Wellerman (Sea Shanty) [Am] - Nathan Evans
Am
There once was a ship that put to sea,
Dm Am
And the name of the ship was the Billy of Tea
Am
The winds blew up, her bow dipped down
E7 Am
Oh blow, me bully boys, blow (huh)
|[Chorus]
|F C
|Soon may the Wellerman come
| Dm Am
|To bring us sugar and tea and rum
|F C
|One day, when the tonguin’ is done
| E7 Am
|We'll take our leave and go
Am
She'd not been two weeks from shore
Dm Am
When down on her a right whale bore
Am
The captain called all hands and swore
E7 Am
He'd take that whale in tow (huh)
[Chorus]
[Refrain - same melody as chorus]
F C
Da-da da da da-da
Dm Am
Da-da da-da-da da da-da
F C
Da-da da da da-da
E7 Am
Da da da da da-da
Am
Before the boat had hit the water
Dm Am
The whaaale's tail came up and caught her
Am
All hands to the side, harpooned and fought her
E7 Am
When she dived down low (huh)
[Chorus]
Am
No line was cut, no whale was freed
Dm Am
The captain's mind was not of greed
Am
And he belonged to the Whaleman's creed
E7 Am
She took that ship in tow (huh)
|[Chorus]
|F C
|Soon may the Wellerman come
| Dm Am
|To bring us sugar and tea and rum
|F C
|One day, when the tonguin’ is done
| E7 Am
|We'll take our leave and go
[Refrain - same melody as chorus]
F C
Da-da da da da-da
Dm Am
Da-da da-da-da da da-da
F C
Da-da da da da-da
E7 Am
Da da da da da-da
Am
For forty days or even more
Dm Am
The line went slack then tight once more
Am
All boats were lost, there were only four
E7 Am
But still that whale did go (huh)
[Chorus]
Am
As far as I've heard, the fight's still on
Dm Am
The line's not cut, and the whale's not gone
Am
The Wellerman makes his regular call
Dm Am
To en-courage the captain, crew and all
[Chorus] x2