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Our Captain Cried by Rebsie [Email]

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SONG STATS:
Hits: 1393
Comments: 90
Votes: 14
Plays: 218
Last Played: Sep 24, 2008 - 08:34:11 PM
Downloads: 84
Fans: 42
Uploaded: Dec 13, 2007 - 03:24:00 PM
Last Updated: Dec 13, 2007 - 04:32:33 PM
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Keywords:
miserable (3), English (24), traditional (65), sailor (5), parting (3), loss (34)
Description:
Fed up with happy fluffy holiday songs? Then you've come to the right place.

This is a sad song from the English tradition, about a sailor's parting from his sweetheart. There are dozens of English songs like this but this one always appealed to me with its beautiful melody.

And it's also taken on a special poignancy for me. I've been researching my ancestors for 9 years (I often feel I'm channelling them when I sing, so it's probably not surprising I have an interest in them) and I didn't think there were many surprises left. But while I was in the middle of recording this song I took a five minute break to do a routine search and suddenly discovered my grandfather's "lost" uncle. He was a sailor on board HMS Hermes and was killed in action in the early months of the first world war. The ship had been adapted as an aircraft carrier and was ferrying aeroplanes across the English channel to Dunkirk when she was torpedoed by a German U-boat, and sank with the loss of 22 lives (including uncle Claude).

When I went back to the song I was so choked up with tears I could hardly get the words out, but here it is anyway.

The picture above is an actual photo of HMS Hermes going down, with lifeboats attempting to rescue the crew.

So, at the risk of getting all sentimental, this one ought to have a dedication - to Leading Seaman Claude Jeffers, 1883-1914.

Lyrics:
Our captain cried all hands away tomorrow
Leaving us girls behind in grief and sorrow
What makes you go abroad fighting for strangers
When you could stay at home and free from dangers

You courted me a while just to deceive me
And now you've gained my heart you mean to leave me
Oh there's no trusting men, not my own brother
So girls if you would love, love one another

I'd roll you in my arms my dearest jewel
So stay at home with me and don't be cruel
Down on the floor she fell like one that was dying
The house was filled with grief sighing and crying

The drums are beating love the pipes are playing
I must be on my way no longer staying
Dry off those briny tears and leave off weeping
And happy we shall be at our next meeting

Traditional, arranged by Rebsie Fairholm © 2007

Hardware:
G5, Rode NT-1A mic, midi keyboard

Software:
GB3, World Music jam pack, Fitch cello
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right then rebsie &mdash 12/13/07 - 03:37:50 PM
sadly touching. what an incredible back story. your voice is wonderful as always. very nice production and to Leading Seaman Claude Jeffers..peace.

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&mdash 12/13/07 - 06:01:10 PM
Thank you, and thanks for being so swift to comment. :)

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It's &mdash 12/13/07 - 03:40:40 PM
Wild that you have an actual picture of the Hermes going down. That's some beautiful and powerful singing, Rebsie. I think the instrumentation and touches of echo are perfect.

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Wild indeed &mdash 12/13/07 - 05:58:09 PM
The wreck of HMS Hermes is still lying on the sea bed, and a group of divers made a video of it and posted it on YouTube. It mostly just looks like a load of old seaweed, but it's strangely evocative. Another of the bizarre wonders of the internet.

Thanks for your nice comment.

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A very &mdash 12/13/07 - 03:54:03 PM
Poignant tale this is and from researching my own genealogy I know how moving it can be and sometimes it's as though lives are on a conveyor belt. My son listened to this with me on a visit and compared you to Clannad and I must say we both enjoyed your excellent performance, regards M




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&mdash 12/13/07 - 06:18:43 PM
Yes indeed, it makes your own connection with the past feel very real, which stirs up all sorts of emotions.

Glad you and your son enjoyed it Maurice!

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Our Captain Cried &mdash 12/13/07 - 04:53:55 PM
One the many reasons I respect and in love with
folk music , is so real and close to what people
into and it seems sustains to our generation as well
and yes Rebsie oen of your remarkable songs .you
cn just sing and let this sound of the old came
back with all the beautiful colors..and yes its
realy touching "I'd roll you in my arms my dearest jewel
So stay at home with me and don't be cruel"
these verses moved me realy !

thank you so very much for sharing this gemn here
with us !! !

