My children are pirates right now. There’s a fallen tree in the woods that makes a superb pirate ship, and my children have boarded and captured it. And they are singing pirate songs. Loudly. It is a very good thing that we live so far from other human habitation – if we lived in the ‘burbs the neighbors would kill us.

So appropos to nothing, I’m sharing a collection of pirate songs, in the hopes that you won’t notice that I haven’t written much of anything this week. If I gotta listen to them, you gotta listen to them. It may, of course, be our fault for teaching the boys pirate songs, but I’ll think of someone else to blame for the 6:30 am serenade eventually. I’ll also come up with some connection to the theme of this blog by the end of the post, I swear.

I don’t like the stupid illustrations in this videoification, but Joseph Arthur’s “High Barbary” has one of the best bass voices around. I’m a sucker for a deep bass – I turn into a puddle of melted blogiste, so you just have to endure (it doesn’t sound quite the same sung by an eight year old and a four year old, particularly when the four year old calls is “Pie Barbara-lee”

If I were a good Mom I probably wouldn’t have taught my children the song “All for Me Grog,” but we already knew I wasn’t a good Mom. The boys like Dan Zane’s version better, but I like the Dubliners.

Ok, I’ve found someone to blame – the whole pirate thing stems from Dan Zane’s album of sea chantys, which my children have adored for years. Asher’s favorite song as a baby was “Cape Cod Girls” and now the children love to sing “Pay Me My Money Down” at their parents (yeah, right guys).

Unfortunately, the only video version is really way too cutesy, but I include it anyway. Gotta give the man credit for teaching little kids songs about drinking, bars and jail.

Ok, this is one we have not taught our children, and will not be teaching them. I present this to those who need an antidote for the cute Dan Zanes piece, and it is awesome, but it is definitely adults only:

And finally, the children’s favorite – by far (since a reader suggested this song as appropriate for another thread, you have *no idea* how many times I’ve heard the kids sing this song), and the one most appropriate to this blog. Agricultural symphonic heave ho! What’s not to love?

I’m still working on the connection, so here’s another version, by Captain Tractor, of the Last Saskatchewan Pirate. This one is my kids’ favorite – they love the kids acting it out. If you’ve got six year olds in your life, this is their kind of thing:

Ok, the connection…oh, yeah, of course, most sea chanteys were invented to help people doing heavy, monotonous work pass the time at hauling ropes and other drudgery. So while you and your beloved are out there planting six thousand onion sets, digging new raised beds or harvesting, you too can sing Pirate songs to make the time go faster.

Try this one for Asher next time you are pulling weeds – we like it a little faster, but then, I can’t do with my voice what Baby Gramps can do with his:

See, I knew there would be a point…eventually. Happy weekend!

Sharon