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Botswain (Bosun) Call the Watch (Recitation and Song) and Narrative - 5​:​38

from The Helen Creighton Folklore Society Presents: Songs of the Sea by Varouos tradition bearers and informants

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Tom Cornealy, Halifax, Nova Scotia, June 1, 1950

lyrics

Boatswain Call the Watch (Recitation & Song) & Narrative: rescue of a
windjammer; use of chanties and role of men on ships - Tom Cornealy [5:38]
AC: 2276 - MF NO: 289.288

Recorded: Halifax, June 1, 1950.
“The moon” shone bright at twelve that night,
From Old King’s Light to Tusker Light,
With the watch on deck and the watch in bed,
Go ‘neath _____ and Hollyhead.

Then it’s Oh Boatswain call the watch,
Sound your whistle shrill,
Eight bells newly struck,
Turn out with a will,
Host the mainsail, square those yards,
Let your ship go free,
‘Bove all the lives upon the sea,
A boatswain’s life for me.

“Turn them out!”, our captain cries,
“It’s Sunday, Sir,” our mate replies,
“What is Sunday but a name?
Another day to me is just the same,
Turn the men out and make them work,
And work the scurvy out of their bones.”

Eight bells was struck when Jack awoke,
Before the dawn of day was broke,
He grasped his stone, he bent his knees,
But not in prayer; for the damned and bugger
The man that sent them there.

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from The Helen Creighton Folklore Society Presents: Songs of the Sea, released May 24, 2023

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Helen Creighton Folklore Society Dartmouth, Nova Scotia

Honoring folklorist Helen Creighton (1899-1989), who collected and published traditional music and lore of Maritime Canada. The mandate of the Helen Creighton Folklore Society is to encourage and promote work that reflects the diverse folk culture of the Maritimes as exemplified by the work begun by Dr. Creighton. For more information visit our website at: www.helencreighton.org. ... more

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