Just thinking about the Mystic fest and how this repertoire figured in (or didn't), to get a sense of its rarity/popularity.

I can remember hearing only:

--Some version of "Huckleberry Hunting"?? Not sure; it didnt have the "classic" "shantyman of the wildgoose nation" lines, and I was busy at the time jockeying for a space at the bar.

--"Bully in the Alley" -- of course, but in the faux-capstan version which repeats the first verse like a grand chorus.

--some sort of "Stormalong," but I forget which (probably one of the more common).

--Marc B's "John Come tell us". Heard it twice -- once in use as a hand over hand chantey. It's a bit different from Hugill's version. Notably, he doubles the "way hay" part, effectively creating 4 (rather than three) sets of solo-chorus. Also, the chorus sings along on the "way hey" part. This is like has been done to "John Cherokee."

--so..."John Cherokee". I was hiding, hoping this song wouldn't find me, but it did a few times. In one of the pub-sing performances, the leader tried desperately to maintain a 3-phrase format, but the mass audience kept adding a fourth. This meant that by the time they shut up, each time around, the leader had already finished most of his solo first line.
(*oops, never officially logged "John Cherokee" into this thread yet, but it is pretty well covered in the other current thread). The renditions were, of course, in the modern style. Jacek Sulanowski's rendition was particularly full of off-beats.

--It was a pleasure to hear Tim Reilly's "Haul Away, Boys, Haul Away" -- not yet discussed yet in this thread. That's one that Hugill recorded, but which differs significantly from his text version. Tim sang the recording style, but noted the discrepancy with the text.

--Was surprised, and yet not surprised, I didnt hear "John Kanaka." If "Drunken Sailor" is more or less considered to banal for any ears but lubbers', then I supposed "Kanaka" reached that level in the context of this community-- it's only for tourists and kids (?)

--my contribution was "Hilo, Boys, Hilo". I doubt anyone knew that chorus (Hugill's, via Tobago Smith). (It didnt help that I sang it about 2 octaves too high for a castratto)

--"Come down, Bunch of Roses" was of course done in the form of "Hang down, Blood Red Roses". But Rika (?) made up for it with her excellent clever parody. Incidentally, I just noticed that Stuart Frank once recored a version of "Blood Red Roses" that was sung at the Seaport in 1978. Sources for that, Stu?? :)

Please note any others you guys may have heard, people who were there.