Shanty

[Jack Heinlen]

I remember a shanty that began:

"My Johnnie's gone, what shall I do?
Johnnie's gone to Hilo."

A google turns up a bunch of gook.

I used to have a record of it and a bunch of other really nice ones, some familiar, most obscure. I hope it's now in the archives of the Maine Maritime Museum, 'cause that's where I left it.

Anyone know the chanty, or a good place to look?

[chergui]

I've never heard of it but did you put the quote from the song in quotes in the google search? I tried, and Google said do you mean "My Johnny's gone, what shall I do?"? Then it gave me a few links from these search results:

http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=%22My+Johnny%27s+gone,+what+shall+I+do%3F%22&spell=1

And from those search results I got this which has a lot information that you might be able to use to track down a recording if that's what you're looking for:

http://www.bluegrassmessengers.com/master/johnnycomedown9.html

and this link which has the lyrics:

http://www.mcgarrigles.com/lyrics/lyr_the.html

If you keep plugging info into goolge searches from the "Bluegrass Messengers", you may eventually find what you want. Or maybe not, but that's generally how I track down hard to find info using google.

[Gerry S.]

I believe that the shanty is actually "Tommy's Gone to Hilo" (not "Johnny"). The lyrics can be seen at www.mudcat.org/@displaysong.cfm?SongID=7380, (http://www.mudcat.org/@displaysong.cfm?SongID=7380,) or in many Sea Shanty books. Stan Hugill's Shantys of the Seven Seas is one of the best.

Happy singing!

[Jack Heinlen]

Hey thanks guys. Good sites.

I can't remember the artist on the record I no longer have. He was great, very rustic and salty. A bit of a scholar of the genre if I remember correctly, so it was 'authentic'. It was just him and his six string, recorded back in the fifties or sixties and released on one of the folk archive labels.

I really wish I'd made a tape of it, or remembered to take it with me when I left the museum.

Cheers.