being said, thanks for listening and here's the lyrics...

I THOUGHT ABOUT YOU JUST THE OTHER NIGHT. I SAT ALONE AND WATCHED THE STARS SO BRIGHT,
AND SLOWLY CARVED OUT YOUR NAME SOMEWHERE IN THE SKY.

DOWN HERE IN TEXAS WHERE THE ROSES BLOOM, I PLAY FOR HOURS IN SOME SMOKY ROOM.
AND THINK ABOUT ALL THOSE TIMES, BABY ONCE IN A WHILE I CAN STILL SEE YOUR SMILE.

THE YELLOW ROSES OF TEXAS CAN'T BRING BACK THE GREEN GRASS OF HOME,
BUT IF THERE'S ONE THING THAT THEY'LL ALWAYS DO, THEY'LL STILL GET BLUE FOR YOU.

I GUESS THEY NEVER REALLY LIKED MY SONG. AT LEAST IT NEVER EVER LASTED LONG.
ANOTHER YEAR ON THE ROAD, AND ONE MORE GOODBYE.

DROPPED OFF IN DALLAS FOR A YEAR OR TWO. SPENT TIME IN AUSTIN WITH A GIRL I KNEW.
HER THORNS RAN DEEP IN MY HEART, BUT HER ROSES CAN'T HIDE, THIS LOVE I FEEL DOWN INSIDE.

THE YELLOW ROSES OF TEXAS CAN'T BRING BACK THE GREEN GRASS OF HOME,
BUT IF THERE'S ONE THING THAT THEY'LL ALWAYS DO, THEY'LL STILL GET BLUE FOR YOU.

YOU ALWAYS TOLD ME IN TIME, THAT ALL MY DREAMS WOULD COME TRUE.
BUT DREAMS DIE HARD AND SOON I CAME TO REALIZE, THIS ROAD I TRAVELED LEADS ME HOME TO YOU.

THE YELLOW ROSES OF TEXAS CAN'T BRING BACK THE GREEN GRASS OF HOME,
BUT IF THERE'S ONE THING THAT THEY'LL ALWAYS DO, THEY'LL STILL GET BLUE FOR YOU.
YES, IF THERE'S ONE THING THAT I ALWAYS DO, I STILL GET BLUE FOR YOU.

Warren Seaburg

Warren playing "Somewhere Over The Rainbow"

COCONUT MARTINI

The Pirate went a little coconuts with this shanty. He was sitting around one day listening to another of his shanties, "That's The Way It Should Be" and an idea occurred to him. As an adventurer of the high seas, the Pirate thought it would be great to write a shanty about cruising on his favorite ships, Royal Caribbean cruise ships. There's always a number of great shanties the DJ cranks out for sail away parties, but wouldn't it be great to write one just for Royal Caribbean! That got The Pirate thinking.

Whenever The Pirate records a song in the studio, he also asks for a cut without any vocals, just in case he'd like to sing the shanty live one day. With his new idea fresh in his mind, and a background track of "That's The Way It Should Be" cued up, The Pirate began writing. It was almost like the shanty wrote itself. A little tweaking here and there with the track and voila! "Coconut Martini".

So why Coconut Martini? Simple...That was a drink The Pirate really enjoys, and he discovered it on a Royal Caribbean ship.

"Coconut Martini" is the only time The Pirate has used one of his melodies for two different songs. "That's The Way It Should Be" is still a better song, in The Pirate's opinion, but he did have a blast making the video and polishing "Coconut Martini" as well as he could, given his limited home studio resources. He's hoping Royal Caribbean notices one day and offers to take the shanty to the next step...Perhaps getting a nationally recognized artist to record it and establish the shanty as their official song. And if you're ever sailing with The Pirate, you'd best offer to drink one with him or face walking the plank.

Every night and, every day and, I get caught in this same old rut and,

I start thinkin', I should be drinkin', and sail away on a cruise.

I'm on the lido, sportin' my speedo, sexiest legs on the seven seas, whoa,

And Mr. DJ at Kokomo Cay will wash away all my blues.

Bartender, won't you shake, shake, shake it don't you break, break, break it.

We can fake, fake, fake it 'till you make, make, make it.

When we sail out to the Islands you know that we'll be smilin' With a Coconut Martini or two.

Now those Bahamas, & pretty mamas, all the islands they're callin' me to the sea,

To Aruba, or Bermuda, sail the Caicos or Keys.

Bartender won't you shake, shake, shake it don't you break, break, break it.

We can fake, fake, fake it 'till you make, make, make it.

When we sail out to the Islands you know that we'll be smilin' With a Coconut Martini or two.

You Pour a little bit of coconut rum…A bit of pineapple too.

Amaretto can make it taste better, but nothing could be better than to drink it with you.

Bartender, won't you shake, shake, shake it don't you break, break, break it.

We can fake, fake, fake it 'till you make, make, make it.

When we sail out to the Islands you know that we'll be smilin' With a Coconut Martini or two.

Yes when we sail out to the Islands you know that we'll be smilin' With a Coconut Martini or two.

I'M JUST A FOOL AGAIN

When The Pirate moved from his home state of Virginia, he ventured west across the Mississippi River and found the Land of Enchantment, New Mexico. He had just retired as a professional musician and settled down to a day gig. The Land of Enchantment offered great riches for The Pirate, but the greatest of all, in The Pirate's opinion, was the food. He discovered Hatch Green Chilis, and it warmed his cold, cold heart. This was before the Lady came to the land and The Pirate failed miserably at love. Wanting to write a shanty about the experience, he sat down and "I'm Just A Fool Again" came out.

"I'm Just A Fool Again" sat on a shelf for a long time. The Pirate had a rudimentary cut of it he'd recorded in his studio, but it wasn't until the multi-talented Jeff Bowen got hold of it that it turned into what The Pirate thinks could be a hot two-step hit.

As an interesting side note, "I'm Just A Fool Again" was recorded in multiple locations. Jeff Bowen arranged and recorded the guitars in Hawaii, other musicians recorded parts in Tennessee, and The Pirate did the vocals in Las Vegas. During the process, nobody ever met in any of the sessions.

