A sailor and his true love sat doon to mak' their moan
When by cam' ane o' their ain countrymen
Sayin', Rise up my bonnie lassie, mak' haste and come awa'
There's a vessel lyin' bound for Caledonia
Well, said the sailor, Are ye willing for to pay
Five hundred guineas before on board ye gae
I'll pay them plack and farthing, before on board I go
If you'll tak' me tae my bonnie Caledonia
Well, said the sailor, Her money we will tak'
And when we're on sea, we will throw her over deck
Or sell her for a slave, lang or e'er she win awa'
And she'll never see her bonnie Caledonia
Well, said the captain, That'll never do
For there are no slaves sold intil oor country noo
They would hang us ane and a', they would hang us every man
If we sold her for a slave in Caledonia
Well, said the sailor, She's lyin' doon below
She's bound hand and foot ready overboard to throw
She's bound hand and foot ready overboard to throw
And she'll never see her bonnie Caledonia
So the captain away to the fair maid has gane
Sayin', What is the reason that ye lie here so lang
And what is the reason that you're lying here at all
For ye've paid your passage dear to Caledonia
Oh, says the lassie, Oh woe is me
That ever I was born sic hardships for to see
For the sailor's got a lassie he likes better far than me
And it causes me to weep for Caledonia
So the captain away to the sailor has gane
He's ta'en him by the neck and him overboard has thrown
Saying, Tak' this cup o' water, though the liquor be but sma'
And drink your lassie's health tae Caledonia
And they've sailed east, and they've sailed west
Until they reached the land that they all loved the best
For the waves they did roar and the seas they did beat
And they've all arrived safe to Caledonia
And they hadnae been there but threequarters o' a year
When fine silks and satins he's made her for to wear
When in fine silks and satins he's made her for to go
Now she's the captain's wife in Caledonia
Now she's the captain's wife in Caledonia