Halyard Shanty

The halyard word in Halyard Shanty comes from a yard…

Stan Hugill in the BBC series about the seventies of the twentieth century explains to a great extent how the Halyard Shanty works. But the first important thing we need to know is, what yard it is? The yard is the horizontal bar, holding sail on square riggers. On one mast was placed even 6 yards!

Halyard Shanty mast with yards

About half of all yards were movable…

…means due to their huge weight, the yards of monstrous ships like the last windjammers, from German flying P-Liners have yards which weigh roughly around 400 kilograms! So when the wind was huge, and waves high, and also the ship runs without the cargo, the square-riggers were really in-stabile. To lower the center of gravity, it was necessary for some of the yards to lower them as much as possible.

When the wind was right, and all was good…

… when the ship was full of cargo, the time was gold, and every knot of speed was priceless, the sails goes up. All sails as possible have been set, to set all square sails was necessary to raise yards, and now we can come back to Stan Hugill, he says, the halyard is a word invented by combining two words “Haul” and “Yard” and we have “Halyard”.

When Shantyman sings line…

… keeping the line from the top usually with the second mate, he was singing line of the verse, this was waiting time for a job when the chorus starts on, all crew down bellow, through the patent block (usually 3-4 sailors), did a crazy pull on the rope, and an end, another pull of the rope in end, this happens twice, and this is the base construction on halyard shanty.

Haul the halyard rope

Haul the halyard rope 2

Index Of The Halyard Shanty

  1. A Kom Till Mig Pa Lordag Kvall
  2. A Long Time Ago (A)
  3. A Long Time Ago (B)
  4. A Long Time Ago – Cecil Sharp Version
  5. A Long Time Ago (D)
  6. A Long Time Ago (E)
  7. A Long Time Ago (F)
  8. A Long Time Ago (G)
  9. A Long Time Ago – Gordon Hitchcock version
  10. A Long Time Ago – Harding Barbadian melody version
  11. Ane Madam – Bergen Version (Norwegian)
  12. As-Tu-Connu Le Per’ Lanc’lot (French)
  13. Banks Of Sacramento – Patterson Halyard version
  14. Blow Boys Blow (A)
  15. Blow Boys Blow (B)
  16. Blow Boys Blow (C)
  17. Blow Boys Blow (odd verses)
  18. Blow Boys Blow (Norwegian)
  19. Blow The Man Down (A)
  20. Blow The Man Down (B1 – first method)
  21. Blow The Man Down (B2 – second method)
  22. Blow The Man Down (C)
  23. Blow The Man Down (D)
  24. Blow The Man Down (E)
  25. Blow The Man Down (F)
  26. Blow The Man Down (IV – Doerflinger)
  27. Blow The Man Down (V – Doerflinger)
  28. Blow The Man Down – Terry Version
  29. Bunch O Roses (tune version 1)
  30. Bunch O Roses (tune version 2)
  31. Cheerily Man – Halyard
  32. Cheerily Man – Sharp
  33. Clear The Track Let The Bulgine Run – Whall
  34. Coal Black Rose
  35. Come Down You Bunch Of Roses Come Down
  36. De Hoffnung (German)
  37. De Hoffnung – English Translation
  38. De Runer Von Hamborg (German)
  39. Do Let Me Lone Susan
  40. Eliza Lee
  41. Essequibo River
  42. Goodbye Fare-ye-well (Singurd Sternvall version)
  43. Goodbye My Love Goodbye
  44. Hanging Johnny
  45. Haul Away Boys Haul Away!
  46. Haul Away Old Fellow Away
  47. Haul Er Away! A
  48. Haul Er Away! B
  49. Heave Away Boys Heave Away A
  50. Heave Away Boys Heave Away B
  51. Hello Somebody
  52. High O Come Roll Me Over!
  53. Hilo Boys Hilo
  54. Hilo Come Down Below
  55. Hilo Johnny Brown
  56. Hourra Mes Boués Hourra! (French)
  57. Hurrah Sing Fare Ye Well
  58. John Kanaka
  59. Leave Her Johnny – Halyard
  60. Lowlands Low (Halyards)
  61. Lower The Boat Down
  62. Miss Lucy Loo
  63. Oh Blow Ye Winds I Like To Hear You
  64. Oh Köm un Beer for mi (German)
  65. Poor Old Reuben Ranzo
  66. Ranzo Ray A
  67. Ranzo Ray B
  68. Ranzo Ray C
  69. Reuben Ranzo II – Doerflinger
  70. Reuben Ranzo – Hugills version
  71. Reuben Ranzo – Patterson version
  72. Reuben Ranzo – Sternvall version
  73. Roll Boys Roll!
  74. Roll The Cotton Down (A)
  75. Roll The Cotton Down (B)
  76. Roll The Cotton Down (C) – Halyard Version
  77. Roll The Cotton Down (D)
  78. Roll The Cotton Down (E)
  79. Roll The Cotton Down (F)
  80. Round The Corner Sally (Harding)
  81. Round The Corner Sally (Terry)
  82. Run Let The Bulgine Run
  83. Sally Brown (B) – Robbins version
  84. Serafina
  85. Shallow Brown B
  86. Shallow Brown D
  87. Shallow Brown – Harry Perry
  88. Shanandar – Cecil Sharp version
  89. Shiloh Brown
  90. Sing A Song Blow-Along O!
  91. Sing Sally O! (version B)
  92. Sister Susan
  93. So Heave Away
  94. Stormalong Lads Stormy
  95. Tommys Gone To Hilo – Harlow
  96. Toms Gone Away
  97. Toms Gone To Hilo – Bill Dowling
  98. Toms Gone To Hilo – Terry
  99. Tommy’s On The Tops’l Yard
  100. Toms Gone To Hilo
  101. The Gal With The Blue Dress
  102. The Sailor Fireman (I’ll Fire Dis Trip)
  103. Up Up My Boys Up A Hill
  104. Walk him along Johnny
  105. Walk Me Along Johnny
  106. Walkalong Miss Susiana Brown
  107. Walkalong My Rosie
  108. What is in the Pot A-boiling
  109. Where Am I To Go M’ Johnnies?
  110. Whisky Johnny A
  111. Whisky Johnny B
  112. Whisky Johnny C
  113. Whisky Johnny D
  114. Yankee John Stormalong

My private collection of books

Shantyman library –  you will see descriptions and recommendations of positions worth diving into, true sources of knowledge about sea shanties. To gain knowledge about sea shanties is the main ultimate purpose of this library, every book in this library is somehow related to sea shanties and before mast songs.

More involvement in Traditional Sea Shanties

You can find this record here or directly listen below. If you want to discuss the record or share your opinion you can do it in my Facebook forum here.