The John B. Sails
Encyclopedia
Richard Le Gallienne
Richard Le Gallienne was an English author and poet. The American actress Eva Le Gallienne was his daughter, by his second marriage.-Life and career:...
. The "secret" narrator of the story describes it as "one of the quaint Nassau
Nassau, Bahamas
Nassau is the capital, largest city, and commercial centre of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. The city has a population of 248,948 , 70 percent of the entire population of The Bahamas...
ditties," the first verse and chorus of which are:
- Come on the sloopSloopA sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....
John B. - My grandfather and me,
- Round Nassau town we did roam;
- Drinking all night, ve got in a fight,
- Ve feel so break-up, ve vant to go home.
- (Chorus)
- So h'ist up the John B. sails,
- See how the mainsail set,
- Send for the captain—shore, let us go home,
- Let me go home, let me go home,
- I feel so break-up, I vant to go home.
Whether it was an authentic folk song or one created for the novel is not stated.
1927: Carl Sandburg
Carl SandburgCarl Sandburg
Carl Sandburg was an American writer and editor, best known for his poetry. He won three Pulitzer Prizes, two for his poetry and another for a biography of Abraham Lincoln. H. L. Mencken called Carl Sandburg "indubitably an American in every pulse-beat."-Biography:Sandburg was born in Galesburg,...
included it in his 1927 collection of folksongs, The American Songbag, as "The John B. Sails." He states that he collected it from John & Evelyn McCutchen who told him, "Time and usage have given this song almost the dignity of a national anthem around Nassau. The weathered ribs of the historic craft lie imbedded in the sand at Governor's Harbor, whence an expedition, especially sent up for the purpose in 1926, extracted a knee of horseflesh and a ring-bolt. These relics are now preserved and built into the Watch Tower, designed by Mr. Howard Shaw
Howard Van Doren Shaw
Howard Van Doren Shaw was an American architect. He became one of the best-known architects of his generation in the Chicago area.-Early life and career:...
and built on our southern coast
Blue Lagoon Island
Blue Lagoon Island is a private island located 5 km from Nassau, Bahamas and serves as a local tourist attraction.-History:Prior to the late 19th century the island's lagoon was a salt marsh and was referred to legally as Salt Cay...
a couple of points east by north of the star Canopus." John McCutchen
John T. McCutcheon
John Tinney McCutcheon was an American newspaper political cartoonist who was known as the "Dean of American Cartoonists"....
was a political cartoonist from Chicago.
Sandburg's version has only minor variations from those in Le Gallienne's Pieces of Eight, but Sandburg does add an additional verse:
- De poor cook he got fits,
- Tro' 'way all de grits,
- Den he took an' eat up all o' my corn!
- Lemme go home, I want to go home!
- Dis is de worst trip since I been born!
While not appearing in Le Gallienne's Pieces of Eight, this verse does in fact appear in the version of the song published in Gallienne's article, "Coral Islands and Mangrove-Trees" on page 82 of the December, 1916 issue of Harper's
Harper's Magazine
Harper's Magazine is a monthly magazine of literature, politics, culture, finance, and the arts, with a generally left-wing perspective. It is the second-oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the U.S. . The current editor is Ellen Rosenbush, who replaced Roger Hodge in January 2010...
Magazine.
Sandburg's version of "The John B Sails" is the one most often recorded. It is perhaps the remarks by the McCutcheons, which Sandburg attached to the song, that a frequent title—"Wreck Of The John B"—is derived, since no lyrics report a wreck.
1935: Alan Lomax recording
Alan LomaxAlan Lomax
Alan Lomax was an American folklorist and ethnomusicologist. He was one of the great field collectors of folk music of the 20th century, recording thousands of songs in the United States, Great Britain, Ireland, the Caribbean, Italy, and Spain.In his later career, Lomax advanced his theories of...
included the song in his collection, Deep River of Song, as "Histe Up The John B Sail"; sung by the Cleveland Simmons Group, Old Bight, Cat Island, Bahamas, July 1935.
1950 to 1963
Among others, the song has been recorded by:- The WeaversThe WeaversThe Weavers were an American folk music quartet based in the Greenwich Village area of New York City. They sang traditional folk songs from around the world, as well as blues, gospel music, children's songs, labor songs, and American ballads, and selling millions of records at the height of their...
- "Wreck Of The John B" (1950) - The Kingston TrioThe Kingston TrioThe Kingston Trio is an American folk and pop music group that helped launch the folk revival of the late 1950s to late 1960s. The group started as a San Francisco Bay Area nightclub act with an original lineup of Dave Guard, Bob Shane, and Nick Reynolds...
- "Wreck Of The John B" (1958) - Johnny CashJohnny CashJohn R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
- "I Want To Go Home" (1959) - Lonnie DoneganLonnie DoneganAnthony James "Lonnie" Donegan MBE was a skiffle musician, with more than 20 UK Top 30 hits to his name. He is known as the "King of Skiffle" and is often cited as a large influence on the generation of British musicians who became famous in the 1960s...
