Union Songs

Bucket O’ Rust

A song by John Hospodaryk©John Hospodaryk 2002

- [play]


Well hey ho you landlubbers here’s a tale of a ship of shame
A leaky tub that’s manned by slaves and the Bucket O’ Rust is her name
Bucket O’ Rust is her name

The flag of convenience she flies the Jolly Roger of today
With laundered money contraband and drugs and a crew that gets no pay
A crew that gets no pay

Well the Bucket O’ Rust is a grimy heap it’s a wonder that she can float
And if she sinks you can’t escape you can’t launch the safety boats
Launch her safety boats

Her urinals are full of slime and scum but what’s even worse than that
Is the rancid food in the galley must be shared with the roach and the rat
You got to share it with the roach and the rat

Well the Bucket O’ Rust is a great success she’s welcome in our ports
She undercuts our local ships with her cheapness and her rorts
Cheapness and her rorts

Deregulated industry is her blood her life line
You can be substandard and be a sweatshop and the government don’t mind
No the government don’t mind

Well sad to say the Bucket O’ Rust could this have been God’s will?
On the Great Barrier Reef she ran aground with two crew members killed
Two crew members killed

And it took them twelve days to blast her away and free her from the reef
And all through the time the oil she spilled it brought the sea to grief
You know it brought the sea to grief

It’s hard to believe that this story ends well and this great heap of shit
The Minister of Transport saved the day when he issued a new permit

(Spoken) – John Anderson was his name it’s a true story

Our shipping must be competitive he said in the world economy
So the Bucket O’ Rust continues to crawl like a coffin on the sea
A coffin on the sea

Yeah the Bucket O’ Rust continues to crawl
Upon the grimy the sea

Notes

Many thanks to John Hospodaryk for permission to add this song to the Union Songs collection.

This song won first prize in the 2002 MUA song competition. It is on the MUA centenary CD "With These Arms"

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union songs..........a selection by mark gregory