William Pint & Felicia Dale

Celebrating the ocean in song

Go From My Window
Traditional

Go from my window my love my love
Go from my window my dear
For the wind is blowing high
And the ship is lying nigh
And you'll not get a harboring here

Go from my window my love my love
Go from my window my dear
For the wind and rain
Have brought you back again
And you'll not get a harboring here

Go from my window my love my love
Go from my window my dear
The bird is in full flight
And I know wrong from right
And you'll not get a harboring here
So go from my window my dear

Go from my window my love my love
Go from my window my dear
The bird is black and white
And I know day from night
And you'll not get a harboring here

Go from my window my love my love
Go from my window my dear
For the wind is in the west
And you have failed the test
And you'll not get a harboring here

Go from my window my love my love
Go from my window my dear
For though the wind and rain
May drive you back again
And you'll not get a harboring here

go from my window my love my love
go from my window my dear
For the Devil's in the man
That he cannot understand
that he'll not get a harboring here
So go from my window my dear

Northern Tide
Linda Kelly

Out to sea, on a northern tide
On a northern tide, I'm bound away,
To the fishing grounds, and the ocean wide
And more besides, to earn my pay.

But I'll not let the ocean come between us,
There's part of me that never leaves the shore
and though I haven’t said the words, my own one
I couldn't love you more.

Far away, to my second home,
In the salt and foam, of a foreign sea.
Lashed by the winds of a raging gale,
Sleet and hail are home to me.

You ask me, 'Is it lonely on the ocean?'
You ask me if I miss you but you know
I miss you, but the sea will never leave me
-And I can't let her go.

Heave to Lads, and haul your nets
And fill the decks, with a ton of cod!
Barrels full of liver oil, fisherman's spoil
Pays the rent-Thank God!

Our holds are full and we are heading homeward
To the Humber's muddy waters we'll return
We'll leave the icy ocean far behind us
And pleasure, in the money, we have earned

Sailing home, on an evening tide
On an evening tide, we're getting near
From the fishing grounds, and the ocean wide,
And more beside, to you, my dear.

The Trawling Trade
John Conolly

North to the Faeroe Islands,
South to the coast of Spain-
West with the whaling fleet,
and off to the pole again-
Over the world of water,
seventeen seas I've strayed-
Now to the north I'm sailing, back,
back to the trawling trade.
Come, ye bold seafaring men, there's fortunes to be made -
In the trawling trade.

Back to the midnight landings,
back to the fish dock smell,
back to the frozen wind,
as hard as the teeth of hell,
Back to the strangest game
that ever a man has played.
Follow the stormy rollers, back,
back to the trawling trade.
Come, ye bold seafaring men,
there's fortunes to be made -
In the trawling trade. In the trawling trade.

Down with your trawling tackle,
down with your nets and gear
Wait for the winches winding,
wait for the deckies cheer.
Up with the shining harvest,
glittering silver-sprayed -
Down to the decks below to pay,
pay for the trawling trade.
Come, ye bold seafaring men,
there's fortunes to be made -
In the trawling trade. In the trawling trade.
In the trawling trade. In the trawling trade.

Home with a harvest wind,
and back to the Humber tide;
Run to the starboard rail and
leap to the waterside -
Roll with a roaring bunch
of fishermen newly-paid -
Down to the dockside pubs and drink,...
drink to the trawling trade.

Come, ye bold seafaring men, there's fortunes to be made -
In the trawling trade. In the trawling trade.
In the trawling trade. In the trawling trade.
In the trawling trade. In the trawling trade.

Mother Dinah
Traditional

Good morning Mother Dinah
I wonder what's the matter
Sing Sally oh in the fa la lay
CH: Hurrah Hurrah my bully boys
Poor old mother Dinah
Sing Sally oh in the fa la lay

Now he's gone and left her
that man who was her keeper
Sing Sally o in the fa la lay
CH: Hurrah Hurrah my bully boys
Poor old mother Dinah
Sing Sally oh in the fa la lay

Sally oh in the fa la lay

She still loves the sailor man
she brings him rum and tobacco
Sing Sally o in the fa la lay
CH: Hurrah Hurrah my bully boys
Poor old mother Dinah
Sing Sally oh in the fa la lay

Sally's better than good good rum
and I'll be with her
when the morning come
Sing Sally o in the fa la lay
CH: Hurrah Hurrah my bully boys
Poor old mother Dinah
Sing Sally oh in the fa la lay

Good morning Mother Dinah
I wonder what's the matter
Sing Sally o in the fa la lay
CH: Hurrah Hurrah my bully boys
Poor old mother Dinah
Sing Sally oh in the fa la lay

The Dreadnaught
Traditional

One ship drives east and one ship drives west
By the self-same wind that blows;
Yet the set of the sails and not the gale
The set of the sails and not the gale
Determines the way-i-aye-i-aye
That determines the way she goes...

