"She's Gone, Boys":
Vernacular Song Responses to the Atlantic Fisheries Crisis
Peter Narváez
Abstract: In July 1992 a moratorium on the commercial fishing o f cod, the staple o f the North Atlantic fisheries,
urns enacted by the Government o f Canada. Because o f the continued decline in fish stocks, the moratorium has
been m aintained, and fish in g fo r dom estic personal consum ption has also been prohibited. Various
compensation programs have not atoned fo r the demise o f what is regarded as a “way o f life." Responding to
the crisis, vernacular verse, mostly in song form from Newfoundland, reflects the inadequacies o f such programs.
In addition, these creations assign causes and solutions while revealing a common usage o f musical style,
language and signifiers which combine to affirm an allegiance to traditional collective values o f fam ily,
community and province through nostalgic experience. Some o f the versifiers have turned to the craft for
the first time during this disaster because they view songs and recitations as appropriate vehicles for
social commentary.
T ra d itio n s of so n g m a k in g and v e rsify in g
responsive to local events (Mercer 1979; O 'D onnell
1992: 132-47; Overton 1993; Sullivan 1994) continue
to th riv e in A tla n tic C an ad a, e s p e c ia lly in
N ew foundland. As w ith the sealing protests and
counter-protests of the 1970s (Lam son 1979), area
residents view as a tragedy the latest event to
prompt vernacular poetics and music (i.e., elements
of expressive culture the people of a particular
region identify as their own: cf. Narvaez 1995).
Unlike the demise of the lim ited seal fishery,
the m oratorium on fishing north ern cod, first
announced July 2, 1992, has directly undercut the
basis of the North Atlantic fisheries. Described by
Canadian historian Jack Granatstein as the "biggest
layoff in Canadian history" ( Evening Telegram, July
3, 1992), this fishing ban is an economic tragedy of
unprecedented proportions. O riginally imposed for
two years, it has been extended by the Canadian
governm ent, and m oratoria on the fishing of other
species (capelin, salm on, turbot) have follow ed.
These actions have put approximately 50,000 fishers
and fish-plant workers out of w ork in the region,
30,000 of these in Newfoundland.
Although the Federal governm ent has institu­
ted two major compensation and retraining programs
* Versions o f this p ap er w ere presented a t the 1994 Annual
M eeting o f the A m erican Folklore Society, O cto b er 12-15,
L a fa y e tte , L o u isian a; the 19 9 5 G eneral M eetin g of the
C an ad ian Society for T rad ition al M usic, N ov em b er 10-12,
T o ro n to , O n tario ; an d the 1996 C ro ssro a d s in C u ltu ral
Studies Conference, ju ly 1-4, Tam pere, Finland.
(N C A R P , T h e N orthern Cod A d ju stm en t and
Recovery Program, August 1, 1992 to May 15, 1994,
and TA G S, The A tlantic Groundfish Strategy, May
16, 1994 to May 15, 1999), these have not offset what
is widely perceived as the loss of a traditional
"w ay of life ." T h is stu dy exam in es exp ressive
re sp o n se s to the fis h e rie s c r is is , larg ely in
N ew foundland, by an alysing the lyrics of, at this
point, 43 songs and 6 "recitations" (i.e., monologues:
W areham 1984) as perform ed by 43 solo artists and
groups.1
Moratorium Songs
My com p ilation of songs ow es m uch to the
cooperation and generosity of journalists in electronic
and print media. I have occasionally discussed my
interest in such songs on CBC Radio and in the St.
John's Evening Telegram, and subsequently learned of
items I had been unaware of. At some point, what I
had termed "songs responding to the fisheries crisis"
came to be called "M oratorium songs," a descriptive
phrase 1 use in this report.
Provenance and Background of the Songs
The songs considered here originated between
1992 and Spring 1996. Individuals or groups
Newfoundland perform 37, Newfoundlanders
the "M ainland" of Canada sing three, and one is
July
from
on
from
1 Since this article w as w ritten , ab ou t 20 m o re item s have
been com p iled , but the rate of new son gs seem s to have
slow ed som ew hat.
Prince Edw ard Island. I do not know the provenance
of the rem ainin g tw o songs, alth ou gh one of the
singers resid es in O ntario. N in e lead singers are
women, of whom seven wrote their own songs. To my
k n o w le d g e , only six p erfo rm e rs are fu ll-tim e
entertainers. For most, entertaining publicly in their
localities is an enjoyable avocation w hereas a
few perform only in their own homes.
M ost of the son gs have been com m ercially
a v a ila b le on audiocassette or CD.
Usually pro­
duced privately in sm all hom e record in g studios,
they h av e had v ery lim ite d d is trib u tio n (see
"A udiography"). Because the largest sales have been
in singers' home com m unities, I liken the songs to
broad sid es of yesteryear, especially as they consist
of form u laic com m ercial verse on top ics of local
interest. O ther pieces have not been for sale but have
been transcribed to paper and/or prerecorded and sent
to radio program m es or have been directly recorded
on answ ering m achines fo r radio show s, especially
the "F ish e ries B ro a d ca st" (form erly "F ish erm en 's
B ro ad ca st": see N arvaez 1991), one of the C BC's
oldest continuous program m es. Several have been
perform ed at special public entertainm ents and then
aired on radio and television.
