Rolling Down To Old Maui

Blue of a Kind sings the forecastle chantey, "Rolling Down To Old Maui", one of the most beautiful chanteys. What's a forecastle chantey? It's basically a song sung for pleasure when life was easy and the work was through. This particular set of lyrics was recovered from the 1858 ships log of the Atkins Adams without it's melody. It was fitted to this tune in the 1930's. And a lucky fit it was, since the original melody was subsequently discovered and it is nowhere near as haunting. It's another song you'll find on the new CD, "To the Sky" - check it out at www.blueofakind.org. Lyrics:
It's a damn tough life, full of toil and strife,
we whalermen undergo,
And we won't give a damn when the gales are done
how hard the winds did blow,
For we're homeward bound from the Arctic grounds
with a good ship taut and free,
And we won't give a damn when we drink our rum
with the girls from old Maui.
Chorus:
Rolling down to old Maui, me boys,
Rolling down to old Maui,
We're homeward bound from the Arctic grounds,
rolling down to old Maui.

Once more we sail with the northerly gale
through the ice and wind and rain,
Them coconut fronds, them tropical lands,
we soon shall see again;
Six hellish months we've passed away
on the cold Kamchatka sea,
But now we're bound from the Arctic grounds,
rolling down to old Maui.
[Chorus]
Once more we sail with the Northerly gale,
towards our island home,
Our our mainmast sprung, our whaling done,
and we ain't got far to roam;
Our stuns'l bones is carried away,
what care we for that sound,
A living gale is after us,
thank God we're homeward bound.
[Chorus]
How soft the breeze through the island trees,
now the ice is far astern,
Them native maids, them tropical glades,
is awaiting our return;
Even now their big brown eyes look out,
hoping some fine day to see,
Our baggy sails, running 'fore the gales,
rolling down to old Maui.
[Chorus]

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Blue of a Kind
• Stan Rogers
• sea chanteys

[reggersusa]

Sure- it's my own. If you would like to sing it, let me know and I'll send you a proof copy for your consideration. My guys really enjoy singing this.

[reggersusa]

Yeh, it's a corker! Thanks a lot.

[hyperiontheevil]

They seem like a group of relatively nice gentlemen who closest approach to an ocean is their backyard pool. The diction is spot on, the timing is spot on. But unfortunately what it lacks is soul. They just don't seem to be able to make people believe that any one of them actually feels what their singing about.

It end up sounding more like a church recital than anything else

[4FourHorsemen4]

The Dreadnoughts are WAY better

[rickymullenmusic]

@4FourHorsemen4 stan rogers also has a killer version

[robertrobin10]

@hyperiontheevil ive said many times you dont just sing the words you sing the meanings behind them.

[guygiard]

Great!!!! Can you tell me where you found the vocal score for this piece???

[wulfgar7777777]

I'd have to say that they have a haunting quality. Perhaps Flowers of Bermuda would have been better. This is a happy, homecoming song. And it sounds like a funeral choir.

[curtiswiens]

Great arrangement

[seabear6]

@4FourHorsemen4

Don't take drugs.

[hechthannes]

good version!