"Autobiographies of great nations are written in three manuscripts – a book of deeds, a book of words, and a book of art. Of the three, I would choose the latter as truest testimony." - Sir Kenneth Smith, Great Civilisations

"I must write each day without fail, not so much for the success of the work, as in order not to get out of my routine." - Leo Tolstoy

I have never believed that one should wait until one is inspired because I think the pleasures of not writing are so great that if you ever start indulging them you will never write again. - John Updike

"The life of every man is a diary in which he means to write one story, and writes another; and his humblest hour is when he compares the volume as it is with what he vowed to make it." - J.M. Barrie, Peter Pan

Poetry is the shadow cast by our streetlight imaginations." - Lawrence Ferlinghetti


[Note - If any article requires updating or correction please notate this in the comment section. Thank you. - res]


Friday, January 14, 2022

Étienne Léopold Trouvelot 19th Century Astronomical Drawings




Étienne Léopold Trouvelot

Astronomical Drawings


The French artist, astronomer and amateur entomologist Étienne Léopold Trouvelot is noted for two major contributions in his lifetime. The first, and the one we are celebrating in this post, is the 7000 or so illustrations he created from his astronomical observations, the quality of which reached their zenith in the 15 exquisite pastel works which were published as The Trouvelot Astronomical Drawings in 1882 (and reproduced in this post). Trouvelot was invited onto the staff of the Harvard College Observatory when the then director Joseph Winlock saw the quality of his illustrations, and in 1875 he was invited to use the U. S. Naval Observatory's 26-inch refractor for a year. As well as his illustrations, Trouvelot also published some 50 scientific papers, and was credited with discovering "veiled spots" on the Sun in 1875.

The second and rather more unfortunate legacy Trouvelot left the world was the accidental widespread introduction of the highly destructive European Gyspy moth onto North American soil. With the intention of interbreeding Gypsy moths with silk worms to develop a silkworm industry, he'd brought some egg masses over from Europe in the mid-1860s and began raising gypsy moth larvae in the forest behind his house. It is unclear what exactly happened, but some of the larvae ended up escaping into the nearby woods. Although he reportedly notified some nearby entomologists and relevant officials no action was taken. A few decades later the species was rife.


* * * * * * * * * *





Stars
by Robert Frost

How countlessly they congregate
O'er our tumultuous snow,
Which flows in shapes as tall as trees
When wintry winds do blow!--

As if with keeness for our fate,
Our faltering few steps on
To white rest, and a place of rest
Invisible at dawn,--

And yet with neither love nor hate,
Those starts like somw snow-white
Minerva's snow-white marble eyes
Without the gift of sight.






To the Evening Star
by William Blake
Thou fair-haired angel of the evening,
Now, whilst the sun rests on the mountains, light
Thy bright torch of love; thy radiant crown
Put on, and smile upon our evening bed!
Smile on our loves, and while thou drawest the
Blue curtains of the sky, scatter thy silver dew
On every flower that shuts its sweet eyes
In timely sleep. Let thy west wing sleep on
The lake; speak silence with thy glimmering eyes,
And wash the dusk with silver. Soon, full soon,
Dost thou withdraw; then the wolf rages wide,
And the lion glares through the dun forest.
The fleeces of our flocks are covered with.





The Brilliant 19th-Century Astronomical
Drawings of Étienne Léopold Trouvelot

September 2, 2021


The first photo of the moon was taken in 1850 by Louis Daguerre, from whom the daguerrotype gets its name. We have no idea what that first image looked like as it was lost in a studio fire. But the need to catalog the heavens with modern tools had started, and was both fascinating as it was lacking. Into this evolution of science and art stepped Étienne Léopold Trouvelot, the French immigrant, living in the States, an amateur scientist and an illustrator. He would dismiss photography of the heavens as “so blurred and indistinct that no details of any great value can be secured.” And by illustrating instead by he saw through telescopes, he secured a place in art *and* science history.

Trouvelot might have thought his scientific papers would be his legacy. He wrote fifty in his lifetime. Instead it is his roughly 7,000 illustrations of planets, comets, and other phenomena that still please us to this day. The New York Public Library has put 15 of his best up on their site, and over at this page, you can compare what Trouvelot saw—-the great astronomer Emma Converse called Trouvelot the “prince of observers”—-to photos from NASA’s archive.