Finally...The video The Pirate created was his attempt to not take himself too seriously. Chilis are delicious, but chilis can be dangerous. Please double check that you have a toilet capable of handling explosive reactions. Lol.

I’m just a fool again each time I try to win. I let my heart rush in where fools might tread.

Time after time, I’m just that blind. My heart knows where it’s been. I’m just a fool again.

Roast hatch green chilis and let’s drink another round,

And drown the memory of the love that let me down.

How come this broken heart won’t learn,

That when it comes to love it crashes and burns?

I’m just a fool again each time I try to win. I let my heart rush in where fools might tread.

Time after time, I’m just that blind. My heart knows where it’s been. I’m just a fool again.

Some saucy senorita warmed my cold, cold heart.

We laughed, we loved, we lived like we would never part,

Until one day when I came home,

My senorita’d packed her bags and had flown.

I’m just a fool again each time I try to win. I let my heart rush in where fools might tread.

Time after time, I’m just that blind. My heart knows where it’s been. I’m just a fool again.

Time after time, I’m just that blind.

My heart knows where it’s been. I’m just a fool again.

JEFF BOWEN

FALLEN ANGELS WITHOUT WINGS

The Pirate wrote "Fallen Angels Without Wings" one day after seeing a homeless man walk across a busy intersection. The man had a tin cup for change and his hand shook terribly. He wasn't begging or even approaching cars. He just wanted to cross the street. The Pirate wondered if the street was his only home. He looked around to the other cars and nobody even noticed him. They were busy on their phones. Life is hard and who has time for a fallen homeless stranger? What The Pirate took away from it was a feeling that far too many people are never seen in this world anymore. They're the forgotten. Do we throw away all these people? Do we forget the fallen? What about the homeless soldier? Don't we owe it to them to lift them up? Don't we owe it to ourselves? Do we care what that same soldier has been through? We pride ourselves on respecting and cherishing our military? But if we love them so much, why do we let them fall so hard? Why do so many soldiers take their lives after seeing the horrors of war? They need our help. They need our compassion. They do not need our pity, but our understanding. We need to reach out to them and anyone else in need. We need to reach out before it's too late. As The Pirate says in my shanty... Nobody needs to not grow old.

The Pirate recorded "Fallen Angels Without Wings" at his house using the recording software, Reaper, and did the video with DaVinci Resolve. He'd love to have a huge budget, but StoryBlocks is what he used for video clips in this shanty. He hopes it's good enough. The only good thing to come out of Covid lockdown was a certain skillset The Pirate thinks he acquired for making his own videos.

I SAW A MAN FALL IN THE ROAD TODAY.

HOLDING HIS HAND UP IN THE ROAD TODAY.

NOBODY NOTICED. THE LIGHT TURNED GREEN, AND SOON HE WENT AWAY.

I STOPPED BESIDE A WOMAN AND HER CHILD.

DROPPED IN A DOLLAR, AND WE SPOKE FOR A WHILE.

BUT NOBODY NOTICED. HER HANDS TURNED BLUE, SOON SHE’LL BE GONE.

AND DOES GOD FEEL EVERY SCAR UPON US?

AND IS GOD REAL IF WE’RE BEING HONEST?

AND DID GOD SEND ALL THESE FALLEN ANGELS WITHOUT WINGS?

AND WILL WE BE ALL BROKEN IMPERFECTIONS?

OR WILL WE BE FREE OF ALL OUR IMPERCEPTIONS?

SO THAT WE’LL SEE ALL THESE FALLEN ANGELS WITHOUT WINGS.

I WALKED DOWN TO THE GRAVEYARD YESTERDAY.

I HAD A FEW MORE WORDS I WANTED TO SAY.

I’M TIRED OF DYING. I’M TIRED OF WATCHING ANGELS FADE AWAY.

WHO KNEW THE LONELY NIGHTS COULD BE SO COLD?

WHO HEARD THE DARKEST VOICES IN YOUR SOUL?

I NEVER NOTICED. NOBODY NEEDS TO NOT GROW OLD.

AND DOES GOD FEEL EVERY SCAR UPON US?

AND IS GOD REAL IF WE’RE BEING HONEST?

AND DID GOD SEND ALL HIS FALLEN ANGELS WITHOUT WINGS?

AND WILL WE BE ALL BROKEN IMPERFECTIONS?

OR WILL WE BE FREE OF ALL OUR IMPERCEPTIONS?

SO THAT WE’LL SEE ALL THESE FALLEN ANGELS WITHOUT WINGS.

SOME DAY WE’LL CHEER FALLEN ANGELS FLYING.

AND THEN WE’LL HEAR THOSE ANGELS WHEN THEY’RE CRYING.

AND WE’LL ALL SEE ALL THESE ANGELS FLYING WITHOUT WINGS.

WHEN I CAN HOLD HER AGAIN

Healthcare Workers and First Responders were and still are our First Line defense against Covid-19. This song is dedicated to them. The Pirate's Lady and other members of his family are among them, and he, like all of you out there with loved ones in the field, worry greatly for their safety. We need to thank them for laying their lives on the line each day so that we may one day wake up from our long nights and face new dawns.

When Covid-19 was killing thousands each day, medical workers and first responders were coming home, peeling off their work clothes, and going straight to the showers. Many of them slept in separate areas and did their best to not infect their families. Many often didn't even hug their loved ones. This was the price they paid to take care of the rest of us. The Pirate saw some of this firsthand and did what he does, write about it.

Because of Covid, The Pirate didn't risk recording this shanty in a professional studio. He opted to use his own writer's studio and even performed the song live for the YouTube video. The clip above is his best effort in his studio and the video on YouTube is a live cut with the piano intro.

Finally...The Pirate hopes you were lucky enough to have made it through Covid without losing a loved one. Unfortunately for both Lady and The Pirate, we lost a very dear friend, Lady's best friend, Sheila Brosnan. She, too, was a healthcare worker, and we, as well as the World, misses her dearly.

SHE WORKS IN AMERICA, SOMEWHERE IN AMERICA,

WHERE THE BUFFALO ROAM, BUT THEY ALWAYS COME HOME.

THEY RISE IN AMERICA, FIRST LINE IN AMERICA,

WHERE THEY LAY DOWN THEIR LIVES, CHILDREN, HUSBANDS AND WIVES.

