Sea shanties (singular "shanty", also spelled "chantey"; derived from the French word "chanter", 'to sing') were shipboard working songs. French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people A ship /ʃɪp/ is a large vessel that floats on water Ships are generally distinguished from Boats based on size A work song is typically a Rhythmic A cappella Song sung by people working on a physical and often repetitive task Shanties flourished from at least the 15th century through the days of steam ships in the first half of the 20th century. Most surviving shanties date from the 19th and, less commonly, 18th centuries.

In the days when human muscles were the only power source available aboard ship, sea shanties served a practical purpose: the rhythm of the song served to synchronize the movements of the sailors as they toiled at repetitive tasks. They also served a social purpose: singing, and listening to song, is pleasant; it alleviates boredom, and lightens the burden of hard work, of which there was no shortage on long voyages.

Most shanties are "call and response" songs, with one voice (the shantyman) singing the line and the chorus of sailors bellowing the response (compare military cadence calls). In Music, a call and response is a succession of two distinct phrases usually played by different Musicians where the second phrase is heard as a direct In the armed services, a military cadence or cadence call is a traditional call-and-response Work song sung by military personnel while running or For example, the shanty "Boney":

Shantyman: Boney was a warrior,

All: Way, hey, ya!

Shantyman: A warrior and a terrier,

All: Jean-François!

Working it as a short-drag or sheet chantey, hands on the line would synchronize their pulls with the last syllable of each response. Napoleon Bonaparte (15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821 was a French military and political leader who had a significant impact on the History of Europe. Sea shanties (singular " shanty " also spelled " chantey " derived from the French word "chanter" 'to sing' were Shipboard

Musically, shanties seem to reflect a variety of sources. "Spanish Ladies" is a perfect galliard (popular around 1600), songs like "Fire Marengo" look like West African work-songs, others are adapted "folk" songs or 19th century polkas and waltzes. Lyrically, like the blues, shanties often exhibit a string of stock verses without much explicit, continuous theme.

Categories

Shanties may be divided into several rough categories:

• Long-haul (also called "halyard" or "long-drag") shanties: Sung when a job of hauling on a line was expected to last a long time, hoisting topsails, for example. In Sailing, a halyard or halliard is a line ( Rope) that is used to hoist (pull up a Sail, a Flag or a yard. Usually there are two pulls per chorus as in Way, hey, Blow the man down! Examples: "Hanging Johnny", "Blow the Man Down. Blow the Man Down is an old Sea shanty. One verse I'll sing you a song a good song of the sea With a way hey blow the man down "
• Short-drag (also called "short-haul", or "sheet") shanties: Sung when a job of hauling on a line was expected to be quick but required great force. These are characterized by one strong pull in each chorus as in "Way, haul away, haul away Joe!". Examples: "Boney", and "Haul on the Bowline. "
• Capstan Shanties: Raising the anchor on a ship involved winding the rope along a giant winch, turned by sailors walking around it. A capstan is a rotating machine used to apply Force to another element notably used on board ship and on dock walls for heaving-in or veering ropes cables and hawsers An anchor is an object often made out of metal that is used to attach a ship to the bottom of a body of water at a specific point Capstan shanties are anchor-raising shanties. They are typically more "smooth" sounding than other types (no pulling required) and, unlike many other types of shanties, frequently have a full chorus in addition to the call-and-response verses. Examples: "Santianna", "Paddy Lay Back", "Rio Grande", "South Australia", "John Brown's Body" (adapted from Army marching song). " Santianna " also known as " Santiana " " Santy Anna " " Santayana " " Santiano " " Santy Lyrics In South Australia I was born Heave away For the reggae musical group see John Brown's Body (band. For the epic poem see John Brown's Body (poem "John
• Stamp-'n'-Go Shanties: were used only on ships with large crews. Many hands would take hold of a line with their backs to the fall (where the line reaches the deck from aloft) and march away along the deck singing and stamping out the rhythm. Alternatively, with a larger number of men, they would create a loop -- marching along with the line, letting go at the 'end' of the loop and marching back to the 'top' of the loop to take hold again for another trip. These songs tend to have longer choruses similar to capstan shanties. Examples: "Drunken Sailor", "Roll the Old Chariot". Drunken Sailor is a famous traditional Sea shanty also known as What Shall We Do with a Drunken Sailor?. Stan Hugill, in his Shanties from the Seven Seas writes: "(Drunken Sailor) is a typical example of the stamp-'n'-go song or walkaway or runaway shanty, and was the only type of work-song allowed in the King's Navee (sic). It was popular in ships with big crews when at halyards; the crowd would seize the fall and stamp the sail up. Sometimes when hauling a heavy boat up the falls would be 'married' and both hauled on at the same time as the hands stamped away singing this rousing tune. "
• Pumping Shanties: All wooden ships leak somewhat. There was a special hold (cargo area) in the ships where the leaked-in water (the bilge) would collect: the bilge hold. The bilge water had to be pumped out frequently; on period ships this was done with a two-man pump. Many pumping shanties were also used as capstan shanties, and vice versa, particularly after the adoption of the Downton pump which used a capstan rather than pump handles moved up and down. Examples include: "Strike The Bell", "Shallow Brown", "Barnacle Bill the Sailor", "Lowlands". "Barnacle Bill the Sailor" (Roud 4704 is an American Drinking song adapted from "Bollocky Bill the Sailor", a traditional Folk
• Fo'c's'le (Forecastle) Songs or Forebitters: Shanties are worksongs and were sung only for work. Forecastle, also spelled fo'c's'le (ˈfoʊksəl originally meant the upper deck of a Sailing ship, forward of the Foremast. However, sailors also sang for pleasure in the fo'c's'le where they slept or, in fine weather, gathered near the fore bitts (large posts on the foredeck). Forecastle, also spelled fo'c's'le (ˈfoʊksəl originally meant the upper deck of a Sailing ship, forward of the Foremast. Example: "Rolling Down to Old Maui". Rolling Down to Old Maui ( Roud 2005)is a traditional Sea shanty which has been performed and recorded by many folksingers including Stan Rogers. While songs with maritime themes were sung, sea songs were not the only sort sung off watch.
• Menhaden Shanties: These are worksongs used on menhaden fishing boats, sung while pulling up the nets. Typical examples are "The Johnson Girls" and "Won’t You Help Me to Raise ‘Em Boys. "

