Bringing Home the Oil

IMPORTANT PLEASE READ:

I searched for years for this commercial or at least the music. Finally, someone supplied me with a really distorted copy of the music. So I created this simulation of the commercial just to get the general idea. I think I came pretty close.

Since posting this someone else posted a much better copy of the music and another person took that audio and my video to create essentially the same video but with clear music. I thank them both for their efforts.

However, recently someone FINALLY posted the real commercial. So no more need for simulation: Here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEyF80FFpTw

Thank you so much...it's a thrill to finally see it. And I am amused at how close I came with my pretend commercial.

I will leave this video up since some of you may have bookmarked it and this will help find the real one...and I do have the lyrics posted.

What follows is the original description for this one.

Not the actual commercial but an attempt to recreate the look and feel and most importantly to make available this song that folks have been seeking for years. Tommy Makem & the Clancy Brothers. Lyrics by Tommy (I think). Sorry for the audio quality but it was the best I could find at the time after years of searching.
Sing along with Tommy!

I'm an able bodied sailor and I've often crossed the line
On whaling ships and sailing ships and ships of ev-er-y kind
But now I've got the very best job I've had for many a day
I'm workin' on the tanker bringing oil to Bantry Bay

Hey!

Bringin' home the oil, me boys, bringin' home the oil!
Sailin' all around the world, bringin' home the oil!
A' workin' on a giant ship, it's very hard we toil,
Sailin' into Bantry Bay, bringin' home the oil!

She is the biggest ship me lad that's ever sailed the sea
But graceful as a swan she goes, we sail her at our ease
From Araby around Cape Hope we proudly make our way
And keep all Europe moving from our base in Bantry Bay

Hey!

Bringin' home the oil, me boys, bringin' home the oil!
Sailin' all around the world, bringin' home the oil!
A' workin' on a giant ship, it's very hard we toil,
And sailin' into Bantry Bay, bringin' home the oil!

instrumental

They're building other tankers now to speed more oil to you
The Universe Kuwait, me lads, Japan and Portugal too
Also the Universe Ireland, I'm very proud to say
Is among the giant ships that's bringin' oil to Bantry Bay

Hey!

Bringin' home the oil, me boys, bringin' home the oil!
Sailin' all around the world, bringin' home the oil!
A' workin' on a giant ship, it's very hard we toil,
Sailin' into Bantry Bay, bringin' home the oil!

A' workin' on a giant ship, it's very hard we toil,
And sailin' into Bantry Bay, bringin' home the oil!

Category:

Music

Tags:

• commercial
• gulf
• oil
• tanker
• tommy
• makem
• clancy
• brothers

[someonehasposted]

Probably not or at least if it is then it's a huge coincidence as this is just random tanker footage to try to recreate the feel of a long ago tv commercial.

[tomterahedrob]

AWESOME!SOMEBODY SOME DAY PLEASE POST THAT GULF OIL COMMERCIAL! hey!I know contact Gulf ask them to post that Apollo era ad!

[ghb61]

This is quite close to the original commercial, which I remember loving as a kid back in the late '60s, and early '70s.

Great memories!

[BScar23625]

@victorbrunswick Thankyou for that, Victor. My recollection is that the Universe class tankers (and similar vessels) were too large to go through the Suez canal after it fully reopened in 1977 and they then became redundant. After being laid up for a few years I am sure they would all have been scrapped.

[victorbrunswick]

@BScar23625 I don't know what happened to the other tankers but the Universe Ireland and Universe Kuwait which were featured in the commercial were scrapped in 1984.

[janisjade1]

I remember this playing during coverage of the Apollo program. LOVED it!!!!

[angrykeyboarder]

Very similar memories here and were the same age group. Whenever I recall watching the Apollo coverage on NBC back in the day, this ad was alwyas there. The entire NBC News Apollo broadcast were sponsored by Gulf Oil. They even had the Gulf logo on the desk that the anchors (one of which was Frank McGee) sat at.

[dianakittylady]

I just must comment on this video I remember this commercial ,and song from Gulf Oil Company back in 1969 1970they run this, while watching TV Coverage of the Apollo space flights to the moon I was like 9 years old ".Bringing home the oil" its like a pirates song instead of pirates , square rigged sailing ships they had this giant oil tanker ship the pirate song is probably why I have fond memories of this ad and song arr! the kiddies love pirates yha they do thanks for posting lad.

[houstonsatyr]

Damn! In some vault there MUST be the original!

[releave232]

I hate ships bcous of the storm frank in the philippines.... That storms killed 800 people in 3 hours>OMG thats a freak history in the philippines

[tomterahedrob]

I got all amped when I saw the Gulf ad when I was3 or 4!Theres something deeply good about that ad from the Apollo era.