Old Polina
Great Big Sea Lyrics


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There's a noble fleet of whalers
They're sailing from Dundee
Manned by British sailors
That take them o'er the sea
On a western ocean passage
We started on the trip
We flew along just like a song
On a gallant whaling ship
Was the second Sunday morning
Just after leaving port
We met a heavy sou'west gale
And washed away our boat
It washed away our quarterdeck
Our stanchions just as well
And so we set the whole shebang
A-floatin' in the gale

[Chorus]
For the wind was on our quarter
The engines working free
There's not another whaler
That sails the arctic sea
Can't beat the Old Polina
You need not try my sons
We challenged all both great and small
From Dundee to St John's

Art Jackman set his canvas
Fair Weather galloped steam
And Captain Guy, the daring boy
Came plunging through the stream
And Mullins in the Husky
Tried to beat the bloody lot
But to beat the Old Polina boys
Was something he could not

[Chorus]

There's the noble terra Nova
A model without doubt
The Arctic and Aurora
They talk so much about
Art Jackman's model mail boat
The terror of the sea
Tried to beat the Old Polina
On a passage from Dundee

[Chorus]

Now we're back in old St John's
Where rum is very cheap
We'll drink a health of Captain Guy
Who brought us o'er the deep
A health to all our sweethearts
And to our wives so fair
Not another ship could make the trip
The Polina I declare





[Chorus: x2]

Overall Meaning

The song "Old Polina" by Great Big Sea is a tribute to the gallant whaling ship called Old Polina. The song begins by describing the whaling ship as a part of a noble fleet of whalers that are sailing from Dundee manned by British sailors. The crew is going on a western ocean passage, and the ship is flying along just like a song. However, their journey soon turns rough as they meet a heavy sou'west gale just after leaving the port, washing away their boat and quarterdeck along with their stanchions. Despite the setbacks, they set the whole thing floating in the gale.


The song then continues to describe how various other ships try to outdo the Old Polina, including Art Jackman's canvas, Fair Weather's steam, Captain Guy's daring maneuvers, and Mullins' Husky, but nobody could beat the Old Polina. The song describes the other ships' attempts to defeat the Old Polina but ultimately failing to do so. Finally, the song concludes with the crew of the Old Polina back in St. John's, where they are drinking to their captain and their wives, declaring that not another ship could make the trip.


This song is a tribute to the Old Polina, an actual whaling ship that belonged to one of the band member's families. The Old Polina was a wooden-hulled sailing vessel built in 1908 by A. McMillan and Son of Dumbarton, Scotland.


Line by Line Meaning

There's a noble fleet of whalers
A group of majestic whaling vessels is present


They're sailing from Dundee
Departing from Dundee, Scotland, the fleet embarks


Manned by British sailors
British sailors are on board these vessels


That take them o'er the sea
These sailors navigate the vast ocean


On a western ocean passage
The fleet sails across the Atlantic


We started on the trip
The journey has begun


We flew along just like a song
The voyage was effortless and soothing


On a gallant whaling ship
These are courageous ships that also engage in hunting whales


Was the second Sunday morning
The time was the second Sunday morning of their departure


Just after leaving port
They had just departed from the harbor


We met a heavy sou'west gale
A mighty southwest wind caught up with them


And washed away our boat
A big wave washed away their previous small boat


It washed away our quarterdeck
Also, their quarterdeck was lost


Our stanchions just as well
The stanchions of their vessel were not spared


And so we set the whole shebang
The crew made arrangements for a replacement ship


A-floatin' in the gale
They sailed on the ocean, undeterred by the weather conditions)


[Chorus]
The chorus repeats the song's theme


For the wind was on our quarter
The wind was blowing favorably for them


The engines working free
The ship's machines were running effortlessly


There's not another whaler
There was no other ship better than theirs


That sails the arctic sea
No other ship dares to sail the treacherous icy waters of the Arctic


Can't beat the Old Polina
The Old Polina is unbeatable


You need not try, my sons
There's no need to attempt to surpass them, as they're unbeatable


We challenged all both great and small
They had challenged all the other ships- big and small


From Dundee to St John's
They had challenged all the ships steaming between these two ports.


Art Jackman set his canvas
Art Jackman set sail


Fair Weather galloped steam
Fair weather conditions were present


And Captain Guy, the daring boy
Captain Guy was a bold captain


Came plunging through the stream
He maneuvered his ship skillfully in the ocean


And Mullins in the Husky
Mullins was leading a ship called Husky


Tried to beat the bloody lot
Mullins was trying to outmaneuver them


But to beat the Old Polina boys
However, they were deliberately overpowered by the Old Polina's crew


Was something he could not
Mullins couldn't match the Old Polina's crew


[Chorus]
The chorus repeats the song's theme


There's the noble terra Nova
The terra Nova is just as impressive


A model without doubt
It's a true model of excellence


The Arctic and Aurora
The Arctic and Aurora ships were also remarkable


They talk so much about
People talk a lot about them


Art Jackman's model mail boat
Art Jackman's ship, which transported post and parcels


The terror of the sea
It instilled fear amongst other ships


Tried to beat the Old Polina
It was also no match for the Old Polina


On a passage from Dundee
As it sailed from Dundee to some other destination


[Chorus]
The chorus repeats the song's theme


Now we're back in old St John's
They're back in St John's, their home port


Where rum is very cheap
Here, rum is readily available and cheap


We'll drink a health of Captain Guy
They'll toast to Captain Guy's health


Who brought us o'er the deep
He led them through the vast ocean


A health to all our sweethearts
They also toast to their loved ones


And to our wives so fair
And, to their beautiful wives


Not another ship could make the trip
No other vessel could achieve a similar feat as the Old Polina


The Polina I declare
The Old Polina is a remarkable ship indeed


[Chorus: x2]
The chorus repeats the song's theme twice




Lyrics © LEAN GROUND MUSIC LTD., Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: TRAD, Alan Thomas Doyle, Robert Bruce Hallett, Shawn McCann

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Comments from YouTube:

Jourell1

According to wiki, the song most likely refers to the Polynia, a ship for the Dundee Seal and Whale Fishing Company, which was captained by William Guy from 1883 - 1891 when she was sunk by ice. The other ships mentioned in the song- the Arctic, Aurora, Husky, and Terra Nova were also ships in the company fleet. In fact, the Aurora rescued the Polyna's crew when she sunk. 
Every year, the fleet would make a passage from Dundee Scotland to Newfoundland where they would pick up whalers and then go out to sea to hunt. Since the first ships to make port would have the pick of the most experienced men, there was a competition among the captains to see who could make the fastest time.

Matthew Mackenzie

Thank you Lad the stories sometimes more cool than the song!!

Bolero Forté

Thanks, wikibot

Madame Kilbourne

That is so freakimg cool!!!

STONECRUSHER420

Way to go man! That fills in a ton of info in the song.

FrightNight123

Awesome song!!!!  Such a Newfoundland folksong.

Skyril

THANK you for uploading this song. I loved it, but it wasn't on youtube which was insanely annoying

Inner Demon

I think part of why I love this is that they don't say there's not another whaler that COULD, they're saying there's not another whaler that can. Could means they're just talking about when it was still making trips. Can? Can means right now at the least, and until the end of time at the most. So they could be saying that no other ship will EVER do it faster

Eric Stix

It’s the ship that made the Dundee Passage in less than twelve parsecs.

Kaged Birdd

US citizen, but I listened to this album constantly when I was a kid.

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