The above categories are not absolute. Sailors could (and did) take a song from one category and, with necessary alterations to the rhythm, use it for a different task. Rhythm (from Greek ῥυθμός - rhythmos, "any measured flow or movement symmetry" is the variation of the length and accentuation of The only rule almost always followed was that songs that spoke of returning home were only sung on the homeward leg, and songs that sung of the joys of voyaging etc. , were only sung on the outward leg. Other songs were very specific. "Poor Old Man" (also known as "Poor Old Horse" or "The Dead Horse") was sung once the sailors had worked off their advance (the "horse") a month or so into the voyage. "Leave Her, Johnny Leave Her" (also known as "Time for Us to Leave Her") was only sung during the last round of pumping the ship dry once it was tied up in port, prior to leaving the ship at the end of the voyage.

The shantyman

The shantyman was a sailor who led the others in singing. He was usually self-appointed. A sailor would not generally sign on as a shantyman per se, but took on the role in addition to their other tasks on the ship. Nevertheless, sailors reputed to be good shantymen were valuable and respected.

Performance of shanties

A capstan crew would chant a particular type of shanty in order to coordinate their movements

Historically, shanties were usually not sung ashore. A capstan is a rotating machine used to apply Force to another element notably used on board ship and on dock walls for heaving-in or veering ropes cables and hawsers Today, they are performed as popular music. Shanty choirs, often large choral groups that perform only sea shanties, are popular in Europe, particularly Poland and the Netherlands, but also countries such as Germany and Norway. For the musical composition see Chorale. A choir, chorale, or chorus is a Musical ensemble of Singers Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional In English-speaking countries, sea shanties are comparatively less popular as a separate genre and tend to be performed by smaller groups as folk music rather than in a choral style. Folk music can have a number of different meanings including Traditional music: The original meaning of the term "folk music" was synonymous They are also sung by some folk music clubs as a social pastime, not for performance. A medley of sea shanties performed by classical orchestra, Sir Henry Wood's Fantasia on British Sea Songs, is a popular component of the Last Night of the Proms in Britain. WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Sir Henry Joseph Wood, CH ( 3 March 1869 Fantasia on British Sea Songs or Fantasy on British Sea Songs is a piece of classical music arranged by Sir Henry Wood in 1905 to mark the centenary of the Battle The Proms, more formally known as The BBC Proms, or The Henry Wood Promenade Concerts presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily Orchestral The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located

