“A Pirate Looks at Forty” is a song written and performed by the American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. Released in 1974 as part of his album “A1A,” the song quickly became one of Buffett’s signature tunes and a fan favorite.
The lyrics of “A Pirate Looks at Forty” reflect Buffett’s own experiences and suffering at the time. The song tells the story of an weakening pirate who Consider on his life, warmness the weight of years away and the charge that his bold lifestyle has taken on him. The lyrics paint a vivid picture of the sea, the sun, and the leaving of time, exciting a sense of nostalgia and self-reflection.
Buffett’s laid-back yet poignant style, incorporate with his fixed in the mind melodies and inventive wordplay, reverberate greatly with audiences, making “A Pirate Looks at Forty” a classic in the realm of tribe and country music. The song has since been coated by numerous artists and remains a staple of Buffett’s live performances, continuing to entice audiences with its timeless charm and general themes of aging, regret, and the quest for freedom.
Lyrics
Mother, mother ocean, I have heard you call
Wanted to sail upon your waters since I was three feet tall
You’ve seen it all, you’ve seen it all
Watched the men who rode you, switch from sails to steam
And in your belly, you hold the treasures few have ever seen
Most of ’em dream, most of ’em dream
Yes, I am a pirate, two hundred years too late
The cannons don’t thunder, there’s nothin’ to plunder
I’m an over-forty victim of fate
Arriving too late, arriving too late
I’ve done a bit of smugglin’, and I’ve run my share of grass
I made enough money to buy Miami, but I pissed it away so fast
Never meant to last, never meant to last
And I have been drunk now for over two weeks
I passed out and I rallied and I sprung a few leaks
But I got to stop wishin’, got to go fishin’
Down to rock bottom again
Just a few friends, just a few friends
I go for younger women, lived with several a while
Though I ran ’em away, they’d come back one day
Still could manage to smile
Just takes a while, just takes a while
Mother, mother ocean, after all the years I’ve found
My occupational hazard being my occupation’s just not around
I feel like I’ve drowned, gonna head uptown
I feel like I’ve drowned, gonna head uptown