Three fishers went sailing out into the west
Out into the west as the sun went down
Each thought on the woman that loves him the best
And the children stood watching them out of the town

For men must work and women must weep
For there's little to earn and many to keep
And the harbor bar be moaning

Three wives sat up in the lighthouse tower
They trimmed the lamps as the sun went down
And they looked at the squall and they looked at the shower
And the night-wrack came rolling in ragged and brown

For men must work and women must weep
‘Though storms be sudden and the waters be deep
And the harbor bar be moaning

Three corpses lay out on the shining sand
In the morning gleam as the tide went down
And the women were weeping and wringing their hands
For those who would never come back to the town

For men must work and women must weep
And the sooner it's over, the sooner to sleep
And good-bye to that bar and its moaning
For men must work and women must weep
And the sooner it's over, the sooner to sleep
And good-bye to that bar and its moaning