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Colours of the past &mdash 12/13/07 - 06:32:00 PM
You have such a lovely way of saying it Feter, thank you.

I wanted this song to find its own way of expressing itself, so instead of using a chord structure or a click-track I just sang it on its own over a drone, and let it come out in whatever timing it wanted. Then I fitted all the instrumentation around it.

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Sadly beautiful &mdash 01/01/08 - 09:28:48 AM
You have a great talent,this sad song is so much like all the sailors I know,both in the military,or merchant marines.Not only England,all the oceans and Great Lakes,met them in Korea many moons ago,I love your music.
Seamus

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Sadly beautiful &mdash 01/01/08 - 09:29:49 AM
You have a great talent,this sad song is so much like all the sailors I know,both in the military,or merchant marines.Not only England,all the oceans and Great Lakes,met them in Korea many moons ago,I love your music.
Seamus

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Hi &mdash 12/13/07 - 04:55:56 PM
Hey Rebsie... I love the darkness in this...

I feel the sorrow and the grief...

Your choice of instrumentation is fantastic... Nice build...

Well done... I love it...

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Thank you &mdash 12/15/07 - 07:37:03 AM
Darkness is my forte, it has to be said. I'm glad it reaches out to you.

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Hear Hear!! &mdash 12/13/07 - 06:03:21 PM
Wonderful work on this, Rebsie. I love the instrumentation you chose and the subtle use of environmental sounds. Great texture and expressiveness. Your singing is, as always, beautiful and provoking. You made all sorts of wonderful choices in this arrangement and production that really help bring this story-song to life.

Such a stirring song. I really felt it. And quite touching that you found your great uncle's story attached to it. A fitting dedication. Hear Hear!

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&mdash 12/15/07 - 07:42:41 AM
Thank you Peter. It's good to see you back at MacJams and a great compliment to have such a positive response from you. It's always appreciated.

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perfection &mdash 12/13/07 - 06:42:43 PM
i love this soo much. really like the arrangement and the instruments you chose are excellent. great job, Rebsie.

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&mdash 12/15/07 - 07:44:52 AM
Thanks Michael! Another one in the same spirit as Green Fields of Canada, I guess. I do love miserable songs!

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Beautiful! &mdash 12/13/07 - 06:43:11 PM
Fantastic recording for a start! Not sure about the birds - they add a pythonesque element which is distracting - bloody gulls! I am almost happy with the water effects - maybe a bit too loud?

Apart from them, I love everything about this. Your voice sounds absolutely brilliant. Can't beat a Rode to capture the goodness! Instrumentally amazing.

Absolutely stunning Rebsie!

Neil

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&mdash 12/15/07 - 07:48:42 AM
It's always difficult to blend atmospheric sounds into a song to make them convincing ... in this case they seemed too loud on headphones and too quiet on speakers, but I left them in anyway. Glad you enjoyed the rest of it! :)

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so THAT's it &mdash 12/16/07 - 09:39:36 PM
I'll listen on speakers next time.

:)

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I'm in awe. &mdash 12/13/07 - 07:09:21 PM
and adoring your voice, the cello, the synthy stuff, the dulcimer and the erhu. wow. feel like i'm there.

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&mdash 12/15/07 - 07:50:21 AM
Thank you Caroline, that's a big compliment and much appreciated. :)

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Amazing &mdash 12/13/07 - 08:34:37 PM
Rebsie your story and your song are very poignant. I with you on the genealogy as we've discussed before and I can certainly relate to becoming emotionally involved with the events of these blood connected strangers in our life. When reading the historical facts of the times our ancestors live, we get somehow transported into their shoes in a strange way.

Your voice is so effective in this tune, with it's somber sadness. The instrumentation was a very pleasant unexpected suprise, especially the oriental flavors created with your cello, and some type of hammered string instrument.

All of this lend itself to the mood you created so well. One grand package of a sound painting. (Words, voice & music)

Excellent Rebsie, awesome...............amazing.

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&mdash 12/15/07 - 08:04:01 AM
Thanks Damien.

Uncle Claude was half Indian, the result of a very unusual pairing of a British soldier serving in India and a native Indian girl (it must have been very weird for her coming over to England at that time). So I was trying to bring an Eastern vibe into the song, but couldn't find an Indian instrument which sounded right. So I ended up with ... er ... Chinese Erhu and Persian Santoor.

