NORTHERN GULF

Sean Byrne / Ewan MacColl

Come all you gallant fishermen
That plough the stormy seas
The whole year round
On the fishing grounds,

Chorus:
   In the northern Gulf
   In the Wessel Isles
   In the banks of the bays
   On the northern shore
   Where the prawning shoals are found.

It's there you find the northern lads
And the men from Mornington;
There's Burly Blue
And the men from Groote

Chorus:
   In the.....etc

From Albatross to Old Fog Bay
From Weipa to Karumba town
The fleet's away
At the break of day

Chorus:
   To the northern Gulf
   To the Wessel Isles
   To the banks of the bays
   On the northern shore
   Where the prawning shoals are found.

They take their whole catch ashore
Which they try to sell;
There's shark and squid
And tons of grubs

Chorus:
   In the..... etc


Thanks to Peter Bate for retrieving Sean’s lyrics from the early 1980s!

Tune :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7wJxRl2n0s    NORTH SEA HOLES - Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger   (from 1983 x LP “Freeborn Man”)
(I've yet to find, then digitise, a cassette tape with Tropical Ear's singing of this!)

TROPICAL EAR
Darwin’s Troppos were much of the backbone of the Top End folk music scene in the 1980s.
Apparently starting in 1983 with 5 potential members, they quickly coalesced into a trio of multi instrumentalists who all sang both lead and harmony, and with a large and popular repertoire.
Regular performers at the TEFC’s famous Gun Turret venue and around festivals and events, they were : Peter Bate / Sean Byrne / Leonie Carville.



R-J