Even if his Mars is a bit fanciful, looking translucent like a fish egg, his understanding of the planet echoes in the following century of sci-fi paranoia. Something strange must be there, he suggests.

Harvard hired him to sketch at their college’s observatory, and he used pastels to bring the planets to life. Engraving or ink would not have worked as well as these soft shapes and determined lines. His rendering of the moon surface is accurate but also fanciful, like whipped cream. And his sun spots might not be accurate, but they replicated the god-like forces at work on its tumultuous surface. His Saturn is the most realistic of them all. Even the NASA image doesn’t look too different to Trouvelot’s art.

These images also help rehabilitate Trouvelot’s other legacy—-the dreaded Gypsy Moth. Before his stint as amateur scientist, he was also an amateur entomologist, and while researching silkworms and silk production, accidentally let European gypsy moths into North America, where they wreaked havoc on the forests of North America. Saturn’s rings may look the same back then as they do now, but so does the damage of the gypsy moth, which according to Wikipedia is up to $868 million in damages per year.


* * * * * * * * * *




Étienne Léopold Trouvelot
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Étienne Léopold Trouvelot
Trouvelot.jpg
Étienne Trouvelot, c. 1870
BornDecember 26, 1827
DiedApril 22, 1895 (aged 67)
NationalityFrench
Known forIntroducing gypsy moth to North America
Scientific career
FieldsAstronomy
A Trouvelot lithograph depicting zodiacal light

Étienne Léopold Trouvelot (December 26, 1827 – April 22, 1895) was a French artistastronomer and amateur entomologist.[1][2] He is noted for the import and release of the gypsy moth into North America. The spread of the moths as an invasive species has resulted in the destruction of millions of hardwood trees throughout the eastern United States.

Biography

Trouvelot was born at Aisne, France. During his early years he was apparently involved in politics and had republican leanings.[citation needed] Following a coup d'état by Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte in 1851, he fled with his family to the United States. They settled in the town of Medford, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston, at the address of 27 Myrtle St. There he supported himself and his family as an artist and astronomer.[3]

Trouvelot had an interest as an amateur entomologist. In the U.S., silk-producing moths were being killed off by various diseases. Trouvelot was very interested in Lepidoptera larvae including native North American silk moths which he believed could potentially be used for silk production. For reasons that remain unknown, Trouvelot brought some gypsy moth egg masses from Europe in the mid-1860s and was raising gypsy moth larvae in the forest behind his house. Unfortunately, some of the larvae escaped into the nearby woods. There are conflicting reports on the resulting actions. One states that despite issuing oral and written warnings of possible consequences, no officials were willing to assist in searching out and destroying the moths.[4] The other notes that he was aware of the risk and there is no direct evidence that he contacted government officials.[5]

Shortly following this incident, Trouvelot lost interest in entomology and turned again to astronomy. In this field he could put his skills as an artist to good use by illustrating his observations. His interest in astronomy was apparently aroused in 1870 when he witnessed several auroras.

When Joseph Winlock, the director of Harvard College Observatory, saw the quality of his illustrations, he invited Trouvelot to join the staff there in 1872. In 1875, he was invited to use the U. S. Naval Observatory to use the 26-inch refractor for a year. During the course of his life he produced about 7,000 quality astronomical illustrations. Fifteen of his most superb pastel illustrations were published by Charles Scribner's Sons in 1881. He was particularly interested in the Sun, and discovered "veiled spots" in 1875. He was elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1877.[6]

Besides his illustrations, he published about 50 scientific papers.

By 1882, Trouvelot had returned to France and joined the Meudon Observatory where he worked with photography and became engaged in a bitter rivalry with his boss, the astronomer Jules Janssen.[7] This was a few years before the magnitude of the problem caused by his gypsy moth release became apparent to the local government of Massachusetts. He died in Meudon, France. The gypsy moth was considered a serious pest and attempts were underway to eradicate it (ultimately these were unsuccessful). To this date, the gypsy moth continues to expand its range in the United States, and together with other foliage-eating pests, cause an estimated $868 million in annual damages.[8]

Awards and honors

See also






When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer Launch
by Walt Whitman

When I heard the learn’d astronomer,
When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me,
When I was shown the charts and diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them,
When I sitting heard the astronomer where he lectured with much applause in the lecture-room,
How soon unaccountable I became tired and sick,
Till rising and gliding out I wander’d off by myself,
In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,
Look’d up in perfect silence at the stars.






