SCAPA FLOW

                               A

Faith, a little bit of garbage fell from out the sky one day,
And flopped into the ocean in a spot up Scotland way.
And when their Lordships saw it -- oh, it looked so bleak and bare,
They said, "This is the spot, we'll have a naval base up there!"
So they littered it with colliers to make the matlos work,
And with depot ships and oilers so destroyers couldn't shirk.
And they guarded it with mines and nets, with gates to come and go,
And when they had it finished -- sure they called it Scapa Flow!

                        

                               B

Sure, a little bit of Hell fell from out the sky one day,
And it nestled in the ocean up by the Orkney way;
When the Sealords found it, it looked so bleak and bare,
They said suppose we start to build a naval base up there!
So they dotted it with colliers just to give the matlows work,
Provision ships and oilers so their jobs they could not shirk,
And they dotted it with raindrops, hail, sleet, and blinding snow,
And when they had finished it, sure they called it Scapa Flow.


                         M. And V.
                   [canned meat and vegetables]

Oh, a little bit of everything got in a tin one day,
And they packed it up and sealed it in a most mysterious way,
And some Brass Hat came and tasted it,
And, "'Pon me, Sam!" says he,
"We shall feed it to the soldiers,
And we'll call it M. and V.

                        SHAIBAH BLUES

A little piece of mhutti fell from out the sky one day,
It fell into the Persian Gulf a million miles away.
And when Lord Trenchard saw it, it looked so bleak and bare,
He said, "That's wht we're looking for -- we'll put our air force there.
So they sent out river gunboats, armored cars and A.H.Q.,
And then they put the squadron right in that fucking blue.
Oh, peechi I'll be going to a land that's far remote,
Until that day you'll hear me say, "Roll on, that fucking boat!"

[To a different tune:]


I've got those Shaibah Blues, Shaibah Blues
I'm fed up, and I'm brassed off, and I'm browned.
Oh, I've been sitting here
For close upon two year,
And I wish I were in my coffin underground.
I've tried to learn the lingo, but it fairly got my goat.
The only words I know are,
"Roll on that fucking boat!"
I've got those Shaibah Blues, Shaibah Blues.
I'm fed up, and I'm brassed off, and I'm blue.

mhutti: muck, filth.
peechi: soon.