An Cat Dubh Back Home In Derry
Strophe:
A C
In eighteen o4three we sailed out to sea
G D a
Out from the sweet town of Derry
A C
For Australia bound if we didn4t all drown
G D a
The marks of our fetters we carried
D C
In our rusty iron chains we cried for our weans
D e
Our good women we left in sorrow
A C
As the main sails unfurled wild curses we hurled
G D a
On the English and thoughts of tomorrow
At the mouth of the Foyle bid farewell to the soil
As down below deck we were lying
O4Doherty screamed woken out of a dream
By a vision of Bold Robert dying
The sun burnt us cruel as we dished out the gruel
Dan O`Connor was down with a fever
Sixty rebels today bound for Botany Bay
How many will reach their receiver?
Refrain:
C G a G a
Oh oh oh oh I wish I was back home in Derry
Strophe:
I cursed them to hell as our bough fought the swell
Our ship danced like moth in the firelight
White horses rode high as the devil passed by
Taking souls to Hades by twilight
Fve weeks out to sea we were now fourty-three
We buried our comrades each morning
In our own slime we were lost in a time
Endless night without dawning
Van Diemen4s Land is the hell for a man
To live out his whole life in slavery
Where the climate is raw and the gun makes the law
Neither wind nor rain care for bravery
Twenty years have gone by and I4ve ended me bond
My comrades ghosts walk behind me
A rebel I came and I4m still the same
On the cold winds of night you will find me