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hm... &mdash 12/15/07 - 06:37:03 PM
doesn't one of the boldt collections have a sitar? or maybe i'm thinking of something else..

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Very beautiful &mdash 12/13/07 - 09:08:53 PM
performance. Your vocal is outstanding - touching and haunting. And i love the music - nice arrangement and great sounds. What is the instrument that kicks in about halfway through on the instrumental breaks - sounds almost Chinese? The connection with your family's past adds an extra poignancy for sure. Thank you for sharing this with us. Peace.

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&mdash 12/15/07 - 08:12:36 AM
That's a lovely comment Dajama, thank you. The jangly hammered instrument is a santoor, with Chinese erhu violin underneath it. Both from Apple's world music jam pack.

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Very nice. &mdash 12/14/07 - 01:31:49 AM
I like the restrained backing it really brings the voice out well.

Amazing story!

Cheers

Dick


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&mdash 12/15/07 - 08:15:32 AM
Thanks Dick. Well, you did tell me those jam pack instruments would help to inspire me, and they did.

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Rebsie &mdash 12/14/07 - 02:30:41 AM
you've put so much into this - the melody is indeed beautiful - your arrangement superb - I especially love the cello and your voice sounds amazing on my headphones (I'm sneeking a listen at work)!

The recording is excellent.

Peter

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&mdash 12/15/07 - 08:20:08 AM
Cheers Peter. I'm glad you like it. Your support is always greatly appreciated.

The cello sound is the Fitch cello, available exclusively from MacJams as a freebie download, and way better than any of the other software cellos I've come across.

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The graphic &mdash 12/14/07 - 07:04:56 AM
as I listened, I was staring at the graphic above, and I almost saw the ship sinking - must have been the emotion that was playing tricks early this morning.

. - Harold

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&mdash 12/15/07 - 05:41:35 PM
It certainly is a powerful image, and gets more so the longer you look at it. Thanks for commenting, Harold.

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Truly .. &mdash 12/14/07 - 07:21:20 AM

.. in your element. Traditional, beautiful melody, excellently sung, just the right amount of instrumentation and I liked the sparing use of FX to help the imagination along... something I thought you should try in some other songs too.

A very sad lamenting song made all the more so by the real life connection to your late Uncle. Curiously, I was just posting a link to the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald on damien's Gordon Lightfoot thread. The internet is quite spooky in this respect: I mean like you say the info, pictures, divers video footage etc is quite often available.

Excellent.

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&mdash 12/16/07 - 11:42:28 AM
A lovely comment Alan, and very much appreciated. :)

Funny how the Edmund Fitzgerald song came up the same day. But I like these coincidences. It was a coincidence that I found out about my relative's fate just when I was recording a song about a sailor going off to war, but it meant something to me in a big way.

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Thank you... &mdash 12/14/07 - 10:17:30 AM
for the tears. I live to feel such strong emotions and the transference of said emotions is so complete with this piece Rebsie.

I must say the production on this one is top notch, the echoing and backing tracks is amazing and sooo very sweetly done. For me this is probably your best ever, raw & real but with professional shadings.. a perfect song for a cold overcast day.

Incredible *dries eyes*

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&mdash 12/15/07 - 06:16:07 PM
Thank you. I'm glad it worked for you. It was a strangely emotional one to work on. I must admit I was crying me eyes out while I was mixing it (which usually only happens when I get pissed off with my recording gear).

The vocal was all one take, but I had to edit out one or two bits where the tears broke up my voice. Luckily as I didn't use a clicktrack I could just stop whenever I needed to and then carry on without losing the feel of the song.

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Ah a maritime tune &mdash 12/14/07 - 10:18:35 AM
They get me every time..... Lovely performance Rebsie. Interesting choice of instrumentation to further enhance the mood and the timing of the echoed vocal works very well. Thanks so much!
Doug

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&mdash 12/16/07 - 11:35:09 AM
Thanks Doug. I like to go for unconventional instruments, but try to find things that work together even if they're not obvious combinations. The santoor seemed to me to have a maritime feel to it, almost like the clanking of a ship's rigging.

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~ &mdash 12/14/07 - 01:40:25 PM
Thanks for another beautiful song, Rebsie.

