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about

I heard Dave Gibb sing this mighty song at Strathaven Folk Club in 2014. Dave explained that he intended to write a song about slavery but it turned into a song about pirates. I have added the last verse about contemporary piracy (with his agreement), and if that verse causes offence, please blame me and not Dave Gibb.

lyrics

We ran molasses from Jamaica to the coast of Caroline
Then we’d trade it for tobacco and we’d head home one more time
But any ship low in the water that we’d meet along the way
We would take with fire and murder, leave her burning in our wake
The poor souls who went down with her would cry and scream in fear
They would beg to us for mercy but they’d find no mercy here
The colours on our main mast show allegiance to the King
But the colours in our heart show we respect no living thing
A white skull over crossed bones on a flag as black as Hades in the night


We made the port of Bristol; they ask no questions there
Our goods were sold for profit giving every man his share
Which we then gave to the taverns and the gamblers and the whores
Before we staggered up the gangway to head to sea once more
The merchants of this city like to think they’re civilised
But tear away the attitude and take a look inside
You’ll see the Devil’s mark upon the heart and soul and brain
Of every merchant who takes profit from the blood of other men
A white skull over crossed bones on a flag as black as Hades in the night


So we headed down to Africa with metal goods to trade
For a cargo of Angolans who would to end their days as slaves
We would sail them o’er the ocean; we would sail them into Hell
Those who lived would reach Jamaica for the auctioneers to sell
But the profits went to London and the homes of honest men
Who believe that God is English and will always care for them
So they go to church each Sunday to sing praises to his name
But the Devil sits beside them knowing fine their souls are claimed
By the white skull over crossed bones on a flag as black as Hades in the night


We ran Molasses from Jamaica to the coast of Caroline
The we’d trade it for tobacco and we’d head home one more time
Our gold would swell the coffers of those rich and famous men
Who sit in London’s guildhalls – merchants, bankers, kings,
Sitting proud beneath the banners made of gold and silver thread
Bought with slavery and murder and the souls of countless dead
But still we sail the ocean, sail it time and time again
Beneath colours that condemn us in the eyes of honest men
A white skull over crossed bones on a flag as black as Hades in the night
A white skull over crossed bones on a flag as black as Hades in the night

Instrumental (5th chorus)

Extra verse 5

The story that I’ve told you was two hundred years ago
But nothing much has changed since then you’d be surprised to know
Halliburton and Dick Cheney, George Bush and Tony Blair
They know full well the money that was made out over there,
Sixty thousand cluster bombs, one hundred thousand dead
And the bankers and the oilmen sleeping easy in their beds
The flag that flies above them may be scarlet white and blue
But whoever they were fighting for it wasn’t me and you,
Just a white skull over crossed bones on a flag as black as oil in the night.
Just a white skull over crossed bones on a flag as black as hell in the night.
Just a white skull over crossed bones on a flag as black as Hades in the night.

credits

from Heavy Duty - Ballads of the Unfree, released February 1, 2018
Song by Dave Gibb

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about

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Bill Lloyd Kendal, UK

Bill Lloyd is a folk singer and multi-instrumentalist from the Lake District in northern England. He plays 5 string banjo and Galician gaita bagpipes, uilleann pipes and whistles, He is a versatile singer in the ‘high lonesome’ mountain style, delicate ballads, and ‘come-all-ye’ folk styles. Bill is an experienced storyteller, compere, music promoter, record producer and festival organiser. ... more

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