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22 Mar 05 - 07:59 PM (#1441123) Subject: RE: P & O Steamships Ballad -- Lyric Wanted From: GUEST,Barrie Roberts Forty plus years ago I worked with a bloke who had served in the Uk Merchant Navy aboard P & O ships. He used to sing snatches of a song (to the tune of 'Villikins and Dinah') which he had acquired aboard P & O boats. He said it had a verse for every port between London and Sydney. He'd forgotten much of it and I've forgotten more since. I recall the opening and one other verse:
And took up a berth on the P & O Line, They paint their ships black and they paint their ships white And they work us poor bastards by day and by night. Chorus: Heave away! Heave away! From London to Sydney's a bloody long way. Now Port Said in Egypt's our next port of call, There's nothing but sand there and that's about all... Anyone out there know all of it? |
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22 Mar 05 - 07:59 PM (#1441124) Subject: RE: P & O Steamships Ballad -- Lyric Wanted From: Peace Anything more than this to add? |
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22 Mar 05 - 08:00 PM (#1441126) Subject: RE: P & O Steamships Ballad -- Lyric Wanted From: Peace Sorry, cross posted. |
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22 Mar 05 - 08:03 PM (#1441128) Subject: RE: P & O Steamships Ballad -- Lyric Wanted From: Peace Peninsular and Oriental |
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22 Mar 05 - 08:20 PM (#1441137) Subject: RE: P & O Steamships Ballad -- Lyric Wanted From: Peace The Story of P & O: The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company Additional text by Stephen Rabson. (London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson: 1995) Paperback issue of the 1994 revised edition. ISBN 0 297 83540 8. Pictorial wrappers pp. 240 (262 x 194 mm) Illustrated. Index. Close as I can come just now. |
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22 Mar 05 - 09:14 PM (#1441177) Subject: RE: P & O Steamships Ballad -- Lyric Wanted From: Charley Noble Barrie- It will be a miracle if someone comes up with the verses to this song. You just have to kick yourself for not writing them down when you had the chance, or keeping track of them for 40 years if you had! My suggestion is for you to consume quanities of alcoholic fluids and try to reconstruct the verses from whatever rises to the surface of your mind. If you were in the neighborhood I'd start you out with the first round. I think this was probably a wonderful song that would fill a gap in the merchant marine repertoire. Too many of these songs have been lost, and lost forever. Charley Noble, who's missed a few too |
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23 Mar 05 - 04:28 AM (#1441340) Subject: RE: P & O Steamships Ballad -- Lyric Wanted From: ossonflags You are right there Charley. Posted a few times about a song called "Don't work for the Baron line" to no avail. In the sixties I actually worked on one of "Hungry Hogarths" ships the "Baron Glenconner" Again, anyone out there who could help? |
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24 Mar 05 - 11:16 AM (#1442630) Subject: RE: P & O Steamships Ballad -- Lyric Wanted From: GUEST,Barrie Roberts Thanks for comments. I am, of course, kicking myself for not writing it down at the time, but my colleague never sang the whole of it anyway. Charley --- In my experience alcohol does not improve my memory --- it merely feeds me with images of events I wish I could rember but which never happened! |
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24 Mar 05 - 01:36 PM (#1442785) Subject: RE: P & O Steamships Ballad -- Lyric Wanted From: MARINER I'll check with a few old ex P&O shipmates, they might know something. While we're on the subject, does anyone know a song that begins, "While I was a walking down old KG5 a Shaw Saville Liner I happened to spy". Same air as "6 miles from Bangor to Donaghadee" etc. A shipmate of mine used to sing it back in the 60s. I haven't seen him or heard the song since. |
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25 Mar 05 - 09:42 AM (#1443463) Subject: RE: P & O Steamships Ballad -- Lyric Wanted From: Charley Noble Barrie and Mariner - You're probably right about the alcohol. I have several fragments from old song parties that I haven't been able to reconstruct as well. The damn things haunt me. I suppose I just assumed that I'd eventually remember or that I could ask someone later, compare notes as it were. Well, it's a hell of a lot later now and some of my singing friends have passed on. Keep asking around. The Mudcat does cast a pretty wide net for this kind of thing. Cheerily, Charley Noble |
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10 May 05 - 11:29 AM (#1481653) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: GUEST,SAILORON I think the verses are a P&O version of the M.V. Hardship song. As with most M.N. songs there's no definative version. Besides the version I know, there's also a version about Harrisons of Liverpool.