It’s of a flash packet, a packet of fame,
She hails from New York
and the Dreadnaught's her name.
She's bound to the westward
where the wide waters flow
Bound away to the westward
in the Dreadnaught we'll go!
Derry down, down..., down derry down.

The time of her sailing
is now drawing nigh
Farewell pretty maids,
we must bid ye goodbye
Farewell to old England
and all we hold dear
Bound away in the Dreadnaught,
to the westward we'll steer
Derry down, down..., down derry down.

Now the Dreadnaught's a-howling
down the wild Irish Sea,
Her passengers merry and
with their hearts full of glee.
Her sailors like tigers
walk the decks to and fro.
Bound away to the westward
in the Dreadnaught we'll go.
Derry down, down..., down derry down.

Now the Dreadnaught is sailing
the Atlantic so wide,
Where the high roaring seas
roll along her black side.
With her topsails set taut
for the Red Cross to show ,
She's the Liverpool packet.
Oh Lord, let her go !
Derry down, down..., down derry down.
down..., down derry down.

And now we're arriving
in old New York town.
We're bound for the Bowery
to let sorrows drown.
With our beer and strong liquor,
we'll let the songs flow
And drink to the Dreadnaught
where'er she may go!
Derry down, down..., down derry down.
down..., down derry down.

Here's a health to the Dreadnaught
and all her brave crew,
To bold Captain Samuels
and his officers too.
You may talk of your packets,
Swallowtail and Black Ball,
But the Dreadnaught's the flyer
that outsails them all!
Derry down, down..., down derry down.
down..., down derry down.

Now my story is ended,
my tale it is told
Forgive me old shipmates
if you think that I'm bold
For this song was composed
while the watch was below
Bound away to the westward
in the Dreadnaught we'll go
Derry down, down..., down derry down.

Tom Bowling
Charles Dibdin (1745-1814)

Here a sheer hulk lies poor Tom Bowling,
The darling of our crew;
No more he'll hear the tempest howling,
For death has broach'd him to:
His form was of the manliest beauty,
His heart was kind and soft.
Faithful, below, he did his duty,
And now he's gone aloft,
And now he's gone aloft.

Tom never from his word departed,
His virtues were so rare,
His friends were many, and true-hearted,
His Poll was kind and fair:
And then he'd sing so blithe and jolly -
Ah! many's the Time and oft -
But mirth is turn'd to melancholy,
For Tom is gone aloft,
For Tom is gone aloft.

Yet shall poor Tom find pleasant weather,
When He, who all commands,
Shall give, to call life's crew together,
The word to pipe all hands:
Thus death, who Kings and tars dispatches,
In vain Tom's life has doff'd,
For though his body's under hatches,
His soul has gone aloft,
His soul has gone aloft.

Jack Tar Ashore
Traditional

Now come all you ladies gay
Who rob sailors of their pay
And listen while I sing this tarry tune
For when jack tar comes ashore with his money all in store
There’s no one can get rid of it so soon

Now the first thing jack commands is a fiddler to his hand
And a bottle of Nelson's blood so stout and warm
And a pretty girl likewise with her dark and rollin' eyes
He drops his anchor wantin' never more to roam

Then the landlady comes in dressed in brand new crinoline
She’s looking like a bright and shining star
And she welcomes Jack right in with his pockets full of tin
And she'll chalk his score on a board behind the bar

Then she calls down a maid; white handed and soft laid
An' up aloft they climb without much bother
Then she shortens in her sail for a weatherin' of the gale
And soon their tiers they're moored quite close together

Now Jack's money soon is gone and his flash girl she has flown
She’s roamin down the dock to find another
And the landlady cries, "Pay your score and get outside
Yer cargo's gone and you met stormy weather."

