Louisa Jo Killen (né Louis Killen) w… Read Full Bio ↴(10 January 1934 – 9 August 2013)
Louisa Jo Killen (né Louis Killen) was one of the most widely influential musicians of the folk revival and a key voice of English traditional song. She was a hard-core, unadulterated folksinger whose passionate delivery was matched by a deep and wide-ranging knowledge of the songs and the working people who made them.
Born and raised in the heart of the industrial North East of England, she came early to a love of folk music. Nurtured by a singing family whose tastes ran from liturgical music to cowboy songs, Irish ballads, grand opera, blues, jazz, classical and local Music Hall, the dominant music in her life has been the folk music of the British Isles. Killen's family background is predominantly Irish: her paternal great-grandfather brought the family from County Mayo to the banks of the River Tyne in 1852. Her grandfather married a Scotswoman and her father an Irishwoman.
Though her ancestry is largely Celtic, being a native Tynesider strongly affected her approach to music. Tyneside is an area that absorbs other cultures and converts them into its own - even after thirty-five years living in the USA, Killen's speaking accent still denoted her roots. The mixture of Irish, Scots and English living in the coal-mining and industrial region known to the ancients as Northumbria set it apart from the rest of England, pulling into it the musical traditions of all three countries while maintaining its own distinct musical style. Killen drew on all four traditions to bring a wide range of folk music to her audiences. To these four is added the Anglo-American tradition of deep-water shantying and sailor ballads common to both nations. Louisa Jo's first-hand experience working aboard brigs, brigantines, schooners and sloops in the late '60s and early '70s put her in the forefront of the current revival of maritime music on both sides of the Atlantic.
In a career spanning over forty years, with more than thirty-five albums/CDs to her credit, Killen's influence as a performer, teacher and inspiration to others was unparalleled. Over forty recordings spanning most of the latter part of the 20th Century. Louisa Jo was a living folk legend.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Killen
http://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/aug/19/louis-killen
The Ship In Distress
Louis Killen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In the blusterous wind in the great dark water our ship went drifting on the sea
Her headgear gone and her rudder broken which brought us to extremity.
For 14 days heartsore and hungry . . . Poor fellows they stood in a totter
A-casting lots as to which should die
I am free to die but oh my comrades
Let me keep look out till the break of day
A full-dressed ship like the sun a-glittering
Came bearing down into their relief
As soon as this glad news was shouted
It banished all their care and grief
You seamen all who sail the ocean
Pray you never suffer like again
Louis Killen's song "The Ship In Distress" is a lament about the perils and hardships of life at sea. In the first stanza, Killen addresses all sailors and warns them that the dangers of the ocean are far greater than what landsmen could ever know. The second stanza describes the dire situation that Killen's ship was in when it lost its headgear and broke its rudder amidst tumultuous winds and dark waters. The crew was left to drift on the sea for fourteen days, heartbroken and hungry, and resorted to casting lots to decide who should die. The lot fell onto Robert Jackson, whose family was considered great. However, he pleaded that he be allowed to keep lookout until dawn, even though he knew he was going to die.
In the final stanza, the sailors' fortunes turn for the better as a fully-dressed ship "like the sun a-glittering" comes to their rescue. The relief and joy they felt at being finally saved from their distress banished their grief and fears. Killen ended the song with a prayer to all seamen to never suffer like that again.
Line by Line Meaning
You seamen all who plow the ocean see dangers landsmen never know
The dangers of the sea are unique to those who work it and not something those on land can appreciate.
In the blusterous wind in the great dark water our ship went drifting on the sea
The ship was lost at sea in a storm, without the ability to steer or control its direction.
Her headgear gone and her rudder broken which brought us to extremity.
The ship was severely damaged and in danger of sinking due to the loss of its steering mechanism.
For 14 days heartsore and hungry . . . Poor fellows they stood in a totter
The crew was stranded and hopeless for two weeks, suffering from exhaustion and hunger.
A-casting lots as to which should die
The crew made a desperate decision to draw straws to determine which member would have to sacrifice their life for the sake of the others.
The lot it fell onto Robert Jackson whose family was so very great
The unlucky person chosen by fate to die was Robert Jackson, whose family had important standing in society.
I am free to die but oh my comrades
Let me keep look out till the break of day
Robert Jackson offered to accept his fate but requested to remain on watch for his fellow crew members until the morning light.
A full-dressed ship like the sun a-glittering
Came bearing down into their relief
Help arrived in the form of a majestic ship approaching on the horizon.
As soon as this glad news was shouted
It banished all their care and grief
The arrival of aid brought immense relief and joy to the stranded crew, erasing their worries and sorrow.
You seamen all who sail the ocean
Pray you never suffer like again
In conclusion, the singer warns other sailors to avoid such a dire situation in the future and wish them good fortune on their voyages.
Contributed by Isabella L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@nemaprise
You seamen bold who plough the ocean
See dangers landsmen never know.
'Tis not for honour or promotion;
No tongue can tell what they undergo.
In the blusterous wind and the great dark water
Our ship went drifting on the sea,
Her rigging gone, and her rudder broken,
Which brought us to extremity.
For fourteen days, heartsore and hungry,
Seeing but wild water and bitter sky,
Poor fellows all stood in a totter,
A-casting lots as to who should die.
Their lot it fell on Robert Jackson,
Whose family was so great.
“I'm free to die, but oh, me comrades,
Let me keep look-out till the break of day.”
A full dressed ship like the sun a-glittering
Came bearing down to their relief.
As soon as this glad news was shouted,
It banished all their care and grief.
Our ship brought to, no longer drifting,
Safe in Saint Vincent, Cap Verde, she lay.
You seamen all, who hear my story,
Pray you'll ne'er suffer the like again.
@talithamac
I miss this wonderful voice and smiling face at maritime festivals and seaport museums. This foc's'l song (not a shanty) really shows his sensitivity to the subject matter but there is also an underlying strength, which really came to the fore when it was time for shanty singing. I'm off to Oban for the International Shanty Festival (24-6 June 2022) and will raise a glass in memory of this great singer.
@guywolff
I love this so much ..Thank you Louis[a for a liftime of wonderful music ...
@moragmacgregor6792
Man. He pulls at my heart. The way he looks, the way he sings.
@wandabissell
Let's be honest and say Louisa Killen. May she RIP.
@whitebellys
a most powerful song explaining the horrors the sea forces upon us..
@3mate1
The version I have heard of this was faster and I couldn't fully understand all of Louis' words... I really like this rendition.
@MandarinFoxes
This is wonderful thank you so much!!!
@KyleEricksonPoetry1617
A great song. I find that the melody and rhythm is mimicking the action of waves of a stormy see. My favourite sea shanty.
@Pwecko
It's not a shanty. A shanty was a work song with a strong rhythm to assist sailors to work together. This song definitely doesn't have a strong rhythm.
@KyleEricksonPoetry1617
@Pwecko well I beg your pardon. Poor choice of words, I guess it is actually a Fo’c’sle Song. Still a song of the sea though.