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&mdash 12/16/07 - 11:36:42 AM
You're welcome! Thanks Bob.

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You &mdash 12/14/07 - 05:48:04 PM
are part of the soul of macjams - beautiful.
Cheers
Len



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&mdash 12/15/07 - 05:56:59 PM
:) Big smiles. Thanks Len.

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Lovely &mdash 12/15/07 - 12:00:13 PM
I'm wondering how you could think I wouldn't love this. Very powerful, a lovely arrangement and beautiful vocals as ever. I detect a hint of Karen Matheson about the arrangement combined with the style that you've been refining and perfecting for the last few years. Really beautiful and really deserves all the praise it's been getting.

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&mdash 12/16/07 - 11:51:16 AM
Well, I know folk music isn't your genre of choice, and I'm never sure whether my arrangements are unfolky enough to get onto your taste radar. My vocal on this is very trad and shows the influence of Shirley Collins. You always support my stuff anyway though, which is much appreciated. And I'm very glad you do love this one!

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Oops &mdash 12/16/07 - 11:53:48 AM
Meant to add that I hadn't thought of Karen Matheson, but she has certainly been an influence too.

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wonderful &mdash 12/15/07 - 04:00:03 PM
you have one of my favorite voices... there is something so familiar and reassuring about your preformance... you could have done this with kazoos in the background, & I would still be a sucker for those pure bell tones... that's just your instrument

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&mdash 12/15/07 - 05:50:38 PM
Thanks Scott. That does mean a lot to me, and it's good to remind me that the voice is my instrument. I'm always getting frustrated with myself for not being a better instrumentalist and for being 'only' a singer, but I probably ought to give myself a break.

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PS &mdash 12/15/07 - 05:52:06 PM
I'll let you know when I post the kazoo remix.

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Glad I sopped by.... &mdash 12/15/07 - 04:43:42 PM
Wow Rebsie!! I don't how to comment on this one. The videotape editor in me wants to use this song as a the dialogue for a series of B/W photographs depicting sailors and the ships the served on. But no such project exists for me at the time. But if it did, this song would be poignant!! I could do some nice edits to this!!

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&mdash 12/15/07 - 05:55:22 PM
Well, if there's anything you do want to use it for, give me a shout. Thanks very much for listening and commenting.

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Incredible &mdash 12/15/07 - 06:35:47 PM
performance.The way things are going in the world now those lyrics will still be relevant for at least the next several hundred years.
You are a very talented singer.Fantastic piece.

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&mdash 12/16/07 - 11:56:41 AM
Thanks for your nice comment. Doing these old songs certainly gives me the sense that human nature doesn't change very much over the centuries.

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wow! &mdash 12/15/07 - 07:44:23 PM
really impressive, and ever so poignant. Well made, with such a purity of heart and soul that it's impossible not to be touched.
Love the Chinese erhu violin, really suits the mood.
I do agree with whoever mentioned that the sound effects aren't entirely necessary, but not so distracting as to take away from my appreciation of this song.
Thanks for making this music and posting it here!

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&mdash 12/19/07 - 06:00:19 AM
Thanks Jim! The erhu was just something I tried on a whim, and it seemed to fit really well.

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No one does sad like the English and Irish &mdash 12/16/07 - 04:18:56 PM
Love this arrangement and your voice is wonderful as ever. Solemn grace and beauty - thanks for posting such a heartfelt song.

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&mdash 12/19/07 - 06:12:02 AM
Yep, we English are good at miserable stuff ... I blame it on the weather over here.

Thanks very much for your comment Bud!

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Lovely...... &mdash 12/16/07 - 09:11:50 PM
GReat vocal performance! The production is also to my liking. This is a an example of the what I think the English/Celtic folk tradition has nailed in its own unique way: the beauty in expressed sadness; the art of painting a disturbed emotion. Well done Rebsie.

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&mdash 12/30/07 - 06:26:44 AM
Thanks Joe. I just try to express these things as honestly as I can and if others are touched by it then that's a great compliment. Thanks. :)

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AArrgghh &mdash 12/17/07 - 08:02:24 AM
Sorry, i nearly missed this - what an idiot!
You really are doing some unique work here, and your re-interpretations of these 'lost songs' are wonderful, breathing new life into traditional songs.

