Ickle Dorritt has not said "no" to posting it. ;-) (She may be busy.) I feel like I'm exceding my authority doing it, but I'll ask forgiveness later if needed. I do hope she gets a chance to post the entire story behind the song though. All of this really happened.

Les, the first several times I heard her sing it on the tape, I had tears in my eyes. It can still do that if I think too much when I sing it. ...so much left unsaid in the song that still comes across perfectly clear.

THE LUCKIEST SAILOR
(c)Linda Kelly, Oct 1999, Whitby

I've been fishing the seas since a lad of fifteen
There's not a stretch of the ocean where I haven't been
And I've seen northern lights and the whale fish at play
And I've slept through the dog watch, been fined half me pay
And I've prayed long and hard in a westerly storm
And I've dreamed of the young girls who had helped keep me warm
And I've sat with the old jacks and listened in glee
To the tales of the women, the drink and the sea

CHORUS:
I'm the luckiest sailor that Hull ever knew
When the Kingston ship sank with the loss of her crew
And I prayed for their lives and their sons and their wives
On the day that the Peridot perished

I was a young sailor with settle in hand
From trawling in Iceland with white fish to land
And I'm dressed to the nines in me "Ruckerback" tails
And I'm off down the "Stricky" to sink a few ales
Well I'll tell you a tale of the tax man and me
He's been robbing me blind since I first went to sea
And I says to the skipper I'll spend time ashore
'Cos I'm damned if the tax man will have anymore

Then a whisper was heard that a Hull ship was down
With no chance of a rescue her men had all drowned
And I supped up me ale and I knew in me head
That the Hull ship was my ship and me mates were all dead
And the coins in me pocket weighed heavy that day
And it took little courage to give them away
And me mind took me back to me long days at sea
And I asked the good lord, why me mates and not me?

NOTES: Hopefully Ickle Dorritt will provide the notes. Ickle, if you don't have time, I could type the information from the letter you sent. I do consider a letter somewhat personal no matter what's in it, and I don't want to post the contents without permission. I'm being presumptuous enough posting the lyrics and eventually, I hope, the tune.