The Shanty Show

Dean Calin is a shanty singer with the Chicago-based group Bounding Main and the driving force behind the Maritime Music Directory International (seashanties4all.com), an online database of shanty bands, festivals, and performers from around the world. Dean got his start singing shanties at the Bristol Renaissance Fair in 1998 and went on to co-found Bounding Main in 2003 — a group that has since performed across North America and Europe, from Paimpol to Krakow. We talk about how shanties took over the American Renaissance fair circuit, Bounding Main's 22 years together, and the vision behind the MMDI — a resource Dean built to document and preserve the global shanty community. We also discuss the lack of Black representation in a genre with deep African-American roots, the rise of shanty sings across North America, why shanties became a symbol of freedom in communist Poland, and Dean's ongoing health journey. Dean gives us an update on Bounding Main's upcoming album and shares some unforgettable stories from touring in the Netherlands, Germany, and Poland.

SEASON 2 PREMIERE

We're finally back after a long haitus! In this kickoff to Season 2, we welcome folklorist and musician Bob Walser to the show to discuss his journey into the world of shanties and, particularly, his work uncovering new shanties in the recordings and documents of 1930s collector James Madison Carpenter. We also discuss the historical significance of dreg songs, the influence of Afro-Caribbean music on shanties, and the legacy of Carpenter and other collectors in documenting folk music. The conversation also touches on the accessibility of historical music collections and personal anecdotes that highlight the joy of sharing and singing traditional songs.

Our guest is Canadian folk music icon Fergus O'Byrne. Fergus is an incredible singer and was part of the legendary Newfoundland band Ryan's Fancy who were awarded the Dr. Helen Creighton Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004. 

In this episode, we explore the early days of English and Irish folk music communities in Toronto and the East Coast, discuss Ryan’s Fancy’s popularity and TV shows, and share thoughts on the power and importance of singing together.

⚓︎ Shanties and songs featured:

• Rant and Roar, trad. arr. by Ryan’s Fancy
• Maid of Amsterdam, trad. arr. by Ryan’s Fancy and Tommy Makem
• Avondale, trad. arr. by Al O’Donnell
• General Taylor, trad. arr. Great Big Sea
• Tiree Love Song, by Hugh S. Robertson, arr. by Ryan’s Fancy

⚓︎ Find out more about Pressgang Mutiny here:

• pressgangmutiny.com
• facebook.com/pressgangmutiny
• TikTok, X, and Instagram: @pressgangmutiny

Poland has one of the world's most vibrant shanty scenes. In 2023, we performed at the Port Pieśni Pracy festival in Tychy, Poland where we were introduced to Marek Szurawski. Marek is a former merchant mariner and journalist who was instrumental in introducing shanties to Poland in the 1980s on his radio program Kliper siedmiu mórz. He still performs regularly as a solo act and with Stare Dzwony ("Old Bells") and we were told he was the 'Oracle of Polish Shanties'.

James and Stefan sat down with Marek in the summer of 2022 in Tychy and recorded this interview.

⚓︎ Shanties featured:

• Northwest Passage, by Stan Rogers, arr. and translated into Polish by The Smugglers
• The Maid of Amsterdam, trad. arr. by Marek Szurawski

⚓︎ Find out more about Pressgang Mutiny here:

• pressgangmutiny.com
• facebook.com/pressgangmutiny
• TikTok, X, and Instagram: @pressgangmutiny

We bid farewell to the last living shantyman, George "Tall 12" Frederick. Tall 12 sang the shanties of his home town of Barrouallie as a whaling gunman and kept the tradition alive until his death on May 6, 2025 at the age of 79. He performed around the world in the early 2000s as part of the Barrouallie Whalers.
We are joined by his friend Vincent Reid, film maker and producer Akley Olton, and shantyman and musicologist Dan Lanier who knew and worked with Tall 12 to preserve the legacy of the Barrouallie shanties.
This video also includes archival footage, photos, and recordings from Tall 12's performances as well as footage from Pressgang Mutiny's film "Bear Away Yankee, Bear Away Boy", filmed with Tall 12 in St. Vincent in October 2022.

