AKiCiF: Looking for a song

[rolanni]

Long ago and far away (OK -- sixteen years ago, in Skowhegan), kinzel and I went on down to Coburn Park to hear a local somewhat-known-trio who was not Schooner Faire (SF being three guys and the group we heard was two guys and a girl) in concert. They sang an enjoyable, but not memorable, couple sets of sea songs and finished up with a song I haven't heard before or since, and which I would very much like to hear again.

The set-up is that the narrator has signed on to a ship of great renown under a canny, careful and experienced captain; the first bit is praise for captain and ship. Unfortunately, misfortune overtakes the ship, but the captain is notable for his concern for the safety of the crew and is praised by the narrator for his bravery. The refrain is something on the order of "Swim!/Swim for your lives!/Swim for your children/Swim for your wives!" The crew is taken up, the ship goes down -- and it is then that the narrator reveals that the captain sunk his own vessel for the insurance money.

Anyone recognize it from the above, admittedly poor, description?

Comments

[wilfulcait.livejournal.com]

Steeleye Span: Let Her Go Down (here: http://www.hourwolf.com/steeleye/sails.html)

[alethea-eastrid.livejournal.com]

And I'd lay odds that the group was Bok, Muir and Trickett, thought I don't have time to go through their discography and check. Got a copy of one of their tapes (dubbed) which I adored, and then took me almost a decade to find them again. http://www.gordonbok.com/bokmuirtrickett.html

[kalimeg.livejournal.com]

http://www.lyricsfreak.com/h/hollies/let+her+go+down_20244672.html

Sung by several groups, actually. Just google "swim for your children" in quotes for more than you actually wanted to know.

[queenmaggie.livejournal.com]

I've also heard Pyrates Royal sing that chanty... and sevral others on the renn faire circuit.

AKiCiF: Looking for a song

[(Anonymous)]

http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=97850&messages=1

Peter Cady

Re: AKiCiF: Looking for a song

[rolanni.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I checked the thread. Looks like "Let Her Go Down" is the consensus choice.

It's good to see you here, Mr. Cady -- you and the Woodchucks are partially responsible for Carousel Tides, though I daresay that may not be Entirely Obvious from the text...

Don't connect the dots

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

On January 6, early morning your time, you were awaiting temporary cyborgization (oh, that hurts! Not the cyborg additions, that awful encrustation of a perfectly good word with ization) which would persist until late.

Then January 7, latish, you're wondering about sinking a ship for the insurance?

It was just a passing thought, really. Nah, they aren't connected.

Mike

Re: Don't connect the dots

[rolanni.livejournal.com]

Then January 7, latish, you're wondering about sinking a ship for the insurance?

Actually, the song is story-stuff. Which story, I'm not precisely sure yet, but one learns to simply put the requested items on a plate and carefully toe it to the top of the basement stairs...

Re: Don't connect the dots

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

I thought it was probably food for the back brain (or wherever the Muses live -- in the basement?) But the sequence viewed from out here was amusing. Thanks for elucidating.

[kk1raven.livejournal.com]

That description isn't poor at all. It told me exactly which song you meant. It is bad in the sense that the song is now stuck in my head though, where it will annoy me until I find a recording of it to listen to.