Stan Hugill, shantyman and shanty song collector, would have been 99 years old on Saturday, November 19, 2005. I'm going to celebrate his life by singing some of his favorite songs with friends at the Press Room in Portsmouth, NH, that day.

Is anyone else planning to do something special related to this birthday?

I understand a big celebration is planned for 2006 to commemorate what would have been Stan's 100th birthday. You can get more info about this and Stan's life from this website: Click here!

Here's a song that was presented at the Mystic Sea Music Festival following Stan's death in the spring of 1992:

Tom Callihan © 1992
Sung at Mystic Sea Port

Stan In Heaven


Dm-----------------------Gm
Stan Hugill heard harps on the day that he died;
---------C ----------------F-------C-F
Whether Irish or Walsh neither could he a-bide;
------Dm-----------Gm
He'd rather a bosun pipe him aboard
--------A7 -------------------------Dm
To sing shanties forever – in the ship of the Lord.
--------------------------------------Gm
He made his mark in the logbook, stowed his gear in his trunk;
---C--------------------F------C---F
He lit up his pipe, and he sat on his bunk;
------------Dm-----------------Gm
And there, all around him, his shipmates of old,
-----------A7---------------------------Dm
Gathered 'round for a song – or tale to be told.

Chorus:

---C7------------------Bb--------------F
So set down your seabag, step out of your shroud,
C7 --------------------------Bb-------------- F
Come join with the chorus as we hoist the main cloud,
-----------Dm---------------------Gm
For when shantymen sing for the heavenly crowd,
A7-----------------------------Dm
Landlubber songs – are never al-lowed!


So then Stan raised his glass, the Captain to toast;
With all hands on deck, a most heavenly host;
A squeezebox played tunes from the Isles of the Blessed;
And the Fufu band joined in, in the way he loved best.
So break out the grog, boys, for the shantyman's here;
Let's all sing together and be of good cheer;
We'll all meet again, ye never need fear;
When you've signed in the logbook and stowed all your gear! (CHO)

Cheerily,
Charley Noble