> Peter Bellamy > Songs > The Dockyard Gate

The Dockyard Gate

[ Roud 1739 ; Master title: The Dockyard Gate ; Ballad Index PaSe136 ; VWML AGG/8/20 , FK/3/193 ; trad.]

Norfolk fisherman Sam Larner sang The Dockyard Gate in a recording made by Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger in 1958-60. It was included on his Folkways anthology Now Is the Time for Fishing. The album’s booklet noted:

Nothing could be further removed from the romantic sea “ballad”, so admired by the Victorians, than this cynical piece. [Frank] Kidson, who collected one and a half verses of it in Whitby, Yorkshire [Mrs Agar, VWML FK/3/193] , describes it as “one of a type of song which is produced even today, on shipboard. It is here that real sailors’ songs are invented and occasionally passed on to the shore people, where a generation or two of singers form them into folk songs pure and simple.”

Ewan MacColl sang Sam Larner’s version of The Dockyard Gate on his and A.L. Lloyd’s Prestige/Transatlantic LP, A Sailor’s Garland. Lloyd noted:

Womenfolk in sailors’ songs are usually either innocent girls with cherry cheek and shining eye, or they are striding women of the town, with feathered hats and nimble fingers. More rarely, the men sang of the hard-case wives who spend their husband’s allotment in entertaining their lovers and who, as the money runs short, utter the cheering cry of: “Never mind, my love, he’s working hard for more!” Such is the situation in this song which Ewan MacColl recorded from Sam Larner. Miss Gilchrist obtained a set of it from old Mr. Bolton [VWML AGG/8/20] , and Frank Kidson heard it sung by a sailor’s daughter in Yorkshire.

Peter Bellamy learned The Dockyard Gate from the singing of Sam Larner too, and sang it in 1969 on his second LP, Fair England’s Shore. He recorded it again in 1983 for his privately issued cassette Fair Annie. He noted on the original album:

The Dockyard Gate comes from the fishing communities of East Anglia—this version being learned from the sparkling singing of the late Sam Larner of Winterton in Norfolk.

Dick Snell sang The Dockyard Gate in 1970 on The Critics Group’s Argo album As We Were A-Sailing. Ewan MacColl noted:

When we first heard Sam Larner, of Winterton, Norfolk, sing this cheerfully ironic piece in 1957, he followed it immediately with a comment usually reserved for disaster ballads like The Loss of the Ramillies:—“And that’s a true song, that is! A true song!”

Derek Sarjeant sang The Dockyard Gate on his 1970 album Derek Sarjeant Sings English Folk, and he and Hazel King sang it on their 1973 album Folk Matters. The first album’s sleeve noted:

A song collected from the singing of Sam Larner of Winterton, Norfolk, although in the tune Derek uses an attractive little variant added by Lisa Turner.

…and the second:

The words to this song can be found in Marrow Bones. Collected by Dr. George Gardiner ar Portsmouth Workhouse in 1907.

Harry Upton sang two short verses of The Dockyard Gate at his home in Balcombe, Sussex, to Mike Yates in 1975-77. This recording was included in 1978 on his Topic album Why Can’t It Always Be Saturday? and in 2015 on his same-named Musical Traditions anthology Why Can’t It Always Be Saturday?. Mike Yates noted:

The Edwardian collectors Anne Gilchrist, George Gardiner and Frank Kidson found versions of this song. Kidson said that it was, “one of a type of song which is produced even today, on shipboard. It is here that real sailors’ songs are invented and occasionally passed on to the shore people, where a generation or two of singers form them into folk songs pure and simple.” In fact, the song was printed as Plymouth Sound by the south London printer Henry Parker Such. The Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould printed a song under this title, with his own new words [Roud 6911, VWML RoudFS/S218643] , saying that he had based it on a “coarse and undesirable” broadside which had been published by Keys of Devonport. I have not seen this broadside text, so cannot say if the Keys version is actually a version of The Dockyard Gate, though I am sure that coarser versions of it have existed over the years—and far fuller ones like this.

Roy Harris sang The Dockyard Gate in 1977 on his third Topic LP, By Sandbank Fields. This track was also included in 1998 on the Topic anthology CD of traditional songs of sailors, ships and the sea, Round Cape Horn. Harris noted on his album:

From Sam Larner. Listen to recordings of Sam and you’ll learn what it is to identify with a song. Sam timed every word he sang and the result was joyous. He’s dead now, but his records are there to teach us. I got this from a Larner recording with a few extra words from A L Lloyd.

