The Merchantman Shanty
“Work songs were banned in the Royal Navy.”
– Capt A. Bakalarka
I used to sail with the king, I sailed
On a Royal Naval brig,
But there they wouldn’t let me sing
Whene’er we raised the rig
So we hauled away in silence so,
We had to heave without a ho,
We dare not peep a quick-quick-slow
Or the cat would make us holler.
We mayn’t disturb his majesty
With a too-rye-ay and a yo-ho-ho,
For only lubbers sing at sea
So let all singing go.
I used to sail with the king, I sailed
On a Royal Naval sloop,
But I couldn’t let my whistle ring
Whene’er we swabbed the stoop.
So we scrubbed away in silence, see,
We had to dumb without a dee,
We dare not hum a do-re-mi,
Or the cat would make us holler.
We mayn’t disturb his majesty
With a too-rye-ay and a yo-ho-ho,
For only madmen sing at sea
So keep your whistle’ing low.
I used to sail with the king, I sailed
On a Royal Naval barque,
But I must not pluck a single string
Till safely after dark.
So we sailed away in silence, aye,
We had to hew without a cry,
Unless the roaring wind was high
And the cat can’t hear us holler.
We mayn’t disturb his majesty
With a too-rye-ay and a yo-ho-ho,
For only sirens sing at sea
So take your singing below.
The lines in roman are sung by the shanty man, the lines in italics are sung by the crew.
I originally had the line “Whene’er we swabbed the poop”, referring to the poop-deck, but…well, you’ve already sniggered, haven’t you ? So I changed it to ‘stoop’, which sounds like it should be a suitably nautical word even though it isn’t. It’s actually the American term for the front steps upto the front door of a terraced house, often spanning over the area. But then, boats have attached ladders upto the poop-deck, don’t they?
Rhyming Couplets 