Hesiod, the Homeric hymns and Homerica
by Hesiod; Homer; Evelyn-White, Hugh G. (Hugh Gerard), d. 1924
Publication date 1914
 





The Beginning and Creation of Greek Mythology
Chronicle #1
May 2, 2020

Today we explore the creation myth of Greek Mythology. How Gaia and the other Primordial Gods and Goddesses came to be. How the Earth, the Sky, and the Ocean were formed. Come discover the story that lead to amazing characters, epic adventures, ferocious creatures and incredible legends.





MIDNIGHT
by Dorothy Parker

The stars are soft as flowers, and as near;
The hills are webs of shadow, slowly spun;
No separate leaf or single blade is here-
All blend to one.

No moonbeam cuts the air; a sapphire light
Rolls lazily. and slips again to rest.
There is no edged thing in all this night,
Save in my breast.






Sonnet 14
by William Shakespeare

Not from the stars do I my judgement pluck;
And yet methinks I have Astronomy,
But not to tell of good or evil luck,
Of plagues, of dearths, or seasons’ quality;
Nor can I fortune to brief minutes tell,
Pointing to each his thunder, rain and wind,
Or say with princes if it shall go well
By oft predict that I in heaven find...






Song to the Evening Star
by Thomas Campbell

Star that bringest home the bee,
And sett'st the weary labourer free!
If any star shed peace, 'tis thou,
That send'st it from above,
Appearing when Heaven's breath and brow
Are sweet as hers we love.

Come to the luxuriant skies
Whilst the landscape's odours rise,
Whilst far-off lowing herds are heard,
And songs, when toil is done,
From cottages whose smoke unstirred
Curls yellow in the sun.

Star of lover's soft interviews,
Parted lovers on thee muse;
Their remembrancer in heaven
Of thrilling vows thou art,
Too delicious to be riven
By absence from the heart.






Evening Star
by Edgar Allan Poe

'Twas noontide of summer,
  And mid-time of night;
And stars, in their orbits,
  Shone pale, thro' the light
Of the brighter, cold moon,
  'Mid planets her slaves,
Herself in the Heavens,
  Her beam on the waves.
    I gazed awhile
    On her cold smile;
Too cold- too cold for me-
  There pass'd, as a shroud,
  A fleecy cloud,
And I turned away to thee,
  Proud Evening Star,
  In thy glory afar,
And dearer thy beam shall be;
  For joy to my heart
  Is the proud part
Thou bearest in Heaven at night,
  And more I admire
  Thy distant fire,
Than that colder, lowly light.






Bright Star
by John Keats

Bright star, would I were stedfast as thou art—
Not in lone splendour hung aloft the night
And watching, with eternal lids apart,
Like nature’s patient, sleepless Eremite,
The moving waters at their priestlike task
Of pure ablution round earth’s human shores,
Or gazing on the new soft-fallen mask
Of snow upon the mountains and the moors—
No—yet still stedfast, still unchangeable,
Pillow’d upon my fair love’s ripening breast,
To feel for ever its soft fall and swell,
Awake for ever in a sweet unrest,
Still, still to hear her tender-taken breath,
And so live ever—or else swoon to death.






Lost Star
by Rabindranath Tagore

When the creation was new and all the stars shone in their first
splendor, the gods held their assembly in the sky and sang
`Oh, the picture of perfection! the joy unalloyed!'

But one cried of a sudden
---`It seems that somewhere there is a break in the chain of light
and one of the stars has been lost.'

The golden string of their harp snapped,
their song stopped, and they cried in dismay
---`Yes, that lost star was the best,
she was the glory of all heavens!'

From that day the search is unceasing for her,
and the cry goes on from one to the other
that in her the world has lost its one joy!

Only in the deepest silence of night the stars smile
and whisper among themselves
---`Vain is this seeking! unbroken perfection is over all!'








Wednesday, January 12, 2022

Seafaring Sea Songs & Poems






Vol. 1 - Compilation of Sea Shanties & Folk Music
(Vocal-Only & with Instruments)
May 6, 2020
For vocal-only shanties, skip to 7:53. The shanties with instrumental music start again at 28:20.

I have added lyrics if you would like to sing along, which you can view by activating 'Subtitles/CC'.
Many thanks for listening.