AND I PRAY EACH DAY, AS I WATCH HER WALK AWAY,

FOR THE DAY THAT BEGINS, WHEN I CAN HOLD HER AGAIN.

EACH DAWN IN AMERICA, SEPERATING AMERICA,

AND A LOVE SHE CONFIDES, ISN’T THERE BY HER SIDE.

THEY WORK IN AMERICA, STAND UP FOR AMERICA,

AND THE SIRENS THEY SOUND, FOR THE LOST AND THE FOUND.

AND I PRAY EACH DAY, AS I WATCH HER WALK AWAY,

FOR THE DAY THAT BEGINS, AND I KNOW THIS NIGHT WILL END,

AND A DAY WILL BEGIN, WHEN I CAN HOLD HER AGAIN.

FOR LOVE

Lady hates the way The Pirate recorded this one. It's the tambourine that gets to her, switching from side-to-side. But I think The Pirate and Greg Sadler, the multi-talented bassist/keyboardist/musical genius, liked it and needed it for the rhythm track.

"For Love" was completely recorded on one keyboard. Greg had a sequencer, something relatively new for the time, and recorded every part you hear in the shanty in an afternoon over at The Pirate's house back in Chesapeake, Virginia. All they had to do was hit up Mastersound Studio, dump the tracks, and let The Pirate wail on the shanty.

The Pirate has played around on the piano with this shanty for a few years and would love to record it again with a more modern and even slower and bluesy setting. Maybe he'll get the chance. But those high Falsetto vocals at the end might take some work. The Pirate stole those from Barry Gibb and lost a lot of them when he contracted thyroid cancer in the late nineties.

Click on the pic of Greg's band below and see what he's up these days. The Pirate finds it interesting that he ended up living in the same state out west.

My friend, if you need a helping hand,

I’ll be there. I’ll be there if you need someone.

Take my hand. I’ll always be there when you fall, fall so hard.

And the world comes down upon you, so hard upon you,

when you’re near the end, and you need a friend.

I recall, there was a time when we were young,

And dreams that bloomed so well, so well in the backyards of our minds.

But I can tell, that you have waited way too long, oh so long,

To sow the seeds of love, and reap the harvest that our youth could never buy,

But lord we had to try for love.

But time will tell, if I have waited way too long,

To sing my song to you, and see the blue of color in your eyes,

Well faded by your cries for love.

Greg Sadler

Greg's Band...Left of Centre

I'LL BE WITH YOU TONIGHT

The Pirate has mostly written love shanties. John Lennon once said that Paul McCartney wrote a lot of silly love songs. The Pirate thought it was funny that McCartney wrote one of his biggest hits after hearing that. Anyone The Pirate's age knows which shanty that is. "I'll Be With You Tonight" is one of The Pirate's oldest shanties and, frankly, he can't remember even where or when it was recorded.

The Pirate wanted to crank out a video of this shanty just because he thinks the shanty is well written. He does not, however, believe it was well recorded and would like to see it recorded again, maybe this time with autotune. Lol.

I’ll be with you tonight, lying there by the phone,

Waiting for me to call, waiting, wanting to hear, I’m coming home.

I’ll be with you tonight. Fly away in your dreams.

I could fly higher in love. I could be stronger if you flew with me.

And in the chill of a cold wintery night,

When all isn’t easy you know I’ll be with you tonight.

And in the chill of a cold wintery night,

When all isn’t easy you know I’ll be with you.

Fly off together and work it out right.

Under the moonlight you know I’ll be with you tonight.

And I am so much in love, and I’m with you tonight.

THE DREAM

"The Dream" took The Pirate more than 40 years to finish. It is one of The Pirate's more poetic shanties and he didn't even care about professionally recording it before uploading a video to YouTube. The clip you hear in the video as well as here is simply a live recording.

If they live long enough, everybody loses someone or something special in their lives. One of those things is a young love. Another of those things is youth and the innocence it brings. But to The Pirate, the greatest loss has been his dream of leaving one of his shanties permanently ensconced in the record books of hit songs. To this date, The Pirate believes his dream might be dead. But there's always hope. But hope was the last thing to escape from Pandora's Box. And hope was the cruelest thing to get away.

So, when The Pirate mentions losing love in "The Dream", the losing of love is the losing of his dream. And to be completely sincere with oneself, The Pirate must accept that reality with all its scars. His favorite verse he ever wrote in a shanty is in this one...

"Now poets tell of wishing wells where, lovers dance and no one tells, and everyone is ten years old, and no one cares to leave. But poets scar reality, with someone’s love sincerity, is not to scar and leave to shame, and is our love to blame."

I was not so young last night when you, took my hand and squeezed it tight,

Said you’d always love me, and you’d, help me see it through.

For loving you was all I cared, with you my heart and soul I’d share,

And when I felt your tender hand, I knew you’d understand.

But then last night I woke from dreams, and realized the strangest things,

That you weren’t real began to cry, then I realized.

That we were in a movie scene, I was, twenty-two, you were nineteen,

And the role we played had come to end, no scene for hearts to mend.

Now we’re losing love, every day we hold onto these dreams, my love.

But it don’t seem we’ll see these dreams come true, my love.

Perhaps there’s no such things as dreams.

Now poets tell of wishing wells where, lovers dance and no one tells,

And everyone is ten years old, and no one cares to leave.

But poets scar reality, with someone’s love sincerity,

Is not to scar and leave to shame, and is our love to blame?

Now we’re losing love, every day we hold onto these dreams, my love.

But it don’t seem we’ll see these dreams come true, my love.

Perhaps there’s no such things as dreams.

And now the time has come and gone, we had that dance, we sang that song,

And you, you’ll meet that prince someday, this dream will melt away.

Someday I hope you’ll sleep to dream, and realize the strangest thing,

The one who loves you, holds no one above you, still holds on to that dream.

GOD OF MY FATHER

"God of My Father" is the shortest shanty The Pirate ever wrote, and he wanted it to be a gospel shanty written in the form of a prayer. Because of that, The Pirate saw it as a great chance to incorporate his daughter, Kyrstin, into one of his shanties. That's her quoting a classic child's prayer at the beginning.

