The Salt and the Storm¶
The most widely known drinking song in Ravance, heard in every port tavern from Port-Siren to Abyss-Watch. Origin disputed — Tirael sailors claim it; the Crimson Compact claims it; a Greystone folk historian insists it was originally a harvest ballad that got stolen and ruined. Nobody cares. Everyone sings it.
Traditionally performed with the whole tavern joining on the chorus. Banging the table is not optional.
A sailor set out from Port-Siren’s shore, With salt in his blood and a girl he adore, He swore by the Tide he’d come back with gold, But the sea doesn’t care what a sailor is told.
CHORUS (everyone) Oh, the salt and the storm, the salt and the storm, The sea takes the cold and the sea takes the warm, So drink while the anchor still holds to the ground, ‘Cause the salt and the storm won’t wait around!
He sailed past the Reef where the dead ships sleep, Where the water turns dark and the currents run deep, He saw something glowing beneath the black wave — He decided right then he was terribly brave.
CHORUS
He dove for the light like a fool for a crown, And the light, it turned out, was a long way down, When he finally came up he was gasping for air, With an empty hand and kelp in his hair.
CHORUS
He limped back to port with no gold and no pride, And the girl was still waiting — and standing beside A merchant from Goldmere, with coin and clean hands, Who never once went where the sea makes demands.
CHORUS (slower, louder)
The sailor said nothing. He sat at the bar. He ordered a drink. Then he ordered a jar. He drank to the Tide and the wind and the rain, And then he got up and he sailed out again.
FINAL CHORUS (the whole tavern, standing) Oh, the salt and the storm, the salt and the storm, The sea takes the cold and the sea takes the warm, So drink while the anchor still holds to the ground, ‘Cause the salt and the storm won’t wait around!
Note: In some versions, the final verse is different. In Abyss-Watch, the sailor never comes back. In Port-Siren, the girl leaves the merchant and goes to the docks. In Crimson Compact territory, the sailor steals the merchant’s ship on the way out. Every port insists theirs is the original.