Heaving Shanties

Poor Lucy Anna

October 17, 2023October 17, 2023 by Jerzy Brzezinski

Interesting Facts about the Lucy Anna

“Poor Lucy Anna” shanty, was used to the pumps or capstan of “Negro” origin. This song as Stan Hugill informs us is taken from the “Songs Of Sea Labour” by F.T. Bullen & W.F. Arnold (1914) (1st ed: p 14). This is what Bullen tells us about this song: “is so mournful that one suspects it of being the lament of some just sold slaves sent from one State to another without reference to any human ties they may have possessed”. This shanty was very seldom used except where “Negros” formed a considerable portion of the crew.
The song will be reconstructed by myself as the windlass shanty.

The source of this sea shanty

The source of this sea shanty:

The music: “Shanties from the Seven Seas” by Stan Hugill (1st ed: p 379).
The lyrics: “Shanties from the Seven Seas” by Stan Hugill (1st ed: p 379).

The Record of the Lucy Anna

The musical notation

And the full lyrics

Poor Lucy Anna

Oh, ‘the mounten’s so high, an’ de riber’s so wide,
Poor Lucy Anna!
De mounten’s so high, an’ de riber’s so wide,
Ise just gwine o-ber de mountens!

Related to this sea shanty

Across The Western Ocean ( I )

The New York Gals

September 23, 2023September 23, 2023 by Jerzy Brzezinski

Interesting Facts about The New York Gals

“The New York Gals” was a popular capstan shanty on both American and British ships. This is the last version described by Stan Hugill in his “Shanties from the Seven Seas”. Stan Hugill claims this version is “probably” the oldest one, and he dated it before the thirties of the nineteen century. The version has been taken from Irish seamen by the name of Spike Sennit, a man who had sailed for years in Yankee windbags. Also worth mention a note from stan Hugill’s description that the place name Shanghai used in the song is pronounced in the way old-time seamen used to say it – “Shanghee”.
The song will be reconstructed by myself as the capstan shanty.

The source of this sea shanty

The music: “Shanties from the Seven Seas” by Stan Hugill (1st ed: p 374).
The lyrics: “Shanties from the Seven Seas” by Stan Hugill (1st ed: p 374-375).

The Record of The New York Gals

The musical notation

The full lyrics

The New York Gals

As I rolled down ol’ South Street,
A fair maid I did meet,
Who axed me then to see her home,
She lived down Fourteenth Street,

– An’ away, you Johnny
– My dear honey.
– Oh, you New York gals,
– Ye love us for our money.

* 2 *

Sez I, ‘My dear young lady,
I’m a stranger here in town,
I left me ship only yesterday,
From China I am bound,’

* 3 *

‘Now come wid me, me dearie,
An’ I will stand ye treat,
I’ll buy ye rum an’ brandy, dear,
An’ tabnabs for to eat.’

* 4 *

‘My friend she has a brother,
Just now away at sea,
The last time that she heard from him,
His ship was in Shanghee.’

* 5 *

When we got down to Fourteenth Street,
We stopped at Number Four,
Her mother and her sister came
To meet us at the door.

* 6 *

An’ when we got inside the house,
The drinks wuz handed round.
The liquor wuz so awful strong,
Me head went round an’ round.

* 7 *

Before we all sat down to eat,
We had another drink.
THe liquor wuz so very strong,
Deep sleep came in a wink.

* 8 *

When I awoke next morning,
I had an achin’ head,
An’ there wuz I Jack-all-alone,
Stark naked on the bed.

* 9 *

My gold watch an’ me pocket-book
An’ lady friend wuz gone.
An’ there wuz I with nary a stich,
All left there on me own.

* 10 *

On lookin’ all around the room,
Oh, nothing could I see,
But a lady’s shift an’ pantaloons,
Not worth a damn to me.

* 11 *

With a flour for a suit,
I wisht I’d ne’er bin born.
A boarding master then I met,
Who shipped me round the Horn.

* 12 *

Now all ye bully sailormen,
Take warnin’ when ashore,
Or else ye’ll meet some charmin’ gal,
Who’s nothing but a whore.

* 13 *

Yer hard-earned cash will disappear,
Your rig an’ boots as well,
For Yankee gals are tougher than
The other side o’ Hell!

Related to this sea shanty

Ooker John

Hooker John (Harding)

The Shaver

May 18, 2023May 18, 2023 by Jerzy Brzezinski

Interesting Facts about The Shaver

“The Shaver” capstan shanty. Terry claims that his uncle often sang it. He thinks that the “Poor Paddy Works On The Railway” tune comes from this song. This song will be reconstructed as the Capstan windlass shanty.

