Grandma loved a sailor
Who sailed the frozen sea
Grandpa was a whaler
And he took me on his knee

He said, son, I'm going crazy
From livin' on the land
Got to find my shipmates
And walk on foreign sands

This old man was graceful
With silver in his smile
He smoked a briar pipe and
He walked four country miles

Singing songs of shady sisters
And old time liberty
Songs of love and songs of death
And songs to set men free

Yea!

I've got three ships and sixteen men
A course for ports unread
I'll stand at mast, let north winds blow
'Till half of us are dead

Land ho!

Well, if I get my hands on a dollar bill
Gonna buy a bottle and drink my fill
If I get my hands on a number five
Gonna skin that little girl alive

If I get my hand on a number two
Come back home and marry you
Marry you
Marry you, alright!

Ey, land ho!
Ey, land ho!

Well, if I get back home and I feel alright
You know, babe, I'm gonna love you tonight
Love you right
Love you right

Ey, land ho!
Ey, land ho!
Ey, land ho!


Lyrics submitted by kevin, edited by stevemarvllous

Land Ho! Lyrics as written by John Paul Densmore Jim Morrison

Lyrics © Doors Music Company

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Land Ho! song meanings
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13 Comments

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  • +4
    General Comment

    gotta love the guitar work by robbie on the outro..a very underestimated musician from a great band. doors for life.

    Freddie77on January 06, 2009   Link
  • +3
    General Comment

    I love this song. It's probably my 3rd favorite song on the Morrison Hotel album.

    Sadly though, I don't really have an explanation of a meaning for the song. I was hoping someone else would have one.

    excalibur2on September 08, 2006   Link
  • +3
    General Comment

    Considering its placement on the album I'm tempted to think this song is a continuation of 'ship of fools'

    Maybe they were thinking about being sailors or fishermen? Port to port, drinking and women, travelling and whatnot

    phasetransitionon July 26, 2008   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    this is from a highly underrated doors album "Morrison Hotel." great tune should get more comments. rock on people!

    floydian18on August 11, 2006   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    great...just awsome song

    edking4on December 06, 2005   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    Maybe what he means by "number five" and "number two" is $5 and $2. The lines before these say "If I get my hands on a dollar bill Gonna buy a bottle and drink my fill." From this I get that he's probably in some far off land with no way to get home at the moment and maybe by "If I get my hands on a number five Gonna skin that little girl alive" he could mean that if he gets his hand on $5 he's gonna buy a prostitute and with the $2 he could afford to make another trip home.

    I'm not sure about this at all, I'm just saying it's a possibility and I could be totally wrong about this.

    chimaera01on April 06, 2007   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    This song is one of my favorites - but I say that about a lot of Doors songs. For me the child is listening to his Grandfather and looking at him and when I see old people now I imagine them as young.

    This old man was graceful, with silver in his smile. I imagine as a young man he was a really good sailor and that graceful way he moved saved him when he was on the water.

    That is what I think of when I hear the song - that and I listened to a lot in college and none of my friends liked it.

    PollySighon May 23, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    good tune, wots it about any one

    isavedchipon August 08, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    A young boy listens to the stories and songs his grandfather tells. Whether they're true or not, they describe the exciting voyages the old man took as a sailor when he was much younger, and how life since then has been dull and he would like to travel overseas again. Most of the lyrics describe very clearly one part or another of those stories. I'm not sure what "number five" and "number two" alude to... apparently they have something to do with the different kinds of fortune or misfortune that a young sailor might experience.

    rikdad101@yahoo.comon November 22, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I agree with chimaera01 , and maybe the two dollar bill can be considered lucky because of its rarity, so ita good omen to marry when you find one

    lavrentiion July 04, 2007   Link

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