The Bristol Slaver Songtext
von Show of Hands

From this house on Clifton
I see the ships under sails
Through St. Pauls to the harbour
Tied up in the basin lie a dozen floating jails

For profit and promotion
Oh no no
I steer a Bristol slaver
Selling lives across the ocean
Oh no no
No man on earth can save you

To my house in Clifton
I bring capital from pain
Trinkets to Africa
Slaves to Jamaica
Rum and tobacco back
Again and again


For profit and promotion
Oh no no
I steer a Bristol slaver
Selling lives across the ocean
Oh no no
No man on earth can save you

Off Cape Verde we lay an anchor
Crammed from stern to stern
Soon we sail to Kingston
Torn away from Africa never to return

I curse the Bristol Slavers
Oh no no
As we steer towards the West
May he sail the seas forever
Oh no no
May his spirit never rest

We came here in the fifties
I grew up in St. Pauls
Some nights I walk through Clifton
There′s a voice in the darkness that echoes from the walls


For profit and promotion
Oh no no
I steer a Bristol slaver
Selling lives across the ocean
Oh no no
No man on earth can save you

For profit and promotion
Oh no no
I steer a Bristol slaver
Selling lives across the ocean
Oh no no
No man on earth can save you