Musical Styles
The songs are in many musical styles. Two humourous
perform ances satirize several of these idiom s. Ten
songs featu re p o p u la r fo lk -rev iv a l and sin g erso n g w rite r sty le s, freq u en tly c h a ra cte riz e d by
heavily accented chordal accom panim ents and minor
m elodies, w hereas tw o item s com bine tragic-ballad
and rousing male-chorus conventions of the Irish folkrevival. But almost half (20 of the 43) are perform ed
in cou n try m u sic sty les and the related N ew ­
fou n d lan d style, a m usical sy n cretism in w hich
traditional m elodies, rhythms, and button accordion
are joined with m usical content and traditional forms
from Britain and Ireland, and country m usic of the
United States, the M aritim es and m ainland Canada
(N arvaez 1978).
Com posed by W ayne Bartlett of Quirpon, "She's
Gone, Boys, She's Gone" (Ex. 1) illustrates this New­
foundland style. Bartlett saw (1996):
... w hat was happening to a way of life that I
loved when I was a boy, lose its interest in the
lives of my son and his friends.... The fishery
and the whole system failed my son in that
his last chance at a decent job was taken away
from him by the closure, the M oratorium. One
tim e, if a young m an could not find a job, he
could alw ays depend on the fishery to earn a
living for him self and his fam ily. In the song,
"Sh e's Gone Boys, She's Gone," there's an old
m an and a young boy. The old man tells of
what he saw when he was younger, tells the
young boy that none of the younger generations
will ever see those things because now she's
gone.
Since outport N ewfoundland has borne the brunt
of the Moratorium - 400 communities thrown onto the
b rin k of dissolution — the choice of a syncretistic
m usical style as a mode of communication by outport
p erfo rm ers is h ard ly su rp risin g . A lth ou gh my
calculations are incomplete, the vast majority of songs
performed in Newfoundland style and country styles
have been com posed, played and sung by outport
residents, virtually all having a stake in the fishery.
Lyrics
The lyrics of Moratorium songs respond explicitly to
the fisheries crisis. N ot included in this survey are
older songs which have been used as vehicles of social
protest in perform ance contexts w ithin the crisis.
H ow ever, this is not to deny their importance. The
most sig n ifican t and pop ular of these in N ew ­
foundland is undoubtedly Otto Kelland's "Let Me Fish
O ff Cape St. M ary's" (Smith 1996). When sung by the
huge fisher chorus, "Folk of the Sea," in synch with
th eir com m ercial record in g, and 6,000 em otional
dem onstrators, the obvious lyrical sentim ent of the
song provided a poignant greeting for the arrested
Sp anish traw ler E stai, as it was escorted by two
Canadian patrol ships into St. John's harbour on
March 12,1995.
Deem ed traditional fishery songs by the public,
such songs as "L et Me Fish O ff Cape St. M ary's,"
"H ard, Hard Tim es" (Joyce 1991) and others from the
"can o n " of N ew foundland folksong (cf. Rosenberg
1991a, 1991b), have som etim es been used as vehicles
of protest. Not nearly as well known and very limited
in their distribution, songs dealing explicitly with
the M oratorium are topical and express sp ecific
opinions on occupation and employment. Though not
insider occupational songs in Gerald Porter's sense of
focusing on "the work process in terms of its tools and
rou tines" (1992: 24), they are insider occupational
songs in a broader sense of depicting the milieu of a
trade and expressing concerns about it, and because in
most perform ance contexts "singer and audience are
part of that same m ilieu" (Porter 1992: 14).
Example 1. "She's Gone, Boys, She's Gone" © Wayne
Bartlett, 1992.
D
Th e
old
m an
looked
Said,
"I
can
re
-
dow n
in
his
call
w hen
I
wind
in
his
hair,
he
stood
good
life
back
then,
but
ne
•
The old man looked down in his dory
As he stood on the wharf one more time.
With the wind in his hair, he stood there and stared
"Look at her now, what a crim e!"
Said, "I can recall when I built her,
W hen I lived in the place I called home.
' Twas a good life back then, but never again,
'Cause now, SH E'S GONE, BOYS, SH E'S GONE.
there
and
ver
a
w hat
a
1
stared:
gain,
"Look
at
her
now,
-
He said, "M y father once told me
That surely there would come a day
W hen the fish that you'd get would be too small to
sp lit
And too big to just throw aw ay."
I never thought that I'd ever live to see such going
on.
To think that the end could ever have been,
But now, SH E'S GONE, BOYS, SH E'S GONE.
'C a use
R efrain
She's gone, boys, she's gone, she's gone,
She's gone boys, she's gone.
What we didn't destroy, we allowed to die.
And now, she's gone, boys, she's gone,
SH E'S GONE, BOYS, SH E'S GONE, BOYS, SH E'S
GONE.
He stopped for a moment, just stood there
With a handkerchief, he wiped his eyes.
He looked out to sea, then he looked at me
He said, "I pities you, boy.
You'll never see the great big old codfish
Float up in the trap and go on
Out over the heads like one time they did,
Cause now, SH E'S GONE, BOYS, SH E'S GONE."
now,
GONE.
she's
gone,
boy,
she's
gone.
She 's
gone.
boy,
S H E ’S
GONE,
BOY,
S H E 'S
He said, "You see that old dory;
One day I thought she'd be yours:
She's still just as good, you know, as she was,
Except for the gunwhales and oars.
She might need a new plank there somewhere,
And the bottom might be a bit drawn."
T h en a lump in his throat as the old man spoke:
"SH E 'S GONE, BOYS, SH E'S GONE, BOYS, SH E'S
GONE."
