Away, Rio: Shanties, the Work Songs of Sailors
Download PDF Version of this Lesson Plan Here.
Introduction
Shanties were the work songs of sailors during the age of sail on clipper ships, schooners and brigs. They helped keep the work in rhythm for the various tasks required. Shanties that were used to raise sails were called hauling shanties because the work involved hauling on ropes, while capstan shanties were called heaving shanties, used for heaving in the anchor before setting sail.
“Away, Rio” was often the first shanty sung on an outward-bound voyage on British and American ships. This recording was made in 1939 in Belvedere, CA, just north of the Golden Gate Bridge. Leighton Robinson, the lead singer, performed many shanties for the Library of Congress between 1938 and 1942.
Activity
Project engraving of sailors at the capstan https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1926-0223-7
- • What do you see in this engraving? What are the men doing? (raising the anchor)
- • Does anyone know the name of the device that they are using to raise the anchor? (capstan)
- • Does this look like easy work? How can you tell?
- • What do you see beyond the men who are at the capstan? (a furled sail and safety net)
- • When would the sails have been raised?
Project engraving from 1818 of a capstan on the deck of a British ship https://www.loc.gov/item/2014649352/.
At the Mate’s order, the sailors hurried to the forecastle to fetch the stout wooden capstan bars. They fitted them into the pigeonholes in the capstan head, like the spokes of a big wheel, and stood two or three men to each bar.
Because the work was so hard, capstan shanties were sung at a slow pace suited to the labor of heaving in many fathoms of chain cable, “breaking out” a heavy anchor from the bottom, and heaving it up to the ship. Shanties have become popular on TikTok and other social media sites, but they have become separated from their original use and are often performed much faster than they would have been at the time. Today, we’ll listen to a recording that was recorded in 1939 near San Francisco, performed by a group of sailors.
Project score and listen to “Away, Rio” at https://kodalycollection.org/song.cfm?id=938
- • The verses are in call and response form, followed by a chorus. How might this back and forth have helped the timing of the work?
- • What location are these sailors singing about? Rio Grande
It was pronounced “Rye-o Grande” to differentiate it from the Rio Grande River that forms the border between Mexico and the United States. The Rio Grande referred to in this song is the Rio Grande do Sul, a river channel in the southernmost part of Brazil.
Project a map: https://www.worldometers.info/img/maps/brazil_physical_map.gif
The state of Rio Grande do Sul is the most southerly in Brazil. The eastern part of the state is separated from the Atlantic by two great lagoons. For over 300 miles, these lagoons are separated from the ocean by two peninsulas consisting of sandy beach and dunes. The Rio Grande forms a 24-mile-long channel through this sandbar, enabling shipping to reach the lagoons and the rivers beyond.
The city of Rio Grande claims the longest beach in the world with 155 miles of uninterrupted Atlantic coastline. According to Captain Patrick Tayluer, "It was a beautiful place, and the sailors used to love it— and the song was sung by seamen all over the world."
Listen to the shanty again, with students singing with the group on the refrain and chorus. https://kodalycollection.org/song.cfm?id=938
If there is enough space, students can sing while dramatizing the turning of the capstan, with slow, labored steps in time to the music.
For additional information
See Steve Winick’s blog at the Library of Congress American Folklife Center https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2021/01/a-deep-dive-into-sea-shanties/
