Chicken on a Raft
Cyril Tawney Lyrics

Skipper's in the wardroom drinking gin, (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The ship's captain is drinking gin inside the ship's designated room, while the singer stands outside, singing about a chicken on a raft.

I don't mind knocking but I ain't going in, (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer is hesitant to enter the wardroom, despite knocking, because he does not want to interrupt the captain's activities.

'Jimmy's' laughing like a drain, (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer can hear Jimmy laughing loudly, and he wonders what is making him so happy.

Been looking at m' 'comic cuts' again. (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer suspects that Jimmy is laughing because he has been looking at funny cartoons or illustrations.

Chorus: Chicken on a raft on a Monday morning, oh what a terrible sight to see, 'Dabtoes' for'd and the Dustmen aft, sitting there picking at a 'chicken on a raft'. Hey -oh, chicken on a raft, Oy -oh, chicken on a raft. Hey -oh, chicken on a raft, Oy -oh, chicken on a raft.
The chorus relates the amusing and slightly disturbing scene of sailors sitting and eating chicken on a rafts on a Monday morning, with different groups of sailors sitting in different parts of the ship.

They gave me the Middle and the Forenoon too, (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer is assigned to work during the middle and forenoon shifts on the ship.

And now I'm pulling in the whaler's crew, (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer's current duties involve being part of the team that operates the whaling boats, which are attached to the ship.

Seagulls wheeling overhead, (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer observes seagulls flying over the ship, and he compares them to the chicken on the raft that the sailors are eating.

I ought to be 'flogging' in a feather bed. (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer feels he would be more comfortable sleeping on a soft bed of feathers, rather than working and eating on a ship where a chicken is served on a raft.

I had a little girl in 'Donny B', (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer recalls having a romantic interest in a woman from a place called Donny B.

And oh, she made a fool of me, (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The woman from Donny B manipulated the singer and caused him to look foolish in front of others.

Her heart was like a Pusser's shower, (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer describes the woman's heart as being inconsistent, changing from hot to cold very quickly, similar to a regimented Navy shower.

From hot to cold in a quarter of an hour. (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer clarifies that the woman's behavior changed drastically within only 15 minutes.

An Amazon girl lives in Dumfries, (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer mentions another woman he knows, who is from Dumfries and is tall like an Amazonian woman.

She only has kids in twos and threes, (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer suggests that the woman from Dumfries tends to have children in small groups of two or three.

Her sister lives in Maryhill, (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The woman from Dumfries has a sister who lives in Maryhill, a district of Glasgow.

She says she won't but I think she will. (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The woman's sister claims that she will not engage in certain behaviors, but the singer suspects that she will eventually do them anyway.

We kissed goodbye on the midnight bus, (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer recalls parting ways with a woman while riding a bus at midnight, after sharing a kiss.

She didn't cry, she didn't fuss, (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The woman did not show emotional distress when they parted ways.

Am I the man that she loves best? (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer questions whether he is the woman's true love.

Or am I just a cuckoo in another man's nest? (Hey -oh, chicken on a raft)
The singer wonders if he is simply getting involved with a woman who is already committed to someone else.