While it has been confirmed that the band has officially retired, former members Alan Doyle and Séan McCann have continued performing in their own solo careers typically including music from Great Big Sea in their setlists.
The band played its first official concert on March 11, 1993, opening for The Irish Descendants at Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John's, Newfoundland. The founding band members included Alan Doyle (vocals, guitar, bouzouki, mandolin), Séan McCann (vocals, bodhrán, guitar, tin whistle), Darrell Power (vocals, bass, guitar, bones), and Bob Hallett (vocals, fiddle, accordion, mandolin, concertina, bouzouki, whistles, bagpipes).
Power, McCann and Hallett had already been playing together in another band. In the winter of 1989, the band, a six-piece with guitar, bass, fiddle, accordion and mandolin played its first show at the Memorial University's winter carnival talent show under the name "Newfoundland Republican Army" or NRA, and won first prize. The band's only other appearance as NRA was later that winter at the university "Grad House". The band then dropped the fiddler, accordion player and the name.
The band found its new name as original bassist Jeff Scott rented an apartment on Rankin Street, St. John's, where the members first met and discussed the formation of the band. As a four-piece, the band first appeared as "Rankin Street" at a little pub in downtown St. John's called "The Rose and Thistle", playing for $100 and beer. They played through Sean McCann's stereo system, as renting a PA would have cost more than the night's earnings. Susan Hickey (guitar and vocals) left the band months later to attend school in Halifax and was replaced by Darrell Power. The band gained much popularity playing such local pubs as Bridget's and Greensleeves. In 1991 Jeff Scott was replaced by Jackie St. Croix on bass. The band released one recording on cassette titled "Rankin Street".
In 1997, the band reached the top ten of the Canadian RPM pop chart with "When I'm Up (I Can't Get Down)", a cover of a song by the British folk group Oysterband. They performed at the 1999 Stardust Picnic festival at Historic Fort York, Toronto.
The band won the Entertainer of the Year award at the East Coast Music Awards for every year between 1996 and 2000. In 2001, they decided not to submit their name for nomination in order to allow other bands to compete. They have also been nominated for several Juno Awards, including Group of the Year in 1998, 2005, 2009, and 2011.
Darrell Power retired from Great Big Sea in 2003 to spend more time with his family and friends. Supporting members of the band include Canadian freelance drummer Kris MacFarlane (2002) (drums, accordion, guitar, backing vocals) and Murray Foster (2003, formerly of the band Moxy Früvous) (bass, backing vocals).
In late 2005, the band released its long-awaited "traditional" album, The Hard and the Easy, on which they recorded their favourite Newfoundland party songs. The title of the album comes from a line of the song "Tickle Cove Pond", one of two songs on the album about a horse falling through ice.
On June 13, 2007, the band announced they would return to the studio with producer Hawksley Workman. On March 14, 2008, the band announced that the title of the new album would be Fortune's Favour, borrowing a phrase from one of the songs on the album, "England". The album was officially released on June 24, 2008 across all of North America.
On February 23, 2010, band member Séan McCann released his debut solo album Lullabies for Bloodshot Eyes to pleasing critical success.
On July 13, 2010, Great Big Sea released their new album Safe Upon the Shore in North America. Alan's "From the Road" blog on the band's website, originally confirmed its production in an April posting, speaking also of the album's subsequent release in July. "Nothing But A Song" was the first single off the bands' ninth studio recording, with a subsequent tour kicking off at the end of the summer 2010.
Great Big Sea announced a 'greatest hits' album titled "XX" in October 2012, accompanied by a 20th anniversary tour with 32 dates in 28 cities across the US and Canada which kicked off on March 5, 2013 in Los Angeles and finished in St. John's on April 23, 2013.
In 2013, McCann announced that he would be leaving the band at the end of the XX tour, much to the dismay of his bandmates. Struggling to maintain his new sobriety, he told his bandmates in January of 2013 that XX would be his last tour with the band, but the rest of the band and its management refused to announce this publicly. Finally, in November 2013 with XX almost over, McCann announced his departure himself in a tweet, feeling that the fans needed to know. While largely vilified by Great Big Sea fans with little said by the band or management to counter this view, McCann claims he was devastated by how Great Big Sea ended and wishes it could have gone differently.
Following McCann's departure, the remaining band members spent a year or so trying to find an amicable way that they could continue without him. Eventually coming to the realization that they didn’t want to go on like that, and happily retiring the band.