Although the "days of the tall ships" are over, the shanty song style is still used for new musical compositions. A tall ship is a large traditionally rigged sailing vessel Popular modern tall ship rigs include topsail Schooners Brigantines Brigs and Well known examples include the Stan Rogers song, "Barrett's Privateers," the Steve Goodman song, "Lincoln Park Pirates," and the theme song for the television show SpongeBob SquarePants (a version of "Blow the Man Down"). Stanley Allison "Stan" Rogers ( November 29, 1949 &ndash June 2, 1983) was a Canadian Folk musician and Songwriter "Barrett's Privateers" is a folk song in the style of a Sea shanty, written and performed by Canadian musician Stan Rogers, having Steve Goodman ( July 25, 1948 – September 20, 1984) was an American Folk music Singer-songwriter from SpongeBob SquarePants is an American animated television series and Media franchise. Blow the Man Down is an old Sea shanty. One verse I'll sing you a song a good song of the sea With a way hey blow the man down Even the song "Reise, Reise" by the German Tanz-Metall band Rammstein is based on a shanty, "Reise, Reise." The Mariner's Revenge Song by The Decemberists is also said to be in a sea shanty style. Rammstein (ˈʀamʃtaɪ̯n is a German Industrial metal band founded in Berlin, and consisting of Till Lindemann ( lead vocals " The Mariner's Revenge Song " is a track by The Decemberists from their 2005 album Picaresque.

Literary references to sea shanties

I soon got used to this singing; for the sailors never touched a rope without it. Sometimes, when no one happened to strike up, and the pulling, whatever it might be, did not seem to be getting forward very well, the mate would always say, "Come, men, can't any of you sing? Sing now, and raise the dead. " And then some one of them would begin, and if every man's arms were as much relieved as mine by the song, and he could pull as much better as I did, with such a cheering accompaniment, I am sure the song was well worth the breath expended on it. It is a great thing in a sailor to know how to sing well, for he gets a great name by it from the officers, and a good deal of popularity among his shipmates. Some sea-captains, before shipping a man, always ask him whether he can sing out at a rope. (Herman Melville, Redburn: His First Voyage, 1849)

A song is as necessary to sailors as the drum and fife to a soldier. Herman Melville (August 1 1819 &ndash September 28 1891 was an American novelist Short story writer Essayist and poet Redburn His First Voyage is a novel by Herman Melville published on September 29, 1849, by Richard Bentley in London and Year 1849 ( MDCCCXLIX) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Fife ( Gaelic: Fìobha) is a Council area of Scotland, situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland They must pull together as soldiers must step in time, and they can't pull in time, or pull with a will, without it. Many a time, when a thing goes heavy, with one fellow yo-ho-ing, a lively song, like "Heave, to the girls!" "Nancy O!" "Jack Crosstree," "Cheerly, men," &c. , has put life and strength into every arm. We found a great difference in the effect of the various songs in driving in the hides. Two or three songs would be tried, one after the other, with no effect,-- not an inch could be got upon the tackles; when a new song, struck up, seemed to hit the humor of the moment, and drove the tackles "two blocks" at once. A block and tackle is a system of two or more Pulleys with a Rope or Cable threaded between them usually used to lift or pull heavy loads "Heave round hearty!" "Captain gone ashore!" "Dandy ship and a dandy crew," and the like, might do for common pulls, but on an emergency, when we wanted a heavy, "raise-the-dead pull," which should start the beams of the ship, there was nothing like "Time for us to go!" "Round the corner," "Tally high ho! you know," or "Hurrah! hurrah! my hearty bullies!" (Richard Henry Dana, Jr., Two Years Before the Mast, 1840)

There is some suggestion that the Provençal song by the Comtessa de Dia titled "A Chantar M'er" may be a title pun on the French for a Sea Shanty. Richard Henry Dana Jr ( August 1, 1815 - January 6, 1882) was an American Lawyer and Politician, and author Two Years Before the Mast is a book by the American author Richard Henry Dana Jr Year 1840 ( MDCCCXL) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year Beatritz or Beatriz de Dia (born c 12th century - flourished circa 1175 Provence) was a Trobairitz, that is a female Troubadour, a poet-musician The troubadour punning text suggests piracy is afoot.