"God of My Father" is another recording done in The Pirate's Texas studio. His studio primarily functioned as a writer's demo studio and never utilized any other musicians other than The Pirate. The shanty, in The Pirate's opinion, should have had another verse to really label it a good recordable shanty for professional recording, but in the end, this is all The Pirate gave us.

GOD OF MY FATHER, I LAY DOWN TO SLEEP.

HEAR ME I PRAY, YOUR SERVANT, YOUR SHEEP.

USE ME AND GUIDE ME IN YOUR LOVE EACH DAY.

GOD OF MY FATHER, I PRAY.

STRENGTHENED BY FAITH, I AM WASHED IN HIS BLOOD,

NO MIGHTIER ARMY, NO MIGHTIER LOVE, THAN…

GOD OF MY FATHER, BEFORE I LAY DOWN,

IF ‘FORE THE MORNING YOUR TRUMPETS SHALL SOUND,

TAKE ME TO HEAVEN TO WORSHIP EACH DAY.

GOD OF MY FATHER, KING OF ALL KINGDOMS, GOD OF MY FATHER I PRAY.

The Pirate's Texas Studio

Lady with Kyrstin

BLOODSTAINED FOOTPRINTS

The Pirate grew up a Christian in a Christian family. It was a loving family, and he was a devout Christian until the early part of the twenty-first century. The Pirate started his singing career in church and even wrote a handful of gospel shanties. This is one of them. But The Pirate believes this shanty is more than just a gospel shanty. He believes it is a message for all faiths and even non-believers. The Pirate believs we need to realize we are more alike than different. Each time The Pirate hears another atrocity like a store shooting where someone of a particular race or faith kills their fellow man because they are a different race or faith, it upsets him. He usually turns to what he does and that is to write about it. That's why he wrote this shanty.

The Pirate no longer calls himself a Christian. In many ways, he does still believe in the words colored in red, but he no longer follows the church. For The Pirate, it was a path through exploration and reading that led him away from the faith, especially the church. He doesn't want to go into detail of that path here, he just wants to say the terrible way we treat each other helped in that path. The Pirate hopes this shanty gets recorded by someone who truly does follow the bloodstained footprints of Christ. Maybe through these words, this shanty can help teach us all how to love each other again. It is The Pirate's wish for his two granddaughters and their future. It is his wish for us all.

"Bloodstained Footprints" is one of a handful of gospel shanties The Pirate wrote in the final years of his faith. The story comprises three periods of time with the first being the first Easter Sunday where the empty tomb of Christ was discovered, and an imagined set of bloody footprints lead away from the tomb. The second scene depicts a water fountain in the Jim Crow South where a woman of color breaks the law and drinks from a whites only fountain. Finally, in the third scene, a mother visits what is left of the rubble from 9/11 and pays tribute to a son she lost in the tragedy. In each of these instances, differences led to tragedies. In each of these instances, The Pirate imagines that Christ is always there to comfort. In the end, The Pirate reminds us to stop building walls of differences. In the end, we should be building bridges instead of walls because, in the end, we are more alike than different.

The Pirate recorded this shanty in his home in Hereford, Texas, back in the early 2000s. He was excited to get his first vocal harmonizer unit for the studio and thought "Bloodstained Footprints" was a good shanty to give it a spin. After recording the vocals, it just seemed natural to add some words in red.

And she walked down to that place, and saw the stone was turned away.

So, she looked in, had to see, the sacrifice from Calvary.

Beneath the shroud, nothing she found. And as her knees fell to the ground,

She saw the bloodstained footprints of the Lamb.

“Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved”

And she walked down to that place and saw the sign about her race.

So, she stepped up to take a sip and sweetest water soaked her lips.

But when her aging eyes looked down, below the sign stamped on the ground,

Were the bloodstained footprints of The Lamb (Christ The Lamb).

Lord Emmanuel, when will we get this right?

Walls built by the blood of generations blind us to our likes.

…Were not for the bloodstained footprints, we’d all face the fires of Hell.

Make me worthy of his life, Emmanuel.

“Therefore, keep watch, because you do not know when one day your Lord will come, but understand this, if the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into, so you also must be ready because the Son of Man will come in an hour when you do not expect him.”

And she walked down to that place and saw the stones had been replaced.

And there upon a rubbled pile, placed a picture of her child.

But in her heart, they spoke each day, and there beside her while she prayed,

Were the bloodstained footprints of The Lamb.

More of The Pirate's Original Music

These are The Pirate's songs without videos.

That's The Way It Should Be

One of many songs that The Pirate wrote and recorded in the Las Vegas area. This is one of the few duets he wrote and later wrote new words to for a completely different song called "Coconut Martini". As with most all of his recordings in the Las Vegas area, The Pirate took advantage of the extremely talented Darren Sher over at The Omnitone studios to record his tunes. The female singer on the track was Robin Berry and she was also phenomenal!

EVERY NIGHT AND, EVERY DAY AND, I CAN FEEL YOUR LOVE CLOSE TO ME AND,

CALL ME OVER, HOLD ME CLOSER, THAT’S THE WAY IT SHOULD BE.

IN A NIGHT TIME, THE SWEETEST RIGHT TIME, THE BLUEST EYES ON THE SEVEN SEAS OH,

MY SWEET MELISSA, THEN I KISSED HER, AND THAT’S THE WAY IT SHOULD BE.

HOLY ROLLER, TURN ME OVER, LET ME FEEL THE LIGHT IN YOUR EYES AND,

‘TIL TOMORROW, NO MORE SORROW, THAT’S THE WAY IT SHOULD BE.

LOVERS HUDDLE IT’S A SWEET SENSATION, LOVERS CUDDLE FOR FREE.

YOU”RE HOLDIN’ OUT FOR A LONG EMBRACE, BUT YOU’LL NEVER GET THAT FROM ME, NO.

EVERY NIGHT AND, EVERY DAY AND, I CAN FEEL YOUR LOVE CLOSE TO ME AND,

COME TOMORROW, I’LL BE GONE, BUT THAT’S THE WAY IT SHOULD BE.

LOVERS HUDDLE IT’S A SWEET SENSATION, LOVERS CUDDLE FOR FREE.

