"The Last Saskatchewan Pirate"
"The Last Saskatchewan Pirate" is one of The Arrogant Worms' more popular songs, about a down-and-out farmer who takes up piracy on the Saskatchewan River, stealing shipments of grain and farm equipment from ships and barges. He goes on about a Mountie who attempts to capture him, but fails and loses his job, and proceeds to join the crew. In the end, he comments about the arrival of winter and the river freezing over, and that he's off to New Mexico to plunder there during the winter.
The song was later covered by Captain Tractor, but the line "Cause they know that Tractor Jack is hidin' in the bay..." was changed to "Cause they know that Captain Tractor is waitin' in the bay" (The Official Arrogant Worms version Lyrics). Canadian a cappella group, Hoja, have also covered this song in their album, Have You Herd? This song has also been covered by Canadian country singer Brad Johner.
Live versions of this song have been included on the Live Bait and Semi-Conducted albums.
The song is sometimes sung by the staff of Northern Tier National High Adventure Bases at Charles L. Sommers base as part of their Rendezvous. The Rendezvous is a campfire party at the end of the trip. The line "I hear there's lots of plunderin' down in New Mexico!" can be used as a reference to Norther Tier's fellow BSA High Adventure Base Philmont Scout Ranch, which is found in New Mexico.
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Read more about this topic: The Arrogant Worms (album)
Famous quotes containing the words the last and/or pirate:
“At the last, tenderly,
From the walls of the powerful fortress’d house,
From the clasp of the knitted locks, from the keep of the well-closed doors,
Let me be wafted.
Let me glide noiselessly forth;
With the key of softness unlock the locks—with a whisper,
Set ope the doors O soul.”
—Walt Whitman (1819–1892)
“The pirate gaped at Belinda’s dragon,
And gulped some grog from his pocket flagon,
He fired two bullets, but they didn’t hit,
And Custard gobbled him, every bit.”
—Ogden Nash (1902–1971)