When The Ship Comes In
The Clancy Brothers and Robbie O'Connell with special guest Tommy Makem Lyrics

Oh, the time will come up
There will be a time when things change

When the winds will stop
The constant force and influence will end

And the breeze will cease to be breathin'
The daily life's subtleties will go away

Like the stillness in the wind
The still calm before a storm

Before the hurricane begins
Before chaos enters the picture

The hour that the ship comes in
The time when everything changes and a new era arrives

And the seas will split
The impossible will happen

And the ship will hit
The long-awaited event will finally happen

And the sands on the shoreline will be shaking
The world will feel and react to the change

Then the tide will sound
The change will have a profound impact

And the wind will pound
The world will react and adjust to the new era

And the morning will be breaking
The start of a new day and a new era

Oh, the fishes will laugh
Even the most unlikely things happen when a new era is born

As they swim out of the path
They will move away from what's no longer relevant

And the seagulls they'll be smiling
Even the birds will feel and understand the change

And the rocks on the sand
The stable elements of the world will remain the same

Will proudly stand
In defiance of change, some things remain the same

The hour that the ship comes in
The start of a new era and the end of the old one

And the words that are used
The tricks and lies will no longer work

For to get the ship confused
To try to prevent the change

Will not be understood as they're spoken
The world will see through the deceit

For the chains of the sea
The restraints holding progress back

Will have busted in the night
The resistance will no longer be effective

And will be buried at the bottom of the ocean
The things holding the world back will be gone forever

A song will lift
A joyful, uplifting event will happen

As the mainsail shifts
As the world aligns to the change

And the boat drifts on to the shoreline
The old era departs and the new one arrives

And the sun will respect
The world will acknowledge and celebrate

Every face on the deck
Every individual will be recognized and welcomed

The hour that the ship comes in
The start of a new era

Then the sands will roll
The world will transform and shine

Out a carpet of gold
The world will receive blessings and riches

For your weary toes to be a-touchin'
For the people to feel and embrace the change

And the ship's wise men
The leaders of the new era

Will remind you once again
They will make everyone aware

That the whole wide world is watchin'
The change is significant and will be noticed by everyone

Oh, the foes will rise
The old ways will try to resist and stop the change

With the sleep still in their eyes
Unaware of the new era starting

And they'll jerk from their beds and think they're dreamin'
They will not be ready for the change

But they'll pinch themselves and squeal
They will realize the change is real

And know that it's for real
Accepting that the change is happening

The hour when the ship comes in
The start of a new era

Then they'll raise their hands
They will try to stop the change

Sayin' we'll meet all your demands
But offering to make concessions to stop it

But we'll shout from the bow your days are numbered
The change is inevitable, and the resistance cannot stop it

And like Pharaoh's tribe
The stubborn and resistant people will face consequences

They'll be drownded in the tide
They will be washed away and forgotten by the new era

And like Goliath, they'll be conquered
The old ways and old thinking will be defeated and replaced