NO HOLDIN’ OUT FOR A LONG EMBRACE, ‘CAUSE YOU’LL NEVER GET THAT FROM ME, NO.

EVERY NIGHT AND, EVERY DAY AND, I CAN FEEL YOUR LOVE CLOSE TO ME AND,

CALL ME OVER, HOLD ME CLOSER, THAT’S THE WAY IT SHOULD BE.

HOLD ME CLOSER, EVER CLOSER, THAT’S THE WAY IT SHOULD BE.

Far From Tonight

"Far From Tonight is The Pirate's other Christmas shanty and speaks to the birth of Christ. The Pirate recorded this one about twenty years ago in his home studio. Maybe it was just luck, or maybe The Pirate ate his Wheaties that day, but he feels this shanty ended up sounding pretty good for the time with his limited studio quality.

Far from tonight, far from the frills,

A baby was born, Emmanuel.

And shepherds and sheep, wake from their sleep.

A star in the sky told them that Christ was born.

Far from tonight, far from this place,

At Calvary, the cross, my sins washed away.

And all that I am, and all that I’ll be,

Will follow the path that Christ paved at Calvary.

What would you bring to lay ‘fore a king compared to the price he paid?

Would you bare all the sin that the world has within?

When all that he asks is to know you today. And…

Far from tonight, or maybe today,

When Christ calls his chosen children away.

And sinners and saints, alone in this place,

Will know him too late, but know then that Christ was born.

Chesapeake Jubilee

The Pirate performed at the very first Chesapeake Jubilee, an annual celebration held in his hometown of Chesapeake, Virginia. He wrote and performed this shanty one year with his vocal group, The Harmony Brothers. The city paid for the recording and hundreds of singles but left them in the office and never sold them at the show. To this day, The Pirate only knows of one copy remaining, the one he used to upload here.

"Chesapeake Jubilee" is another shanty The Pirate would like to re-record. Not because this is a terrible recording, but because he has other ideas. On its own, "Chesapeake Jubilee" should be the City of Chesapeake's official song. The Pirate doesn't believe they have one, The Pirate performed at their very first jubilee, the city paid for this recording, and The Pirate grew up there. But The Pirate has one more idea to explore and would love to test it. A few weeks back, The Pirate learned that Lee Greenwood, writer and performer of "God Bless The U.S.A.", also recorded a different version called "God Bless You Canada". No shit! Go look it up. Just kidding. You don't have to look it up. Just click the title above. The Pirate's got you covered. Lol. So...With that in mind, The Pirate started thinking of "Chesapeake Jubilee" and how easy it would be to change a few words around to make it "Tennessee Jubilee". Well...Just check it out below the "Chesapeake Jubilee" lyrics...

SEE THE LEAVES GREEN ON THE TREES, CALLING ME TO CHESAPEAKE.

I HOPE THAT OPEN HIGHWAY'S STRAIGHT AND FINE.

MAMA, DON'T YOU LOCK THE DOOR. I'LL BE HOME AT LEAST BY FOUR.

THAT JUBILEE IS CALLIN' ME TO DANCE A LITTLE WHILE.

AT THE CHESAPEAKE JUBILEE, COME ALONG AND SING WITH ME.

CLAP YOUR HANDS AND DANCE ALL THE TIME. BLOWS MY MIND.

COUNTRY BOY ON CITY STREETS. THAT'S THE LIFE IN CHESAPEAKE.

AND PEOPLE LOVE TO LIVE THERE AND THEY'RE

GROWIN' ALL THE TIME. GROWIN' ALL THE TIME.

I CAN STILL REMEMBER SEE, WAY BACK IN '63.

SHE WAS BORN A LADY OF THE SOUTH.

NOW SOME WON'T FIND JUST WHAT THEY SEEK, BUT I FOUND MY CHESAPEAKE.

AND I HOPE YOU FIND HER IN THIS HAPPY JUBILEE.

AT THE CHESAPEAKE JUBILEE, COME ALONG AND SING WITH ME.

CLAP YOUR HANDS AND DANCE ALL THE TIME. BLOWS MY MIND.

COUNTRY BOY ON CITY STREETS. THAT'S THE LIFE IN CHESAPEAKE.

AND PEOPLE LOVE TO LIVE THERE AND THEY'RE

GROWIN' ALL THE TIME. GROWIN' ALL THE TIME.

AT THE CHESAPEAKE JUBILEE, COME ALONG AND SING WITH ME.

CLAP YOUR HANDS AND DANCE ALL THE TIME. BLOWS MY MIND.

COUNTRY BOY ON CITY STREETS. THAT'S THE LIFE IN CHESAPEAKE.

AND PEOPLE LOVE TO LIVE THERE AND THEY'RE

GROWIN' ALL THE TIME. GROWIN' ALL THE TIME.

SEE THE LEAVES GREEN ON THE TREES, CALLING ME TO TENNESSEE.

I HOPE THAT OPEN HIGHWAY'S STRAIGHT AND FINE.

MAMA, DON'T YOU LOCK THE DOOR. I'LL BE HOME AT LEAST BY FOUR.

THAT JUBILEE IS CALLIN' ME TO DANCE A LITTLE WHILE.

AT THE TENNESSEE JUBILEE, COME ALONG AND SING WITH ME.

CLAP YOUR HANDS AND DANCE ALL THE TIME. BLOWS MY MIND.

COUNTRY SONGS ON CITY STREETS. THAT'S THE LIFE IN TENNESSEE.

AND PEOPLE LOVE TO LIVE THERE AND THEY'RE

GROWIN' ALL THE TIME. GROWIN' ALL THE TIME.

FROM CHICKASAW AND CHEROKEE TO VOLUNTEERS OF HISTORY.

SHE WAS BORN A LADY OF THE SOUTH.

RIDE UPON HER MEMPHIS BELLE, STRIDE SMOKY MOUNTAIN TRAILS.

AND TENNESSEE WILL FIND YOU IN THIS HAPPY JUBILEE.

AT THE TENNESSEE JUBILEE, COME ALONG AND SING WITH ME.

CLAP YOUR HANDS AND DANCE ALL THE TIME. BLOWS MY MIND.

COUNTRY SONGS ON CITY STREETS. DRINKIN' JACK IN TENNESSEE.