Check out Akley Olton here: https://www.youtube.com/c/AkleyOlton

And make sure to watch our interview with Tall 12 here: https://youtu.be/pbEsZqN0DSc?si=QAZxkyhDRHlVcZEX

The good people at CBC Radio One's 'Fresh Air' invited James and Stefan on to chat all things shanties as well as about the upcoming new Pressgang Mutiny album 'Departure'.

We discuss the origins of shanties, connections to other musical projects, how 'Departure' came about, and premiered a version of 'Haul Away Joe' off the new album.

Tom Lewis is a brilliant singer and songwriter, and has written so many well-known and loved songs including “The Last Shanty”, “Marching Inland” and “Sailor’s Prayer”. Like Cyril Tawney before him, Tom is also a former submariner with the Royal Navy having spent years circling the arctic in diesel-electric submarines during the Cold War. We caught up with Tom in between performances on his recent tour of Southern Ontario to talk through his life story, his influences, his time on subs, and of course, his famous songs. With a special singing appearance by the Bytown Sea Shanty Collective.
 
 ⚓︎ Find out more about Pressgang Mutiny here:
 - pressgangmutiny.com
 - facebook.com/pressgangmutiny
 - TikTok, Twitter, and Instagram: @pressgangmutiny

We were invited onto Music from Studio 2 on CIUT89.5FM to sing some songs and chat about shanties. We cover a lot of what we've learned through our discussions on this show, share some music from our upcoming album Departure, and talk about some of our projects to further promote, preserve, and progress shanties.

Jack Coutts is a member of the legendary shanty group Stormalong John. We sat down with Jack and his daughter Hannah aboard the Pilgrim at the world's largest sea music festival in Paimpol, Brittany for a chat and a sing in between sets. We discuss the origins of the band, what it was like touring in Poland in the 80s behind the iron curtain, and performing with Stan Hugill. And of course we get some singing in too!

⚓︎ Shanties featured:
- Live song: Pique la baleine, trad. arranged by Pressgang Mutiny
- Live song: Bulgine, trad. arranged by Stormalong John
- Live song: Rock Island Line, performed by Lonnie Donegan
- Live song: Blood Red Roses, trad. arranged by Jack Coutts, Hannah Coutts and Pressgang Mutiny
- Live song: South Australia, trad., arranged by Stan Hugill and Stormalong John

⚓︎ Find out more about Pressgang Mutiny here:
- pressgangmutiny.com
- facebook.com/pressgangmutiny
- TikTok, Twitter, and Instagram: @pressgangmutiny

As part of our European tour, we stopped in at Whitby Folk Week to do a few concerts and sit down with our favourite shanty singer, Jim Mageean, or “Shanty Jim”. In a wide-ranging chat with plenty of singing and a wonderful live audience, we discuss the burgeoning shanty scene in Poland, Jim's 1983 victory with Johnny Collins at the Eastern Bloc's answer to Eurovision, the growing consensus around the true origins of shanties, and much more! It's a conversation we won't soon forget.

⚓︎ Shanties featured:
- Live song: (No) You Won't Get Me Down in Your Mine, by Colin Wilke, arranged by Jim Mageean
- Live song: Jim and Johnny's 1983 winning medley (Poor Old Man, Ranzo-Ray, Rosabella), arranged by Jim Mageean
- Live song: John Dead, trad., arranged by The Unthanks (clip)
- Live song: John Dead, trad., arranged by Pressgang Mutiny
- Live song: Seven Long Years, trad., arranged by Pressgang Mutiny

⚓︎ Contact Jim at [email protected]

⚓︎ Find out more about Pressgang Mutiny here:

• pressgangmutiny.com
• facebook.com/pressgangmutiny
• TikTok, X, and Instagram: @pressgangmutiny