FREE SONG: Blow The Man Down
Added 2021-03-01 16:14:39 +0000 UTCTodays free song is another Shanty from our upcoming Shanty album.
(which you can download Saturday, pre-order here: https://igg.me/at/lF61v-8ckYI/x/8617783#/).
Blow The Man Down is one of the most know pirate shanties, but when I went to cover it, and I had found it had morphed over the Years into a sappy, unrecognizable mess! Cheerful, major key (ew), and lyrics about...well..."pretty young girls", and picking up girls in a bar??
"As I was out walkin' down paradise street
A pretty young damsel I chanced for to meet"
"So I give you fair warning before we belay
Don't never take heed of what pretty girls say"
Not what I was looking for.
So, I dug a little deeper, and found the much darker lyrics, from what I think might be the original 1860's version. It's about an older sailor, in a pub, warning young sailors how miserable life at sea it.
"it's muster and sergeants and tailors and since,
and hear your name called by a son of a bitch.
It's four topsail halliards the mate he will roar.
lay along smartly, you son of a whore!"
There we go! Those lyrics got some kick to 'em!
I then twisted the chord progression into a dark minor key, and set it to a haunting 3/4 trip hop beat (trip hop in 3/4 aint easy, I'll have you know!)
I'm very proud of how this one came out. Enjoy!
Comments
Fantastic version of this,ive heard it many times over many years but never as deep and dark as this,i love it.
John Smith
2021-03-01 16:22:40 +0000 UTC