AND PEOPLE LOVE TO LIVE THERE AND THEY'RE

GROWIN' ALL THE TIME. GROWIN' ALL THE TIME.

AT THE TENNESSEE JUBILEE, COME ALONG AND SING WITH ME.

CLAP YOUR HANDS AND DANCE ALL THE TIME. BLOWS MY MIND.

MOONSHINE, SWEET SIPPIN' TEA. BLESS YOUR HEART THAT'S TENNESSEE.

AND PEOPLE LOVE TO LIVE THERE AND THEY'RE

GROWIN' ALL THE TIME. GROWIN' ALL THE TIME.

Eat your heart out, Lee Greenwood.

I wonder how much he made off the Canadian version. Lol.

Tennessee Jubilee

Sweet Sadie

Another old recording The Pirate did back in the 1980s. This one was recorded at Master Sound Studios in Virginia Beach and The Pirate remembers having the most fun with it. He found a baritone-sax man from the Navy and the tenor sax lead kicked ass. The cut you hear was his first attempt in the studio and there was really no need for additional takes. The Pirate brought in two female voices for the background and the late and famous Sal Ditroia produced the track. The picture below shows Sal with Billy Joel. The Pirate was invited to go that night but had a gig. The Pirate should have canceled that gig. He likely missed out on a moment that may have launched his career nationally. Sal Ditroia helped Billy Joel get his start. He was also famous for a particular guitar riff in the Monkees' big hit, "I'm A Believer", as well as recording on the score of the wedding scene in the movie, "The Godfather". Also, to his credit, Sal performed on Billy Joel's first album, Simon and Garfunkel's "The Boxer" and "Scarborough Fair", and all of Dionne Warwick's hits. The guitar riffs you hear in The Pirate's shanty, "Sweet Sadie", are all Sal DiTroia. Sal died in 2007.

Obvious from the lyrics, Sadie McCain was a lady of the night. What is not as obvious, Sadie represented The Pirate's breaking away from the traditional Christian and respectful lifestyle of which he was raised. The Pirate's musical career led him to a not so respectful lifestyle of "sex, drugs and rock and roll". It's not that the lifestyle was bad...to the contrary...it was awesome!

I KNEW A LOVELY LITTLE LADY NAMED SWEET TALKIN' SADIE MCCAIN.

AND IT'S ASHAME THAT I SHOULD KNOW HER AND I'M GONNA TELL YOU MORE THAN HER NAME.

SHE WAS THE LOVELIEST WOMAN THIS SIDE OF BALTIMORE.

AND SHE WOULD ANSWER YOUR PRAYERS AT NIGHT WHEN YOU ASKED FOR MORE.

NOW, SHERIFF JOHN BEASLEY CAUGHT ON TO SWEET SADIE MCCAIN.

(MEAN, MEAN, SHERIFF)

HE SAID NOW LISTEN HERE SADIE, YOU GOTTA STOP PLAYIN' THIS GAME.

(MEAN, MEAN, SHERIFF)

THIS THING YOU CALL LOVIN' AIN'T LEGAL HERE IN MY HOMETOWN.

(MEAN, MEAN, SHERIFF)

AND A PRETTY LITTLE GIRLY LIKE YOU SHOULD NEVER GET DOWN.

NOW SADIE WAS A PARTYIN' WOMAN AND WOULD STAY OUT 'TILL DAWN.

(ALL NIGHT PARTY)

AND SHE LOVED ALL THE MEN AND THE MEN SHE WOULD LOVE ALL NIGHT LONG. NOTHIN' WRONG.

WITH SADIE MCCAIN SHE HAD A CERTAIN KINDA JE NE SAIS QUOI.

(SWEET, SWEET, SADIE)

AND ALL THE LADIES IN TOWN THEY WOULD GOSSIP 'BOUT THE CLOTHES THAT SHE WORE.

(SWEET, SWEET, SADIE)

EVERY NIGHT AROUND SEVEN SADIE MADE HER WAY TO FOURTEENTH AND BAY.

(SWEET, SWEET, SADIE)

AND NO ONE EVER SAW SADIE COME HOME UNTIL THE VERY NEXT DAY.

NOW SADIE WAS A PARTYIN' WOMAN AND WOULD STAY OUT 'TILL DAWN.

(ALL NIGHT PARTY)

AND SHE LOVED ALL THE MEN AND THE MEN SHE WOULD LOVE ALL NIGHT LONG. NOTHIN' WRONG.

WITH SADIE, SWEET SADIE MCCAIN

(SWEET, SWEET, SADIE)

TALKIN' SADIE. SWEET SADIE MCCAIN.

(SWEET, SWEET, SADIE)

You've traded In Our Memories

Another aging track recorded in the 1980s back in Virginia Beach that The Pirate would love to re-record. His favorite part of writing this shanty was adding in the oboe counter melody on the second verse. It was an experiment The Pirate would go on to do time and time again in his later shanties. "You've Traded In Our Memories" also has one of his favorite lines..."The daybreak brings a newborn day but breaks the heart that bears no thunder." Finally, The Pirate was accused of writing shanties with too much rhyme. When he wrote this one, he paid attention to that and utilized other forms of poetry in the verses like alliteration, something he utilized heavily in his opus, "Ligeia". Additionally, The Pirate wanted a classic Barry Manilow key change at the end. Manilow, as well as many others, influenced The Pirate's music.

Sal Ditroia also worked on this shanty and added the guitar lick at the end. Imagine that, the same guy that recorded the opening guitar lick on "I'm A Believer" recorded the outro guitar lick on this shanty.

IT'S 2AM AGAIN, I'M LYING IN MY LONLINESS WITHOUT YOU.

THE RAIN BEATS SOFTLY ON MY ROOF AND IT KEEPS CADENCE WITH MY HEART.

WHAT WILL IT TAKE FOR MY HEART TO FORGET?

THE LOVING YOU I WON'T REGRET.

I SEE THE HAPPINESS HE BRINGS AND KNOW NOW THAT IT'S GONE.

I SEE YOU'VE TRADED IN OUR MEMORIES, FOUND YOU A HEART, SIMPLE AND FREE.

