Blow Boys Blow

by Ewan MacColl & A.L. Lloyd

Blow Boys Blow cover art
  • Type: Album
  • Released: 1 January 1960
  • Label: Tradition Records
  • Country: United Kingdom
  • Length: 36:03
  • Community rating: 4.2/5 from 1 rating

Album Notes & Community Reviews

Ewan MacColl and A. L. Lloyd, the twin pillars of the British folk revival, sing sixteen sea shanties backed by Alf Edwards on concertina and Ralph Rinzler on guitar, banjo and mandolin. AllMusic calls the record one of the greatest sea-shanty recordings ever made, and its title track is a topsail halyard shanty Lloyd traced to the West African run.

Genres

Descriptors: Folk, communal, traditional, storytelling, acoustic, a-cappella

Tracklist

  1. Row Bullies Row (2:37)
  2. Paddy Doyle (0:48)
  3. Wild Goose Shanty (1:29)
  4. While Cruising Round Yarmouth (2:53)
  5. Old Billy Riley (0:30)
  6. The Handsome Cabin Boy (4:43)
  7. South Australia (2:22)
  8. Blow, Boys, Blow (1:39)
  9. Whup Jamboree (1:23)
  10. The Banks of Newfoundland (3:26)
  11. Whiskey Johnny (2:02)
  12. Do Me Ama (3:31)
  13. Jack Tar (2:11)
  14. Paddy West (4:25)
  15. Haul on the Bowline (0:46)
  16. A Hundred Years Ago (1:11)

Credits

  • Ewan MacColl - primary artist, vocals
  • George Cruickshank - artwork [after]
  • Ralph Rinzler - guitar, banjo, mandolin
  • David Hancock - lacquer cut by
  • Patrick Clancy - design

More from Ewan MacColl & A.L. Lloyd: full discography