Am         Dm             Am        G
Oh a father and son, they were bonded as one
        C             G          Dm
But the heart of the family soon tore
         C           G       Dm         G
For out sounded the call, to one and to all
          C            G           Am
That the king and the land went to war

[Chorus]
        Am         Dm              Am     G
Oh, the laddie he cried, but his father denied
    C              G        Dm
To bring the young soldier along
           C        G          Dm        G
"For your might I award this wooden toy sword
       C             G          Am
And I charge you to carry this song"

           Am       Dm      Am         G
Won't you come and wait for me at the gate
           C          G              Dm
With your wooden toy sword in your hand?
       C           G            Dm           G
It is then I will come with the beat of the drum
      C            G            Am
From defending my king and my land

        Am          Dm        Am         G
So the father, he taught his son as he ought
    C               G              Dm
To defend both his hearth and his home
     C             G           Dm       G
But soon came the day that his Da went away
  C               G        Am
Across the wild horses of foam

[Chorus]
        Am         Dm              Am     G
Oh, the laddie he cried, but his father denied
    C              G        Dm
To bring the young soldier along
           C        G          Dm        G
"For your might I award this wooden toy sword
       C             G          Am
And I charge you to carry this song"

       Am          Dm         Am             G
He practiced 'til night with skill and with might
    C            G           Dm
To learn how to fight for a king
          C          G               Dm          G
And he'd shun other boys with their useless new toys
           C        G             Am
And he'd whistle a song and he'd sing

        Am           Dm             Am            G
Oh the years slowly turned, broad shoulders grew burned
      C              G           Dm
Fine hair lengthened to a proud mane
        C          G            Dm            G
In the middle of spring with a fell practice swing
         C         G         Am
The toy sword had broken in twain

     Am              Dm           Am               G
The break caused him harm, as the wood pierced his arm
         C                  G            Dm
And the blood flowed quite free to the ground
         C          G             Dm            G
As his vision grew dim the wind mourned out a hymn
      C            G               Am
That echoed these words round and round

[Chorus]
        Am         Dm              Am     G
Oh, the laddie he cried, but his father denied
    C              G        Dm
To bring the young soldier along
           C        G          Dm        G
"For your might I award this wooden toy sword
       C             G          Am
And I charge you to carry this song"

           Am            Dm             Am          G
Though the day had grown late the young man went to wait
       C             G       Dm
And unsteadily gazed at the sky
        C            G           Dm             G
As the red sun sank low, it soon caused him to know
          C           G              Am
That his last day of childhood would die

           Am    Dm             Am            G
The stars swam across the night sky with his loss
          C         G            Dm
And his father appeared in that sea
         C           G           Dm          G
And the drum of his heart nearly broke him apart
       C           G             Am
As he fell to the ground on one knee

         Am      Dm          Am           G
For he'd come to wait for his Da at the gate
         C          G           Dm
With a broken toy sword in his hand
        C               G             Dm              G
From beyond death he'll come with the beat of love's drum
      C        G           Am
To honour his son and his land