"The Highlands of Fra Mauro"
lyrics by Benjamin Newman
ttto: "The Flowers of Bermuda" by Stan Rogers

(capo 3)

/ G C GD G / GD- GD- / GC- G C /[i. G DG- :/[ii. GC GD - /

He was the captain of the Odyssey
Racing across the lunar sky
He could see the highlands of Fra Mauro in his lee
But he had to pass them by

	Fifty-six hours out from Kennedy
	More than halfway to the moon they were
	When Capcom said, roll right to 60, null your rates
	And give your O2 tanks a stir

		No sooner had the pilot stirred the tanks
		Came a rending crash below
		The crew were thrown against the bulkheads as she pitched
		With the fury of the blow

	Oh, Houston, are we to be stranded
	In the cold expanse of space?
	The service module's fuel cell valves are all shut down
	We've no reserves for such a case!

		Oh are ye brave and hardy astronauts
		Or are ye blind and cannot see?
		The lunar module lies before ye whole and sound
		It shall carry all o' thee

He was the captain of the Odyssey
Racing across the lunar sky
He could see the highlands of Fra Mauro in his lee
But he had to pass them by

	But won't three men breathe out more CO2
	Than a two-man ship can bear?
	What can we do?  The LEM's air filter ports are round
	The CM's cartridges are square!

		The engineers were all assembled
		For if they could not find a way
		The crew'd be lost, but a procedure was devised
		And socks and duct tape saved the day

He was the captain of the Odyssey
Racing across the lunar sky
He could see the highlands of Fra Mauro in his lee
But he had to pass them by

	O there be highlands in Fra Mauro
	The lunar hills stand steep and stark
	And there be knowledge and much glory to be gained
	Now other boots must make that mark

		But in six days, when six long minutes
		Of re-entry came and passed
		The watching world saw the long-suffering Odyssey
		Splashing safely down at last

He was the captain of the Odyssey
Racing across the lunar sky
He could see the highlands of Fra Mauro in his lee
But he had to pass them by