Sailors Alphabet
Traditional:
courtesy of www.SailorSongs.com
A is the anchor that holds a bold ship
B is the bowsprit that often does dip
C is the capstan on which we do wind and
D is the davits on which the jolly boat hangs
CHORUS
Oh hi derry hey derry ho derry down
Give sailors their grog and there's nothing goes wrong
So merry so merry so merry are we
No matter who's laughing at sailors at sea
E is the ensign the red white and blue
F is the fo'c'sle holds the ship's crew
G is the gangway on which the mate takes his stand
H is the hawser that seldom does strand - CHORUS
I is the irons where the stunsu'l boom sits
J is the jib-boom that often does dip
K are the keelsons of which you've told and
L are the lanyards that always will hold - CHORUS
M is the main mast, so stout and so strong
N is the north point that never points wrong
O are the orders of which we must beware and
P are the pumps that cause sailors to swear - CHORUS
Q is the quadrant, the sun for to take
R is the rigging that always does shake
S is the starboard side of our bold ship and
T are the topmasts that often do split - CHORUS
U is the ugliest old Captain of all
V are the vapors that come with the squall
W is the windlass on which we do wind, and
X, Y, and Z, well, I can't put in rhyme - CHORUS
The author of this website has put a lot of time and effort into gathering the greatest collection of sea shanties for the world to enjoy - There are songs that have been to sung to a job of work at sea for many, many years and collecting them has been a great endeavour. - Roger Chartier has made the effort out of his own interest and the requests that he has gotten to do this work from fellow musicians who wanted a good source of sea shanties to draw on and learn from. He has been told that for this effort he is a remarkable man.