- "I Wanna Go Home (Wreck Of the 'John B')" (1960) - Jimmie RodgersJimmie Rodgers (pop singer)James Frederick "Jimmie" Rodgers is an American singer. He is not related to the country singer of the same name.-Career:...
- "Wreck Of The John B" (1960) - Dick DaleDick DaleDick Dale is an American surf rock guitarist, known as The King of the Surf Guitar. He experimented with reverberation and made use of custom made Fender amplifiers, including the first-ever 100-watt guitar amplifier.-Early life:Dale was born in South Boston, Massachusetts and lived in nearby...
- "Sloop John B" (1962) - The Brothers FourThe Brothers FourThe Brothers Four are an American folk singing group, founded in 1957 in Seattle, Washington, known for their 1960 hit song "Greenfields".-History:...
- "The John B Sails" (1963)
1966: The Beach Boys' version
The Beach BoysThe Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962...
' version of the song, titled "Sloop John B"
Sloop John B
"Sloop John B" is the seventh track on The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds album and was also a single which was released in 1966 on Capitol Records. It was originally a traditional West Indies folk song, "The John B. Sails," taken from a collection by Carl Sandburg . Alan Lomax made a field recording of...
, influenced by the Kingston Trio's 1958 version, but with modified minor chord changes by Al Jardine
Al Jardine
Alan Charles "Al" Jardine is a founding member of top-selling American music group The Beach Boys, a guitarist and occasional lead vocalist. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988.-Early life:...
and slightly altered lyrics by Brian Wilson
Brian Wilson
Brian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
, entered the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart on April 2, and peaked at #3 on May 7, remaining on the chart, in total, for 11 weeks. It also charted highly throughout the world, remaining as one of the Beach Boys' most popular recordings. It was No. 1 in Germany, Austria, Norway—all for five weeks each—as well as Sweden, Switzerland, Holland, Ireland, South Africa and New Zealand. It placed No. 2 the UK, in Canada, and in Record World, and according to music archivist Joseph Murrells (1978) was the fastest Beach Boys seller to date, moving more than half a million copies in less than two weeks after release. The song was also covered on at least two popular TV shows shortly thereafter, The Wild Wild West in 1966 (Episode 2.3) and Lost in Space in 1967 (Episode 3.14).
Newer recordings
- David Thomas & the Pedestrian - "Sloop John BSloop John B"Sloop John B" is the seventh track on The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds album and was also a single which was released in 1966 on Capitol Records. It was originally a traditional West Indies folk song, "The John B. Sails," taken from a collection by Carl Sandburg . Alan Lomax made a field recording of...
" (1981) - Jerry Jeff WalkerJerry Jeff WalkerJerry Jeff Walker is an American country music singer and songwriter. He is probably most famous for writing the song "Mr. Bojangles.-Biography:...
- "Sloop John B" (1998) - Catch 22Catch 22 (band)Catch 22 is an American ska punk band from East Brunswick Township, New Jersey.The band was formed by guitarist/vocalist/songwriter Tomas Kalnoky and drummer Chris Greer who recruited trumpeter Kevin Gunther, who was working in a local record store...
- "Wreck of the Sloop John B" (2000) - Me First and the Gimme GimmesMe First and the Gimme GimmesMe First and the Gimme Gimmes is a punk rock supergroup and cover band that formed in 1995. The Gimmes work exclusively as a cover band. The band is named after a children's book of the same name by Gerald G. Jampolsky and Diane V. Cirincione...
- "Sloop John B" (2001) - UlfulsUlfulsis a Japanese rock band from Osaka. The band name Ulfuls is derived from a misreading of the word "soulful," found on the cover of one of the band members' favorite records...
- "Sleep John B" (Japanese) (2003) - Relient KRelient KRelient K is an American rock band formed in 1998 in Canton, Ohio by Matt Thiessen, Brian Pittman, and Matt Hoopes during the band's junior year in high school and their time at Malone University...
- "Sloop John B" (2007) - Okkervil River - "John Allyn Smith Sails" (2007)
- Simple MindsSimple MindsSimple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...
- "Sloop John BSloop John B"Sloop John B" is the seventh track on The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds album and was also a single which was released in 1966 on Capitol Records. It was originally a traditional West Indies folk song, "The John B. Sails," taken from a collection by Carl Sandburg . Alan Lomax made a field recording of...
" on deluxe edition of 2-CD Graffiti SoulGraffiti SoulGraffiti Soul is the fifteenth studio album by the Scottish rock group Simple Minds, released on 25 May 2009.An e-mail announcement by Simple Minds stated that Graffiti Soul was initially written on location in Rome, Sicily, Antwerp and Glasgow...
album (2009)