Once again, in the "just for fun" Gibb Sahib seems to have a very believable explanation for the lyrics. That said, just for completeness (and I know how Mudcatters love a pedant), in Moby Dick there are both harpoons AND spears (or lance) - see quoted passage below... (Useful thing, Project Gutenberg).

Of all the wondrous devices and dexterities, the sleights of hand and countless subtleties, to which the veteran whaleman is so often forced, none exceed that fine manoeuvre with the lance called pitchpoling. Small sword, or broad sword, in all its exercises boasts nothing like it. It is only indispensable with an inveterate running whale; its grand fact and feature is the wonderful distance to which the long lance is accurately darted from a violently rocking, jerking boat, under extreme headway. Steel and wood included, the entire spear is some ten or twelve feet in length; the staff is much slighter than that of the harpoon, and also of a lighter material--pine. It is furnished with a small rope called a warp, of considerable length, by which it can be hauled back to the hand after darting.

But before going further, it is important to mention here, that though the harpoon may be pitchpoled in the same way with the lance, yet it is seldom done; and when done, is still less frequently successful, on account of the greater weight and inferior length of the harpoon as compared with the lance, which in effect become serious drawbacks. As a general thing, therefore, you must first get fast to a whale, before any pitchpoling comes into play.

Advice for people trying to pick words out of a "busy" sound file. If you can listen to the file using a player which has a multi-band graphic equaliser (VLC Media Player available for most computer platforms has a ten band one. Also available for Windoze PC as VLC Media Player Portable). You can use the equaliser to mute frequencies that are in a different range from the voices. It can also be useful when trying to listen to a particular instrument within a group.
Quack!
GtD.