Guest A Man Oveboard-

Tell us, after you come up for air, some more about yourself and your band, where you're based. It sounds interesting.

There is a wealth of such songs posted here at Mudcat which you should be able to dredge up with a thread search for key words such as "bawdy sailor songs", "ghost songs", etc.

The best CD I'm aware of is called "UNCENSORED SAILOR SONGS" which might be right up (down?) your alley, Shinbone Alley to be more precise.

The session last night was really great, after a slow start with only Nor, myself, Tom and Linn there for the first hour. Carol did a nice arrangement of "The Flat River Girl" which I'd sure like to hear again. Bruce did a much slower and elegant version of "Farewell to Nova Scotia." Jeri did a new song she's composed, something about the loss we feel when we lose a "folk legend", or maybe it was the loss involved in creating a "folk legend;" I was thinking Stan Rogers while she was singing it but it has more general meaning. In the absence of Jeff Warner, Nor led "Road to Mandalay"; there are risks involved in being absent from the shanty sing for too long. And what is the name of that fine singer who led Lester Simpson's "Polly on the Shore"? He does such a great job of singing it. I got to try out a couple of songs I hadn't sung before at the Press Room, "Captain Bailey's Mistake" and the traditional drinking song from the Stonington Harbor area of Maine "Merchant's Island". Linn led a spirited rendition of "Nine Times a Night" and Tom did a fine job with "The Handsome Cabin Boy." Jacqui led "The Gray Flannel Line" which I have never had the joy of actually hearing before. JudyB led "Roll the Old Chariot," making good use of the various beverages available at the Press Room for each verse. Sinsull led "Shenandoah." There were many more songs but maybe someone else can post some more notes.

Next month we're going to try something different on the Sunday (March 20th) following the regular Saturday (March 19th) shanty sing. We're going to do a concert with nautical singer and songwriter BOB ZENTZ. We'll be doing the concert upstairs at the Press Room from 2 to 4 pm, admission $10. Zentz is based in Norfolk, Virginia, and for years Gordon Bok and others have been singing his finely crafted songs. He is a fine singer as well, and instrumentalist on concertina, banjo, guitar and some instruments that only he knows the name of. He also has produced a CD primarily of C. Fox Smith sea poems that he has set to music. Don't miss this concert. For reservations or more information contact Tom and Linn by PM, e-mail, telephone, or word of month.

Cheerily,
Charley Noble