BEFORE I FADE INTO THE BACK OF YOUR MIND,

SEARCH YOUR HEART, YOU WILL FIND, NO OTHER LOVE LIKE MINE.

THE DAYBREAK BRINGS THE NEWBORN DAY BUT BREAKS THE HEART THAT BEARS NO THUNDER.

IT MUST BE COLD OUTSIDE I SEE THE RAIN TURN QUICKLY INTO SNOW.

ANOTHER DAY LIKE THIS, THE SNOW THE RAIN, MY FACE IMPRESSED ON WINDOWPANE.

I LOOK FOR LOVE AND CAN'T BELIEVE THE LOVE I NEED IS GONE.

I SEE YOU'VE TRADED IN OUR MEMORIES, FOUND YOU A HEART, SIMPLE AND FREE.

BEFORE I FADE INTO THE BACK OF YOUR MIND,

SEARCH YOUR HEART, YOU WILL FIND, NO OTHER LOVE.

I SEE YOU'VE TRADED IN OUR MEMORIES, FOUND YOU A HEART, SIMPLE AND FREE.

BEFORE I FADE INTO THE BACK OF YOUR MIND,

SEARCH YOUR HEART, YOU WILL FIND, NO OTHER LOVE LIKE MINE.

Let Me Love You

This is Another shanty from The Pirate's Country vocal quartet, The Harmony Brothers. It was the "B" side of the single that the City of Chesapeake paid to have pressed. This shanty features the second official iteration of the vocal group where Little Dave left the group and Clark Wiseman joined. Clark's tenor voice can easily be heard in this recording. The group went on to have other members come and go. Tim Jones was the next to leave as Billy Bear Palmer joined. Terry Riggs eventually came on board and even Larry "Curly" Hale left along with The Pirate. Check out the pics below of the group.

As with "Chesapeake Jubilee", The Pirate can't remember the recording studio used for this shanty. Interestingly, another local group recorded this shanty as well. The Pirate has had two of his shanties recorded by other artists, this shanty and another called "Ball and Chain", featured below.

TONIGHT I SLIPPED AND WONDERED OFF TO SLEEP.

FIRST TIME IN TWO WEEKS,

LOVE HAS TALKED TO ME.

PEOPLE SAY OUR LOVE WON'T LAST.

OUR LIVES THEY MOVE TOO FAST.

BUT WHAT'S BECOME OF MAKE BELIEVE.

LET ME LOVE YOU. LET ME FEEL THE WAY I DO.

AND THE WAY I FEEL IS ALL BECAUSE OF YOU.

LET YOUR HAIR DOWN. WIPE AWAY YOUR LOVE-TORN FROWN.

AND TONIGHT I'LL MAKE IT RIGHT FOR LOVE.

TWO CAN WIN WHERE ONE WILL LOSE,

AND GIRL IT'S UP TO YOU.

TELL ME WHERE YOUR HEART STANDS NOW.

ALL MY LIFE I'VE LOOKED FOR LOVE,

AND LOVE I'VE FOUND IN YOU.

LET ME LOVE YOU HERE, RIGHT NOW.

LET ME LOVE YOU. LET ME FEEL THE WAY I DO.

AND THE WAY I FEEL IS ALL BECAUSE OF YOU.

LET YOUR HAIR DOWN. WIPE AWAY YOUR LOVE-TORN FROWN.

AND TONIGHT I'LL MAKE IT RIGHT FOR LOVE.

America, Land of The Free

"America, Land of The Free" is another patriotic American shanty The Pirate wrote just about when Lee Greenwood's "God Bless The USA" came out. As a shanty writer, The Pirate wanted to challenge himself to attempt a shanty as strong and patriotic as Greenwood's iconic tune. The Pirate's favorite parts of this shanty are the counter melodies he added in the second verse. The flute handing off the solo to the strings still sounds great to The Pirate.

The Pirate recorded this one in his home studio and later even wrote a bridge for it, although he never recorded it. He believes the shanty is just too similar to Greenwood's shanty and will likely never do anymore with it.

When I think of all the heartaches, harbored in the world today,
I have to think about the life here in the USA.
From Detroit down to Birmingham, and New York to L.A.,
And all of us who've shared our blood and have the right to say...

America, land of the free.
America, sisters and brothers you and me.
So, hug your neighbor, lend a hand to everyone in need.
America stands strong from sea to sea.

At time she starts to stumble, and other times she sleeps.
But in a crisis, she will be the one to help you on your feet.
She's been in South Korea, and she's been in Vietnam,
Aboard the ship, Missouri, and in victory from now on.

America, land of the free.
America, sisters and brothers you and me.
So, hug your neighbor, lend a hand to everyone in need.
America stands strong from sea to sea.

Ball & Chain

This is Another of The Pirate's country shanties from his early career. A local female artist, Wyndi Renee recorded it and it came out pretty good. The Pirate would have loved a lot more drive to the shanty, though. Wyndi did a great job singing it, but the rest of the track, including the background vocals was, well, in a word, lame. Wyndi Renee put out an album about twenty years ago but The Pirate hasn't heard anything more. He wishes her well. A pic of her on a CD is here...

WELL, THERE’S A LIMIT TO YOUR MONEY, AND THERE’S A LIMIT TO MY UNDERSTANDING HONEY.

I’VE BEEN TIED DOWN WAY TOO LONG TO THIS BALL AND CHAIN THAT DON’T EVER COME HOME.

I’M GETTING TIRED OF THE WORRYING. TIRED OF THE PAIN.

I’M GETTING REAL DAMNED TIRED OF THIS BALL AND CHAIN.

(BALL AND CHAIN) DON’T COME AROUND HERE NO MORE.

(BALL AND CHAIN) I FOUND THE KEY. I FOUND THE DOOR.

YOU WON’T SEE ME IN THE KITCHEN, SEE ME IN THE STORE.

I WON’T BE TOTIN’ THAT BALL AND CHAIN NO MORE.

NOW WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO RITA, OR THAT OTHER LITTLE THING THAT YOU THOUGHT WAS SO MUCH SWEETER.

I GUESS THE WOOL PULLED OVER MY EYES. IT WASN’T THICK AS YOU THOUGHT. IT WASN’T THICK AS YOUR LIES.

