Folk Key West

I’ll tell you the tale of the Nancy Lee,
A ship that got shipwrecked at sea
The bravest man was Captain Brown,
'Cause he played his ukulele as the ship went down.

Chorus:
All the crew was in despair,
Some rushed here and some rushed there,
But the Captain sat upon his Captain's chair,
And he played his ukulele as the ship went down.


They sprung a leak just after dark
And through the hole came a hungry shark
It bit the Skipper near the water mark
As he played his ukulele when the ship went down

The Cook's gone mad and the Bosun's lame
The rudder has gone and the deck's aflame
My G-string's flat, but all the same
I shall play my ukulele when the ship goes down

The Captain said to Seaman Jones:
"You'd best put on your fireman’s clothes
While you stand and spray your hose
I can play me ukulele as the ship goes down."

The owners signaled to the crew, saying:
"Do the best that you can do.
We're only insured for half-a-crown,
We'll be out of pocket if the ship goes down."

The Captain's wife was on board ship,
And he was very glad of it
But she could swim and she might not drown
So we tied her to the anchor as the ship went down.

The crow's nest fell and killed the crow,
The starboard watch was two hours slow
But the Captain sang fal-oh-de-oh-doh
And he played his ukulele as the ship went down.


The Bosun said to Stoker Jim
"You'll have to teach me how to swim"
The Stoker answered with a frown
"We can learn together as the ship goes down"

Soon it was a total wreck
The Captain stood on the burning deck
The flames leapt up all around his neck
And burnt his ukulele as the ship went down

And that is the tale of the Nancy Lee
The ship that got shipwrecked at sea
And Captain Brown who was in command
Now plays his ukulele with the Mermaid Band