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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.

Lower Yards Description
Lower Yards draw

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”.

another yard
Lifts in yard

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