We were forty miles from Albany, Forget it I never shall. What a terrible storm we had one night On the E-ri-e Canal. Oh, the E-ri-e was a-risin', And the gin was a-getting' low, And I scarcely think we'll get a drink Till we get to Buffalo, Till we get to Buffalo. Well, the barge was full of barley, And the crew was full of rye; The captain he looked down on me With a dag-gone wicked eye. Oh, the E-ri-e was a-risin', And the gin was a-getting' low, And I scarcely think we'll get a drink Till we get to Buffalo, Till we get to Buffalo. Well, the captain he stood up on deck With a spyglass in his hand, And the fog it was so doggone thick That he couldn't spy the land. Oh, the E-ri-e was a-risin', And the gin was a-getting' low, And I scarcely think we'll get a drink Till we get to Buffalo, Till we get to Buffalo. Now two days out from Syracuse The vessel struck a shoal. We'd like to all be foundered on A chunk of Lackawanna coal. Oh, the E-ri-e was a-risin', And the gin was a-getting' low, And I scarcely think we'll get a drink Till we get to Buffalo, Till we get to Buffalo. The cook she was a grand old gal, She wore a raggedy dress; We heisted her upon the pole As a signal of distress. Oh, the E-ri-e was a-risin', And the gin was a-getting' low, And I scarcely think we'll get a drink Till we get to Buffalo, Till we get to Buffalo. Now the captain he got married, The cook she went to jail, And I'm the only son of a sea cook Left to tell the tale. Oh, the E-ri-e was a-risin', And the gin was a-getting' low, And I scarcely think we'll get a drink Till we get to Buffalo, Till we get to Buffalo.