Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: EBarnacle
Date: 09 Apr 11 - 11:00 PM

The lyrics, that is.

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Smokey.
Date: 09 Apr 11 - 04:51 PM

"I still want someone to give me a jerking shanty"

Never say that in a crowded place; that's my advice.

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: GUEST,Steve baughman
Date: 09 Apr 11 - 01:51 PM

I learned the other night that "I'll fly away" is an example of a "zipper song,". As is "Blue Tail Fly," but I still want someone to give me a jerking shanty.

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Gibb Sahib
Date: 08 Apr 11 - 09:06 PM

"Friggin' in the Riggin'"?

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Smokey.
Date: 08 Apr 11 - 08:14 PM

'Jerking' is actually an old nautical term for polishing the protruding parts of the spokes on a ship's wheel. I thought everyone knew that.

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: kendall
Date: 08 Apr 11 - 04:39 PM

When I was 18 I went to work in the North woods of Maine as a lumberjack. The foreman to an instant dislike to me and insisted I prove I could do the job. He handed me an ax and pointed to a tree, said "Cut it down." With one might swing of the ax I laid it low.
He pointed to a bigger one, same thing one swipe. Then he picked out the biggest tree in the forest and ordered me to cut it down. Again, one mighty blow and down it came.

He said, I thought I knew every top lumberjack in the state of Maine but I've never seen the likes of you. Where did you work last"? I replied, "The Sahara forest." he said "Sahara Forest"? don't you mean Sahara desert"? I said, well, it is now."?

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Dave Swan
Date: 08 Apr 11 - 11:41 AM

I love the Mudcat, there's so much to learn. I never knew half these things about the Gobi. Thanks, really.

Here's a link to the lyrics of the Botsawanian Sea Chantey as collected by Steve Baughman. Pictured on the right of the photograph on the linked page, Baughman is never one to let the facts get in the way of a good story.

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: stallion
Date: 08 Apr 11 - 11:40 AM

reminds me of the last line of the last verse in "It takes a worried man" Something about singing it all day long

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: EBarnacle
Date: 08 Apr 11 - 11:31 AM

The Mongolian Forest, now known as the Gobi Desert was a lush, green area until shortly after I became an active logger. Working, as I was, for the pulp paper industry and far from my home base, I led a team which stripped all of the vegetation from the area to be sent to factories for the manufacture of paper for samizdats. I was young and foolish then and did not realize that the area would not regenerate itself. mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. I hang my head in shame.

Regarding a jerking chantey, did they actually do a song? If so, can you give us a hint as to some of the words?

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: kendall
Date: 08 Apr 11 - 10:52 AM

You've been had, Mate.

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Will Fly
Date: 08 Apr 11 - 09:51 AM

Fred - just stick to the old five-fingered widow, mate - go for it, in fact... :-)

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Fred McCormick
Date: 08 Apr 11 - 09:17 AM

Ghobi forest? Not in my neck of the woods. But the Mongolian Ghobi forest is where the expression "go between" comes from.

Before the Mongol hordes (Down boy. I said Mongol hordes, not Mongrel hordes), swept over Europe, corrupting our language and our maidens forever, the term was "ghobi twëën". Twëën in this case meaning to squeeze through the tightly planted timbers of the forest. To make things worse, the forest was inhabited by gophers, who could be heard loudly squealing "go for this" or "go for that", or sometmes just "go for it".

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Charley Noble
Date: 08 Apr 11 - 08:36 AM

Fred-

You mean you've never heard of the Great Ghobi Forest?

Charley Noble

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: MartinRyan
Date: 08 Apr 11 - 08:28 AM

You guys still pumping away? ;>)

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Fred McCormick
Date: 08 Apr 11 - 08:04 AM

Botswanian sea shanty? You'll be telling me next someone's found a log hauling song in the Ghobi desert.

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: cooperman
Date: 08 Apr 11 - 03:38 AM

I'd like to add one of these to my repertoire.
Thanks,
Wayne Kerr

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 07 Apr 11 - 06:27 PM

Jersey Kings Shanty?

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 07 Apr 11 - 05:34 PM

Knew it would be a mistake to open this thread ...

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Gurney
Date: 07 Apr 11 - 05:11 PM

Nice one, Smokey.

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Smokey.
Date: 07 Apr 11 - 04:50 PM

I've always admired anyone who can sing whilst playing an instrument.

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 07 Apr 11 - 04:20 PM

I bet it's a chant for breaking loose an anchor which has become embedded in mud on the sea bottom.

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Charley Noble
Date: 07 Apr 11 - 03:28 PM

Wasn't there also a special shanty for hauling away at Blue Peter?

"Blue Peter" (white with a blue square in the center) was the signal flag raised to alert sailors ashore that the ship was about to cast off.

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Dave Swan
Date: 07 Apr 11 - 03:08 PM

Ya gotta watch that crowd. Baughman will have you singing his famously collected Botswanian sea shanty. Don't trust 'em.

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Louie Roy
Date: 07 Apr 11 - 02:27 PM

Sounds to me it's when you go out to the Jack house to back off

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: Fred McCormick
Date: 07 Apr 11 - 02:15 PM

Sounds like it might be a variant on that good old stand by, the hand shandy.

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: RTim
Date: 07 Apr 11 - 01:52 PM

Was it on April 1st!!

Tim

Subject: RE: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: stallion
Date: 07 Apr 11 - 01:52 PM

Oh dear, did they ask you to collect a "long stand" or "population tool" from the store, or to meet Ivor Binhad for the organ cleaning job? I was sent for a bag of round holes!
Peter

Subject: Folklore: What is a Jerking Shanty?
From: GUEST,anon cos embarrassed
Date: 07 Apr 11 - 01:48 PM

I was at the In Harmony's Way monthly sing last night and someone said a "jerking shanty" is one they do "down below." Can anyone comment on this?