The Fisherman’s Friends - Cousin Jack (0:00) Unknown Artist - Press Gang (4:54) The Corsairs - Auckland to the Bluff (7:53) The Corsairs - Royal Oak (11:44) The Corsairs - High Barbary (14:13) The Corsairs - Golden Vanity (16:31) The Poxy Boggards - Mingulay Boat Song (18:43) The Poxy Boggards - The Grey Funnel Line (21:58) The Corsairs - Irish Rover (25:11) Show of Hands - Keep Hauling (28:20) The Fisherman’s Friends - Fire Down Below (31:05) The Fisherman’s Friends - Santiana (33:59) The Fisherman’s Friends - Rio Grande (36:16) The Poxy Boggards - Rolling Down to Old Maui (39:15) The Fisherman’s Friends - Bengal Bay (42:14) The Poxy Boggards - Up and Away (44:21) The Fisherman’s Friends - One More Day (47:25) The Fisherman’s Friends - Safe and Sound (49:42) The Fisherman’s Friends - All The Night Long (52:45) The Poxy Boggards - The Cock & Bulls Tavern (55:52) The Poxy Boggards - The Girl With Red Hair (58:51) The Pogues - Squid Out Of Water (1:00:57)







Vol. 2 - Compilation of Sea Shanties & Folk Music
(The Fisherman's Friends & The Poxy Boggards)
Jan 23, 2021
This is a collection of sea shanties and similar folk songs, all of which feature instrumental backing tracks alongside the vocals.

13 of the 22 songs were not used in my last compilation, and I have included some classic shanties such as 'Nelson's Blood (Roll The Old Chariot Along)' and '(What Shall We Do With) The Drunken Sailor'.

I have added lyrics if you would like to sing along, which you can view by activating 'Subtitles/CC'.

Many thanks to all those who listened to my last compilation.

The Fisherman’s Friends - All The Night Long (0:00) The Fisherman’s Friends - Bold Riley (3:07) The Fisherman’s Friends - Fire Down Below (6:56) The Poxy Boggards - Rolling Down To Old Maui (9:51) The Fisherman’s Friends - South Australia (12:51) The Fisherman’s Friends - Nelson’s Blood (14:59) The Fisherman’s Friends - Strike The Bell (18:32) The Fisherman’s Friends - Sailor Ain’t A Sailor (23:01) The Fisherman’s Friends - Sweet Ladies Of Plymouth (25:56) The Fisherman’s Friends - John Kanaka (28:43) The Fisherman’s Friends - Johnny Gone Down To Hilo (30:59) The Fisherman’s Friends - Safe And Sound (32:37) The Fisherman’s Friends - (What Shall We Do With) The Drunken Sailor? (35:41) The Fisherman’s Friends - Santiana (38:25) The Fisherman’s Friends - Rio Grande (40:43) The Fisherman’s Friends - Bengal Bay (43:57) The Poxy Boggards - Up And Away (46:05) The Fisherman’s Friends - One More Day (49:11) The Fisherman’s Friends - The Corncrake (51:28) The Fisherman’s Friends - Yarmouth Town (53:30) The Fisherman’s Friends - Donkey Riding (56:19) The Fisherman’s Friends - Billy O’Shea (59:24)


The Bewitching Call of the Siren

She ululates a forlorn desire for a human love;
She’s pure evil, not from God’s Heaven above.
This siren’s seductive melody is heard on all seas,
And even on the largest lakes and flowing rivers;
Bringing even seafarers near Die Lorelei to shivers!
Beguiling young sailors to such a ghastly death;
This vile creature’s venom is felt with each breath!
Her visage is one of true love and blessed pulchritude,
Yet Lucifer’s mask is dark with great evil certitude!
Her perfumed scent enlivens her victims’ senses,
Whilst her dark green eyes and deep wet kisses;
Mesmerize her prey, oblivious now to all consequences;
Now feeling her fatal bites and hearing her hideous hisses!
She taketh all pleasure in her world of this evil measure,
Enthralling all her sad victims to a most horrible death;
Now Lucifer counts with joy the lost souls’ treasure!
Always sans merci this siren be to those in her grot,
As her victims find their souls lost to Hell’s dark rot!
Beware say I to all good seafarers, do heed this tale well;
Be deaf to this siren’s call or your life shall end in Hell!

