The Lowestoft Boat Lyrics
IN LOWESTOFT a boat was laid
Mark well what I do say
And she was built for the herring trade
But she has gone a-rovin’, a-rovin’, a-rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
They gave her Government coal to burn,
And a Q.F. gun at bow and stern,
And sent her out a-rovin’, a-rovin’, a-rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
Her skipper was mate of a bucko ship
Which always killed one man per trip,
So he is used to rovin’, a-rovin’, a-rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
Her mate was skipper of a chapel in Wales,
And so he fights in topper and tails -
Religious tho’ rovin’, a-rovin’, a-rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
Her engineer is fifty-eight,
So he’s prepared to meet his fate,
Which ain’t unlikely rovin’, a-rovin’, a-rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
Mark well what I do say
And she was built for the herring trade
But she has gone a-rovin’, a-rovin’, a-rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
They gave her Government coal to burn,
And a Q.F. gun at bow and stern,
And sent her out a-rovin’, a-rovin’, a-rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
Her skipper was mate of a bucko ship
Which always killed one man per trip,
So he is used to rovin’, a-rovin’, a-rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
Her mate was skipper of a chapel in Wales,
And so he fights in topper and tails -
Religious tho’ rovin’, a-rovin’, a-rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
Her engineer is fifty-eight,
So he’s prepared to meet his fate,
Which ain’t unlikely rovin’, a-rovin’, a-rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
Her leading stoker’s seventeen,
So he don’t know what the Judgements mean,
Unless he cops them rovin’, a-rovin’, a-rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
Her chef was cook in the Lost Dogs’ Home,
Mark well what I do say
And I’m sorry for Fritz when they all come
A-rovin’, a-rovin’, a-roarin’ and a-rovin’,
Round the North Sea rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
So he don’t know what the Judgements mean,
Unless he cops them rovin’, a-rovin’, a-rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
Her chef was cook in the Lost Dogs’ Home,
Mark well what I do say
And I’m sorry for Fritz when they all come
A-rovin’, a-rovin’, a-roarin’ and a-rovin’,
Round the North Sea rovin’,
The Lord knows where !
About
Genius Annotation
The form of this poem is derived from the seafarers’ ballad “In Lowestoft there lived a maid,” singing the praises of a young lady who, as they used to say, was “no better than she should be”.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
- 1.The Lowestoft Boat
- 10.The Night Patrol
- 11.Harwich Ladies
- 12.Submarines
- 14.Underwater Works
- 15.Four Nightmares
- 16.“Tin Fish”
- 17.Submarines II
- 20.Expert Opinions
- 21.A Song In Storm
- 22.Patrols
- 23.A Little Theory
- 26.Wasted Material
- 28.Patrols II
- 31.Racial Untruths
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