{title: Haul on the Bowline}
{artist: Traditional}
{album: Possibly the most ancient of shanties (Stan Hugill, 'Shanties from the Seven Seas'). Short-drag / sweating-up shanty.}
{key: D}
{tempo: 90}
{difficulty: beginner}
{phase: 1}
{tags: shanty,traditional,public-domain,short-drag,kids,campfire}
{video: youtube:QZQNe4GJz1c}
{credit: Traditional short-drag sea shanty. Public domain. Recording: Stan Hugill - 'Haul on the Bowline etc.' (uploaded by Joe Stead). Stan Hugill (1906-1992) was the last working shantyman of the British merchant marine and the author of 'Shanties from the Seven Seas' (1961) - the foundational reference work.}

{c: One of the very oldest shanties in the entire tradition. Stan Hugill suggests it dates from the medieval period, when the bowline was a rope of prime importance on square-rigged ships. By the late 1700s the rope was mostly obsolete, but the song outlived the work it was for.}
{c: A 'short-drag' or 'sweating-up' shanty: short verse, group pulls on the last word of the chorus. Compact, focused, easy to learn.}
{c: Public domain. Standard lyrics below.}

{start_of_verse}
[D]Haul on the bowline, [G]our bully ship's a-[D]rollin'
[D]Haul on the bowline, the [A]bowline [D]HAUL!
{end_of_verse}

{start_of_verse}
[D]Haul on the bowline, [G]Kitty is me [D]darlin'
[D]Haul on the bowline, the [A]bowline [D]HAUL!
{end_of_verse}

{start_of_verse}
[D]Haul on the bowline, [G]the bosun is a-[D]growlin'
[D]Haul on the bowline, the [A]bowline [D]HAUL!
{end_of_verse}

{start_of_verse}
[D]Haul on the bowline, [G]so early in the [D]mornin'
[D]Haul on the bowline, the [A]bowline [D]HAUL!
{end_of_verse}

{start_of_verse}
[D]Haul on the bowline, [G]we'll either break or [D]bend her
[D]Haul on the bowline, the [A]bowline [D]HAUL!
{end_of_verse}

{start_of_verse}
[D]Haul on the bowline, [G]we'll hang for finer [D]weather
[D]Haul on the bowline, the [A]bowline [D]HAUL!
{end_of_verse}

{start_of_verse}
[D]Haul on the bowline, the [G]captain he is [D]frownin'
[D]Haul on the bowline, the [A]bowline [D]HAUL!
{end_of_verse}

{c: Verses are improvisable - sailors made up new lines as the work went on. Common patterns:}
{c:   'Haul on the bowline, the cook is in the galley' (any character)}
{c:   'Haul on the bowline, the bosun he is bawling' (any officer's mood)}
{c:   'Haul on the bowline, we'll round Cape Horn next week' (any destination)}
{c: As long as the second line of each verse is 'Haul on the bowline, the bowline HAUL!' you can sing for as long as the rope needs pulling.}

{c: ===== HOW IT'S PERFORMED =====}
{c: SHORT-DRAG shanty rhythm. Slow steady tempo: ~90 BPM.}
{c: The pull happens on the SHOUTED word 'HAUL!' at the end of each verse. Everyone yells it together; everyone pulls together.}
{c: Three chords (D, G, A) - beginner-friendly.}
{c: Solo verse line, group joins on the 'Haul on the bowline...' refrain and the final 'HAUL!'}

{c: ===== WITH KIDS IN THE ROOM =====}
{c: Perfect rope-pulling reenactment. Tie a length of rope to a post or chair. Everyone holds the rope. Sing the verse. On 'HAUL!' everyone pulls together.}
{c: Kids yell 'HAUL!' louder than anyone — that's the song's whole appeal at age 7.}
{c: Improvise new verses with the names of people in the room: 'Haul on the bowline, [name] is haulin'.'}

{c: ===== FIDDLE PART (rare for this song) =====}
{c: Short-drag shanties are traditionally voice-only - they were working songs, not entertainment. Adding fiddle is a modern arrangement choice.}
{c: If used: fiddle plays a simple short phrase between verses, NOT during the verses (the voice carries).}
{c: Key: D major.}
{c: Suggested fiddle short break (just 4 bars, between verses, ABC notation, key D, 4/4):}
{c:   |: A2 d2 d2 f2 | e2 d2 A4 :|}
{c: Concertina: drone D throughout. Or skip entirely - the song doesn't need it.}
{c: Mandolin: chop on each beat - foot-stomping rhythm.}

{c: ===== WHY THIS SONG =====}
{c: Possibly the OLDEST shanty in the repertoire. Stan Hugill's life work argued it predated most others. The bowline rope's importance to medieval square-rigged ships gives it a centuries-deep provenance.}
{c: For the book: short, simple, perfect for teaching what a short-drag shanty IS. The 'HAUL!' moment is anyone's favourite line. The improvisable-verses structure shows everyone in the room that folk songs aren't fixed objects — they're frameworks you sing into.}
{c: Pair with Haul Away Joe as a two-shanty mini-set on hauling work. Then the longer capstan shanties (Roll the Old Chariot, South Australia) for the rope-walking work.}