French Shore
Great Big Sea Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Craving adventure and lore
I boarded a clipper, me dad was the skipper
And sailed it along the French Shore, yeah
We sailed all along the French Shore
What beautiful vessels were sailing back then
All bound for the North Labrador
To sail all along the French Shore, yeah
To sail all along the French Shore
On each ship a maiden was hired to cook
A beautiful girl to adore
So young and cavorting, all ready for courting
While sailing along the French Shore, yeah
While sailing along the French Shore
Being too young for courting I soon did decide
To spy on the lovers on shore
I spied on a couple so loving and supple
While sailing along the French Shore, yeah
While sailing along the French Shore
They're actions peculiar appeared to me then
But now they're not funny no more
They were hugging and kissing
Oh what I've been missing
While sailing along the French Shore, yeah
While sailing along, sailing along
Sailing along the French Shore
That couple has children now married I know
You see they're not young anymore
Still yet they don't know
How I witnessed the show that they played
All along the French Shore, yeah
They played along the French Shore
That ends the story of my bonny days
Would that I could live them once more
And this much I know, I'd produce my own show
And I'd stage it along the French Shore, yeah
While sailing along, sailing along
While sailing along, sailing along
While sailing along the French Shore
The song "French Shore" by Great Big Sea is a nostalgic tune that tells the story of a young man reminiscing about his days sailing along the French Shore. The singer reflects on his youthful desires for adventure and sailing with his father aboard a clipper. The French Shore was a stretch of coastline in Newfoundland where many European fishermen came to catch cod during the 18th and 19th centuries. In the early 20th century, the Canadian government set aside the French Shore as a place where French citizens could still fish off the coast of Newfoundland, despite the Treaty of Utrecht that ended French claims to Newfoundland in 1713.
The lyrics evoke a sense of wonder and beauty as the singer describes the ships sailing along the French Shore. He remembers how each ship had a young woman hired to cook for the crew, and how he spied on a couple on shore who were hugging and kissing. The song's chorus emphasizes the beauty and the allure of the French Shore, with the repeated refrain, "While sailing along, sailing along, sailing along the French Shore."
Throughout the song, the singer's perspective shifts as he reflects on his experiences as a young man and contrasts them with his current understanding of the world. The lyrics are rich with imagery and evoke a sense of longing for a simpler time. The song captures the essence of Newfoundland's rich history and folklore, and serves as a compelling tribute to the French Shore and the people who sailed its waters.
Line by Line Meaning
When I was a young man, just barely fourteen
At the start of my adventure, I was barely a teenager
Craving adventure and lore
I thirsted for the thrill of adventure and stories of the unknown
I boarded a clipper, me dad was the skipper
I joined my father, who was the captain of a ship, for this journey
And sailed it along the French Shore, yeah
We sailed the ship along the French Shore
We sailed all along the French Shore
We ventured along every part of the French Shore
What beautiful vessels were sailing back then
I marveled at the majestic ships that sailed in those times
All bound for the North Labrador
They were all headed for North Labrador
And so for that reason they came here that season
They came to this place during that season for that purpose
To sail all along the French Shore, yeah
To cruise all along the French Shore
To sail all along the French Shore
To travel and explore the entire French Shore
On each ship a maiden was hired to cook
On every ship, a young woman was employed as a cook
A beautiful girl to adore
A lovely lady to admire and cherish
So young and cavorting, all ready for courting
So youthful and lively, prepared for dating
While sailing along the French Shore, yeah
While voyaging along the French Shore
Being too young for courting I soon did decide
Since I was too young to court, I made a decision
To spy on the lovers on shore
To secretly observe the lovers on the shore
I spied on a couple so loving and supple
I peeked at a couple so affectionate and agile
While sailing along the French Shore, yeah
While cruising along the French Shore
They're actions peculiar appeared to me then
At the time, their behavior seemed strange to me
But now they're not funny no more
But now I don't find it amusing anymore
They were hugging and kissing
They were embracing and kissing
Oh what I've been missing
Oh, how much I've been deprived of such experiences
While sailing along the French Shore, yeah
While navigating along the French Shore
While sailing along, sailing along
While moving along, moving along
Sailing along the French Shore
Cruising along the French Shore
That couple has children now married I know
I know that couple now have children and are married
You see they're not young anymore
As you can see, they are no longer young
Still yet they don't know
Yet, they are unaware
How I witnessed the show that they played
That I witnessed the display they put on
All along the French Shore, yeah
All while touring the French Shore
They played along the French Shore
They enacted their performances along the French Shore
That ends the story of my bonny days
That brings my happy days story to a close
Would that I could live them once more
If only I could relive those days
And this much I know, I'd produce my own show
And I know for sure that I would create my own spectacle
And I'd stage it along the French Shore, yeah
And I'd present it while navigating along the French Shore
While sailing along, sailing along
While journeying along, journeying along
While sailing along, sailing along
While gliding along, gliding along
While sailing along the French Shore
While drifting along the French Shore
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind