The Recruiter (Free Rum Ain't Free) Lyrics

Hey laddie come here by the fire
And have yourself a seat
And take a long pull from this mug
The rum is mighty sweet
And let an old man tell ya tales
For an hour or two
About his life upon the sea
And all his ships and crews

I walked into a pub one day
A young and strapping lad
A sailor man bought me a drink
And I thought, ?That's not bad?
To get a pint of tasty rum
(I thought it was for free)
To my surprise I found the cost
When I woke up at see

Never trust a sailor man
Who says he'll buy the drinks
No matter how the rum goes down
The operation stinks
He's prob'ly just recruitin'
When you've had a drink or three
You'll find out just how much it costs
When you wake up at sea

For many years I sailed that ship
Her Captain was Mad Jack
Her name, the Good Ship Mystery
Her colors they were black
We plundered up and down the coast
And then pulled into dock
Some stranger bought the drinks
I woke up ten miles from the rocks

Never trust a sailor man
Who says he'll buy the drinks
No matter how the rum goes down
The operation stinks
He's prob'ly just recruitin'
When you've had a drink or three
You'll find out just how much it costs
When you wake up at sea

Oh on the Hellfire I was bound
To serve a foul-mouthed crew
I had to daily pump the bilge
And then I'd cook the stew
They dropped me off in port and there
I thought I'd finally stay
Until some stranger bought the drinks
Upon a cursed day

Never trust a sailor man
Who says he'll buy the drinks
No matter how the rum goes down
The operation stinks
He's prob'ly just recruitin'
When you've had a drink or three
You'll find out just how much it costs
When you wake up at sea

The Tyranny was quite a ship
Her Captain no one's pal
He'd flog the sailors twice a day
For failures in morale
He finally sent us to a pub
And every man was there
When a sailor bought the house a round
We all said, ?Hey, that's fair!?

Sometimes trust a sailor man
Who says he'll buy the drinks
There's better ships to sail upon
No matter what ya thinks
He's hopefully recruitin'
When you've had a drink or three
You'll find out just how good life is
When you wake up at sea

I woke up in a darkened cabin
Miles out from the shore
A man was sittin' with me
He said, ?Lad, you're luck is poor.?
?But hey, it just got better and
It's grand ta have ya back.?
Turns out it was me old comrade
That madman Captain Jack
To Jack!

My many years of sailin' ships
Taught me a thing or two
And brought me to high station
Within me favorite crew
So ends the tales and morals
With the drinks I give for free
But
You'll find that out soon enough
When you wake up at sea!

Never trust a sailor man
Who says he'll buy the drinks
No matter how the rum goes down
The operation stinks
He's prob'ly just recruitin'
When you've had a drink or three
You'll find out just how much it costs
When you wake up at sea

Everyone!
Never trust a sailor man
Who says he'll buy the drinks
All around!
No matter how the rum goes down
The operation stinks
One more!
He's prob'ly just recruitin'
When you've had a drink or three

You'll find out just how much it costs
When you wake up at sea

Let's have a drink to our new mate, lads...
I'm buyin'...