CMA Musical Event of the Year
Christopher Polk/Getty Images

Hear Kenny Chesney's Wistful New Love Letter to Sea Life, 'Pirate Song'

There's always been a bit of a love affair between the sea life and country music. And few country artists carry the flag of ocean living like Kenny Chesney. His new single "Pirate Song" is a wistful ode to the seafaring life.

But in the moody, downtempo song, Chesney fully embraces the idea of living island to island. "Oh, one of these days, I'm gonna get off of this highway and wake up in Sun Bay," Chesney sings. In the end, he disappears in a cloud of cannon smoke on a ghost ship in the night.

The song could certainly feel like a spiritual sibling to Chesney's 2013 song "Pirate Flag." But besides the obvious similarities in theme, "Pirate Song" feels a little more mature and a lot more literal.

Read More: Kenny Chesney Reveals Big Collaborations on New Record

That might have something to do with the purpose of his upcoming new album, Songs For The Saints, which comes out on July 27th. "It is an album about the refuges we all have," Chesney says in a press release. "How temporary life is and the way we navigate to better places, dig in and face the destruction. And sometimes, we learn to own our wild hearts in the process."

All of the proceeds from Chesney's forthcoming album go towards helping the Virgin Island communities destroyed by Hurricane Irma. While Chesney lost a home in the storms, he immediately put the focus on the rest of the community that lost everything they had.

That's probably why "Pirate Song" feels more like an earnest love song to the sea life than a party romper like some of his past similarly themed songs. Songs For The Saints carries extra significance for all involved.

This is the first album on his new deal with Warner Music (Kenny Chesney previously spent his career at Sony).

The country superstar released the first single from the upcoming album, "Get Along," a few months ago. The legendary Buddy Cannon produced the new record.

Now Watch: Underrated Country Love Songs of the '90s