A bluegrass version by Jerry Garcia and David Grisman was released in 1996 on their album Shady Grove under the title "Off to Sea Once More". But a man must be blind to make up his mind to go to sea once more. Irish artists such as Ryan's Fancy and The Dubliners recorded very faithful versions with the slightly modified title "Go to Sea No More", while other versions, such as the one recorded in the late 1960s by the American folk-rock band The Byrds on their Ballad of Easy Rider album, use the title "Jack Tarr the Sailor" while telling the same tale. The Wolfe Tones released a version in 1970 under the title of " The Holy Ground" with modified melody and lyrics, which holds true to the themes of the original song. Go to Sea Once More is a sea shanty about a sailor who, once ashore, gets very drunk and loses all his clothing and hard-earned money when a prostitute. The exact origins of the song can be traced to the English Merchant Navy, likely from the 1700 - 1900 period.Īs with most traditional folk songs, different versions developed over the years. The song urges sailors to avoid strong drink and the hard lifestyle that comes with it, and to "get married instead". The sailor's name varies slightly in the different versions of the song, though typically he is named Jack Tarr, Jack Sprat, or Jack Wrack. Though he has sworn to never work at sea again, this situation forces him to accept a position on a whaling ship bound for the Arctic Sea, having to endure terrible conditions such as the freezing cold.
"Go to Sea Once More" is a sea shanty about a sailor who, once ashore, gets very drunk and loses all his clothing and hard-earned money when a prostitute steals them.
Since writing the above in the late 1990's I have recently (August 2013) had the good fortune to have been invited to the 2nd Leserpromenade. Even if I succeeded, I doubt whether it would go down with present day audiences. Maybe one day I'll try my hand at a sea song about aircraft carriers, atom-bombs, radar, biological and electronic warfare etc., the lot of a 20th century naval sea-goer, in the same vein. The song itself is about being seen-off by agents, the ladies, the hard life at sea and finally the wish of being ashore with a loving wife. A crook decides to bump off members of his inept crew and blame their deaths on a legendary sea creature. With Antony Carbone, Betsy Jones-Moreland, Robert Towne, Beach Dickerson. Victorious whenever doing "Off to Sea Once More". Creature from the Haunted Sea: Directed by Roger Corman. This song is so evocative of the love/hate relationship between a seaman and his chosen element that I always find myself thinking about H.M.S. The gap separating whalers in the 19th century and aircraft carriers in the 20th century are indeed worlds apart. For my taste Roy's version is a lot more tuneful but the lyrics are virtually the same. I first heard it from Brian Kelly when in the Idle Fellows but the version I sing can be found in Roy Palmer's The Oxford Book of Sea Songs. "Off to Sea Once More" is one of my favourite sea songs and, according to mood at the moment, it may be my absolute favourite.
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