AQUILA HQ is a flying-fish flap from sung during the Victorian era, a period AQUILA: Did pirates sing sea shanties
the English Channel, so that known for being more than a little and if so, were they the same?
obviously means there is nothing strait-laced and prudish (some historians Jowan: Nobody knows if pirates sang sea
we love more than a good ol’ sea
shanties, but I like to think they did. We
were they invented? And why are think even the word ‘trousers’ was
frowned upon!) . At this time the British upper classes weren’t keen on wild at least the 15th century onwards. For all
they so rude? We decided to say outbursts of emotion. There were the meticulous detail that went into
‘Ahoy’ to Jowan Collier, a shanty developments during this time to recording the crew and the cargo, no one
expert from the British Library’s challenge this strict hierarchy, but seems to have written down what was
Sound Archives, to find out more. largely Victorian society stuck to a rigid sung on board.
shanty, but what are they? Why
have a record that sailors sang at sea from
class system. In contrast, sea shanties
AQUILA: What exactly are sea shanties
and what are they used for?
Jowan: Sea shanties are work songs.
They were popular aboard British
vessels from around the middle of the
19th century to the beginning of the
20th century. Sea shanties usually have a
lead singer known as a shantyman,
who is in charge of singing the verses.
The rest of the ship’s crew chimes in on
were bawdy, rude, salacious outbursts of Pirates had their heyday around the 18th
emotion, tales full of miserable working century, so they may have sung what we
conditions, drunken sailors and wives now call forebitters, recreational songs
left alone on shore. They were tough that were sung in taverns, after the
songs for tough times. captain and crew had come ashore. These
were usually single, unaccompanied
Shanties were passed from sailor to voices (with the same rude content).
sailor through the oral tradition. Very Officers of the Royal Navy would not have
few were written down by sailors approved!
themselves. Instead, early folk-song
collectors like Percy Grainger and Cecil AQUILA: Humans seem drawn to using
Sharp recorded many of the shanties on music to help with work – Disney’s Snow
voice. their behalf a little later on. This could White whistled while she worked. Tidy
suggest that a number of the sailors up songs are used in schools and I
The songs were used to help co- were illiterate, or that writing the words always have a loud radio blasting when
down could get them into trouble with (if) I wash up. Why do you think music
the people they were probably working helps us work?
for. Jowan: Music helps some of us organise
the chorus. The shantyman would have
been chosen due to his strong singing
ordinate much of the manual labour
that needed to be done around the ship.
For hard jobs, like hoisting the sail, the
chorus comes at the end of every line.
This makes sure the sailors all pull the
rope at once. Each line between gives
them time to catch their breath. Because
they were meant to accompany work,
sea shanties are traditionally sung a
cappella (without any instruments).
Some modern shanty groups now add
our efforts. It gives parameters to our
AQUILA: Why did these work songs zipping thoughts. Housework, for
stop being sung on board? example, is solitary and repetitive. A tune
Jowan: Gradually older wind-powered gives my brain something to latch onto.
ships started being replaced by newer Singing together gives you a much
models fitted with new technologies, greater sense of purpose and can bring a
such as steam. With less heavy work to team together.
do, the need for sea shanties died out.
their own instrumental arrangements. The tradition kept on going until the AQUILA: How do sea songs differ from
1920s. Eventually, in the 1950s, the last sea shanties?
AQUILA: What else can sea shanties shantyman, a chap called Stan Hugill, Jowan: Sea shanties have been ashore for
wrote down all the songs he could the past one hundred years or so, they
remember and taught them to younger, have become mixed with whaling songs,
if more land-based, folks. sea-related songs and forebitters – the
tell us about the lives of the sailors that
sung them?
Jowan: These songs were most widely