Poor Willy- mourned by everyone, but not in properly dignified manner. Nice arrangement, Charley!

In the DT three times- The Carter version as "Waves on the Sea;"
also as "Sailor on the Deep Blue Sea," from Randolph, Ozark Folksongs, with midi, and "Deep Blue Sea," uncredited fragment. Poor Willy got drownded, it seems, at the hands of everyone who could carry a tune.
Guest posted a longer version in thread 30033- Deep Blue
Also in that thread Joe Offer and Jon Freeman suggested that he be buried in a silken shroud and I posted a couple of verses from here and there, and noted (not seriously) that even Stephen C. Foster made at least two songs about Willy.

It was noted that the song has two tunes in folk rendition. Charley uses the Chorus of "The Ship that Never Returned," Henry Clay Work, 1864 (1884) (later the Metrorail or MTA song); thread 43070- Ship That Never

They bear comparison with "The Mermaid" (thread 55634) and "Married to a "Mermaid," (also in the DT) where the young fellow was not identified by name and was given a happy ending. Mermaid