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Bosun Mate Bill
Perry Neal Crawford 8 Jan 2019

In Botany Bay in a house by the sea,
Lived a young lass with a babe on her knee,
She named her young baby boy Bosun Mate Bill
After his father who's gone away still.

He grew up loading the ships by the sea,
And vowed that some day a fine sailor he'd be,
And vowed that some day a fine sailor he'd be.

He loved a lassie named Molly Maloon,
Whose beauty put shame to the stars and the moon.
Her love for him was ablaze in her soul,
Marrying him was her dream and her goal.

A fine wedding gift she had made for her man,
A coat with gold buttons embroidered by hand,
A coat with gold buttons embroidered by hand.

He left his bride with a babe on her knee,
And signed on a clipper bound for Tripoli.
He can't see her tears as she sails on the sea,
But he had vowed a fine sailor he'd be.

She stands on the widow walk, face in her hands,
His ship it went down near that far away land,
His ship it went down near that far away land.

You know this is a lost art. It would be interesting to get some history of sea shanty's. Do we have a current cultural equivalent? I suggest possibly films with sequels continuing a story or a traditional/universe sort of thing. Book sequels would be similar. But neither are exact enough really. Any thoughts Perry?

Here is a link to a boat load of shanties to listen to launch an appreciation for them in a wave of nostalgia.

https://www.google.com/search?sourc...9j0i67j0i131i67j0i10i67j0i10.u22DCRSRyhA

One of my favorites is The Irish Rover by the Dubliners with the Pogues: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=au30c9ZMIPg

Wikipedia has an ocean of in formation on the history of shanties from early in history to use of them today, and a whale of a list of movies made with shanties sung in them. Everyone can fish for their favorites and catch some inspirations in a net of creativity to hoist their lyrics up the rigging's.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_shanty

Perry, I'm going to put on my pedant's hat for a moment

Maloon is not an Irish name. It feels like you just borrowed Molly Malone from "Cockles and Mussels" and changed the surname slightly to make it rhyme. How about choosing a real name. Colleen Colquhoun (pronounced Colhoon) might work and is fun to sing. It's Scottish rather than Irish, but that's probably OK as there was a lot of coming and going between those two countries. Or you could just change it to Muldoon, which is an Irish name.

I doubt if a clipper ever sailed from Botany Bay to Tripoli. There would have been no reason for that kind of vessel to call at either of those ports and no trade between them. Also, I'm not sure that Botany Bay was actually a port until the 1960s, when they built a container terminal there. These things are important if you want it to seem like the real thing.

If you want it to have an Irish feel, don't use the word "lassie." Irish people don't use the word. You'll hear it in Scotland and occasionally in northern England, although "lass" is more common there.

I'll remove my pedant's hat now and apologize. I do think that these things are important if you want the song to seem "real."

I love your suggestions. I want very much for my shanty to have a truly authentic Irish feel so listeners will mistake for a timeless classic piece from long ago (the way folks think of Tommy Makems "Four Green Fields). I will attempt to put it to music and post it with your changes inserted. I will do my homework on Botany Bay as well.

I did some research on Irish ports and destinations (common in the late 1700s) when convicts were banished from Ireland from Queenstown (now called Cobh) to Botany Bay Australia. I made a few changes (inspired by Gavin's comments) and a correction or two. I have a tune in mind that has the feel of an old classic. Flogging Molly would sing it in three seconds.

Bosun Mate Bill
Perry Neal Crawford 8 Jan 2019

Just south of Cork in a house by the sea,
A pretty young maid had a babe on her knee,
She named her young baby boy Bosun Mate Bill
After his father who's gone away still.

He grew up loading the ships by the sea,
And vowed that someday a fine sailor he'd be,
And vowed that someday a fine sailor he'd be.

He had a sweetheart named Colleen Colquhoun,
Whose beauty put shame to the stars and the moon.
Her love for him was ablaze in her soul,
A passion for him that was hard to control.

A fine wedding gift she had made for her man,
A coat with gold buttons embroidered by hand,
A coat with gold buttons embroidered by hand.

He left his bride with a child on the way,
And signed on a ship bound for Botany Bay.
He can't see her tears as he sails on the sea,
But he had vowed a fine sailor he'd be.

She stands on the widow walk, face in her hands,
His ship it went down near that far away land,
His ship it went down near that far away land.