Here's a version I did for the Canberra Shanty Club: The Last Burley Griffin Pirate. I took my lead from another version called The Last Bristolian Pirate, by The Longest Johns. The later verse referencing our former Deputy PM was added recently. The Last Burley Griffin Pirate I used to be a farmer and my fortunes were so-so I had a little stretch of land near Molongolo But times were hard, and though I tried, the money wasn't there And bankers came and took my land, and told me "fair is fair". I looked for every kind of job, the answer always no "Hire you now, " they'd always laugh, "we just let twenty go!" The government they promised me a measly little sum But I've got too much pride to end up just another bum Then I thought, I’ll have a crack for goodness bloody sake, I'm gonna be a pirate on Burley Griffin’s lake. (Chorus) 'Cause it's a heave-ho, high-ho, coming down the hill Robbing stand-up paddlers is such a bloody thrill It’s a high-ho-hey, politicians bar your doors When you see the Jolly Roger on Burley Griffin’s shores You'd think the local people would know that I'm at large But just the other day I saw an unsuspecting barge It was cleaning blue-green algae and moving bloody slow I rammed their ship and sank it – off a-roving I did go. A bridge along Kings Avenue spans the mighty lake Public servants cross in fear, their hands they start to shake 'Cause they know that I am lurking in the Parliamentary zone, I'll jump the bridge and knock them cold and sail off with their phone. (Chorus) Well, the AFP they chased me, they were always at my throat They followed on the shoreline, 'cause they didn't own a boat, But cutbacks were a-coming and one copper lost his gig So now he's sailing with me and we call him Salty Pig. A swinging sword, a skull-and-bones, and pleasant company, I never pay my income tax and screw the G.S.T. (Screw it!) From Weston Park to Kingston, the terror of the sea If you want to reach Ikea, boy, you gotta get by me! (Chorus) Parliament is sitting so there’s booty all around The MPs and the lobbyists are easy to take down They’re often pissed and miserable and wobbly on their feet Sometimes you even find them passed out cold in Lonsdale Street Well pirate life's appealing but you don't just find it here I heard that in Belconnen there's a band of buccaneers They roam Lake Ginninderra from Mackellar to UC Their base is at the Lighthouse – where else would it be? (Chorus) Winter is a-coming and a chill is in the breeze My pirate days are over once the Lake it starts to freeze I'll be back in springtime, but for now I’ll sail away I hear there's lots of plundering down in Batemans Bay. (Chorus x2)
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