Responding to a com plex, critical issue, M ora­
toriu m poetics are poetics of persuasion affecting
listeners in various w ays through narrative, lyric,
rh eto rica l, and p o lem ical tech n iq u es—stressin g ,
r e s p e c tiv e ly , sto ry , e m o tio n a l sta te , lo g ic a l
argument, and confrontation. Although ballad styles
p reviously have played a m ajor role in A tlantic
v ersify in g , the fish eries crisis, lik e the sealin g
controversy that preceded it, has more often pro­
duced rhetorical and polemical songs.
By "rhetorical" I refer to lyrics that are forums of
opinion: they pose social questions and provide some
answ ers, but usually do not offer solutions that
require organizational affiliation or joining a social
m ov em en t (cf. D en iso ff 1972: 61). By con trast,
p o lem ica l songs are d e lib e ra te ly p ro v o cativ e,
so m etim es strid en tly en g agin g in o p p o sitio n al
argu m ent and controversy. L ike the songs Serge
D e n iso ff h as term ed "m a g n e tic " (1 9 7 2 : 5-6),
polemical songs attem pt to prod and rally listeners,
not only to agree on the nature of a given social
problem but also to follow a specific path of social
action to rem edy it. The appeals to solid arity of
organized labour songs are polem ical, as are other
forms of social protest that express victim ization and
accuse.
Composed by out-of-work fisher Ed McCann, the
lyrics of Great Big Sea's 'T h e Fisherm an's Lam ent"
(1993) vehemently condemn government authorities:
I stand in m y d oorw ay as the m oon rises high,
O ver glorious ocean reflects th e b road sky.
M y h eart it is aching so m uch 1 could die.
I've know n only the ocean since 1 w as a boy.
R e f r a in
A nd I spent m y w hole life ou t there on the sea
Som e go vem m en tb astard now takes it from m e
It's not just the fish, th ey've taken m y pride.
I feel so asham ed, 1 just w ant to die.
I fished w ith m y father so long, long ago.
W e w ere p rou d of ou r trade and in us it did show .
W e held o u r h eads high, there w as lots of fish then.
That w as the time when w e w ere proud men.
W e challenged great storm s and som etim es w e w on.
Faced d eath and disaster, w e rose w ith th e sun.
W e w orked and toiled, w e strained arm and brain.
W e w ere a p rou d people, will w e e 'e r be again?
M y father, he is gon e now and the fish are gone too.
Abused and m ism anaged: oh, w h at can w e do?
I'm too old to change, but w hat of m y sons?
H ow will they know that w e w eren 't the ones?
DFO* regulations adm itted the rape
O f ou r beautiful ocean from headland to cape.
They b rou gh t in big traw lers, they tore up ou r twine.
Politicians d o n 't care for w h at's y o u rs and w h at's mine.
You brave N ew foundlanders, now listen to me
Shove the Package** to Hell, go back to the Sea.
If w e d on 't stand ou r ground, w e will fade aw ay
A nd the bones' o f ou r fathers will turn into clay.
© Ed M cCann, 1993
* federal D epartm ent of Fisheries and Oceans
** NCARP
As M cCann, explained to me (1996), ecological
concern and anger toward authorities prompted 'T h e
Fisherm an's Lam ent":
I com e from a fishin g fam ily. My father,
grandfather, etc. fished and farmed for a
living at Gull Island, Conception Bay. I began
fishing w ith my father at about age twelve.
A tragedy in my fam ily (two older brothers
were drowned at age fifteen and seventeen)
forced father to take me in the boat with him.
I fished w ith him for five sum m ers. The
depletion of our vast cod stocks due to
m ism an agem ent in one form or another
touched a nerve within me and my anger is
expressed in the words of the "Lament."
W h e th e r one p ersu ad es through n arration ,
lyricism , rhetoric, or polem ic, three factors play a
decisive role in convincing listeners: the identity of
the performer; the perform er's role as singer-narrator;
and the identity of the lyrics' protagonist. Generally,
M oratorium songs not only exhibit a unified firstperson subject "I," comprising both the performer and
the singer-narrator, but also in most of these songs the
first p erso n is the p ro ta g o n ist as w ell. T h e
hom ogeneity of com m unication in this unity of
énonciation (act of uttering) and énoncé (utterance)
strongly urges the listener to claim a space w ithin the
performance.
As discursive formations, Moratorium songs may
be view ed as d ev ices by w h ich problem s are
articu lated and p o ten tial so lu tio n s or an alyses
p ro p o se d . T h e A p p e n d ix su m m a riz es th e se ,
id e n tify in g re le v a n t so n g s ite m iz e d in the
audiography.
Loss of Traditional Culture: Foodways and Songs
While the often used image of an old fisherman may
index the passing of an entire way of life, many
problems of lack cited in the songs are quite precise:
from the loss of a favourite Newfoundland dish,
"fish and brewis,"
Last y ear w e w ere ou t fishing; this y e a r w e're on the land:
M e and b roth er G eorge, m e son, w e started up a band.
T h ere's no use to ignore it, there's nothing else to do:
Tonight w e 're cooking up som e beans instead of fish'n'
brew is.
('T h e M oratoriu m ," Jim and Chris Buffett, 1993)
Since governm ent brought in the M oratorium ,
W e h aven 't tasted fish n' brew is.
O u r boats will soon be old and rotten,
W ith ou t their skippers and their crew .
("S earchin g for a R ainbow ," H arris P orter, 1994)
to the loss of song tradition itself (e.g., "I'se the
B 'y ," "L ukey's B oat," "The Tiny Red L ight," "The
L ittle
Boats of Newfoundland," "H ard, Hard Tim es"):
I w on d er w h at folklore changes will com e,
N o w th at the w ord is M oratoriu m ?