The source of this sea shanty

The source of this sea shanty:
The music: “Shanties from the Seven Seas” by Stan Hugill (1st ed: p 339).
The lyrics: “Shanties from the Seven Seas” by Stan Hugill (1st ed: p 339).

The Record of The Shaver

The musical notation

And the full lyrics

The Shaver

When I was a little hairless boy,
I went to sea in Stormy’s employ.
Oh, I shipped a way as a cabin boy,

– When I was just a shaver, a shaver,
– Oh, I was fed up with the sea,
– When I was just a shaver.

* 2 *

Oh, they whacked me up, an’ they whacked me down,
The Mate he cracked me on the crown,
They whacked me round an’ round an’ round,

* 3 *

When I went aloft through the lubber’s hole,
The mate he cried, ‘Lord darn yer soul,
Ye’ll do, me son, what yer bloomin’ well told!’

* 4 *

An’ when we lollop’d around Cape Horn,
I wisht to hell I’d niver bin born,
I felt like a sheep with its wool all shorn.

* 5 *

When we left behind the ice an’ rain,
An’ once more to the tropics we came,
The Mate came hazin’ me once again.

* 6 *

When we made port, well I skipped ship,
I’d had enough for one bloomin’ trip,
I’d stay ashore an’ never more ship.

Related to this sea shanty

Bound for the Rio Grande (Cecil Sharp Version)

Paddy Get Back – Dick Maitland

June 16, 2023April 5, 2023 by Jerzy Brzezinski

Paddy Get Back – Dick Maitland

“Paddy Get Back – Dick Maitland” version, known also under the title “Mainsail Haul”. This song was both capstan shanty and forebitter. According to Stan Hugill, the “Paddy Get Back – Dick Maitland” version was very popular, especially in Liverpool ships. Stan Hugill tells us also that this song has two forms, the eight-line verse (forebitter form), and the four-line verse (shanty pattern). We do have here the last variation of this song gives us a capstan shanty from “Shantymen And Shantyboys” by William Main Doerflinger (1951). So, Dick Maitland was the singer who sang this great song to Doerflinger. His performances are very authentic because he was a regular American shantyman, late of Sailors, Snug Harbour.

The following song will be reconstructed as a Capstan shanty.

The source of this sea shanty

The music: “Shanties from the Seven Seas” by Stan Hugill (1st ed: p 326).
The lyrics: “Shanties from the Seven Seas” by Stan Hugill (1st ed: p 326, 327).

Paddy Get Back – Dick Maitland

The musical notation

The full lyrics

Paddy Get Back – Dick Maitland

I was broke and out of a job in the city of London,
I went down the Shad wall Docks to get a ship,

– Paddy get back,
– take in the slack,
– Heave away your capstan, heave a pawl, heave a pawl!
– ‘Bount ship and stations, there, be handy
– Rise tacks ‘n’ sheets ‘n’ mains’l haul!

* 2 *

There was a Yankee ship a-laying in the basin;
Shipping master told me she was going to New York!

* 3 *

If ever I get my hands on that shipping master,
I will murder him if it’s the last thing that I do!

* 4 *

When the pilot left the ship the catain told us,
We were bound around Cape Horn to Callao!

* 5 *

And he said that she was hot and still a-heating,
And the best thing we could do was watch our step.

* 6 *

Now the mate and second mate belonged to Boston,
And the captain belonged in Bangor down in Maine.

* 7 *

Tree of them were rough an’ tumble fighters,
When not fighting among themselves they fought with us.

* 8 *

Oh, they called us out one night to reef the tops’ls,
There was belayin’-pins a-flyin’ round the deck.

* 9 *

We came on deck and went to set the tops’ls,
Not a man among the bunch could sing a song.

* 10 *

Oh, the mate he grabbed a-hold of me by the collar,
‘If you don’t sing a song I’ll break your blasted neck!’

* 11 *

I got up and gave them a verse of Reuben Ranzo,
Oh, the answer that I got would make you sick.

* 12 *

It was three long months before we got to Callao,
And the ship she was a-called a floating hell.

* 13 *

We filled up there at Callao with saltpetre,
And then back again around Cape Horn!

