{title: Lots of Fish in Bonavist' Harbour}
{artist: Traditional Newfoundland}
{album: Collected by Margaret Sargant and Kenneth Peacock, Newfoundland, 1950/51; published mid-1950s. Also known as 'Feller from Fortune.'}
{key: D}
{tempo: 130}
{difficulty: beginner}
{phase: 2}
{tags: canadiana,newfoundland,traditional,public-domain,singalong,dance,kids,shanty,campfire}
{video: youtube:mQ6FQAYlIOc}
{credit: Traditional Newfoundland folk song. Public domain. Recording: 'The Lots o' Fish in Bonavist' Harbour - Feller from Fortune' (Release - Topic channel, Smithsonian Folkways auto-listing). Originally recorded by Alan Mills & Jean Carignan for Smithsonian Folkways.}

{c: A Newfoundland dancing song from the mid-20th-century. The fish-and-fishermen lyrics are widely understood as metaphors for the dating scene in a Newfoundland fishing village. A favourite at Newfoundland kitchen parties.}
{c: Public domain. Standard lyrics below.}

{start_of_chorus}
Oh, there's [D]lots of fish in Bonavist' [A]Harbour
[A]Lots of fishermen in a[D]round here
[D]Swing your partner, Jimmy [G]Joe Jacobs
[D]I'll be [A]home in the spring of the [D]year
{end_of_chorus}

{start_of_verse}
[D]Sally is the prettiest [A]young one
[A]Sally is the one I a[D]dore
[D]Sally is the prettiest [G]young one
[D]Down in [A]Bona[D]vist'
{end_of_verse}

{start_of_chorus}
Oh, there's [D]lots of fish in Bonavist' [A]Harbour
[A]Lots of fishermen in a[D]round here
[D]Swing your partner, Jimmy [G]Joe Jacobs
[D]I'll be [A]home in the spring of the [D]year
{end_of_chorus}

{start_of_verse}
[D]Catch a-hold this one, catch a-[A]hold that one
[A]Swing around this one, swing a[D]round she
[D]Dance around this one, dance a[G]round that one
[D]Diddle [A]um, this [D]way
{end_of_verse}

{start_of_chorus}
Oh, there's [D]lots of fish in Bonavist' [A]Harbour
[A]Lots of fishermen in a[D]round here
[D]Swing your partner, Jimmy [G]Joe Jacobs
[D]I'll be [A]home in the spring of the [D]year
{end_of_chorus}

{start_of_verse}
[D]Uncle George got cod and ca[A]plin
[A]Uncle Jim got lots of [D]squid
[D]Uncle Bill is gone to [G]Labrador
[D]Pulling [A]herring out of [D]Bonavist'
{end_of_verse}

{start_of_chorus}
Oh, there's [D]lots of fish in Bonavist' [A]Harbour
[A]Lots of fishermen in a[D]round here
[D]Swing your partner, Jimmy [G]Joe Jacobs
[D]I'll be [A]home in the spring of the [D]year
{end_of_chorus}

{c: ===== HOW IT'S PERFORMED =====}
{c: Lively dance tempo - this is a square-dance / step-dance song. Tempo: ~130 BPM.}
{c: Three chords (D, A, G) - beginner-friendly.}
{c: Strum: aggressive boom-chuck on the chorus. The 'Jimmy Joe Jacobs' line is sometimes shouted rather than sung.}
{c: Many additional verses exist - Newfoundland traditional songs are commonly extended on the fly with local names and places.}

{c: ===== AS A KITCHEN-PARTY SONG =====}
{c: The 'Swing your partner' line is literal - people square-dance to it. Kids spin around the room.}
{c: If you have space and willingness, this is a song to actually DANCE to, not just play.}

{c: ===== FIDDLE PART =====}
{c: This song is fiddle-driven in the Newfoundland tradition. Treat it like a reel.}
{c: Key: D major.}
{c: Suggested fiddle line for the chorus (ABC notation, key D, 4/4):}
{c:   |: A2 d2 d2 f2 | e2 d2 c#2 A2 | d2 f2 a2 f2 | e2 d2 d4 :|}
{c: Between verses, fiddle takes a full instrumental break - same melody as the chorus, played twice through.}
{c: Bodhrán: heavy on the down-beats, like footsteps on a wooden floor.}
{c: Accordion: chord pad throughout. Squeeze the bellows in time with the dance.}

{c: ===== WHY THIS SONG =====}
{c: Newfoundland folk pillar. The Sargant-Peacock 1950/51 field collection is one of the most important Newfoundland ethnomusicology projects of the 20th century, and this song was a centerpiece.}
{c: Pair with I'se the B'y and Jack Was Every Inch a Sailor for a three-song Newfoundland set — all three use the same chords (D, A, G), so it's a single-shape mini-set the whole band can pick up fast.}