www.lymeregisgigclub.com
Shanty project
Lyme Regis Gig Club St Michael’s Business Centre Church Street Lyme Regis Dorset DT7 3BB [email protected]
Black Ven Shanty © Sue Beckers 2009
Verse 1 We warned you of her long ago, we warn you of her now. She’s heading out to open sea, Blue Lias at her bow. Her ancient fossils are unearthed by women youth and men. We warned you not to cross her, for her name it is Black Ven
Chorus Black Ven of ancient mystery, Black Ven of old Lyme history And now as Rebel’s sister she’s the first, but others will come So, row her out the Cobb with crews of women, youth and men. Blue Lias will be on her hull and on her bow “Black Ven”.
Verse 2 Gail McGarva fashioned her from English oak and elm Four thousand copper rivets in her hull and in her helm. Her fender crafted out of rope’s the envy of all men So, are you the crew and coxswain too for rowing in Black Ven?
Chorus
Verse 3 So come on all you folk of Lyme, come join us on the sea. With Otter brew refreshing you, we’ll row to victory. For once you’ve tried an oar we know you’ll soon be back again To row a Cornish Pilot Gig whose name it is Black Ven.
Chorus and: Repeat final 2 lines
Blow the man down
Blow the man down, bullies. Blow the man down. Wey, hey, blow the man down. Blow him right back into Liverpool town; Give me some time to blow the man down.
As I was a-rolling down Paradise Street Wey, hey, blow the man down. A flash-looking packet I chanced for to meet. Give me some time to blow the man down.
She was round in the counter and bluff in the bow Wey, hey, blow the man down. So I says to her, “Maggie, way enough now!” Give me some time to blow the man down.
She was bowling along with the wind blowing free Wey, hey, blow the man down. She clew’d up her courses and waited for me. Give me some time to blow the man down.
Well I tipped her me flipper and took her in tow Wey, hey, blow the man down. And yardarm to yardarm away we did go. Give me some time to blow the man down.
But I packed up my sea-chest and sailed the next day Wey, hey, blow the man down. For on that flash packet I’d spent all my pay. Give me some time to blow the man down.
Blow the man down, bullies. Blow the man down. Wey, hey, blow the man down. Blow him right back into Liverpool town; Give me some time to blow the man down.
The bonny ship the Diamond
1. The Diamond is a ship, me lads, for the Davis Strait she's bound, And the quay it is all garnished with bonny lasses 'round; Cap’n Thompson gives the order to sail the ocean wide, Where the sun it never sets, me lads, no darkness dims the sky.
Chorus So it's cheer up, me lads, let your hearts never fail, While the bonny ship, the Diamond, goes a-fishing for the whale.
2. Along the quay at Peterhead, the lasses stand aroon, Wi' their shawls all pulled around them and the salt tears runnin' doon; Don't you weep, my bonny lass, though you be left behind, For the rose will grow on Greenland's ice before we change our mind.
3. Here's a health to the Resolution, likewise the Eliza Swan, Here's a health to the Battler of Montrose and the Diamond, ship of fame; We wear the trouser o' the white and the jackets o' the blue, When we return to Peterhead, we'll hae sweethearts anoo,
4. It will be bricht by day and nicht when the Greenland lads come hame, Wi' a ship that's fu' of oil, me lads, and money to our name; We'll make the cradles for to rock and the blankets for to tear, And every lass in Peterhead sing "Hushabye, my dear."
Can’t you dance the polka?
As I walked down the Broadway one evening in July, I met a maid who asked my trade: “A sailor John,” said I.
Chorus And away, you Santy, my dear Annie. Oh! You New York gals, can’t you dance the polka?
To Tiffany’s I took her, I did not mind expense; I bought her two gold earrings, they cost me fifteen cents.
Says she, “You limejuice sailor, now see me home you may.” But when we reached her cottage door, she this to me did say:
“My flash man, he’s a Yankee, with his hair cut short behind. He wears a pair of long sea boots and he’s bosun in the ... Blackball Line.”
So he kissed her hard and proper before her flashman came, And fare thee well, me Bowery gal, I know yer little game.
I wrapped me gladrags round me and to the docks did steer. I’ll never court another little maid, I’ll stick to rum and beer.
I joined a Yankee blood-boat and sailed away next morn. Don’t ever fool around with gals; yer safer off Cape Horn.
Chorus x 2
Drunken sailor
1. What shall we do with the drunken sailor?...
Chorus Hooray and up she rises, Hooray and up she rises, Hooray and up she rises, Earlye in the morning.
2. Put him in the longboat till he’s sober ...
3. Put him in the scuppers with the hosepipe on him ...
4. Shave his belly with a rusty razor ...
5. Put him in bed with the captain’s daughter. Have you seen the captain’s daughter? Be just like a lamb to the slaughter Earlye in the morning.
