Noah's Ark Chantey

In 'Frisco Bay there lay three ships,
    To me way, hey, hey (-ugh!)
In 'Frisco Bay there lay three ships,
    A long time ago.

And one of those ships was old Noah's Ark
All covered over with hickory bark.

They filled up the seams with oakum and pitch. (twice)

And Noah of old commanded this Ark. (twice)

They took two animals of every kind. (twice)

The bull and the cow they started a row. (twice)

Then said old Noah with a flick of his whip,
Come, stop this row or I'll scuttle the ship.

But the bull put his horn through the side of the Ark,
And the little black dog he started to bark.

So Noah took the dog, put his nose in the hole,
And ever since then the dog's nose has been cold.

[It's a long, long time and a very long time,
A long long time and a very long time,]


From Joanna Colcord, Songs of American Sailormen. She cites Cecil Sharp, and although she doesn't specify, it must be his English Folk-Chanteys (because I don't find it in English Folk-Songs from the Southern Appalachians, which is the other of Sharp's that's in her bibliography -- he didn't get many chanteys in the southern mountains!).

I learned it from Ye Mariners All (John Roberts, John Rockwell, and Larry Young, of Schenectady, NY and Salem, MA) on their eponymous cd (GHM 106, 2003) (see Golden Hind's web site). They have don't use the third and fourth verses, and add the final verse from the chantey family. It's also on Revels Homeward Bound (Revels Records 2002), with John Rockwell leading the Revels Chorus.

Fairly ideal for kids.

~ Becky in Tucson