Well, I rewrote it a bit (with an able assist on the opening line from K. Westra), and it turns out to be singable to "Oh, Susanna," surprisingly.

Here's the nearly-finished song (no song is truly finished, you know -- some just escape):

Turn the Boat Around

[tune: Oh, Susanna]

Our leader landed on the deck, dressed in a soldier suit.
The fighting declared "over," and victory to boot.
But San Diego could be seen, there in the background,
So the order soon was given, "Turn the boat around."

Chorus:

Someone tell the skipper, "Turn the boat around!"
The compass reads "disaster," you'll run us hard aground.
Hear the people talking, a new course must be found –
Someone tell the skipper, "Turn the boat around."

We set sail a while ago, new skipper at the wheel,
He claimed he'd keep us going straight, we thought that was the deal.
Then he made a hard-right turn, set course for bloody war,
And isn't telling us the truth of what he did it for.

Chorus

He claimed that he'd found danger right there in white and black,
And the home of all that danger was in far-away Iraq.
Weapons, terror, poison gas, newk-u-lar missiles, too,
All waiting, primed and ready, just to target me and you.

Chorus


So off we went, a-shooting, and we tore 'em a new one.
Embedded media and press to show us all the fun.
We never found the weapons, not the poison gas and such,
And the folks whose land we shot to hell don't like us very much.

Chorus


This is called the "ship of state," not another "photo op,"
And when it gets to going, it's damn-all hard to stop.
But if we can turn a carrier just to confuse the press,
Then we can turn this country 'round, and save us from this mess.

Chorus



Copyright ©2003 Bob Clayton