Now modern ships carry mighty funny gear
And away, get away, you shanty man
Ain't seen a halyard for many's a year
And they got no use for a shanty man
Slick new fittings are all your style
And away, get away, you shanty man
All very clever, but it just ain't right
And they got no use for a shanty man
Shanty man, oh, shanty man
Who's got a berth for a shanty man?
Sing you a song of a world gone wrong
When they got no use for a shanty man
Levers to pull and buttons to press
And away, get away, you shanty man
Real-life sailors you meet 'em less
And they got no use for a shanty man
Floating computer dressed as a ship
And away, get away, you shanty man
Skippered and crewed by a microchip
And they got no use for a shanty man
Shanty man, oh, shanty man
Who's got a berth for a shanty man?
Sing you a song of a world gone wrong
When they got no use for a shanty man
Soon they'll be sailing by remote control
And away, get away, you shanty man
That'll be pleasing for the owners' soul
And they got no use for a shanty man
Send their ships from dock to dock
And away, get away, you shanty man
While sat upon their arses in an office block
And they got no use for a shanty man
Shanty man, oh, shanty man
Who's got a berth for a shanty man?
Sing you a song of a world gone wrong
When they got no use for a shanty man
Newfangled gear's no use to you
And away, get away, you shanty man
When you're off Cape Horn with your fuses blew
And they got no use for a shanty man
Then's the time you rue the day
And away, get away, you shanty man
You sent your shanty man away
And they got no use for a shanty man
Shanty man, oh, shanty man
Who's got a berth for a shanty man?
Sing you a song of a world gone wrong
When they got no use for a shanty man
A sailor's life it once was hard
And away, get away, you shanty man
Laid out aloft on a topsail yard
And they got no use for a shanty man
Now it don't matter if the winds blow high
And away, get away, you shanty man
You can take force ten with your feet still dry
And they got no use for a shanty man
Shanty man, oh, shanty man
Who's got a berth for a shanty man?
Sing you a song of a world gone wrong
When they got no use for a shanty man
Listen at night and you might hear
And away, get away, you shanty man
A ghostly sound on the cool night air
And they got no use for a shanty man
Was it a ghost from the distant past?
And away, get away, you shanty man
Or just a breeze in the radar mast?
And they got no use for a shanty man
Shanty man, oh, shanty man
Who's got a berth for a shanty man?
Sing you a song of a world gone wrong
When they got no use for a shanty man
Shanty man, oh, shanty man
Who's got a berth for a shanty man?
Sing you a song of a world gone wrong
When they got no use for a shanty man