The Mary L. McKay - Schooner Fare.wmv

Another great harmonizing sea song by Schooner Fare, from their concert album, "Alive". THE MARY L. McKAY is the story of a record-setting voyage between Portland, Maine, and Yarmouth, Nova Scotia., with a little help from Portland bootleg rum. Enjoy!

LYRICS FOR THE MARY L. McKAY
by Frederick W. Wallace / Arr. & Adapt. Schooner Fare

From Portland, Maine, to Yarmouth Sound
Two-twenty miles we ran
In eighteen hours, my bully boys,
Now beat that if you can.
The crew said it was seamanship;
The skipper, he kept dumb.
But the force that drove our vessel
Was the power of Portland rum.

Come all ye hardy haddockers
Who winter fishin' go.
And brave the seas upon the banks
In stormy wind and snow
And ye who love hard driving
Come listen to my lay
Of the run we made from Portland
On the Mary L. McKay.

We hung the muslin on her
As the wind began to hum.
Twenty hardy Nova Scotia men
Chock full of Portland rum.
Mainsail, fores'l, jib and jumbo
On that wild December day
As we passed ole Cape Elizabeth
And slugged for Fundy Bay.

Storm along, drive along
Punch her through the rips.
Northeast gale's a blowin',
And we'll take all that she gives.
We're homeward bound to Yarmouth Sound
Two-twenty miles today
We made the run on Portland rum
On the Mary L. McKay.

We slammed her by Monhegan
As the gale began to scream.
Our vessel took to dancing
In a way that was no dream.
A howler o'er the taffrail, b'ye
As we steered sou'east away
For she was a hound for running
Was the Mary L. McKay.

We slammed her to Matinicus.
The skipper hauled the log
"Sixteen knots! Lord Harry!
Ain't she just the gal to jog?"
The half-canned wheelsman shouted
As he swung her on her way
"Just watch me tear the mainsail off
The Mary L. McKay."

Chorus
The rum was passing merrily
And the crew was feeling grand
Longnecks dancing in our wake
From where we left the land.
Our skipper he kept sober
For he knew how things could lay,
And he made us furl the mains'l
On the Mary L. McKay.

Now the captain didn't care to make
His wife a widow yet.
He swung her off to Yarmouth Cape
With just her fores'l set
Past Fourchu in the mornin'
And shut in at break of day
And soon in shelterin' harbor
Lay the Mary L. McKay.

Chorus

From Portland, Maine, to Yarmouth Sound
Two-twenty miles we ran.
In eighteen hours, my bully boys,
Now beat that if you can.
The crew said it was seamanship;
The skipper he kept dumb.
But the force that drove our vessel
Was the power of Portland rum.

Personnel:
Chuck Romanoff -12 string guitar, 4 string banjo, vocals
Steve Romanoff - 6 and 12 string guitars, 5 string banjo, vocals
Tom Rowe (1950-2004) - bass, tin whistle, guitar, vocals

Schooner Fare's Home Site with info, bios, where to purchase their music, and photos. There is also a dedicated area to remember Tom Rowe. He is still missed. It's a wonderful site. If you like their music please check it out! http://www.outergreen.com/

For Booking Info:
e-mail: info@outergreen.com

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Schooner Fare
• The Mary L. McKay
• Alive
• rum running
• sea song
• sailing song
• historical song
• live concert
• male vocals
• folk song
• rum
• sailing race
• Tom Rowe
• Steve Romanoff
• Chuck Romanoff
• Frederick W. Wallace
• history
• Maine group
• New England
• ocean song

[snowmaker417]

I used to go see Schooner Fare all the time when I was a kid. My father always had "Alive" in the tape player of his pickup truck.

[MyMoppet52]

@snowmaker417 I missed your comment on Schooner Fare & am sorry. I have never been lucky enough to see them. You had a real treat! I understand @ tapes in the vehicles. My kids had to listen to a certain tape all the way to Florida (2 day trip) & half way back. They didn't ask for a change until then! :) Thanks for commenting. It is appreciated, even if I overlooked it! My best to you, Moppet (Barbara)

[577billbill]

Whoever posted this video:

PLEASE don't take it off youtube!!! I'm probably one of the only 20 somethings who enjoys Schooner Fare and I haven't been able to find a lot of their songs I enjoy listening to. If you have The Ballad of Mad Jack, I would love to listen to it more often than I get the chance to. Well done MyMoppet52!!!

[MyMoppet52]

@577billbill You can't imagine how much I appreciate your comments! I get very few (but am relatively new to uploading) so I appreciate every single comment very much. It makes me feel good that someone enjoys the music! I see you found Mad Jack. I will be putting more of their music online as I can. Hope you find some more favorites in the future. If you have some special songs, email me with those & I will put those on first when I find them. My best, Barbara

[MyMoppet52]

@577billbill Just another unnecessary comment but I wanted to say "hello". I will only pull this off if utube yanks it. I wanted to make sure you saw Mad Jack. That's one of my favorites, though they all seem to be favorites. I commented that I saw you found it but couldn't see where you did. SF has lots of fans, so you have more than 20 co-horts. I'm thinking of putting more up even if they might duplicate. Some of mine are different. My best to you, Moppet (Barbara)

[diverberr]

Miller's Jug also recorded this, it's a much faster version. The song was originally written as a poem about a trip on the Effie M. Morrisey by Frederick William Wallace. It was originally set to music by my Grandfather, Edmund Henneberry, sometime in the 1920's. I have his original recording of it from the mid-1930's. The poem had been published in Canadian fisherman magazine in 1921 which is where my grandfather first saw it.

[MyMoppet52]

@Garrettk41 I will be keeping this reply if you don't mind. I have looked on one site for their concerts and appearances and didn't get a lot of info. You have much, much more. If I don't find more info in the future, when I am able to travel, I will probably give you a "hello" and ask what dates you know for them. You are so lucky to have seen them so much!!! Guess you could say "I'm GREEN with envy"! :) Thank you for your reply & keep enjoying their music when you see them.

[Garrettk41]

@MyMoppet52 Oh, sure. I've seen them in concert plenty of times. I used to go to their Saint Patrick's Day concerts, and I haven't missed a single Schooner Fare/Devonsquare reunion since I started going back in 2000. Furthermore, I'm going to see them in a benefit concert next week, where their borther, Ed, will make a guest appearance.

[MyMoppet52]

@Garrettk41 Thanks for the info! I think they are a wonderful group. If you have gotten to see them in concert could you let me know if you have the time? I'd love to hear. I know they'd put on one fantastic concert!!! Thanks again for the comment. I am new at this and appreciate it a lot. Moppet (Barb)

[Garrettk41]

Boy I love Schooner Fare. They've been part of my life for as long as I can remember. And yeah, this is a great song. They later did a very effective re-reccording of it for their Classic Schooner Fare album.