R efrain
Y ou see, I'se the b 'y can 't sell his boat;
Lukey's crew w o n 't need the grub;
N o need to place the tiny red light.
The little boats d on 't go to sea;
T h ere's no fish off C ape St. M ary's:
Those are hard, hard times.
("I'se the By and O ther Stuff," G eorge H ew ison and
the Rank' n File Band; O w en M arsden, songw riter, 1993)
Diachronic Changes in the Responses: From Humour
to Frustration
D ia ch ro n ic a lly , M o rato riu m song tex ts have
changed: from positive and som etim es hum ourous
responses to the initial Federal financial "Package,"
thought by some to be a "w indfall,"
Refrain
Oh the M oratoriu m , the M oratorium ,
W e'll buy ourselves a brand new car
On T H E M ORATORIUM .
I got m yself a Big Bear, and G eorge, he got a Skidoo,
W e're running round the rabbit roads, so you can join us
too.
W ith the m oney that w e're m ak in g,... pretty good, m y son,
I'll buy m y self a brand new car on TH E M ORATORIUM .
('T h e M oratoriu m ," Jim and Chris Buffett, 1993)
to later expressions of frustration and anxiety, as the
M oratorium has continued and the extent of the
ecological disaster has becom e apparent, as in The
Irish Descendants recording of John Phippard's 1994
song "W ill They Lie There Evermore?":
I w as born under the star, n ever m eant to jo u rn ey far,
Fro m all the faces and the places that I called home.
A nd m y father lived the sam e, and his father before him,
But now 1 see in m y son 's eyes, som ething has changed.
A nd the sm oke it has stopped rising from the chim ney u pth e
ro ad ,
A nd the light no longer shines ov er the door.
L ast y e a r 1 leant a hand to haul the boats onto the land:
T h ey've been lying there for nineteen m onths or m ore,
A nd I w on d er, W IL L T H E Y LIE T H E R E EVERM O RE?
W asn 't m any years ago that the m en 'roun d here w ould go
O u t in their skiffs an a haul th eir trap s ou t on the Bay.
A nd then shortly they'd return, loaded d ow n from stem to
stern,
And w eigh off the fish, then store the gear aw ay.
N ow the w aters are as barren as the cliffs that gu ard the
cove,
And catch the north w ind blow ing off the shore.
A nd I w on d er h ow an ocean turns as lifeless as a stone,
A nd I w on d er, can the sea revive on ce m ore?
A nd I w on d er, W IL L T H E Y L IE T H E R E EVERM O RE?
Well, I h ear som e people say w e'd be better off to stay
A shore and train for jobs outside the fishery.
N ow w ou ld n 't I look like the fool, traipsing off to school
A fter forty years of living off the sea.
N o w m y son, h e 's b arely tw en ty -o n e and h an d y at the
tra w l;
For years he helped m e fish the Labrador.
N ow he's m oving to O ntario before the first snow fall:
"D ad , there's nothing left for m e 'roun d here no m ore."
A nd I w on d er, will I see his children b om ?
A nd f w on d er W ILL T H E Y LIE TH ER E EV ERM O R E?
© Jo h n Phippard, 1994
O rig in a lly from P la c e n tia , P h ip p ard w as
in sp ired to com p o se " W ill T h ey Lie T h e re
Everm ore?" by both the fisheries crisis and the
retraining programs. As he wrote me in 1996:
At the time, there was a lot of news about the
crisis in the fishery, the M oratorium, and so on.
One of the things being discussed was the idea
of retraining fishers for jobs in other industries.
I had w orked in the field of ad ult literacy
training and was aware of some of the problems
inherent in retraining, especially as it concerns
older workers. I believe that was how the idea
for the song came about. 1 know that among the
lyric notes, one of the first drafts contains the
line, 'T h ey must think that I'm some fool to go
try my hand at school after 40 years of livin'
off the sea."
Restrictions on the jigging of cod, widely viewed
as a natural Newfoundland right, prompted Bobby
Evans of G lovertow n to propose a solution that
recalled the traditional sense of "sco ff" as a stolen
feast (Taft 1986). As Evans wrote me (1996), "W hen
the government came out w ith the fish Moratorium
for the food fishery, [andi I noticed that a number of
people were jigging fish for the table late at night
(for obvious reasons) the name, 'Jig One on the Sly'
came to mind":
Refrain
N ow the hard bread's getting lonely, soaking there all by
itself.
Says *Brian, "W eigh the jiggers and good b ye!"
N ow the only w ay to get one for the pot on Sunday morn
Is to g o o u t there and JIG O N E ON TH E SLY.
'T w as a tim e when w e could boast about ou r favourite
good old stuff;
Fish 'n' brew is w as know n to people far and near.
A nd I'm sure that w hen they said w e w eren 't allowed to
fish n o m ore,
Every dry eye in the country shed a tear.
H ow good it w as to com e hom e to a feed of fish'n' brewis.
W ith scrunchions, fat and onions boiling hot: M m m mm m .
But th e ocean is like a desert: it's been scraped so m any
times
That th ere's hardly a single codfish to be got.