Gary Bateman
July 4, 2016 (Canzone)
Copyright © All Rights Reserved






Vol. 3 - Compilation of Sea Songs & Folk Music
(The Captain's Beard, The Skullduggers & more)
Feb 15, 2021
The following is a compilation similar to my last, in that all the songs feature instrumental accompaniment in the background.

However, one difference is that all the songs are now newly featured, including from some new bands such as The Captain's Beard and The Skullduggers, along with songs from some old favourites.

I have added lyrics if you would like to sing along, which you can view by activating 'Subtitles/CC'.

As with my first compilation, this time I have used various images throughout the video to accompany the music, and with a generally higher resolution than my first collection.

Many thanks again to all those who've listened to my previous compilations.

The Fisherman’s Friends - Keep Hauling - (0:00) The Jolly Rogers - Across the Western Ocean - (2:53) The Captain’s Beard - Health to the Company - (5:48) The Fisherman’s Friends - Bully in the Alley - (9:16) The Captain’s Beard - The Wild Rover - (11:08) The Skullduggers - (Rolling Down to Old) Maui - (14:35) The Skullduggers - The Coast of High Barbary - (17:23) The Skullduggers - Home Boys Home - (19:11) The Skullduggers - Botany Bay - (21:46) The Captain’s Beard - (Oh You) New York Girls - (24:05) The Captain’s Beard - John Kanaka - (27:38) The Poxy Boggards - Star of the County Down - (30:51) The Poxy Boggards - Tell Me Ma - (33:08) The Captain’s Beard - The Sea - (34:45) The Captain’s Beard - Bonnie Ship the Diamond - (37:53) The Captain’s Beard - The Irish Rover - (41:23)


Ever After

Seafarers shall be saved, though waves may
deem them dead, lost in the ocean's fray
they shall not perish, nor shall they be afraid
nor falter, though their earthly woes be done.
They shall tame the deep, brave the mighty Charybdis
and win release to heaven's blessed throne.

Nor shall the poor be stilled in death's dark tomb;
they shall enjoy the fruits their earthly span denied
and reap full harvest as they rule the Pleiades!
The lame will mark their years well spent
in painful suffering at the world's behest,
for they will revel with the wild Eumenides!

The realm of death is nothing to be feared,
hough sting of loss shall curdle in the breasts
of the deserted they will finally comprehend
true love's eternal message in their hearts;
the special blessing of the ones who heed the call,
the realm of heaven draws all the faithful home.

Copyright ©  | Year Posted 2009



Vol. 4 - Compilation of Sea Shanties & Folk Music
(ft. The Longest Johns, The Jolly Rogers & more)
Mar 5, 2021
With this compilation I tried to capture the essence of vocal-only shanties, but with instrumental accompaniment. It is more on the ambient side of things; with a gradual buildup of energy, using songs with minimal instruments.

I have added lyrics if you would like to sing along, which you can view by activating 'Subtitles/CC'.

Many thanks to all who have been listening to my compilations so far, and to all the groups featured for making these wonderful songs.

The Longest Johns - Ashes (0:00) The Longest Johns - Off To Sea (3:19) The Jolly Rogers - Royal Oak (7:47) The Jolly Rogers - Away Rio (11:49) The Jolly Rogers - Tow Rope Girls (16:03) The Jolly Rogers - One More Day (19:32) The Jolly Rogers - Galway Girls (21:53) The Fisherman’s Friends - Paddy Lay Back (24:54) The Fisherman’s Friends - Oh You New York Girls (27:18) The Fisherman’s Friends - Rattlin’ Winches (30:16) The Skullduggers - Bully in the Alley (33:04) The Jolly Rogers - Botany Bay (35:38) The Captain’s Beard - Star of the County Down (38:14) The Longest Johns - Round the Cape (43:09) Pyrates! - Strike the Bell (45:54) Pyrates! - High Barbary (49:01) The Irish Rovers - Drunken Sailor (51:36)



The Cutty Shark



Vol. 5 - Compilation of Traditional Folk & Sea Songs
(ft. Kick Up the Dust, Pyrates! & more)
Mar 27, 2021
This is a compilation of sea shanties and traditional folk music; all of which feature instrumental accompaniment.

For the most part, it is somewhat faster and more energetic than my previous compilations, but still uses traditional instruments such as violins and accordions.

I have added lyrics if you would like to sing along, which you can view by activating 'Subtitles/CC'.