Fabulous, important work.

steve

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&mdash 12/30/07 - 06:28:48 AM
That's a lovely thing to say Steve, thank you very much!

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beautiful &mdash 12/17/07 - 01:05:33 PM
interpretation that belies the horror felt that day. Your voice is splendid and carries such incredible emotion. The backing tracks are perfect in their simplicity and warmth. Bravo

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&mdash 12/30/07 - 06:33:14 AM
Thanks John. I'm glad you like the simplicity of the backing. I initially tried a lot of different things with the instrumentation and just kept stripping more and more bits out of it until it ended up like this.

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I can honestly say.... &mdash 12/17/07 - 02:28:16 PM
I can't think of anyone else who does songs about dead lovers better than you. It must be a gift. :)

I love the starkness of this. It's as cold, lonely and beautiful as the deepest ocean.

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&mdash 12/30/07 - 06:41:02 AM
A very evocative image there, Joe, thanks!

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Stirring &mdash 12/18/07 - 05:02:43 AM
Its incredible to see how history is documented in the lyrics of songs - very moving that someone sat and though t what can I do in honour of these people.Amzing discovery about your ancestry.I did a bit of research one time when I was working on an island and discovered that the previous dwellers of the island had been raped and pillaged by a certain Duke of whom I am a descendant.Ironic then that 300 years later I was there working for the good of the place rather than for its demise.
Youve set it in stone - if there is a wreck of that ship lying somwhere I think I can hear it slightly creak and shift in the deep as you sing.Great work,
Rich


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&mdash 12/30/07 - 06:47:03 AM
Thanks Rich. Interesting that you're descended from a pillaging Duke. I was brought up with the story that I was descended from a bastard of a Lord Mayor of Dublin but it turned out to be a family myth. D'oh!

The wreck of HMS Hermes is lying on the seabed in the Straits of Dover.

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TINTYPE &mdash 12/18/07 - 04:15:33 PM
Seems to have an authenticity of age.
A tale told in a sepia tone, though immediate import.
Production is Radio Ready level.

appreciation and best regards,
Cooper

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&mdash 12/30/07 - 06:52:04 AM
Many thanks for your comment, and nice to see you back at MacJams.

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wow &mdash 12/18/07 - 10:35:29 PM
what a great lyric
and so nicely sung.
The music accompaniment is real sweet.

Man this is not a happy holidays song/u got that

love your voice.
I have been seeing your face more and more around these parts. It takes me a while to get around to each artist here that I find, but when the time is right the time is right and
tonight this song hits home.
peace
HH



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&mdash 12/30/07 - 06:59:07 AM
Thanks for coming over for a listen! I have been here a long time so I get around a bit. It certainly isn't a cheerful song, but those are always the ones I most enjoy doing! Glad you like it.

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Chilling &mdash 12/22/07 - 10:51:36 AM
Sweetness and sadness are captured within. That old English folk haunting refrain.

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&mdash 12/30/07 - 07:01:07 AM
Thanks! These old songs give me so much good material to start with, and it's an inspiration to work with them.

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Folkin' good &mdash 01/05/08 - 06:23:10 AM
Well-done my druid friend. Ye voice sounds excellent in this genre.
Loved it and still do.
LL

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&mdash 02/27/08 - 04:33:17 PM
Jolly good.

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Thank you &mdash 02/16/08 - 06:41:40 AM
Your voice sends shivers down my spine. What a wonderful piece of music!!

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&mdash 02/28/08 - 03:25:43 AM
Shivers is good! I'm glad you enjoyed it.

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Beautiful and evocative &mdash 02/24/08 - 05:01:45 PM
Lovely interplay between voice and instruments. Very moving. I know a lovely lady who lost her son in a pointless naval conflict not so long ago, and it's strange how nothing really changes.

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&mdash 02/28/08 - 03:49:10 AM
Yes indeed, the more I delve into WW1 the more apparent it is that the same patterns keep being repeated. As long as there are people making money from wars (and the profiteering is certainly nothing new, it was just as bad in WW1) then it's going to keep on happening.

Thanks for commenting.

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this song &mdash 02/26/08 - 07:26:38 AM
reaches high above the common standard...the only some use of instruments is so well chosen and your vox is just amazing good. ENjoyed this very much.

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