The Commodore

Now the ship of state is sailing
On a cold tempestuous sea
She's far out on the ocean
And she's crewed by you and me
And we haul on the mainsail halyard
And, obeying each command
We ask, "Is there but one of us
Can find for us some land?
A Commodore, a Commodore
A Commodore, a Commodore!"

Oh, the Captain gives the orders
When he sees the changing sky
The billowed sails are quickly reefed
And no one tells us why
And no one thinks to ask him
For he is in command
And he will never tell us
That our fate is in the hand
Of the Commodore, the Commodore
The Commodore, the Commodore

We've sailed for seven years
And only ocean have we seen
In shades of blue and grey
And all the colours in between
And the singing of the rigging
Is the only music heard
With the cursing of the bo'sun
But we never heard a word
Of the Commodore, the Commodore
The Commodore, the Commodore

And now the sun is rising
Casting shadows on the decks
And we gaze upon the yardarm
And we see the broken necks
And we ask, "Who gave the order?"
And then we turn and see his face
Standing on the quarterdeck
The silk and gold and lace
Of the Commodore, the Commodore
The Commodore, the Commodore

And the light shines all around him
And his face sets hard and stern
And we fall upon our faces
As he screams, "You never learn!"
And then he points a blinding finger
At those who wait to die
As the oil below the ocean
Forms a fountain in the sky
For the Commodore, the Commodore
The Commodore, the Commodore