Many thanks once again to all who have listened to my compilations over the last year or so.

The Irish Rovers - The Jolly Roving Tar - (0:00), Great Big Sea - Captain Kidd - (2:26), The High Kings - The Rising of the Moon - (5:15), Kick Up the Dust - Liverpool Judies - (9:42), Kick Up the Dust - All for Me Grog - (13:04), Kick Up the Dust - Home Boys Home - (16:59), Kick Up the Dust - Three Jolly Rogues of Lynn - (20:00), Pyrates! - Botany Bay - (23:30), Kick Up the Dust - The Leaving of Liverpool - (26:25), Kick Up the Dust - 10,000 Miles Away - (30:00), Kick Up the Dust - Say a Prayer on Sunday - (33:45), Kick Up the Dust - Rare Old Mountain Dew - (37:17), Pyrates! - Blow Ye Winds - (40:02), Kick Up the Dust - Whip Jamboree - (43:21), Pyrates! - Irish Rover - (46:18), Brave the Sea - Bully Boys - (51:16)


Vol. 6 - Compilation of Traditional Folk & Sea Songs
(ft. Kick Up the Dust, Pyrates! & more)
May 6, 2021
This compilation features a return of the truly excellent band 'Kick Up the Dust', and leans more towards the traditional folk side of things, but with a few shanties and sea songs thrown in for good measure.

I have added lyrics if you would like to sing along, which you can view by activating 'Subtitles/CC'.

Thanks again to all who've watched these videos and subscribed to my channel so far, and for all your feedback in the comment sections. As always, it is greatly appreciated.

Young Dubliners - A Pair of Brown Eyes - (0:00) The Longest Johns - Hoist up the Thing - (4:24) Young Dubliners - I’ll Tell Me Ma - (7:11) Kick Up the Dust - The Jolly Beggarman / The Maid Behind the Bar - (10:03) Kick Up the Dust - Kelly the Boy from Killane - (14:01) Kick Up the Dust - Botany Bay - (17:08) Kick Up the Dust - McAlpine’s Fusiliers - (19:51) Kick Up the Dust - Maggie May - (22:57) Pyrates! - Whisky in the Jar - (25:42) Pyrates! - South Australia - (29:16) Pyrates! - Drunken Sailor - (32:02)


Sea-Fever
by John Masefield

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by;
And the wheel’s kick and the wind’s song and the white sail’s shaking,
And a grey mist on the sea’s face, and a grey dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;

And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull’s way and the whale’s way where the wind’s like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick’s over.



Vol. 7 - Compilation of Sea Songs & Folk Music
(ft. The Fisherman's Friends)
May 24, 2021
All the songs featured in this compilation are by The Fisherman’s Friends.

I have added lyrics if you would like to sing along, which you can view by activating 'Subtitles/CC'.

Thanks again to everyone who has listened, commented, and subscribed so far. As always, it is very much appreciated.

Sail Away Ladies - (0:00) Sally Brown - (2:50) The Last Leviathan - (6:08) Shenandoah - (10:19) Brightly Beams / Pull for the Shore - (13:17) Mollymauk - (16:43) Cap’n Stormio - (20:02) Sweet Maid of Madeira - (24:06) Mary Anne - (28:45) The Leaving of Liverpool - (31:45) The Mermaid - (36:12) No Hopers, Jokers & Rogues - (41:34) The Union Of Different Kinds - (44:33)


Vol. 8 - Compilation of Vocal-Only Sea Shanties
(ft. Jesse Ferguson)
Jun 7, 2021
I am proud to present a selection of traditional sea shanties from the upcoming album by Canadian singer-songwriter Jesse Ferguson. What I found most impressive about these recordings, is that he performed and recorded all the vocal harmonies himself.

I highly recommend subscribing to Jesse's YouTube channel, where you can find videos of him performing the different shanties during the recording process. Songs from his previous albums can also be found on Spotify. 
Many thanks again to all those who've listened to my previous compilations.

