My name is Isaac Lewis, I'm an able-bodied man
On the ship the Royal Charter, bound off for Van Diemen's Land
Oh, the sea that took six months to cross, we could do in two
So it's up that Mersey River, out of Liverpool we flew
verse 2
And some of us were sailors, all hardy, young and old
And some of us were pioneers, bound off for the gold
There were merchants and musicians, Christian soldiers of the cross
We stared into that foamy sea, saw our dreams there in the broth
Sail on, sail on and on and on
My name is Isaac Lewis, this shall be my song
verse 3
So we landed there in Botany Bay, and the boys went on the town
And I met a girl named Emma Gray, I loved her up and down
And I swore that I'd return for her, one more tour at sea
But I had to tell my father what he meant to me
verse 4
For every night, I dreamed a dream, as the wind swept through the sails
That I was in my father's house, back in northern Wales
And I reached out for my father, I said, "I love you very much,"
But the ship rolled o'er and the dream was drowned before we got to touch
Sail on, sail on and on and on
My name is Isaac Lewis, this shall be my song
Verse 5
So I kissed the lips of Emma Gray and set sail for Liverpool
And the parrots perched in the riggings, boys and the dolphins swam in schools
Our trip, it was a pleasant one, till we reached the coast of Wales
And one day out from Liverpool, god unleashed a gale
Verse 6
Good lord, I've seen some squalls, me boys and hurricanes at sea
And many nights I'd rediscovered, faith on bended knee
But I never seen it blow so hard, we anchored her at last
But the waves rolled o'er the top of us, we had to cut the mast
Verse 7
And all the mining magnates clutched their gold, believing they'd be saved
But their bloody greed destroyed them first, beneath the angry waves
All the women and the children, lost to eternity
Ah, man has tamed and shaped the land, he'll never tame the sea
Verse 8
And every night I had dreamed a dream, as the wind swept through the sails
That I was in my father's house, back in northern Wales
And I reached for my father, I said, "I love you very much,"
But the ship rolled o'er and the dream was drowned before we got to touch
Sail on, hmmm, hmmm, hmmm
hmmm, hmmm, hmmm, hmmm
Verse 9
We were caught upon the rocks, just ten yards from the shore
And we saw men standing on the rocks, maybe three or more
And I swear I saw my father waving at me through the squall
And I screamed that I was coming home, that's all that I recall
verse 10
For the waves they swept me overboard with the broken mast and sails
And I drowned, where as a child I'd fished, on the rocks of northern Wales
And in three days time I washed up on the whitened sandy shore
One hundred yards from Moelfre and my father's white oak door
Sail on, sail on and on and on
My name is Isaac Lewis, this shall be my song
verse 11
And some will shout coincidence, or say this can't be true
I only say, just tell your loved ones what they mean to you
For you shall sail the seas of life, pursuing golden schemes
Yet, drown so closely to your home, the cradle of your dreams
Sail on, sail on and on and on
My name is Isaac Lewis and this has been my song
My name is Isaac Lewis and this has been my song