Hi there.
When you hear the phrase, sea shanty do you think of Assassin’s Creed? Pirates of the Caribbean maybe? Or perhaps that alternative bearded guy you met at a bar once in an oversized flannel who tried to brag about his music tastes? Either way, the harmonious and historical arrangements were a regular part of sailors' lives dating back to the early 1400s.
Rather than going out and being a swashbuckling sailor, most people find their days revolving around COVID-19. With shopping malls, restaurants, workplaces, schools, and other public facilities shut down, millions of people are faced with more free time than ever before. Myself included. Splitting from the current trending topics revolving around gender politics, dating, and appearance, I want to tackle the lifeblood of society and give a very groundbreaking perspective. So, today, I would like to share with you my controversial stance regarding sea shanties. I understand that this list is a very charged issue, however, I am obligated by my social duty to share with you my ten favorite sea shanties.
Ten: What Shall We Do with the Drunken Sailor - The Men of the Robert Shaw Chorale
Let's get this list started right and begin with my least favorite sea shanty. This shanty is very well known and there are many famous renditions of this song. The Irish Rovers and The Longest Johns did fantastic covers. This is a capstan (windlass) shanty that sailors used for repetitive tasks to keep a rhythm. The embedded video is a classic, and someone might just keelhaul me if I don't include this song somewhere on my list. After all, it is iconic.
Nine: Trust not the Shanty Man/Hog Eye Man - Hogeye Navvy
What does this song mean? Is it about a girl thirsting after a man, the harpoon man on a whaling vessel, a fake sailor, a man in the navy? Old English leaves the meaning of the song up for interpretation. One thing is for certain though. It is number nine on this list.
Eight: High Barbary - United States Navy Band
Coming in at number eight we have a fairly neat but off-brand version of The Ants Go Marching. However, the message of the song is fantastic. Historically, this piece relates to and cleverly describes western involvement in the Barbary Wars. Don't want to click the link? Here is a quick summary: The United States joined Sweden in their fights against the Barbary States of North Africa in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The goal? To decimate all pesky pirates from the region. Also, the harmonies are nice and the men look dapper.
Seven: The Mermaid - Martin Carthy & The UK Group
This shanty's theme is implied from the title. This rendition does a great job capturing the mournful tale of a boy's deadly attraction to a denizen of the deep. Fun fact, did you know that Christopher Columbus confused manatees for mermaids? I personally can't imagine being seduced and then eaten by a manatee. Can you?
Six: Eliza Lee (Capstan Shanty) - Johnny Collins
We have another shanty on my list about sailing. I placed this specific shanty last on my list because I like it the less than some of the others that I have listed but more than the previous ones. My selection process is very scientific, I assure you.
Five: The Devils SonJolly Rogers - Jolly Rogers
Have you heard of Black Beard? A few of my favorite facts: He would light himself on fire to intimidate his enemies, he hid hemp and candles in his beard and lit them when he fought, he threw wild beach parties, and managed to get his severed head displayed for all to see after the British managed to kill him in the battle of Ocracoke Island.
Four, almost there: Old Maui - The Dreadnoughts
This song has a solid placement in slot four. I enjoy the harmonies and the story. Another classic shanty about sailing and how much the poor sailors want to reach their destinations. This specific song was originally sung by the crew of a whaling vessel describing how they much they yearned to return to Maui whaling in the Kamchatka Sea.
Number three: Haul Away Joe - The Longest Johns:
Like all sea shanties, Haul Away Joe has multiple renditions and interpretations. I like this specific version the most. As you can hear, the subject matter does not recount an epic battle or historical figure. Content-wise, it is rather bland. This shanty was a popular tack and sheet shanty in early eighteen hundreds that later became a very popular maritime work song. But, it has been stuck in my head for the last five days. Plus, who doesn't love having breakfast with the boys?
Watch out for that curveball- this is number two: Randy Dandy-o
This sea shanty is probably the most well known, as it has been popularized by modern forms of entertainment like television and video games. This was used as capstan or pump shanty, a shanty for the repetitive tasks onboard the vessel, like hauling the anchor or pumping the bilge. Fun fact, the recorded version was a cleaned-up version of the original. The actual shanty that was sun by sailors apparently had enough curse words to make the British blush. This song earned the number two spot on my list because of the powerful harmony and layering. It was hard to pick my favorite rendition of this song, so I included two,
The Longest Johns:
The Dreadnoughts’ arrangement for Assassin’s Creed:
IN case you couldn’t get enough of that rolling harmony:
Coming in at number one: Santy Anno
We have a nice spin of a classic sea shanty. The original goes by multiple titles; however, we’ll just stick to Santy Anno. This was used as a pumping shanty and gave sailors motivation to pump bilge dry. This song focuses on the Mexican-Amerian war. Specifically, the outcome of the battle of Molino del Rey in 1847. As the singers voice the chorus, away Santy Ano, they describe how General Taylor crushed Santa Anna, the president of Mexico's past to Cuba. Performed by The Pyrates Royale, you are in for a treat to hear a female perspective on fun wartime victory shanty that would make Jimmy Buffet jealous.
My personal favorite with a female lead, The Pyrates Royale:
The rendition that is more faithful to the original (with a male lead), Victory Sings at Sea:
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