Fifteen men on the dead man's chest is the first verse of the chorus of a fictional sea shanty from Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island (1883). " Dead Man's Chest " (also known as Fifteen Men On A Dead Man's Chest or Derelict) is a sailor's work song or " Sea shanty " from Robert Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson (13 November 1850–3 December 1894 was a Scottish novelist poet and travel writer, and a representative of Neo-romanticism in Treasure Island is an adventure Novel by author Robert Louis Stevenson, narrating a tale of "pirates and buried gold"

Samples

• Download recording - "Roll the Old Chariot Along," from the Library of Congress' Gordon Collection; recorded in the Bay Area of California in the early 1920s. Unfortunately, the identity of the singer is lost to history, but he is believed to have been a veteran of sailing ships. Due to the improvisational nature of sea shanties and folk music in general, this song exists with many different lyrics and even with different tunes. Folk music can have a number of different meanings including Traditional music: The original meaning of the term "folk music" was synonymous Depending on the lyrics it has been collected as both a spiritual song and as a sea shanty. Spirituals (or Negro spirituals) are songs which were created by African slaves in America.

• Haul Away Joe

  The melody for the first two verses of Haul Away Joe

• Download recording — "High Barbaree," as performed by Bounding Main. Bounding Main is an American A cappella Sextet focusing on traditional sea shanties and maritime music This rendition adapts a traditional sea shanty to a modern style. Maritime and battle sound effects are added to enhance the story of the battle with Barbary Pirates.

• YouTube video -- "South Australia" as performed by "Fisherman’s Friends," the Port Isaac Sea Shanty Singers.

• YouTube video -- "Hourra les filles à cinq deniers," a French shanty as performed by The NexTradition.

Sea shanty and sea music performers

"Traditional" performers

• Bounding Main, an a capella sextet based near Kenosha, Wisconsin. Bounding Main is an American A cappella Sextet focusing on traditional sea shanties and maritime music Kenosha (kəˈnoʊʃə is a city in and the county seat of Kenosha County, United States.
• Johnny Collins, a modern-day shantyman. Johnny Collins (born May 10, 1938) is a London-based folk singer specializing in traditional maritime music
• Cztery Refy, the most traditional Polish shanty-band.
• Great Big Sea, Canadian band performing some shanties in traditional style (though many at speeds that would kill the crew if they tried to work that fast). Great Big Sea (often shortened to GBS) is a Canadian Folk-rock band from Newfoundland and Labrador, best known for performing energetic
• Stan Hugill, "Last Working Shantyman. Stan (Stanley James Hugill (November 19 1906 - May 13 1992 was a Folk music performer and sea music historian known as the "Last Working Shantyman " (1906-1992).
• The Idlers, an all-male a cappella shanty group at the US Coast Guard Academy (1957-present)
• The Jolly Rogers, a modern-day pirate-themed band and comedy performance group. The Idlers of the United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA are an all-male collegiate A cappella ensemble specializing in the performance of sea shanties A cappella (Italian or Latin "From the chapel/choir" Music is Vocal music or Singing without instrumental Accompaniment The United States Coast Guard Academy ( USCGA) is the Military academy of the United States Coast Guard. The Jolly Rogers are a pirate-themed Renaissance folk group who perform at Renaissance faires in the Midwest United States
• Tom Lewis, Canadian performer. Tom (Thomas John Lewis (born 1943-04-16 is a Canadian singer and writer of nautical songs
• William Pint and Felicia Dale, from Seattle. William Pint and Felicia Dale (often billed as Pint & Dale) are folk musicians based in Seattle
• Roberts and Barrand, from New York and New England (1969—)
• Stan Rogers, Canadian performer. Roberts and Barrand is a musical group formed in 1969 by John Roberts and Tony Barrand while they were graduate students in psychology at Cornell University Stanley Allison "Stan" Rogers ( November 29, 1949 &ndash June 2, 1983) was a Canadian Folk musician and Songwriter (1949 - 1983)
• Cyril Tawney, British performer. Cyril Tawney ( October 12 1930, Gosport, Hampshire – April 21 2005, Exeter (1930 - 2005).