© Bobby E van s, 1994
*Brian Tobin, federal Fisheries M inister
**crisp pieces o f pork fat
The Arrest of the Spanish Trawler Estai and the
"Turbot War"
As emphasized above, the most dram atic episode of
the fisheries crisis was the Canadian Governm ent's
arrest of the Spanish traw ler Estai on the Grand
Banks in January 1995 and the subsequent "turbot
war" w ith the European Union. These events inspired
ex p ression s that ven ted p en t-u p an g er at the
M oratorium by providing an unam biguous culprit:
Spain. S ig n ifica n tly , these p ositiv e expression s
voiced support for the G overnm ent of Canada:
specifically, praise of N ew foundlander Brian Tobin-at the time federal Fisheries Minister, now Premier
of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Regional esteem of Tobin was well expressed in an
untitled recitation by fisher Gideon Sheppard:
I am an inshore fisherm an from Lark H arbour,
New foundland,
W ho due to the M oratorium is now upon the land.
There has been much overfishing by the foreign fleet;
It's been talked about by everyone w ho I'v e chanced to meet.
It's been told at m eetings and at forum s too,
W e all knew w h at w as happening, but w hat could w e do?
The governm ent set the quotas, but it didn't m ean a thing:
They w ere cornin', factory boats—at hom e o u r fish would
bum .
W ell, the cod fishing is over now that's within tw o hundred
mifes,
And the w ay they are talking, it sure will take a while
Before w e can get out there and catch the fish again.
It's caused m any argum ents and also pain.
O ur politicians stood by and didn't do a thing,
But it w as very easy to see w hat w as happening.
With forty thousand people laid off in N ew foundland,
O ur M inister of Fisheries did finally m ake a stand.
It all started w hen the quotas w ere finally cut:
It w asn 't about cod; it w as the Greenland halibut.
N ow he first set the quota at twenty-seven thousand tons,
But the European Union didn't agree with w hat w as done.
W e are not satisfied with the m essage they sent,
A nd instead of twelve-point-five, they wanted sixty-nine
percent.
So they kept on fishing: they never had enough.
It w as then that Mr. Tobin decided to get tough.
They w ere told to leave the turbot alone,
By orders on the radio and on the megaphone.
It w as on the ninth of M arch that the show dow n did com e:
W hen they tried to board the Spanish ship, she began to run.
She didn't w an t to be taken, it w as very clear:
She w as in such a hurry, she cut her own fishing gear.
But the Coast Guard gave the orders: "Stop, and I mean
n o w !"
And they had to convince her with four shots across her bow.
They put the tow-line on her and brought her into port:
T h at is when ou r people really showed their support.
T hey show ed up in St. John's over six thousand strong
T o show support for Tobin that he had done no w rong.
W hen they checked the E sta i, they found the fish w ere small:
W ith the crisis in the fishery, they shouldn't be taking at all.
They w ere driven out of Iceland a few years ago,
And they should have been drove from here before ou r stocks
ran low.
Yes, the Newfoundlander showed them what he could do:
1 hope they got the m essage—Spain, and other cou ntries too.
M r. Tobin, of you, we are all very proud
So drive out the foreigners: they shouldn't be allowed.
Fro m other countries around the world, you do have
support,
A nd I was very happy when you towed the ship in port.
W e all like the w ay that you took your stand.
This is just an opinion from and inshore fisherman.
© Gideon Sheppard, 1995
and in the song "Tribute to Brian Tobin" by New­
foundland en tertain er Edd ie Coffey and M arty
D elaney:
Oh! m y nam eisB rian Tobin and I'm here to work m e plan,
A nd keep the fishing traw lers off the Banks of
Newfoundland,
The Spanish fleet and all the foreign vessels will be banned,
F ro m fishing in the w aters on theBanks of Newfoundland.
Refrain
Oh! the Portuguese, the Japanese, the Norw egians, and the
French,
A nd all the Spanish traw lers fishing there upon the Banks,
Y o u 're breaking all ou r fishing laws, I hope you understand,
And the ocean's done aw ay with on the Banks of
Newfoundland.
Oh! the horns they sound on the fishing ground and they tried
to reach its side;
The baby turbot swim s aw ay, but they got no place to hide;
And the old w harf-cutter goes to work, and just the w ay we
planned:
N o ifs and buts, their trawls are cut on the Banks of
Newfoundland.
Oh! w e don't need tanks out on the Banks, 'cause there w on't
be a fight,
So start to naul y o u r fishing traw ls, 'cause w hat yo u 're doing
ain't right.
F o r years and years, the baby fish w ere caught and boxed and
canned:
I should have done this years ago on the Banks of
Newfoundland.
Oh! ten years from now you'll w onder how w e m ade it all
w ork out.
And the youn ger ones w ould w onder w h at this song w as al!
about:
Well, it's just their obligation to rem em ber m y com m and,
And keep the Spanish traw lers off the Banks of
Newfoundland.
© Eddie Coffey, 1996
Tobin's elevation to the status of a national hero
was lampooned on CBC Radio by Ontario resident
Kirk Elliot, in his song 'T h e Ballad of Brian Tobin or
'L et My T u rbot G o ,'" sung trium phantly to the
melody of the country music classic "Ghost Riders in
the Sk y ":
O nce there w as a turbot w ay dow n in the sea,
Swim m ing by his lonesome, saying," W hat will becom eof me?
The Spanish fleet's a-com ing, and can you tell m e why
T h ey're fishing off the nose and tail 'til the Grand Banks run
d ry ? "
He'd seen the Spanish fishing nets, his m ortal enem y;
H e'd seen them sw eep the cod that once sw am proud and free.