Now Jack, all in a rage threw his bottle past her head
And likewise with glasses he let fly
And the flash girl in her fright calls the watchman of the night
sayin’, "Take this young sailor lad outside."

Jack is made to understand there's a ship a-wantin' hands,
And down to Shadwell basin he goes down
And he ships away forlorn, another passage round the horn
Farewell to all the flashgirls of the town

The Handsome Cabin Boy
Traditional

It's of a pretty female as you will understand
Her mind was set on rambling into a foreign land
She dressed herself in man's attire and boldly did appear
And she engaged with a captain to serve him for a year.

The captain's lady being on board,
she seemed in great joy
To think the captain had engaged
such a handsome cabin boy
And many's the time she cuddled and kissed,
and would have liked to toy
But 'twas the captain found the secret
of the handsome cabin boy

Her cheeks they were like roses,
her hair was all a-curl
The sailors often smiled and said,
"he looks just like a girl!"
But eating the captain's biscuit,
well, her color it did destroy
And the waist did swell on pretty Nell,
the handsome cabin boy.

As through the Bay of Biscay
our gallant ship did plough
One night among the sailors
there came an awful row
They tumbled from their hammocks
for their rest it did destroy
They complained about the groaning
of the handsome cabin boy

It's "doctor, dearest doctor",
the cabin boy did cry
"My time has come, I am undone,
and surely I must die"
The doctor ran with all his
might, a-smiling at the fun
For to think a cabin boy could have
a daughter or a son

Now when the sailors heard the joke,
they all began to stare
The child belongs to none of us,
they solemnly did swear
And the lady to the captain said
"My dear I wish you joy
For it was either you or I betrayed
the handsome cabin boy."

Come all of you bold fellows
and we'll drink success to trade
And likewise to the cabin boy
who was neither man nor maid
And if the wars should rise again,
us sailors to employ
Here's hoping for a jolly lot more
like the handsome cabin boy.

Fire Down Below

I thought I heard our old man say
Fire down below, boys, fire down below
You can go ashore and get your pay
Fire down below, boys, fire down below

'cause I don't care what the captain say
Fire down below, boys, fire down below
two pound ten won't pay my way
fire down below, boys, fire down below

I'll take my gear and I'll run away
fire down below, boys, fire down below
I'll find my girl round 'Frisco Bay
fire down below, boys, fire down below

I know very well it's with me she will stay
fire down below, boys, fire down below
because she know I have twelve month pay
fire down below, boys, fire down below

And we'll go down to the Midway plaisances
fire down below, boys, fire down below
see the pretty girls do the hula hula dances
fire down below, boys, fire down below

I thought I heard our captain say
fire down below, boys, fire down below
you can go ashore and get your pay
Fire down below, boys, fire down below

Rolling Down to old Maui
Once more we are blown by the northern gale
bounding o'er the main
And the green hills of the tropical isles
we soon shall see again
Five sluggish moons have waxed and waned
Since from the shore sailed we
But now we're bound from the Arctic ground
Rolling down to old Maui me boys

We're rolling down to old Maui me boys
Rolling down to old Maui
We're homeward bound from the arctic ground
Rolling Down to old Maui

Through many's the blow of frost and snow
bitter squalls and hail
our spars were bent and our sails were rent
as we braved the northern gale
those horrid isles of ice cut tiles
that deck the polar sea
Are many, many leagues astern As we sail to old Maui

We're rolling down to old Maui me boys
Rolling down to old Maui
We're homeward bound from the arctic ground
Rolling Down to old Maui

Through many the gale of frost and hail
our good ship bore away
but in the midst of a moon beam's kiss
We slept in St Lawrence Bay
for it's many the day we whiled away
on that cold Kamchatka sea
But now we're bound from the Arctic ground
Rolling down to old Maui me boys

We're rolling down to old Maui me boys
Rolling down to old Maui
We're homeward bound from the arctic ground
Rolling Down to old Maui

It's an ample share of toil and care
we whalemen undergo
but we don't give a damn when the gale is done
how hard the winds did blow
for it's homeward bound that joyful sound
and yet it may not be
but we'll think on that as we laugh and chat
with the girls of old maui

We're rolling down to old Maui me boys
Rolling down to old Maui
We're homeward bound from the arctic ground
Rolling Down to old Maui