6. Heave him by the leg in a runnin’ bowline ...
7. Put him in the bilge and make him drink it ...
8. Tie him to the taffrail when she’s yard-arm under ...
9. Give ‘im a taste of the bosun’s rope-end ...
10. Trice ‘im up in a runnin’ bowline ...
11. That’s what we do with the drunken sailor ...
Haul away Joe
1. Way haul away We’ll haul away the bowlin’.
Chorus Way haul away Haul away Joe.
2. Way haul away The packet is a-rollin’.
3. Way haul away We’ll hang and haul together.
4. Way haul away We’ll haul for better weather.
5. Geordie Charlton had a pig And it was double-jointed.
6. He took it to the blacksmith’s shop To get its trotters pointed.
7. King Louis was the king o’ France Before the revolution.
8. King Louis got his head cut off And spoiled his constitution.
9. Way haul away We’ll haul away the bowlin’.
Haul on the bowlin’
1. Haul on the bowlin’, homeward we are going. Haul on the bowlin’, the bowlin; HAUL!
2. Haul on the bowlin’, before she starts a-rollin’...
3. Haul on the bowlin’, the Cap’n is a-growlin’...
4. Haul on the bowlin’, so early in the mornin’...
5. Haul on the bowlin’, to Bristol we are goin’...
6. Haul on the bowlin’, Kitty is me darlin’...
7. Haul on the bowlin’, it’s a far cry to payday ...
Heart of Oak
Come, cheer up, my lads! 'tis to glory we steer, To add something more to this wonderful year; To honour we call you, not press you like slaves, For who are so free as the sons of the waves?
Chorus Heart of oak are our ships, jolly tars are our men, We always are ready; steady, boys, steady! We'll fight and we'll conquer again and again.
We’ll ne’er see our foes but we wish ‘em to stay, They never see us but they wish us away; If they run, why, we follow and we run them ashore, For if they won't fight us, we cannot do more.
Chorus
Still Britain shall triumph, her ships plough the sea, Her standard be Justice, her watchword, 'Be free.' Then cheer up, me lads, with one heart let us sing, Our soldiers, our sailors, our statesmen, and king.
Chorus
John Kanaka
1. I heard, I heard the old man say John Kanaka-naka, tu-lai eh. Today, today is a holiday John Kanaka-naka, tu-lai eh. Tu-lai eh oh! Tu-lai eh John Kanaka-naka, tu-lai eh.
2. We’ll work termorrer, but no work today … We’ll work termorrer, but no work today …
3. We’re bound away for ‘Frisco Bay … We’re bound away at the break o’ day …
4. We’re bound away around Cape Horn … We wish ter Heaven we’d niver been born …
5. Oh haul, oh haul, oh haul away … Oh haul away an’ make yer pay …
Lyme Regis Rebel © Sue Beckers 2008
1. When Monmouth came to Lyme Regis shores Singing, row her, boys, and row her away, He was gathering rebels to fight for his cause And it’s out of the Cobb and over the bay. Twelve men from Lyme of those caught in defeat They were hanged by Judge Jefferies on Monmouth beach And it’s row her on high seas, row her on level. Lyme Regis Town has another fine rebel!
2. Smuggling has made many rich on these shores Singing, row her, boys, and row her away, Over the high tide, it’s legally yours And it’s out of the Cobb and over the bay. A crew who were jailed for wine stolen and drunk They bribed a Lyme judge to say it was sunk And it’s row her on high seas, row her on level. Lyme Regis Town has another fine rebel!
3. Women do work that is strange for a maid Singing, row her, boys, and row her away, Like the dragons discovered by young Mary A And it’s out of the Cobb and over the bay. Even the rocks make rebellious slips Now the Spittles and coast path are down with the ships And it’s row her on high seas, row her on level. Lyme Regis Town has another fine rebel!
4. We launched her in June; it was sunny and clear Singing, row her, boys, and row her away, With Weymouth and Teignmouth and Swanage to cheer And it’s out of the Cobb and over the bay. Let’s all raise a glass of that fine Otter Ale To our wonderful first lady gig-builder Gail! And it’s row her on high seas, row her on level. Lyme Regis Town has another fine rebel! Row her on high seas, row her on level. Lyme Regis Town has another fine rebel!
Pay me my money down
Pay me, oh pay me Pay me my money down Pay me or go to jail Pay me my money down.
1. I thought I heard our cap’n say Pay me my money down Tomorrow is our sailing day Pay me my money down.
2. I thought I heard the old man say Pay me my money down Go to shore spend all your pay Pay me my money down.
3. I thought I heard the men below Pay me my money down You don’t pay me and the ship won’t go Pay me my money down.
4. If I’d ‘a known the boss was blind Pay me my money down I wouldn’t ‘a gone to work till half past nine Pay me my money down.
