{title: The Old Polina}
{artist: Trad (Newfoundland / Dundee whaling, 19th c.)}
{key: D}
{tempo: 132}
{difficulty: intermediate}
{strand: M}
{feel: drive}
{lead_voice: any}
{lead_mode: unison}
{lead_demand: moderate}
{harmony: M}
{a_cappella: no}
{kit: fdl,bod,gtr}
{set_role: romp}
{lang: en}
{country_tags: NL}
{copyright: pd}
{tags: canadiana,chorus,group-sing,maritime,newfoundland,public-domain,romp,singalong,traditional,whaling}
{video: youtube:_8bGQ0Clk0g}
{credit: Traditional Newfoundland whaling song based on the steamer Polynia of the Dundee Seal and Whale Fishing Company (built 1861, commanded by Captain William Guy 1883–1891, sunk by ice in Davis Strait 1891). Every spring the Dundee fleet sailed for Newfoundland to take on local crews for the hunt — this is one of the songs they brought back. Composition fully public domain. Made famous in Newfoundland by Great Big Sea (track on 'The Hard & The Easy', 2005). Reference recording: Great Big Sea — 'The Old Polina' (YouTube `_8bGQ0Clk0g`).}

{c: Big NL maritime romp in D, three chords (D / G / A) the whole way through. Three verses, big chorus between each, double-chorus tail. The "She's the boy to make her sail" hook is the singalong; everyone hits it from chorus 1.}
{c: Fiddle leads instrumentally between verses; bodhrán hammers the pulse; guitar boom-chuck holds it together. Built for the romp slot — pubs and outdoor singarounds love this one.}

{c: ===== STRUCTURE =====}
{c: Verse — Chorus — Verse — Chorus — Verse — Chorus (final, doubled-up tail). Optional 4-bar fiddle break between verse 2 and verse 3 if the energy wants to lift further.}

{c: Verse 1}
{start_of_verse}
There's a [D]noble fleet of [G]whalers a-[D]sailing from Dun[A]dee
Manned by [D]British sailors to [G]take 'em o'er the [A]sea
On a [D]western ocean [G]passage we have [D]started for the [A]floe
Where the [D]light of the midnight [G]sun upon the [A]ice does [D]glow
{end_of_verse}

{c: Chorus}
{start_of_chorus}
And it's [D]cheer up, my lads, let your [G]hearts never [A]fail
For the [D]bonny ship the Po[G]lina is the [A]boy to make her [D]sail
She's the [G]boy to make her [D]sail
She's the [G]boy to make her [A]sail
The [D]bonny [A]ship the Po[D]lina
{end_of_chorus}

{c: Verse 2}
{start_of_verse}
There's the [D]noble Arctic [G]and the Au[D]rora, like[A]wise the Terra Nova
Who [D]sailed the ocean [G]o'er for [A]many a year
But the [D]Husky and the [G]Esquimaux they [D]couldn't make the [A]day
And the [D]gallant Po[G]lina was the [A]boy to show the [D]way
{end_of_verse}

{c: Chorus}

{c: Verse 3}
{start_of_verse}
Now [D]Captain Guy's a [G]daring man, his [D]name will live in [A]song
For he [D]boldly drove the [G]Polina through the [A]ice both wide and strong
He's [D]known both up in [G]Aberdeen and [D]down in St. John's [A]Bay
And the [D]gallant Po[G]lina was the [A]boy to take her [D]way
{end_of_verse}

{c: ===== BIG FINISH — double chorus, hard stop on the last "Polina"}

{start_of_chorus}
And it's [D]cheer up, my lads, let your [G]hearts never [A]fail
For the [D]bonny ship the Po[G]lina is the [A]boy to make her [D]sail
She's the [G]boy to make her [D]sail
She's the [G]boy to make her [A]sail
The [D]bonny [A]ship the Po[D]lina!
And it's [D]cheer up, my lads, let your [G]hearts never [A]fail
For the [D]bonny ship the Po[G]lina is the [A]boy to make her [D]sail
She's the [G]boy to make her [D]sail
She's the [G]boy to make her [A]sail
The [D]bonny [A]ship the Po[D]lina!
{end_of_chorus}

{c: PRACTICE NOTES}
{c: Strum: galloping 4/4, hard accents on 1 and 3. Bodhrán: double-time on the "She's the boy" repeat — it's the song's signature hit.}
{c: Voicing: unison melody throughout — no harmony per CSV ({harmony: M}). The room joins the chorus by chorus 1; verses can stay lead-led until verse 3, then full-group on the big-finish.}
{c: Fiddle: take the melody on the chorus, counter-melody on verses, 8-bar break between v2 and v3 if energy is high. Capo open D; alternate-bow drone style works for NL trad feel.}
{c: For mandolin: chop on 2 and 4 throughout. Optional triplet runs on the "Polina" cadence to lift the tail.}
{c: Tempo: 132 BPM, steady. Don't slow on the verses — the drive IS the song.}
{c: Romp slot — pub-anthem material. Pairs well after a hush song (mood-flip wake-up) or as the second of two drivers leading into a closer. The NL angle makes this an essential Canadian-roots set.}
{c: Pronunciation: "Polina" = po-LI-na (Po-LEE-na in some versions; pick one). "Esquimaux" = es-key-MOH (old-spelling singular of "Eskimo"). The Dundee/NL crossover means some verses use Scottish-tinged pronunciation — don't over-Irishify.}
{c: Cultural/historical note: this is a song from the brutal 19th-century whaling industry. The Polynia really existed; she really sank. The cheerful tone belies the danger — sing it like a song that lived past the ship that died.}