Greenland Whale Fisheries

About Greenland Whale Fisheries

"Greenland Whale Fisheries" is a traditional sea song. In most of the versions collected from oral sources, the song opens up giving a date for the events that it describes (usually between 1823 and 1853). However, the song is actually older than this and a form of it was published as a ballad before 1725. The song tells of a whaling expedition that leaves for Greenland. The lookout spots a "whalefish", and harpoon boats are launched. However, the whale strikes the boat with its tail, capsizing it, and several men are killed. The captain grieves over losing his men, but especially for having lost his prey. He then orders the ship to sail for home, calling Greenland a "dreadful place." Like most traditional songs, "Greenland Whale Fisheries" exists in different versions. Some change details (such as the date of the expedition), and others add or remove verses. Some modern versions, including the ones recorded by Theodore Bikel, The Chad Mitchell Trio, and later by The Pogues, flip the captain's expression of grief to make him regret losing his catch even more than losing his crew. more »

Year:

1998

4:15

157 Views

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When the whale get strike and the line runs out
And the whale makes a flunder with its tail
And the boat capsized and I lost my darlin' man
No more, no more Greenland for you, brave boys
No more, no more Greenland for you

Twas in eighteen hundred and fifty three,
on June the thirteenth day
That our gallant ship her anchor weighed
And for Greenland sailed away, brave boys,
And for Greenland sailed away.

The lookout on the crosstree stood
With a spyglass in his hand
There's a whale, there's a whale, there's a whalefish, he cried
And she blows at every span, brave boys
She blows at every span!

Well we struck that whale and the line played out
But she gave a flunder with her tail
And the boat capsized and four men were drowned
And we never caught that whale,
We never caught that whale.

Oh, to lose that whale, my captain cried,
It grieves my heart full sore
But to lose four of my gallant men
It grieves me ten times more, brave boys,
It grieves me ten times more!

Oh, Greenland is a dreadful place
It's a land that's never green
Where there's ice and snow and the whalefishes blow
And daylight's seldom seen, brave boys
And daylight's seldom seen

When the whale gets strike, and the line runs out
And the whale makes a flunder with its tail
And the boat capsized and I lost my darlin' man
No more, no more Greenland for you, brave boys.
No more, no more Greenland for you.

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