"Folk rock" performers

• Johnny Depp reportedly developed an interest in sea shanties while filming Pirates of the Caribbean. John Pirates of the Caribbean is a multi-billion dollar Walt Disney franchise encompassing a theme park ride a series of films As a result, in 2006 he helped facilitate Rogue's Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs, and Chanteys, an album of informal recordings of variable quality, primarily by performers not known for prior interest in or knowledge of sea shanties. Rogue's Gallery Pirate Ballads Sea Songs and Chanteys is a Compilation album of Sea shanties performed by a wide array of artists ranging from According to the liner notes, the producer, Hal Wilner, knew nothing of sea shanties before beginning the project. However, some performers on the album, such as Sting, did have a prior interest.

"Pirate rock" performers

• Captain Bogg and Salty, a pirate-themed rock band which performs many traditional shanties, as well as writing several of their own. Captain Bogg and Salty is a Pirate -themed rock band from Portland Oregon, and a representative member of the Subgenre of pirate rock Piracy is Robbery committed at sea or sometimes on shore without a commission from a sovereign Nation (as distinct from Privateering
• Sforzando, Australian Psych-Folk Pirate Punk Band. Sforzando are a band from Melbourne, Australia who describe themselves as a "7-piece pirate orchestra" (fans usually refer to them simply as a
• Alestorm, a Scottish Pirate Metal band. Alestorm is a " Pirate metal " band from Perth, Scotland, formed under the name Battleheart in 2004.
• Rum, a Pirate Punk band based near London

References

• Doerflinger, William Main, Songs of the Sailor and Lumberman. Rum is a Distilled beverage made from Sugarcane by-products such as Molasses and sugarcane Juice by a process of fermentation Mayerbooks, Glenwood, 1990.
• Harlow, Frederick Pease, Chanteying Aboard American Ships. Mystic Seaport Museum, Mystic. 2004.
• Hugill, Stan, Shanties and Sailor's Songs. Frederick A. Praeger, New York, 1969
• Hugill, Stan, Shanties from the Seven Seas. Mystic Seaport Museum, Mystic, 1994.
• Proctor, David, Music of the Sea. HMSO, London, 1992.
• Davids, C. A. , & Aalbers, B. H. Wat lijdt den zeeman al verdriet: het Nederlandse zeemanslied in de zeiltijd, 1600-1900. The Hague, 1980.

Both Stan Hugill and Frank Shay have written extensively on sea shanties. Stan (Stanley James Hugill (November 19 1906 - May 13 1992 was a Folk music performer and sea music historian known as the "Last Working Shantyman

External links

Sea shanties in general:

• The Chantey Cabin - Shanty and Maritime Music specialists
• John Ward's "Shanties and Sea Songs" webpage
• Shanties and Sea Songs webpage
• Contemplator.com, "Songs of the sea" section
• International Shanty and Seasong Association
• The First Free Shanty Portal SZANTYMANIAK.PL
• Farewell and adieu to you, Spanish Ladies

Annual sea music festivals:

• The Bitter End contains a comprehensive list of forthcoming festivals across the world.

• Europe
  • "Shanties 08" in Liverpool, U.K. (Usually held in June, part of the Mersey River Festival. )
  • "Sea Fever Sea Shanty Festival" in Kingston Upon Hull, U.K. (Usually held in September. )
  • "De Slag op 't Wiede" in Giethoorn, the Netherlands. (Usually held in September. )
  • International Sea Songs Festival "Shanties" in Kraków, Poland (Held since 1981, usually in February. )
  • "International Shanty Festival" near the "Oude Haven", "Wijnhaven" and "Leuvehaven" in Rotterdam, The Netherlands (Usually held in the first full week-end of September. )
  • "Szanty we Wrocławiu" - Shanties in Wrocław

• United States
  • "Sea Music Festival" at Mystic Seaport Museum of America and the Sea (Usually held in mid-June. )
  • "Festival of the Sea" at San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park (Usually held in early September. )
  • "Chicago Maritime Festival" in Chicago (Usually held in late February. )

Web pages for various shanty and sea music performers:

• ARRR!!!: An 'a-capirate' crew of students at Brown University
• The Corsairs, an a capella group that sings both traditional and original songs
• Bilge Pumps, a pirate-themed musical group based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
• Barend Fox, a shanty-choir of the Professional Rotterdam Firebrigade that sings shanty's and sea-songs.
• "Captain Black Jack" Murphy, Pirate extraordinaire and musical comedy.
• "Song of the Lakes" Traditional Shanties, as well as Shanty inspired music about the lives of sailors on Great Lakes region of the United States