Blow The Man Down
(version 1)
Words & Music:
Traditional
CHORUS:
D
Em G
A7
Oh, blow the man down, bullies,
blow the man down; to me way, hey, blow the man down!
A7
D
Oh, blow the man down, bullies,
blow him away. Give me some time
to blow the man down!
As I was a walking down
Paradise Street. To me, way aye
blow the man down!
A pretty young damsel I chanced
for to meet. Give me some time to
blow the man down!
CHORUS:
She was round in the counter
and bluff in the bow. To me, way
aye blow the man down!
So I took in all sail and
cried, "Way enough, now!"
Give me some time to blow the man down!
CHORUS:
I hailed her in English, she
answered me clear. To me, way aye
blow the man down!
"IÕm from the Black
Arrow bound to the Shakespeare."
Give me some time to blow the man down!
CHORUS:
So, I tailed her my flipper and
took her in tow. To me, way aye
blow the man down!
And yardarm to yardarm away we
did go. Give me some time to blow
the man down!
CHORUS:
But as we were going she said
unto me. To me, way aye blow the
man down!
"There's a spanking
full-rigger just ready for sea."
Give me some time to blow the man down!
CHORUS:
That spanking full-rigger for
New York was bound. To me, way aye
blow the man down!
She was very well-manned and
very well-found. Give me some time
to blow the man down!
CHORUS:
But as soon as that packet was
clear of the bar. To me, way aye
blow the man down!
The mate knocked me down with
the end of a spar. Give me some
time to blow the man down!
CHORUS:
It's starboard and larboard on
deck you will sprawl. To me, way
aye blow the man down!
For "Kicking Jack"
Williams commands the Black Ball.
Give me some time to blow the man down!
CHORUS:
So, I give you fair warning
before we belay. To me, way aye
blow the man down!
Don't ever take head of what
pretty girls say. Give me some
time to blow the man down!
Notes On "Blow The Man Down"
Eli Cohen, Captain of the Goucher Pyrate Alliance, found the origin of these notes: "...On your website, under the "Blow the Man Down" page, you mentioned that you couldn't remember where you got the history of the song from. I found the same history, word-for-word, at this site, which quotes Stan Hugill's "Shanties of the Seven Seas." (www.contemplator.com/sea/blowdown.html) Not particularly surprising; if you ever don't know a source on shanty information, there's a 80% chance it's from Stan Hugill.."
"Blow The Man Down" originated in Western Ocean
sailing ships. The tune could have
originated with German emigrants, but it is more likely derived from an
African-American song entitled "Knock A Man Down". "Blow The Man Down" was
originally a halyard shanty. There are countless versions of "Blow the Man
Down". The other version
(version 2) is from the Burl Ives Songbook and tells of the Black Ball
Line. A variant of this is
"The Black Ball Line" (with a more positive view of the Black Ball
Line as well).
Western Ocean Law was basically Rule With A Fist. "Blow" refers to knocking a
man down with fist, belaying pin or capstan bar. Chief Mates in Western Ocean ships were known as
"blowers", second mates as "strikers", and third mates as
"greasers."
The Black Ball Line was founded by a group of Quakers in
1818. It was the first line to
take passengers on a regular basis, sailing from New York, Boston and
Philadelphia on the first and sixteenth of each month. The Black Ball flag was a crimson
swallow-tail flag with a black ball.
The ships were famous for their fast passage and excellent
seamanship. However, they were also famed for their fighting mates and the
brutal treatment of seamen. (Western Ocean seamen were called "Packet
Rats"). Many ships bore the name "bloodboat." Most of the seamen
hailed from New York or were Liverpool-Irish.
By 1880 the sailing ships were being replaced by steamers
and the packets entered other trades or were sold.