Drunken Sailor
The shanty everyone knows, for 2 to 4 singers, as R. R. Terry printed it in 1921: the soprano is the shantyman and sings the verse alone, then everyone comes in on the chorus, "Hooray and up she rises", in strong, simple chords on Terry's own harmony. An old Dorian tune, sung quick on the ships; take it steady to learn it.
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The parts
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The first verse
Words: traditional sea shanty (as printed by R. R. Terry, 1921)Tune: traditional sea shanty (as printed by R. R. Terry, 1921)
What shall we do with a drunken sailor,What shall we do with a drunken sailor,What shall we do with a drunken sailorEarly in the morning?
About Drunken Sailor
Drunken Sailor is the shanty everyone knows. The sea captain W. B. Whall wrote that the whole crew sang it together at a quick march, walking away with the rope, and that it dropped out of use when crews got too small to walk away with anything. Richard Terry, who printed this tune in 1921, named it as one of the shanties in the old modes, not a modern major or minor key. Our arrangement is read from Terry's book, on the harmony of his piano part, a whole tone higher. This is the verse and the chorus for 2 to 4 singers: the soprano sings the verse alone, and everyone comes in on "Hooray and up she rises".
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