Verse
D
She was there at the dock when the lines cast off,
A# C D
And the Fitz got under way.
F C D
The sun shone down as the wake trailed out
G D A
On that cold November day.
G D
When she wrapped her cloak over ship and crew,
G D A
When the winds began to roar.
D F C D
Every man aboard tightened down their souls,
G A D
Far from the Michigan shore.
[Violin]
F C D G G G D
[Verse 2]
D
McSorley true, telephoned the crew,
A# C D
When the storm was setting in.
F C D
Better hold on tight, through this day and night,
G D A
Of straight line killer winds.
G D
Forty-four years I have met these storms,
G D A
When Nor'easter gales have blown;
D F C D
But oh, these mountains on Superior,
G A D
Are the worst I've ever known.
[Violin]
D C D G G G D
[Verse 3]
D
Who hears a prayer, when the wind strikes down
A# C D
And the seas boil into foam,
F C D
When the waves cap off and are blown away,
G D A
And you're miles away from home?
G D
Who hears a cry when the north wind roars,
G D A
And the crew are pitched to the rail,
D F C D
As the great ship rolls, and the church bell tolls,
G A D
For those who are lost in the gale?
[Violin]
F C D G G G D
D C C G G G D
[Verse 4]
D
When he first saw her, we'll never know,
A# C D
On the deck wash, or the bridge.
F C D
He must have known when the Fitz would groan,
G D A
And the bow began to pitch;
G D
When she came for the crew, and McSorley too,
G D A
As the Fitz rose up no more.
D F C D
"Oh, lady of the storms, you won this year,
G A D
But I bested you for forty-four!"
[Violin]
D D D G G G D D
D C D G G G D