So he stuck his little head above the w aves that w ere so high
And he called for Brian Tobin to hear his m ortal cry.
communicating concerns about critical social issues
(1996):
I was a fisherman who had noticed the decline
in fish stocks in the last few years. It had been
very hard to make a living at the inshore
fishery. I realized that there w as a lot of
overfishing, not only by the foreign fleet, but
by our own as well. Our other m inisters of
F ish eries and our sc ien tists failed to do
anything about it. W hen M r. Brian Tobin
decided to do som eth ing about it, I was
thrilled and decided to write about it. I only
started to. write poems in 1992. I find that it is
the best way I can express myself.
In A tlantic C anada Sheppard is hardly alone in
judging rhyme to be the most appropriate vehicle for
social exp ression . T rad itio n al songm akin g and
versifying continue to be alive and well.
R eferences Cited
Refrain
Bartlett, Wayne. (1996). Personal correspondence
with author, Sept. 5.
Yippee aye ay
Yippee aye oh
Let m y turbot go.
Tobin set p atrol boats upon the Spanish ships.
They tried to rally 'round and tried to give us the slip.
The E sta i cut its nets and turned to run aw ay,
But soon it w as surrounded and brought to St. John's Bay
[sic].
It's captain w as arrested and Canadians w ere told
T h at tons of baby turbot w as hidden in that hold.
The fisherfolk from Newfoundland let out a m ighty cheer.
They took the Spanish sailors and they bought them all a
beer.
The E uropean Union w as said to pop its cork:
They called Tobin a pirate when they m et him in N ew York;
They said no one in Europe will believe a w ord of this.
Tobin hung the E stai's nets up, said,"com e on, have a whiff!"
N ow , com e on, you Spanish captains, w ho look at us and
scoff,
D on 't m ess w ith Brian Tobin or he'll cut yo u r nets right off.
And all you folks in Canada, 1 hope you like the tale
Of the little baby turbot w ith the cou rage of a w hale.
D enisoff, R. Serge. (1972). Sing a Song o f Social
Significance. Bowling Green: Bowling Green Uni­
versity Popular Press.
Evans, Bobby. (1996). Personal correspondence with
author, July 12.
Evening Telegram. (1992). "Northern Cod Shutdown
'Biggest Layoff' in C anada.'" (St. John's, July 3): 2.
G reat Big Sea. (1993). "F ish erm an 's Lam ent" on
Great Big Sea. NRA Productions Ltd., CD, NRA3-
1002.
Joyce, Jim . (1991). "H ard, Hard Tim es" on Kelly
Russell and Don Walsh, prods. Another Time: The
Songs o f Newfoundland. Pigeon Inlet Production, CD,
PIPCD 7326.
Lam son, C ynthia. (1979). Bloody
Decks and a
Bumper Crop: The Rhetoric o f Sealing CounterProtest. (Social and Economic Studies 24). St. John's:
Institute for Social and Economic Research.
Conclusion
In explaining to me why he penned his poem in
praise of Brian Tobin, Sheppard articulated how
creatin g verse cen trin g on events provides an
im p o rtan t tra d itio n a l o u tlet for ex p re ssiv e ly
McCann, Ed. (1996). Personal correspondence with
author, June 12.
M ercer, Paul. (1979). N ew foundland
Songs and
Ballads in Print, 1842- 1974: A Title and First-Line
Index. St. Joh n 's: M em orial U niversity of N ew ­
foundland.
N arváez, Peter. (1978). "Country M usic in Diffusion:
Juxtaposition and Syncretism in the Popular M usic of
Newfoundland." Journal o f Country Music 7/2: 93-101.
_____ . (1991). "Folk Talk and H ard Facts: T h e Role
of Ted Russell's 'U ncle M ose' on C BC's 'Fisherm en's
B ro a d ca st'" in G erald T h om as and J.D .A . W iddow son, eds. Studies in N ew fou ndland Folklore:
Community and Process. St. John's: Breakw ater, 191-
212.
a u d io g r a p h y
Anon. (1995). Untitled recitation. Unidentified radio
performance on tape from Elizabeth Cull.
Baker, Kristin and Leo Baker. (1994). "M oratorium ,"
SW C Productions, cassette, nn.
Bartlett, Wayne. (1992), "Sh e's Gone Boys, She's
Gone." SWC Productions, cassette, nn.
_____ . (1995). "N ew foundland V ernacular Song." in
W ill Straw et al., eds. Popular M usic: Style and
Id en tity . Montréal: Centre for Research on Canadian
Cultural Industries and Institutions, 215-19.
Best, Anita. (1995). "W hich Side Are You On?" CBC
Radio, Morningside, March 2.
O 'D onnell, John C. (1992). "And Nozu the Fields Are
Butler, Hedley. (1994). "W e Took Enough." CBC
Radio, St. John's, Fisheries Broadcast.
Green": A Collection o f Coal Mining Songs in Canada.
Sydney, NS: U College of Cape Breton Press.
O verton, Jim . (1993). "N ew foundland in the 1930s:
Voices of the Unem ployed." Socialist Studies
B u lletin 33 (July-Sept.): 8-19; 34 (Oct.-Dec.): 3-29.
Phippard, John. (1996). Personal correspondence with
author, Oct. 6.
Porter, Gerald. (1992). The English
Song. Umea, Sweden: U of Umeá.
Occupational
R osenberg, N eil V. (1991a). 'T h e G erald S. D oyle
Songsters and the Politics of Newfoundland Folk­
song." Canadian Folklore canadien 13/1:45-57.
________. (1991b). "O m ar B lond ahl's Contribution to
the Newfoundland Folksong Canon." Canadian Folk
Music Journal 19: 20-7.
Sheppard, Gideon. (1996).
with author, Oct. 25.
