American Sea Shanties & Songs

Library of Congress Collection (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 12, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Rounder Select
• ASIN: B00030601A
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #172,478 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superlative Shanties, December 11, 2004

By 

Tarantella (Tallahassee, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: American Sea Shanties & Songs (Audio CD)

The reissue of this material is long overdue, since too many romanticized recordings of these sea shanties have taken them far from their original use as work songs onto an overly stuffy concert stage. In particular, note the slow tempo of The Drunken Sailor. Beware, however. I have had so far to return two copies of this disc due to sound drop-offs that were not on the original LPs, and Rounder has not responded to requests for a clean copy.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars the real thing, probably, April 6, 2007

By 

Peter Labarba "Tool Obsessed" (SoCal) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: American Sea Shanties & Songs (Audio CD)

When my kids go to summer camp I volunteer to help. Some of the songs they learn are sea shanties, many not appropriate for a youth camp, but that's another story. When the boys are alone working on projects, thinking they are out of earshot and singing, this is what they sound like, but more youthful -- off pitch -- random timing -- absolutely charming.

There are many ways to get injured or die on a sailing ship, you need both hands free, so it was probably all a cappella. If you are looking for a disneyfied version of sea songs -- shop elsewhere, this is what you would have heard in 1880

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Neat songs from the rough-hewn men who sang them, October 2, 2008

By 

Jean E. Pouliot (Newburyport, MA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: American Sea Songs and Shanties (MP3 Download)

Recorded in the 40s (in one case by a man preparing to sing before FDR!) the sea songs, chanteys and work songs captured on this CD are sung by the men who learned them first hand in the last days of the great wooden ships. The men are elderly, and their voices are tremulous and faltering, but they are the real thing. The recordings appear to have been made as part of an oral tradition exercise, and are of middling quality, including asides, interruptions and questions from an interviewer. So don't expect the songs to be delivered with pretty accompaniment and manly gusto, but with age and authenticity. A great historical document of a bygone age, though of less interest for casual listening.