 Greenland Whale Fisheries - (0:00) General Taylor (ft. Bill Toner) - (3:14) Hangin’ Johnny - (6:30) Old Billy Riley - (8:16) Bully in the Alley - (10:12) Santiana - (13:19) Randy Dandy-O - (16:16) Don’t Forget Your Old Shipmate - (18:58) Drunken Sailor - (22:14) Roll the Old Chariot - (23:46) Sally Brown - (26:08) So Early in the Morning - (27:52) Donkey Riding - (30:01) Strike at the Whale - (32:18) Eliza Lee - (35:08) Leave Her, Johnny - (37:00)



The Seafarer

May I for my own self song's truth reckon,
Journey's jargon, how I in harsh days
Hardship endured oft.
Bitter breast-cares have I abided,
Known on my keel many a care's hold,
And dire sea-surge, and there I oft spent
Narrow nightwatch nigh the ship's head
While she tossed close to cliffs. Coldly afflicted,
My feet were by frost benumbed.
Chill its chains are; chafing sighs
Hew my heart round and hunger begot
Mere-weary mood. Lest man know not
That he on dry land loveliest liveth,
List how I, care-wretched, on ice-cold sea,
Weathered the winter, wretched outcast
Deprived of my kinsmen;
Hung with hard ice-flakes, where hail-scur flew,
There I heard naught save the harsh sea
And ice-cold wave, at whiles the swan cries,
Did for my games the gannet's clamour,
Sea-fowls, loudness was for me laughter,
The mews' singing all my mead-drink.
Storms, on the stone-cliffs beaten, fell on the stern
In icy feathers; full oft the eagle screamed
With spray on his pinion.
Not any protector
May make merry man faring needy.
This he little believes, who aye in winsome life
Abides 'mid burghers some heavy business,
Wealthy and wine-flushed, how I weary oft
Must bide above brine.
Neareth nightshade, snoweth from north,
Frost froze the land, hail fell on earth then
Corn of the coldest. Nathless there knocketh now
The heart's thought that I on high streams
The salt-wavy tumult traverse alone.
Moaneth alway my mind's lust
That I fare forth, that I afar hence
Seek out a foreign fastness.
For this there's no mood-lofty man over earth's midst,
Not though he be given his good, but will have in his youth greed;
Nor his deed to the daring, nor his king to the faithful
But shall have his sorrow for sea-fare
Whatever his lord will.
He hath not heart for harping, nor in ring-having
Nor winsomeness to wife, nor world's delight
Nor any whit else save the wave's slash,
Yet longing comes upon him to fare forth on the water.
Bosque taketh blossom, cometh beauty of berries,
Fields to fairness, land fares brisker,
All this admonisheth man eager of mood,
The heart turns to travel so that he then thinks
On flood-ways to be far departing.
Cuckoo calleth with gloomy crying,
He singeth summerward, bodeth sorrow,
The bitter heart's blood. Burgher knows not —
He the prosperous man — what some perform
Where wandering them widest draweth.
So that but now my heart burst from my breast-lock,
My mood 'mid the mere-flood,
Over the whale's acre, would wander wide.
On earth's shelter cometh oft to me,
Eager and ready, the crying lone-flyer,
Whets for the whale-path the heart irresistibly,
O'er tracks of ocean; seeing that anyhow
My lord deems to me this dead life
On loan and on land, I believe not
That any earth-weal eternal standeth
Save there be somewhat calamitous
That, ere a man's tide go, turn it to twain.
Disease or oldness or sword-hate
Beats out the breath from doom-gripped body.
And for this, every earl whatever, for those speaking after —
Laud of the living, boasteth some last word,
That he will work ere he pass onward,
Frame on the fair earth 'gainst foes his malice,
Daring ado, ...
So that all men shall honour him after
And his laud beyond them remain 'mid the English,
Aye, for ever, a lasting life's-blast,
Delight mid the doughty.
Days little durable,
And all arrogance of earthen riches,
There come now no kings nor Cæsars
Nor gold-giving lords like those gone.
Howe'er in mirth most magnified,
Whoe'er lived in life most lordliest,
Drear all this excellence, delights undurable!
Waneth the watch, but the world holdeth.
Tomb hideth trouble. The blade is layed low.
Earthly glory ageth and seareth.
No man at all going the earth's gait,
But age fares against him, his face paleth,
Grey-haired he groaneth, knows gone companions,
Lordly men are to earth o'ergiven,
Nor may he then the flesh-cover, whose life ceaseth,
Nor eat the sweet nor feel the sorry,
Nor stir hand nor think in mid heart,
And though he strew the grave with gold,
His born brothers, their buried bodies
Be an unlikely treasure hoard.