Personal correspondence
Smith, Jennifer. (1996). "Songs of the Dory M an." T he
Evening Telegram (Sept. 7): 17.
Sullivan, Lisa. (1994). "N o Part of O ur Life: Local
and O fficial C onstructions of M eaningful W ork in
Contemporary Newfoundland." Labour/ Le Travail
34: 189-209.
T aft, M ichael. (1986). "O f S co ffs, M oun ties and
M ainlanders: The P opu larity of a S h ee p -S tea lin g
Ballad in N ew fou nd lan d ." in P eter N arvaez and
M artin L aba, ed s. M edia S ense: The F olklorePopular Culture Continuum. Bow ling Green, Ohio:
Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 77
98.
W areh am , W ilfred . (1984). "T h e M onologu e in
Newfoundland Folk Culture" in J. R. Sm allw ood et.
al., eds. Encyclopedia o f Newfoundland.
St. John's:
Newfoundland Book Publishers, 2: 252-62.
Buffett, Jim and Chris Buffett. (1993). "The
Moratorium Song." nl, cassette, nn.
Cat Fud. (1995). 'T h e Boys From Spain." CBC Radio,
St. John's, The Morning Show.
C offey, Eddie and Marty Delaney. (1996). 'T rib u te to
Brian Tobin." RMS, cassette, 0196.
Elliot, Kirk. (1995). "Ballad of Brian Tobin or 'Let My
Turbot G o'." CBC Radio, St. John's, The Morning
Show .
Evans, Bobby. (1994). "Jig One on the Sly." nl,
cassette, nn.
Fitzgerald, Dennis. (1994). 'T h e Patrick and
Elizabeth." CBC-TV, St. John's, Land and Sea.
Fowlow, Susan. (1995). "Dad Was a Fisherman."
Private recording from Francesa Swan.
Gallant, Lonnie. (1994). "Peter's Dream " Columbia
CD CK80196.
Great Big Sea. (1993). "Fisherm an's Lament." NRA
Productions Ltd., CD NRA3-1002, 1993.
Hewison, George and The Rank 'n ' File Band. (1993).
"I'se the B'y & O ther Stuff." nl, cassette, RFCD9301.
H illier, Calvin (1993a). "I'm Going Back to School."
nl, cassette, nn.
_____ . (1993b). "W hen the Last Ship Comes Sailing
In." nl, cassette, nn.
Irish Descendants. (1994). "W ill They Lie There
Everm ore?" Warner Music Canada Ltd., CD W88.
Lee, Fred. (1994a). "Back in School." nl, cassette, nn.
_____ . (1994b). "W e All Knew 'Tw as Cornin'." nl,
cassette, nn.
Moonshiners, The. (1993). 'T h e Good Days Are Gone."
SWC Productions, cassette, 99321.
Norman, Wayne. (1992). "W ay of Life." Private
recording.
Payne, Jim. (1994). "Empty Nets." Mary Brown's,
cassette, TW P-093, (rec. 1992).
Soirees, The. (1993). "Crisis in the Fishery." nl,
cassette, TS-93.
Porter, Harris. (1994). "Searching for a Rainbow."
SW C Productions, cassette, nn.
Split Peas, The. (1995). "W here are the Fishing
Boats?" nl, cassette, nn.
Power (O'Rourke), Ernestine. (1994). "Boy by My
Side." CBC Radio, St. John's, Radio Noon.
Stuffed Squid. (1994a). 'T h e M oratorium Blues."
SWC Productions, cassette, nn.
_____ . (1994b). "Package Song." SWC Productions,
cassette, nn.
_____ . (1995). 'T h e Last W ater H aul." CBC-TV,
Land and Sea.
Prince, John and A Piece of the Rock. (1994a). "Let's
All Pull Together." Rattle Falls Publishing, CD JP
001.
_____ . (1994b). "W here Do Old Boats Go?" Rattle
Falls Publishing, CD JP-001.
Sheppard, Gideon. (1995). Untitled recitation. CBC
Radio, St. John's, Fisheries Broadcast.
Simani. (1994). "It Could Be W orse." SW C
Productions, cassette, rtn.
W allace, Len. (1994). "Leaving the Fishing Behind."
CBC Radio, St. John's, Fisheries Broadcast.
Walsh, Junior. (1993). "I Used to Be a Fisherman."
nl, cassette, nn.
Whyatt, Sabrina. (1994). "W hat H as Gone W rong?"
Lloyd Bartlett Productions, cassette, LBP5 12301.
