Leave Her Johnny (Sea Shanty) - Folk Songs

The Water is Wide @Folksongs

  

The water is wide I can't cross o'er

and neither have I wings to fly

Give me a boat that can carry two

And both shall row, my love and I

2. Oh, love is gentle and love is kind

The sweetest flower when first it’s new

But love grows old and waxes cold

And fades away like morning 

3. There is a ship and she sails the sea,

She’s loaded deep as deep can be,

But not as deep as the love I’m in,

I know not how I sink or swim.

4. The water is wide, I can’t cross o’er

And neither have I wings to fly.

Give me a boat that can carry two,

And both shall row, my love and I.

And both shall row, my love and I.

Wellerman (Sea Shanty)

 

There once was a ship that put to sea

The name of the ship was the Billy of Tea

The winds blew up, her bow dipped down

O blow, my bully boys, blow (Huh!)

 

        Soon may the Wellerman come

        To bring us sugar and tea and rum

        One day, when the tonguin' is done

        We'll take our leave and go

 

She'd not been two weeks from shore

When down on her, a right whale bore

The captain called all hands and swore

He'd take that whale in tow (Huh!)

 Before the boat had hit the water

The whale's tail came up and caught her

All hands to the side, harpooned and fought her

When she dived down low (Huh!)

 

 No line was cut, no whale was freed

The Captain's mind was not of greed

But he belonged to the whaleman's creed

She took that ship in tow (Huh!)

 

For forty days, or even more

The line went slack, then tight once more

All boats were lost, there were only four

But still that whale did go (Huh!)

 

 As far as I've heard, the fight's still on

The line's not cut and the whale's not gone

The Wellerman makes his regular call

To encourage the Captain, crew, and all (Huh!)

Soon may the Wellerman come

To bring us sugar and tea and rum

One day, when the tonguin' is done

We'll take our leave and go

Wellerman - Folksongs

 

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Psalm 137:5 If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning. 6 If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy.

Hebrew	Transliteration	English translation
כֹּל עוֹד בַּלֵּבָב פְּנִימָה	Kol‘od balevav penimah	As long as in the heart, within,
נֶפֶשׁ יְהוּדִי הוֹמִיָּה	Nefesh yehudi homiyah,	A Jewish soul still yearns,
וּלְפַאֲתֵי מִזְרָח, קָדִימָה,	Ul(e)fa’atei mizrach kadimah,	And onward, towards the ends of the east,
עַיִן לְצִיּוֹן צוֹפִיָּה,	‘Ayin letziyon tzofiyah;	An eye still gazes toward Zion;
עוֹד לֹא אָבְדָה תִּקְוָתֵנוּ,	‘Od lo avdah tikvateinu,	Our hope is not yet lost,
הַתִּקְוָה בַּת שְׁנוֹת אַלְפַּיִם	Hatikvah bat sh(e)not ’alpayim,	The hope of two thousand years,
לִהְיוֹת עַם חָפְשִׁי בְּאַרְצֵנוּ,	Lihyot ‘am chofshi b(e)’artzeinu,	To be a free people in our land,
אֶרֶץ צִיּוֹן וִירוּשָׁלַיִם.	’Eretz-Tziyon viy(e)rushalayim.	The land of Zion and Jerusalem.