Back to List of Songs Notes

GOOD MORNING, LADIES ALL Pumping Shanty Lead: Richard

LYRICS:

Solo: We are outward bound for Mobile town
Chorus: With a heave-o, haul!
Solo: An' we'll heave the ol' wheel round an' round
Chorus: Good mornin' ladies all!

An' when we get to Mobile town
Oh, 'tis there we'll drink an' sorrow drown

Them gals down south are free an' gay
Wid them we'll spend our hard-earned pay

We'll swing around, we'll have good fun
An' soon we'll be back on the homeward run

An' when we get to Bristol town
For the very last time we'll waltz around

With Poll and Meg an' Sally too
We'll drink an' dance wid a hullabaloo

So a long goodbye to all you dears
Don't cry for us, don't waste yer tears

NOTES:

A shanty Stan Hugill collected from West Indian seamen. The words "heave" and "haul" both appearing in the same song would indicate a pumping shanty but might also point to a song used by the hoosiers of Mobile Bay to work the great jackscrews to force as much cotton as possible into the hold of a ship.