Oyster Band sang The Dockyard Gate on their 1983 album English Rock ’n’ Roll: The Early Years 1800-1850.

Lyrics

Sam Larner sings The Dockyard Gate

List you seamen unto me
For these few lines to you I’d write.
Just to let you know how the game go on
When you are out of sight.
Just to let you know how the lads on shore
Go sporting with your wives
When you are out on the raging seas,
All venturing your sweet lives.

Now, last farewell of her true love,
She then began to cry.
She took her handkerchief from her breast
To wipe her weeping eye.
Saying, “My love is going to sea,
How hard it is, my case.
There’s plenty a-more all on the shore
And another one to take his place.

Now go you down to the dockyard gate,
And wait till I come out;
For this very day, we’ll spend his half-pay
And we’ll drink both ale and stout.”

Now the day being spent with sweet content
And his half-pay was no more;
“Never mind, my love,” she then did cry,
“My husband is working hard for more.
Perhaps it is his watch on deck,
All shivering in the cold;
Or perhaps it is his watch below,
Our joys we can behold.”

Peter Bellamy sings The Dockyard Gate

Come list all you seamen unto me
While these few words to you I’d write.
Just to let you know how the game it do go on
When you are out of sight.
Just to let you know how the lads on shore
Go courting with your wives
While you are out on the raging seas,
A-venturing of your sweet lives.

Now, the last farewell of her true love
When she then began for to cry.
She pulled her handkerchief out from her breast
To wipe her weeping eye.
Saying, “My true love is gone to sea,
How hard that is, my case.
But there’s plenty more sittin’ here on the shore
And another one shall take his place.

So you go down to the dockyard gate
And wait till I come out;
For this very day, we’ll spend his half-pay
And we’ll drink both ale and stout.”

So the day being spent in sweet content
And his half-pay it was no more;
“Never mind, my true love,” she did say,
“My husband, he is working hard for more.
Perhaps it is his watch on deck,
All shivering in the cold;
Or perhaps it is his watch below,
Our joys he can’t behold.

But you go down to the dockyard gate
And wait till I come out;
For this very day, we’ll spend his half-pay
And we’ll drink both ale and stout.”

Harry Upton sings The Dockyard Gate

And away she ran to her fancy man,
These words to him did say,
“My husband he is homeward bound
And tomorrow it’s his half-pay day.

“And if you’ll wait at the dockyard gates
Until I do come round,
This very, very day we’ll sweat his half-pay
And drink both ale and stout.”

Spoken: That’s me father’s song, yes.

The Dockyard Gate

… as cited by Mike Yates in the booklet of Harry Upton’s Musical Traditions album Why Can’t It Always Be Saturday?:

Come list you seamen unto me,
While these few lines to you I’ll write,
Just to let you know how the game goes on
When you are out of sight.
Just to let you know how the lads on shore,
They go sporting with your wives,
While you are out on the raging seas,
All a’venturing of your sweet lives.

For it’s when your ship is outward bound
And ready for to sail.
“May the heavens above protect my Love,
With a sweet and a pleasant gale,
And keep him clear from all the shore
And never more return,
Until his pockets is lined with gold,
And then he’s welcome home.”

“A last farewell to my true love,”
Then she begins for to cry,
She takes her handkerchief from her breast,
For to wipe her weeping eye.
Saying “My love is gone to sea,
Oh, how hard it is my case,
But there’s plenty more, all on the shore,
And another one will take his place.”

“So go you down to the dockyard gate,
And you wait ’til I come out,
This very day, we’ll spend his half-pay,
And we’ll drink both ale and stout.”

Well the day being spent in sweet content,
And his half-pay being no more,
“Never mind, my Love”, she then do cry,
“My husband, he’s working hard for more.
And perhaps he’s at his watch on deck,
All a’shivering with the cold,
Or perhaps it is his watch below,
Our joys he can’t behold.”

And when your ship is home again,
Brought up in Plymouth Sound,
She hears the gun, “My husband’s come,
To him I must go down.”
She runs unto her neighbour’s house,
“Oh, one thing of you I crave,
Lend me your gown, for mine’s in pawn,
It’s the only one I have.”

Then she goes down to the dockyard gate
And she struggles to get in,
So loudly to her husband calls,
And runs and kisses him.
Saying, “How happy we shall be,
Now that you are safe on shore,
You’ll sit at home with me my love,
And go to sea no more.

So now you know ’bout the lads on shore,
And the constancy of wives,
While you are out on the raging seas,
All a’venturing of your sweet lives.