Songs from the Jenny Lind

A, usually, acapella rhythmic song sung on a call and response basis. Only ever sung when working and never sung ashore. Although many shanty's owe their heritage to the songs of the work gangs who loaded and unloaded the ships. It's better to say, never sung ashore for pleasure

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A.L. Llyod is on record as saying that we sing shanties far too fast today, which is true. When there was a heavy capstan to heave around, a yard to hoist up or a pump to operate for hours, the shanty had to fit the work and there were precious few occasions when these were done at a rapid pace. And as Tom Lewis says in one of his songs 'we sing them right through to the end,' something of a rarity at sea.

At the sessions in the Jenny we sing acapella and we try to sing them as work songs, no twiddly bits, no harmonising, although it does happen. We are guilty of singing them faster than they were originally, as is expected by an audience who is there to sing along , whilst not working on anything more strenuous than lifting a glass.

A shanty is a working song and many are adapted from folk tunes, music hall and popular songs, plus the songs of the shore gangs, many of whom were slaves, or ex slaves, who had in turn brought them from Africa. Thus the cotton ports of the American Deep South became a hub of this cross migration of songs.

There's much been written about shanties, where they originated,  and so forth, you can find that information elsewhere, this site is about what we sing at the Jenny Lind and the words we generally use. Enjoy.