Hoist the Colours (song)

"Dangerous song to be singing, for any who are ignorant of its meaning."

- Tai Huang to Elizabeth Swann

Hoist the Colours was a sea shanty known by pirates across the Seven Seas. It related to the hoisting of a pirate's flag, though it was also used as a call to arms for the members of the Brethren Court.

History
"The King and his men stole the Queen from her bed / And bound her in her bones."

- opening lines

Hoist the Colours told the tale of the binding of Calypso by the Pirate King and the Brethren Court. It was sent forth by Hector Barbossa, who intended to unite the Pirate Lords and release Calypso. The song was sung by assembled men and women sentenced for execution by the East India Trading Company at Fort Charles in Port Royal, after a boy, facing the gallows, began singing while holding a piece of eight. The entire assembly took up the cue. The song was connected to the nine pieces of eight. Once the crowd had sung, the nine coins begin resonating. Captain Sao Feng heard the resonance in a coin given to him by Hector Barbossa in Singapore, and the entire Brethren Court united at Shipwreck Cove because of it.

Text
The king and his men

stole the queen from her bed

and bound her in her Bones.

The seas be ours

and by the powers

where we will we'll roam.

Yo, ho, all hands,

hoist the colors high.

Heave ho, thieves and beggars,

never shall we die.

Yo, ho, haul together,

hoist the colors high.

Heave ho, thieves and beggars,

never shall we die.

Some have died

and some are alive

and others sail on the sea

– with the keys to the cage...

and the Devil to pay

we lay to Fiddler's Green!

The bell has been raised

from its watery grave...

Do you hear its sepulchral tone?

We are a call to all,

pay head the squall

and turn your sail toward home!

Yo, ho, haul together,

hoist the colors high.

Heave ho, thieves and beggars,

never shall we die.

Behind the scenes

 * The lyrics were written by Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio. Every verse relates to the story of Calypso and Davy Jones.
 * The song was inspired by a legend that stated Blackbeard used "Sing a Song of Sixpence" as a recruiting song.

Appearances

 * Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End