Talk:Drunken Sailor

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This article was listed for deletion on 4 October 2005. The discussion was closed with the result keep, & move to Drunken Sailor. This article will not be deleted, and has been moved. You can view the discussion, which is no longer live: Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/What do you do with a Drunken Sailor. --Mel Etitis (Μελ Ετητης) 11:19, 9 October 2005 (UTC)

Contents

[edit] Variant Lyrics section, revisited

Please do not "prune" verses from the Lyrics section unless absolutely necessary (e.g., in the case of obvious vandalism). While it would be useful to note which verses have historically been sung on ships, many have been handed down without any primary sources being available. More importantly, most of the verses listed have been well-used by at least one contemporary performer or recreation organization, which is every bit as legitimate as the historical verses, and much easier to verify. For a song with literally thousands of verses, it is appropriate to provide an extensive selection (say, at least twenty-five or thirty items), including both historical and contemporary examples. Songs articles are the most useful when they can be used to research variations the reader may not be familiar with.

Yes, a few people are going to slip made-up verses in. Many of these will be promptly deleted. But it's better to let one or two fake ones slip by, than to delete dozens of legitimate ones. StoneRaven (talk) 06:39, 31 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Great Big Sea version

The Great Big Sea version mentioned in the article sounds like it has a verse not listed on the page (put him in the back of the penny wagon or somesuch). If anybody can tell exactly what they're singing, could you add it? 129.237.90.24 21:36, 19 September 2006 (UTC)

Done. StoneRaven 14:31, 22 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Variant Lyrics section

This seems to be turning into a free-for-all/anything goes section where people are putting in whatever lyrics they or their friends have made up or have vaguely heard elsewhere. I'll do some digging around for sources, but this section is due for at least a pruning Bwithh 00:30, 20 December 2006 (UTC)

I've now pruned the section to include only lyrics referencable from google books. Added an external link for claimed further variants Bwithh 00:57, 20 December 2006 (UTC)

I came here to find alternative lyrics... sad to see that the section has "been pruned" to only include those lyrics which have been published by google books rather than the wide variety of lyrics that people and "thier friends have vaguely heard elsewhere" since that is EXACTLY what I was looking for. Too bad creativity has been censored for lack of corporate support. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.127.237.179 (talk) 01:40, 4 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Up she rises referring to vomit

I was always told that the line: "up she rises", referred to the drunken sailor's vomit. I'm serious, this is not pointless vandalism. 196.203.157.180 18:36, 17 April 2007 (UTC)

I think it's referring to the motion of the waves, although it might be suggesting nausea.--RLent 20:04, 14 June 2007 (UTC)
I thought it was the rising of the sail of whatever they're actually hoisting while singing this, IE. a fourth wall breakage. 68.39.174.238 15:15, 4 July 2007 (UTC)
I was under the impression it was the anchor they were raising, per the history section. 68.39.174.238 (talk) 07:06, 21 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Up she rises: quite a different interpretation!

According to Alan Coren on some radio show (the information came from his wife), it is none of those things. It is actually a woman's naughty song about a man who has brewer's droop. I'm sure the ladies who played the piano at school did not know that. Man with two legs (talk) 20:53, 22 December 2007 (UTC)

A reference of a sort: [1] (it's a bit long, so search for the word "coren") Man with two legs (talk) 02:01, 23 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Up she rises: capstan shanty

acording to drunken sailor (http://www.contemplator.com/sea/sailor.html) "According to the The Burl Ives Song Book the song is representative of capstan chanties. The shanty was a tune designed to aid sailors in their work... The capstan chanty [sic was a moderate tune sung to raising the anchor. In order to raise the anchor bars were inserted into the capstan and sailors would walk around it, turning the capstan to raise the anchor. Sailors would stamp on the deck on the words 'Way Hay and Up She Rises.'" in other words it is talking about an anchor! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 4.239.114.35 (talk) 17:47, 27 December 2007 (UTC)

Any of these could be wrong. What is needed is some explanation of why the sources think they are correct. Man with two legs (talk) 13:20, 6 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Random Walk

There is also a famous setting for a Random Walk, watching a drunken sailor as a markov process. Will he arrive savely aboard - or end up in the sea? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 88.78.2.200 (talk) 17:09, 20 October 2007 (UTC)