Related to this sea shanty

Rio Grande (B)

A Long Time Ago (C)

Paddy Signs On

March 22, 2023March 22, 2023 by Jerzy Brzezinski

Interesting Facts about the Paddy Signs On

“Paddy Signs On”, as Stan Hugill mentioned, comes from “Sang Under Segel” by Sigurd Sternvall (1935) (1st ed p 372, 373). As Sternvall says his version of the song is the capstan shanty (gångspelsshanty). According to Sternvall, the text recorded by sea captain A. M. Säfström on board the bark ship “Trio” of Tvedestrand in 1913. Sung by captain N. A. Knafe. In this somewhat altered and polished form, it is known from the 1890s. This song will be reconstructed as the capstan shanty.

The source of this sea shanty

The music: “Sang Under Segel” by Sigurd Sternvall (1935) (1st ed p 372, 373).
The lyrics: “Sang Under Segel” by Sigurd Sternvall (1935 (1st ed p 372 – 374).
Mentioned in: “Shanties from the Seven Seas” by Stan Hugill (1st ed p 324).

The Record of the Paddy Signs On

The musical notation

And the full lyrics

Paddy Signs On

A cold and frosty morning of December,
when all of my money I had spent,
where it went to, now I don’t remember –
I down to a shippingoffice went.

That day there was a great demand for sailors
for Frisco and for London and for France,
so I shipped aboard of a whaler
and went off to cash my advance.

– Paddy, lay back,
– take in your slack,
– rally around the capstan!
– Heave a pawl, heave a pawl!
– Ready about your stations, boys, be handy,
– raise tacks, sheets and mainsail haul!

* 2 *

Next morning I came aboard the vessel,
afeeling very heavy on the booze.
I sat upon my chest aquitely thinking,
I turned in my bunk to have a snooze.

Just then I thought I heard a voice calling.
I listened and I heard it again.
It was the mate, a louding hauling:
“Say boys, answer to your names!”

Related to this sea shanty

Were All Bound To Go – Sampson

Were All Bound To Go – Davis And Tozer

Heave Away – Colcord

As Off to The South’ard We Go – Brake Windlass Shanty

June 11, 2023January 27, 2023 by Jerzy Brzezinski

Interesting Facts about the As Off to The South’ard We Go

“As Off to The Southard We Go” is the shanty from the “Sailors’ songs or “Chanties” by Frederick J Davis and Ferris Tozer (3rd Edition) – (1906), mentioned by Stan Hugill on the occasion of the description of the “Heave Away Cheerily O!” shanty. I have to mention Stan Hugill’s description that which says the song is the capstan song, but In Ferris & Tozer’s book is in the chapter “Anchor Songs”. So what is the difference? Well, the “capstan songs” is a more general term, due to the capstan can be used in many more sailor works than raise the anchor.

Raising the anchor happens only on the main capstan, and the tempo is quite established. But the term anchor song is ambiguous as well because the anchor can be raised by using the capstan or brake windlass. The song can be sung for both due to the usual timing used for brake-windlass work being 2/4 or 6/8 (same as on the music notation), so I decided to reconstruct this song as the Brake Windlass Shanty.

One more issue is that Stan Hugill suggested that this song was published in the first edition of the Davis & Tozer book, which is not true because I have a copy of this book and in the first set of 24 shanties from the book this shanty not appeared. I cannot confirm that song is on the second edition, but also I have the third edition of the book which contains a set of 50 shanties, and the song appear on page 28 and 29, the third edition has been in print in 1906.

The source of this sea shanty

The music: “Sailors’ songs or “Chanties” by Frederick J Davis and Ferris Tozer (3rd Edition) – (1906).
The lyrics: “Sailors’ songs or “Chanties” by Frederick J Davis and Ferris Tozer (3rd Edition) – (1906).
Mentioned in: “Shanties from the Seven Seas” by Stan Hugill (1st ed: p 309, 310).

The Record of the As Off to The South’ard We Go

As Off to The South'ard We Go - Brake Windlass Shanty

The musical notation

And the full lyrics

As Off to The South’ard We Go

The wind is free, and we’re bound for sea,
– Heave away cheerily, ho, oh!
The lasses are waving to you and to me,
– As off to the South’ard we go-o,
– As off to the South’ard we go.

– Sing, my lads, cheerily,
– Heave, my lads, cheerily,
– Heave away cheerily, oh, oh!
– For gold that we prize, And sunier skies,
– Away to the South’ard we go.

* 2 *

They’re waving good-bye and with tearful eye,
Sing cheer up, my darling, and wipe your tears dry,

* 3 *

They’re crying “Come back, my dear Tom or dear Jack!
There’s water in front, and no door at the back,

* 4 *

We want sailors bold, who can work for their gold,
And stand a good wetting without catching cold,

* 5 *

The sailor is true to his Sal or his Sue,
As long as he’s able to keep ’em in view,

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