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Haul Away Joe #2
See also: Haul Away Joe #1

alt :

When I was a little boy,
Ma she done told me,
[Way haul away, we'll haul away, Joe]
If I didn't kiss the girls,
Their lips would all grow mouldy.
[Way haul away, we'll haul away, Joe]

Way haul away,
The good ship now is rolling,
Way haul away,
We'll haul away, Joe.

Well, first I met a Yankee girl
She was fat and lazy,
[Way haul away, we'll haul away, Joe]
Then I met an Irish girl,
She damn near drove me crazy.
[Way haul away, we'll haul away, Joe]

Way haul away,
The good ship now is rolling,
Way haul away,
We'll haul away, Joe.

Saint Patrick was a gentleman,
Came from decent people,
[Way haul away, we'll haul away, Joe]
In Dublin Town he built a church,
And on't he put a steeple.
[Way haul away, we'll haul away, Joe]

Way haul away,
The good ship now is rolling,
Way haul away,
We'll haul away, Joe.

Louis was the king of France,
Before the revolut-i-on,
[Way haul away, we'll haul away, Joe]
And then he got his head cut off,
It spoiled his constitut-i-on.
[Way haul away, we'll haul away, Joe]

Way haul away,
The good ship now is rolling,
Way haul away,
We'll haul away, Joe.

Way haul away,
We're bound for better weather,
[Way haul away, we'll haul away, Joe]
Way, haul away,
We'll all haul off together.
[Way haul away, we'll haul away, Joe]

Way haul away,
The good ship now is rolling,
Way haul away,
We'll haul away, Joe.

Way haul away,
The good ship now is rolling,
Way haul away,
We'll haul away, Joe.

####.... Author unknown. Variant of a traditional tack and sheet or short-haul shanty with many different verses. It may also have been used as a halyard shanty. Sheet shanties were usually no more than three or four verses. Sometimes the words 'pull' or 'haul' were used instead of 'Joe'. Although it is reported to have been known among early British sailors, it was not well-known on Yankee ships until the period between the War of 1812 and the American Civil War. The CSU Fresno Ballad Index notes that what appears to have been a fragment of the chorus appears in the diary of Mary Bray, probably in 1859; see A. A. Hoehling: Ships That Changed History, p.18 ....####

The YouTube video above features an excellent cover performance by Jesse Ferguson.

A notable variant was collected by Fred and Irwin Silber, editors, Folksinger's Wordbook, p.87 (Oak Publications, New York, NY, 1973).

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GEST Songs Of Newfoundland And Labrador


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