On the Fourth of July
Eighteen hundred and six
we set sail
from the sweet
Cove of Cork
We were sailing away
with a cargo of bricks
for the Grand City Hall
in New York
Twas a wonderful craft
she was rigged
fore and aft
And oh how the
wild wind drove her
She stood several blasts
She had twenty seven
masts
And they called her
The Irish Rover
We had one million bags
of the best Sligo rags
We had two million
barrels of stones
We had three million
barrels of old blind
horses hides
We had four million
barrels of bones
We had five million hogs
six million dogs
seven million
barrels of porter
We had eight million
sides of old nanny
goate tails
in the hold of the
Irish Rover
There was awl
Mickey Coote
who plays hard
on his flute
When the ladies line up
for a set
he would tootle
with skill
For each sparkling
quadrille
though the dancers
were fluther'd and bet
With his smart witty talk
he was cock of the walk
And he rolled the dames
under and over
they all knew
at a glance
When he took up
his stance
that he sailed in
The Irish Rover
There was
Barney McGee from
the banks of the Lee
There was Hogan
from County Tyrone
There was Johnny
McGurk who was scared
stiff of work and a man
from Westmeath
called Malone
There was Slugger
O'Toole
who was drunk
as a rule
And Fighting Bill Tracy
from Dover and your man
Mick McCann from the
banks of the Bann was the
skipper on the Irish Rover
For a sailor it's always
a bother in life
it's so lonesome
by night and by day
That he longs for
the shore and a charming
young whore
who will melt
all his troubles away
Oh the noise and the rout
swillin' poiteen and stout
For him soon the
torment's over of the love
of a maid he is never
afraid an old salt
from the Irish Rover
We had sailed seven
years when the measles
broke out and the ship
lost it's way in the fog
And that whale of a crew
was reduced
down to two
just myself and
the Captain's old dog
Then the ship
struck a rock
Oh Lord! what a shock
the bulkhead was
turned right over
Turned nine times around
and the poor old dog
was drowned
I'm the last of
The Irish Rover