5. If I’d been a rich man’s son Pay me my money down I’d sit on the river and watch it run Pay me my money down.
6. After forty days and nights at sea Pay me my money down They worked every penny out of me Pay me my money down.
7. Soon as my feet touched the shore Pay me my money down I swore I’d go to sea no more Pay me my money down.
South Australia
In South Australia I was born Heave away, haul away. In South Australia round Cape Horn. And we’re bound for South Australia.
Chorus Haul away you rolling king, Heave away, haul away, Haul away you’ll hear me sing, And we’re bound for South Australia.
As I walked out across the square ... It was there that I met Miss Nancy Blair...
Chorus
Oh when I sail across the sea ... My girl said she’d be true to me ...
Chorus
Oh, when we roll around Cape Horn ... You’ll wish to God that you’d never been born ...
Chorus
There’s only one thing that grieves my mind ... It’s leaving Nancy Blair behind ...
Chorus
But here I am in a foreign land ... With a bottle of whisky in my hand ...
Spanish ladies
Farewell and adieu to you fair Spanish ladies, Farewell and adieu, you ladies of Spain; We’ve just received orders for to sail for old England. We’ll bid you goodbye till we see you again.
Chorus We’ll rant and we’ll roar like true British sailors; We’ll rant and we’ll roar all across the salt sea; Until we strike soundings in the channel of old England From Ushant to Scilly is thirty-five leagues.
The first land we made was a point called the Dodman, Next Ramehead of Plymouth, Start, Portland and Wight. We sailed then by Beachie, by Fairlie and Dungerness, Then bore straight ahead for the South Foreland light.
Chorus
Now the signal was made for the grand fleet to anchor, We clewed up our tops’ls, stuck out tacks and sheets; We stood by our stoppers and brailed in our spankers And anchored ahead of the noblest of fleets.
Chorus
Let every man here drink up his full bumper, Let every man here drink up his full bowl. And let us be jolly and drown melancholy; Drink a health to each jovial and true-hearted soul.
Chorus Tempest © Sue Beckers 2012
There’s a storm a-gathering in the bay The wind and waves’ll put you to the test You’ll need a boat of oak and elm that’s born and bred in Lyme Must be the Tempest. Must be the Tempest.
And we’ll all pull together when we’re rowing in a storm All pull together all for one and one for all. We’ll row a Cornish pilot gig that’s faster than the rest Must be the Tempest. Must be the Tempest.
George Summers made the journey to found Bermuda’s shores Shakespeare wrote the play where Prospero raised the storm Now Gail McGarva’s built the boat of trophy winning form Must be the Tempest. Must be the Tempest.
And we’ll all pull …
Now Rebel and Black Ven have their sister on the sea And if you want to row her you can always book a seat Of all the boats in twenty-twelve the finest in the West Must be the Tempest. Must be the Tempest.
And we’ll all pull …
There’s a storm a-gathering in the bay The wind and waves’ll put you to the test You’ll need a boat of oak and elm that’s born and bred in Lyme Must be the Tempest. Must be the Tempest.
Lyme Regis Gig Club
Lyme Regis Gig Club is a community amateur sports club launched in February 2007 to give people the opportunity to row the exhilarating Cornish Pilot Gig, to keep fit, have fun and compete in events staged throughout the South West.
Pilot gigs are 32 foot long rowing boats, built from Cornish elm. They are crewed by six rowers, and a coxswain, and have a long history. The first gigs dated back to the late 18th century, and were built to carry local Pilots out to sailing ships waiting off the Cornish coast. In later years they were used as lifeboats and by smugglers because of their speed and sturdiness. When a gig was built it was raced against other gigs to test its performance, and so the sport of gig racing was born. All gigs constructed today are built following original specifications laid down by the Peters family in the form of the gig ‘Treffry’, built in 1838 and still being raced today by the Newquay Rowing Club. The modern gig is a speedy and seaworthy craft.
Lyme Regis is one of sixty-two clubs in the Cornish Pilot Gig Association (www.cpga.co.uk) from coastal towns and villages who share our seafaring tradition. There are competitive gig racing events that take place throughout the region between early spring and late autumn, including the fantastic World Championships that are held on The Isles of Scilly at the beginning of May.
Lyme Regis Gig Club continues to develop and has a growing youth section and is building sea skiffs, 15ft rowing boats to enable younger people to enjoy sea rowing before they move up to the larger gigs.
Lyme Regis Shanty Singers are very much part of the Gig Club, both with the working songs transporting us back to our maritime past and into the future with the beautiful new shanties written by Sue Beckers to mark the launch of the Club’s gigs. The Lyme Regis Shanty Singers are very fortunate to be led and coached by the wonderful, knowledgeable, patient and passionate music director, Penny Dunscombe.
Ship aboard Lyme Regis Gig Club Shanty Singers if you’d like to sing songs of the sea, have lots of fun and help to raise money to develop Lyme Regis Gig Club.
Marcus Dixon