Am Am7 Am6 Dm7 Am
Am7 Am6 Dm7 Am

[Verse 1]
     Am
The daylight quickly fading,
          Dm
with his headache wearing off,
     G
the collar of his over coat
Am    E7      Am
muffling his cough.
    Dm
A siren from a ship
        Am
barely made him raise his head,
            E
since he'd missed the boat to Malmo,
          Am    E      Am
he'd try Gothenburg instead.

[Verse 2]
    Am
Outside snow was falling,
      Dm
like torn up betting slips,
    G
confetti for the jilted, wedding
 Am        E       Am
night of passing ships.
    Dm
And if they ever find her,
          Am
she'll be one more on the list,
    E
and if they never find her,
     Am         E    Am
how long will she be missed

[Instrumental]
Am Am7 Am6 Dm7 Am
Am7 Am6 Dm7 Am

[Verse 3]
        Am
Black skeletons of cranes
  Dm
against the snow at night,
 G
witness dockside shadows
        Am E       Am
that negotiate the night.
 Dm
Lost souls flew like seagulls
           Am
who have slipped their earthly chain,
 E
risen and returned
        Am        E     Am
as the snow turns into rain.

[Middle 8]
           F
While the Filipino sailors
         Am
with a flag from Panama
 E
silently slipped moorings, he stayed
 Am      E7     Am
anchored at the bar.
     F
The barmaid poured his beer
    Am
without a second glance,
                   E7
and set it on the counter
        Am      E      Am
with a shot of Gammel Dansk.

[Instrumental]
Am Am7 Am6 Dm7 Am
Am7 Am6 Dm7 Am

[Verse 4, first bars instrumental solo]
Am Dm G Am E Am

Dm7           Dm7/G
Any dockside drive
E7/G#  Am
is a  harbour not a home
 E
Life is black and white,
         Am       E    Am
and the world is monochrome

[Middle 8]
           F
While the Filipino sailors
         Am
with a flag from Panama
 E
left the harbour's safety
       Am   E7        Am
to the open sea once more
       F
Their world moved safely backwards
        Am
as the vessel headed past,
                        E7
he lent forward on the counter
     Am       E7      Am
and drained another glass.

[Instrumental]
Am Am7 Am6 Dm7 Am
Am7 Am6 Dm7 Am

[Verse 5]
   Am
As he pulled out his cigarettes,
        Dm
loose change spilled on the floor,
         G
like a clue left for the cleaners
       Am    E        Am
as he tilted out the door.
       Dm
And through the bones of cranes
     Am
the wind began to blow,
       E
birds settled on the water
         Am          E       Am
and the rain turned back to snow.

[Outro]
Am Am7 Am6 Dm7 Am
Am Am7 Am6 Dm7 Am
Am Am7 Am6 Dm7 Am
Am Am7 Am6 Dm7 Am
Am