APPENDIX: Themes in Moratorium Lyrics
Problems/Analyses
Solutions/Responses
MORATORIUM
Anon., Best, Hewison, Lee a, Prince a, b, Sheppard
W att/hope/pray fish , traditional culture will
return
Baker, H ew ison, H illier a, M oonshiners, Payne,
Porter, Power, Prince a, Simani, Split Peas
Give up the fishery
Baker, Power, W allace, Walsh
NO FISH
No known reason
Irish Descendants, W alsh, W hyatt
III fortune
Good fortune
W a lla c e
Payne
Government did not listen to fishers
Soirees
DFO scientists mismanaged stocks
Great Big Sea, Prince a, Soirees
Foreign nations' fish allocations too large
Soirees
EU pillaging stocks
C offey & D elaney, Sheppard, W alsh
Support confrontational policies
Minister, Brian Tobin
o f Fisheries
Cat Fud, Coffey & Delaney, Elliot, Sheppard
Fish companies devastating stocks with high-tech
traw lers
Return to older traditional
methods (hand
line)
Lee b
Best, G allant, G reat B ig Sea,
Soirees
FISH E R S M A LIG N ED
Affirmation o f Fishing:
Hard work
by M edia:
F ish ers lazy
Great Big Sea, H illier b, Wallace
B u tler
Divinely ordained occupation
Fishers abuse U1C system
Gallant, Soirees
B u tler
Fishers take pride in work
F ishers blamed fo r lack o f fish
Fovvlow, Great Big Sea, H illier b, Norman,
Porter, Soirees, Walsh
Anon., Butler
by Unspecified Non-Fishers in Town
Anon., Butler
M O R E BLAM E
Decision makers (politicians,
exploit fis h e r s
businessmen, scientists)
Collective effort: Fishers should stand up
against foes
Best, Great Big Sea, Porter, Sheppard, Sim ani
Best, Butler, Great Big Sea
Fish companies deliberately mislead by citing reasons
other than own greed (foreigners, seals, cold water)
B est
Fishers to blame
Bartlett, Lee, Soirees
Foolish pride: Fishermen will not
Soirees
accept blame
Collective effort: Work cooperatively toward
solution
Butler, Prince a, Soirees
Evenjone blaming everyone else
Stop making accusations and act cooperatively
P ayne, W hyatt
W h y a tt
RE M A IN IN G FISH :
Too small
Stuffed Squid c
Other species cannot replace cod
Stuffed Squid c
Fishers in small boats must risk lives by fishing too
fa r o ff shore
Fitzgerald
LOSS OF TRADITIONAL CULTURE:
Evident in pain o f old fisher
Bartlett, H illier a, Lee b, Moonshiners, Norman,
Prince b
Foodways: Fish
Cook beans
Buffett, Evans, Fitzgerald, Lee b, Payne, Prince b
B u ffett
Foodways: Fish and brewis
Buffett, Evans
Song: Singing fishing songs
Hewison
Material culture: Boat, fishing gear in disuse
Gallant
Destroy boat
Baker, Bartlett, Irish Descendants, Lee a, Porter,
Power, Prince a, b, Walsh
Material culture: Flakes and stages in disuse
Porter, Prince b
Custom: Smuggling cigarettes and liquor
S im a n i
Custom: jigging cod
Jig cod surreptitiously
Evans, Simani, Stuffed Squid c
Evans
Occupational heritage: Father-son apprenticeship
Bartlett, Power, Gallant, Great Big Sea, H illier b,
Irish Descendants, Lee a, b, Moonshiners, Norman,
Prince b, W allace, W alsh
Gender roles: Change causes intra-family conflict
Stuffed Squid b
Gender- roles: Fishing and manhood
Power, Fowlow
Way o f life
Great Big Sea, Norman, Power, Prince b, Wallace,
W a ls h
12
Canadian Journalfor Traditional Music / ‘Revue de tmniquefoti([orique canadienne, voi 25 (1997)
GOVERNMENT SUPPORT PROGRAMS INADEQUATE:
F in an cial
Opportunism: Make a fortune on government
Best, Fowlow, Stuffed Squid b, c
support programs
---------- ------ — --------- ---------------------------------------------------- B u ffett
R etrain in g/edu cation
----------------------------------------------------------------------Buffett, H illier a, Irish Descendants, Lee a, Power,
Consumerism: purchase car with government
Stuffed Squid c, Walsh
support funds
—
- ..........................................................- ---------- ------------- B u ffett
Only reward to look forward to
Baker
........... -
Consumerism: purchase motorboat with government support funds
.............................. ...................—................... —..............- B a k er
Will end
Stuffed Squid c
PERSONAL:
No meaningful work
Entrepreneurism: Start a band
Buffett, Butler, H illier a, Stuffed Squid b, W allace
B u ffett
Ennui
Diversion: Cruise "rabbit roads" on Skidoo
Buffett, Stuffed Squid b
B u ffett
Loss o f pride and dignity
Great Big Sea, H illier a, Lee a, Stuffed Squid b
— Diversion: Walk around town
Moonshiners, Norman
Diversion: Sing the blues
— Baker, Gallant, Prince b, Stuffed Squid b
D epression
Diversion: Play darts
Stuffed Squid b
B u ffett
Diversion: Drink alcohol
Anon., Cat Fud, Fowlow, H illier b, Stuffed Squid b
Diversion: Participate in entertainments o f
local religious revival
Anon.
Diversion/sustenance: jig cod / haddock/pollock
Buffett, Evans
Diversionlsustenance: Hunt (bear, turr)
B u ffett
LOCAL COMMUNITY/EMIGRATION:
Local fish plant closed
H illier b, Stuffed Squid a
Community doomed
H illier b
Collective effort: Maintaining community
spirit will ensure community survival
H illier b, Payne, Simani
Fam ilies em igrating
W hy a tt
Provincial and Federal Governments want to resettle
fish ery fam ilies
Sim an i
Youth emigrating
Fitzgerald, Irish Descendants, Prince b, W hyatt
FUTURE:
U ncertainty
Baker, Fitzgerald, Gallant, Great Big Sea, Stuffed
Squid a, W alsh
Divell nostalgically on golden age o f outport
fisheries: Many fish and the good life
Bartlett, Fowlow, Great Big Sea, Lee b, Power,
Prince a, b, Split Peas, W hyatt
Good days o f fishery gone forever
Bartlett, Fitzgerald, Moonshiners, Power, Prince b
Preseme artefacts as symbolic mementos o f
fishery: Cod jigger, sou'zvester, photo
W a ls h