I saw an old tramp ship tied up alongside The M.V. Hardship that were her name She was bound out to Kiwi & back home again CH Pound away, pound away, from London to Kiwi's a hell of a way. Sailded down the channel on a cold frosry day Then rounded Ushant & south 'cross the Bay The 2nd Stewards 'fruit' & the cook he is too They bugger each other & poison the crew There's nothing for dinner, there's nothing for tea But that fat cook he keeps winking at me Him & the steward are a bloody disgrace Just see the look on the galley boys face The 2nd's a drunkard, we've a bastard as Mate The Bos'un does nothing but dream about work As for the Old Man well we cannot say 'Cause no bugger's seen him since sailing day When we got to Kiwi we all went ashore Off to Ma Gleeson's to get us a whore But when we got there the pickings were poor 'Cause the P.S.N.C. lads had got there before Now the voyage has ended in West India Dock To Charlie Brown's with our pay off we'll flock Soon we may sign with Ropners or Ben But the M.V. Hardship won't see us again. |
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10 May 05 - 12:17 PM (#1481708) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: ossonflags I am very intrested "guest" sailoron, maybe you could pm me? |
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10 May 05 - 02:13 PM (#1481800) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: Q (Frank Staplin) It would be wonderful to have all of your M. N. songs on Mudcat. Postings would be much appreciated. |
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10 May 05 - 03:17 PM (#1481857) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: Dave (the ancient mariner) Calypso style:
and de sun shines daily from de mountain top I took a trip on a P and O ship and when we reached Jamaica we made a stop well i'm sad to say she's had her day obsolete in every way de engineers pray for many a week that P and O sell her to de Greek |
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10 May 05 - 03:40 PM (#1481879) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: Little Robyn About 40 years ago Warwick Brock (Christchurch, NZ)used to sing the same song about the Shaw Saville Line but with a chorus that went: From the lighthouse to the shite house is a bloody long way. Don't know where he got it and I can't ask him because he died a few years back. I believe Stan Hugill used that tune for at least one of his songs but I don't have time to go through his book to find it. It was such a popular music hall tune (English folk song tune number 1!) it was used for all sorts of songs, often bawdy. Robyn |
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10 May 05 - 03:50 PM (#1481895) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: Dave (the ancient mariner) Many Merchant Navy songs were extemporised by different sailors. You will find so many versions of the same song (different ships and companies)that you could write a book about them. Yours, Aye. Dave |
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10 May 05 - 09:25 PM (#1482123) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: Charley Noble Sailoron- Looks like real progress in this thread. Thanks so much for your contribution, and hopefully you will make several more. Be warned, that Mudcat can be addictive, at least in the early stages. I'm reminded that the late Cyril Tawney also expressed frustration that he was able to collect so few complete songs for his book GRAY FUNNEL LINE. The songs created by occupational folk composers dissipate all too fast. Not all are worth preserving but some of the ones we've lost were gems. Cheerily, Charley Noble |
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11 May 05 - 02:24 PM (#1482589) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: GUEST,Barrie Roberts I've been out of touch for a few days through technical problems, but I see nobody's come up with my old colleague's song. It wasn't a version of The MV Hardship, it listed different ports from London to Sydney. |
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14 May 05 - 01:32 AM (#1484740) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: GUEST,kellywelly1 Is Barrie Robert's the author who wrote about William Eythe? |
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14 May 05 - 01:47 AM (#1484742) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: Peace http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:gbH9QUtUTywJ:www.ben-line.org.uk/AB%27s%2520Lament.htm+Heave+away!+Heave+away!,+port+said&hl= The above isn't it, but it might stir a few memories for the seafarers here. |
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14 May 05 - 01:50 AM (#1484743) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: Peace http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:N5ntwytS6EUJ:www.biship.com/song.htm+Heave+away!+Heave+away!,+port+said&hl=en More memories, maybe, and a good site to boot. |
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14 May 05 - 01:54 AM (#1484747) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: Peace http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:zKJmDqAT_EoJ:www.thebilgepumps.com/songs.htm+Heave+away!+Heave+away!,+port+said&hl=en Another site for sore eyes. (Little joke there.) Avast! (I hope that means what I think it does. It's nice, right?) |
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14 May 05 - 02:15 AM (#1484750) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: cobber Sorry I can't help with the song, but having sailed to Australia in 1961 (landed in 62) on the last trip for the Orontes before she was broken up, this thread has brought back some wonderful memories (including our dining steward who was also "fruit" but a terrific bloke as well who made dinner time an entertainment. |
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27 May 05 - 07:04 AM (#1494128) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: P & O Steamships Ballad From: GUEST,Barrie Roberts I regret that I am not the author who wrote about William Eythe. I am one of the many authors since Conan Doyle who write new Sherlock Holmes stories (current publication in UK & USA being 'Sherlock Holmes and the King's Governess'. plug, plug). I also write modern mystery stories and true crime and the supernatural. |