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Randy Dandy-O

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A traditional capstan or pump shanty with somewhat murky origins. Shore songs are well-referenced from as early as the 1810s using the phrase "randy dandy o" as a refrain, and an unknown tune by the name of "Hey Randy Dandy" was in use at least by 1810,[1] but it is unclear whether the shanty came earlier or was a later derivation. The earliest known evidence of the modern shanty version comes from Capt. John Robinson's Songs of the Chantey Man, published in 1917, which places it in the mid-to-late 19th century,[2]. The popular version of the song sung today by The Longest Johns (and others) was first recorded by The Young Tradition on their 1967 album Chicken on a Raft.

This song is one of the Longest Johns' most common performances, with several video and livestream appearances, and it appears as the eighth track on the album Written in Salt.

Factoids[]

Stan Hugill claims that "rollicking" (sometimes also rendered "galloping") is a stand-in word,[3] likely taking the place of bollocking, vulgar slang meaning a "dressing down" or a "telling off". The original lyrics are suggested to have been an unsubtle mockery of ships officers, with randy-dandy referring to "dandies" (see also 'fops'), as naval officers were often required to maintain uniform dress at sea. Effectively, every verse and the chorus ends in a (sometimes not so) subtle mockery of the authority of the ship's officers. However, both "rollicking" and "galloping" are attested in printed variants from the 1810s and 20s, so it is possible that all of these were in free variation from the earliest versions of the song.

The Horn - Cape Horn
Pawl - The hinged bars attached to the capstan which the sailors would push to turn it, and which prevented it from turning backward.[4]
Parish-rigged - Slang meaning poorly equipped.[5] A ship that was said to be parish-rigged usually had a miserly captain; a sailor who was parish-rigged usually ended up onboard with nothing but the clothes on his back.
Warping - Nautical term for moving a ship along by hauling on a rope.[6]
Vallipo Bay - Valparaíso, Chile. A common stop for ships that voyaged around Cape Horn.

Lyrics[]

These lyrics are based on the versions performed by the Longest Johns in their livestreams, though they don't always sing the same verses, nor in the same order, making it impossible to identify a "definitive" version.

Now we are ready to head for the Horn
(Way hey, roll and go!)
Our boots and our clothes, boys, are all in the pawn
(To me, rollicking randy dandy-o!)[continues throughout]

{Chorus}
Heave a pawl, and heave away!
Way hey, roll and go!
The anchor's on board and the cables all stored
To me rollicking randy dandy-o!

Man the stout capstan and heave with a will!
Soon we'll be driving her 'way down the hill!

{Chorus}

Heave away bullies, ye parish-rigged bums!
Take yer hands out yer pockets and don't suck yer thumbs

{Chorus}

Come breast the bar bullies, heave 'er away!
Soon we'll be rolling away down the bay

{Chorus}

Soon we'll be warping her out through the locks
where the pretty young girls all come down in flocks

{Chorus}

We're outward bound for Vallipo Bay
Get crackin' me lads, 'tis a hell of a way

{Chorus 2x}

Recordings[]

Streaming/Purchase[]

YouTube Videos[]

Gig Videos[]

Full Band Streams[]

Chill Streams[]

Gaming Streams[]

  1. ↑ https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=147952
  2. ↑ https://www.fresnostate.edu/folklore/ballads/Hugi167.html
  3. ↑ https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=147952#3431818
  4. ↑ "pawl, n.1." OED Online, Oxford University Press, December 2022, www.oed.com/view/Entry/139140. Accessed 14 December 2022.
  5. ↑ "parish, n." OED Online, Oxford University Press, December 2022, www.oed.com/view/Entry/137918. Accessed 14 December 2022.
  6. ↑ "warp, v." OED Online, Oxford University Press, December 2022, www.oed.com/view/Entry/225819. Accessed 14 December 2022.
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