HONEY TIME TO CATCH THE BUS. TIME TO CATCH THE TRAIN.

HONEY TIME TO LOOSEN UP FROM THIS BALL AND CHAIN.

(BALL AND CHAIN) DON’T COME AROUND HERE NO MORE.

(BALL AND CHAIN) I FOUND THE KEY. I FOUND THE DOOR.

YOU WON’T SEE ME IN THE KITCHEN, SEE ME IN THE STORE.

I WON’T BE TOTIN’ THAT BALL AND CHAIN NO MORE.

YOU WON’T SEE ME IN THE KITCHEN, SEE ME IN THE STORE.

I WON’T BE TOTIN’ THAT BALL AND CHAIN NO MORE.

I'm Going Home

"I'm Going Home" was The Pirate's first professionally recorded shanty. It was recorded from a van running a line into a nightclub called "The County Line", and the band The Pirate used as background was "Rick Stanley and The Heavy Cowboys". Rick and his wife, Donna currently live and work in Nashville where they have had a great career in music.

"I'm Going Home" is certainly a basic shanty. The Pirate wants you to know you have to start somewhere. The shanty is, by no means, a traditional Country shanty. It's likely it's just a basic Seventies folk style shanty. But The Pirate only knew Country musicians at the time and a steel guitar is what he got. If memory serves, The Pirate believes that's Muskrat Reames on Steel and he's done quite well in the music business as well. That note he hit at the end of the second verse is quite haunting. Donna Ulisse, Rick's wife to be at the time, is singing background. She's done very well in Nashville and The Pirate sang and wrote a shanty for their wedding. Her name here is a link to her website.

Finally...Can you hear Robin Gibb's influence on The Pirate's young voice?

SOMETIMES WHEN LIFE'S A LITTLE COLDER AND YOU'RE SAD,

THINK OF ALL THE GOOD TIMES THAT YOU'VE HAD, AND SMILE, AND REMEMBER YESTERDAY.

YOU CAN DREAM, AND RIDE A SILVER CLOUD TO HOME,

AND FOR A LIFETIME NOT ALONE, YOU CAN THINK OF LIFE BACK HOME.

I'M GOING HOME, BACK WHERE MAMA USED TO SING,

LEAVES WOULD RUSTLE OUT ON WING,

PACK UP LIFE I'M GOING HOME.

SOMETIMES PAIN OVERCOMES ME AND I CRY,

FAR AWAY AND I DON'T KNOW WHY, AND REMEMBER YESTERDAY.

YOU CAN SMILE, AND RIDE A SILVER CLOUD TO HOME,

AND FOR A LIFETIME NOT ALONE, YOU CAN THINK OF LIFE BACK HOME.

I'M GOING HOME, BACK WHERE MAMA USED TO SING,

LEAVES WOULD RUSTLE OUT ON WING,

PACK UP LIFE I'M GOING HOME,

BACK WHERE MAMA USED TO SING,

LEAVES WOULD RUSTLE OUT ON WING,

PACK UP LIFE I'M GOING HOME.

Donna Ulisse

Donna and Rick

Last Call

"last Call" is a silly little Country Shanty The Pirate wrote early in his career. He never really intended on doing anything with it. But he wanted to throw it up here as another example of having to start somewhere.

ALL YOU HONKY-TONK WOMEN ALL AROUND THE WORLD,

YOU KNOW ME WHEN I COME A CALLIN' LIKE TO GIVE YOU A WHIRL.

YOU'RE THINKIN' OF ME, MY LUBBY DUBBY DUBBY ALL NIGHT LONG.

I LIKE TO DRINK JACK DANIELS FROM A HIGHBALL GLASS.

I LIKE TO SNEAK UP ON THE LADIES, LIKE TO PINCH 'EM IN THE

ASK ME 'BOUT MY LUBBY, MY LUBBY DUBBY DUBBY ALL NIGHT LONG.

WHEN THEY GIVE LAST CALL, I ORDER DOUBLE.

I LIKE TO DRINK MY WHISKEY DRY.

AND DROWN MY WORRIES, AND ALL MY TROUBLES,

IN THE RHYTHM OF THE STEEL GUITAR.

THAT'S WHY I NEED THE NIGHTLIFE TO BE THE BEST I CAN BE.

I NEED A SWEET TALKIN' WOMAN MAKE A MAN OUT OF ME.

YOU'RE THINKIN' OF ME, MY LUBBY DUBBY DUBBY ALL NIGHT LONG.

WHEN THEY GIVE LAST CALL, I ORDER DOUBLE.

I LIKE TO DRINK MY WHISKEY DRY.

AND DROWN MY WORRIES, AND ALL MY TROUBLES,

IN THE RHYTHM OF THE STEEL GUITAR.

THAT'S WHY I NEED THE NIGHTLIFE TO BE THE BEST I CAN BE.

I NEED A SWEET TALKIN' WOMAN MAKE A MAN OUT OF ME.

YOU'RE THINKIN' OF ME, MY LUBBY DUBBY DUBBY ALL NIGHT LONG.

Some Extra Shanties...

The Pirate has a few more older shanties he'd like to share with you. Most of these are not up on Soundcloud or YouTube, so The Pirate used a rudimentary music player for each shanty. But that comes with a caveat. If you want to listen to any of the first three shanties, you'll need to turn off each one before starting another. The Pirate did his best, but he could never figure out the code to embed to get them to shut off when you play another.

The Pirate didn't write out the lyrics for each of these. But if he ever uploads them to Soundcloud or YouTube, he'll come back and do it. The second shanty, "Stay Here" is another shanty The Pirate wrote and recorded with his vocal group, The Harmony Brothers. The third shanty, "Tonight" was intended as a duet and The Pirate tried his best to make the female part noticeable on the demo.

Finally, The Pirate has some other shanties he's never recorded before but did live on YouTube. Check them out as well. The Pirate copied them here starting them where the shanty begins, but you can go back and forth on the video or just check them all out on The Pirate's YouTube channel!

Thanks for listening to all The Pirate's shanties and he hopes you enjoyed them!

One Night of Lovin'

Stay Here

Tonight

This Heart of Mine

For Lynn...A Birthday Letter

Carolina Grapevine

All The King's Horses