Blow boys blow and we'll all blow together
Blow boys blow and we'll roll away
In any kind of weather we're all in it together
Oh! Blow boys blow Oh blow boys blow
Away me lads ye gallant crew
to distant shores we'll steer
She's loaded to the gunnels
with a whisky an good beer
It's farewell to Sally
It's farewell to Jane
We'll meet 'em on the dockside
When we lad up her again
Oh! Sing boys sing and we'll all sing together
Sing boys sing and we'll roll away
In any kind of weather we're all in it together
Oh! Sing boys sing Oh sing boys sing
We're bound for San Francisco
In ship and man we trust
We'll rock 'er and we'll roll 'er
All around the Horn or bust
And when we cast our anchor
in the waters of the bay
We'll dance to the fiddler on the deck
Until the end of day
Oh! Drink boys drink and we'll all drink together
Drink boys drink and we'll roll away
In any kind of weather we're all in it together
Oh! Drink boys drink Oh drink boys drink
Blow boys blow
blow boys blow
Blow boys blow and we'll all blow together
Blow boys blow and we'll roll away
In any kind of weather we're all in it together
Oh! Blow boys blow Oh blow boys blow
Oh! Sing boys sing and we'll all sing together
Sing boys sing and we'll roll away
In any kind of weather we're all in it together
Oh! Sing boys sing Oh sing boys sing
Oh! Drink boys drink and we'll all drink together
Drink boys drink and we'll roll away
In any kind of weather we're all in it together
Oh! Drink boys drink Oh drink boys drink
Drink boys drink Oh drink boys drink
Blow boys blow and we'll roll away
In any kind of weather we're all in it together
Oh! Blow boys blow Oh blow boys blow
Away me lads ye gallant crew
to distant shores we'll steer
She's loaded to the gunnels
with a whisky an good beer
It's farewell to Sally
It's farewell to Jane
We'll meet 'em on the dockside
When we lad up her again
Oh! Sing boys sing and we'll all sing together
Sing boys sing and we'll roll away
In any kind of weather we're all in it together
Oh! Sing boys sing Oh sing boys sing
We're bound for San Francisco
In ship and man we trust
We'll rock 'er and we'll roll 'er
All around the Horn or bust
And when we cast our anchor
in the waters of the bay
We'll dance to the fiddler on the deck
Until the end of day
Oh! Drink boys drink and we'll all drink together
Drink boys drink and we'll roll away
In any kind of weather we're all in it together
Oh! Drink boys drink Oh drink boys drink
Blow boys blow
blow boys blow
Blow boys blow and we'll all blow together
Blow boys blow and we'll roll away
In any kind of weather we're all in it together
Oh! Blow boys blow Oh blow boys blow
Oh! Sing boys sing and we'll all sing together
Sing boys sing and we'll roll away
In any kind of weather we're all in it together
Oh! Sing boys sing Oh sing boys sing
Oh! Drink boys drink and we'll all drink together
Drink boys drink and we'll roll away
In any kind of weather we're all in it together
Oh! Drink boys drink Oh drink boys drink
Drink boys drink Oh drink boys drink
song info:
Verified yes
LanguageEnglish
Genre−
Rank−
Duration00:02:50
Charts
Copyright ©Sony/ATV Music Publishing
WriterPeter David Sage
Lyrics licensed byLyricFind
AddedApril 13th, 2012
Last updatedMarch 8th, 2022
AboutThis is one of at least three major versions of this sea shanty. This version focuses on the China tea trade - hence the line, "How do you know she's a yankee clipper?" (Clippers were the extremely fast sailing ships that raced each other to bring tea back from China). In fact, the song is sometimes called, 'the Yankee Clipper'. There is a good recording of it with that title by Show of Hands on an obscure album called, 'A Feast of Folk - 16 Evergreen Favourites'. Other versions of the song are about the slave trade and the North American Packet (mail) trade respectively.
What I find fascinating about all of the versions of this song is the small (or big) changes. So, for example, even within the 'tea clipper' variants of the song you'll find that sometimes the mate is "Santander James" and sometimes he's "a bowery tough that's never sober." Incidentally, I don't know what the real Santander James was like, but he must have upset somebody pretty badly!
I imagine that the lyrics of the song grew and were adapted naturally as they were passed around from sailor to sailor. My version is really a compendium of my own favourite verses from the tea clipper version of the song.
If you're interested, here are one set of lyrics to the slave trade version of the song. And Here is another set. And here's a mixed up version in which she's become a Bristol clipper, though goodness knows what she was doing on the Congo river in that case
What I find fascinating about all of the versions of this song is the small (or big) changes. So, for example, even within the 'tea clipper' variants of the song you'll find that sometimes the mate is "Santander James" and sometimes he's "a bowery tough that's never sober." Incidentally, I don't know what the real Santander James was like, but he must have upset somebody pretty badly!
I imagine that the lyrics of the song grew and were adapted naturally as they were passed around from sailor to sailor. My version is really a compendium of my own favourite verses from the tea clipper version of the song.
If you're interested, here are one set of lyrics to the slave trade version of the song. And Here is another set. And here's a mixed up version in which she's become a Bristol clipper, though goodness knows what she was doing on the Congo river in that case
Album Details
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