Nantucket

"Nantucket" is a Longest Johns original, based on the true story of Matthew Starbuck, who left his family's whaling business to serve in the Continental Navy under  Capt. John Paul Jones during the American Revolution, and was disowned by his Quaker community for doing so. The song was released as track 3 on Smoke + Oakum.

## Factoids

**Nantucket** is an island off the coast of Massachusetts, although prior to 1795, the town on the island was called Sherburne. The community was central to the New England whaling industry in the 17th and 18th centuries, with the Starbuck family being particularly prominent. The character of Starbuck in Herman Melville's novel *Moby-Dick*, though fictional, is named in reference to them.

**Quakers** are members of a sect known as the Religious Society of Friends. They were a prominent feature of Nantucket society at the time of the American Revolution. Many Quakers are strict pacifists, hence Matthew Starbuck's being disowned for joining in the war.

**Jetsam** is usually encountered as a noun meaning "items thrown overboard", often to lighten a ship; as a verb, naturally, it meant "to throw [something] overboard". "Jettison" is the modern term, coined in 1838.

**Try-pots** were large pots used to render whale oil from blubber. In the 18th- and 19th-century New England whaling industry, whaling vessels frequently included a trywork, a brick furnace and set of try pots built into the deck, which allowed ships to stay at sea longer, rather than needing to bring the blubber into port for processing.

A long gun was the standard type of cannon on a sailing vessel. In informal usage, the length was combined with the weight of shot; **long nines** would refer to full-length, 9-pounder guns.

To **hull** a ship means to hit and pierce the hull with a projectile. The implication is that they intend to sink the enemy ship, as opposed to capturing it.

**Liberty's sons** may be a reference to the Sons of Liberty, a name applied to several separatist groups during the years preceding the American Revolution.

## Lyrics

These lyrics are taken from the version on the album Smoke + Oakum

>
> I come from an island, and islander's ways
>
> Quakers and breakers and few of us stray
>
> Hunting the oceans with men that won't tire
>
> Nantucket sleigh rides and chimneys afire
>
> Some may be wary, and won't understand
>
> Trading a spear for a flag in the hand
>
> But jetsam the try pots, I'm shipping out east
>
> Off to go hunting a different beast
>
>
>
> {Chorus}
>
> Fire flies from the long nines
>
> Shot-handlers run about
>
> The captain says we'll hull 'er
>
> As though there was some doubt
>
> And as we blow on the matches
>
> And brace to take the shock
>
> My mind is in Nantucket
>
> Hauling whale meat into dock
>
>
>
> I'm not used to bracing in weather so calm
>
> Still making cheer when I hear the alarm
>
> As iron and fire knock nails from the stern
>
> The shoals are no longer my biggest concern
>
> Our skipper is canny, a droll kind of soul
>
> Heat of assault and he's still cracking jokes
>
> "Ah, Mr Starbuck, your aim is quite rare"
>
> "Well I aims to sink her beyond disrepair"
>
>
>
> {Chorus}
>
>
>
> History favours the bold and the brave
>
> Conquer the mountains and weather the waves
>
> Now I'm away with all liberty's sons
>
> Off down the channel to stand by the guns
>
>
>
> {Chorus x2}
>
>
>
>

## Recordings

#### Streaming/Purchase

* Amazon Music (Smoke + Oakum version)
* Amazon Music (Made of Ale version)
* Apple Music/iTunes (Smoke + Oakum version)
* Apple Music/iTunes (Made of Ale version)
* Deezer (Smoke + Oakum version)
* Deezer (Made of Ale version)
* Pandora (Smoke + Oakum version)
* Spotify (Smoke + Oakum version)
* Spotify (Made of Ale version)

#### YouTube Videos

* Music Video
* Made of Ale Sessions
* Smoke + Oakum version

#### Gig Videos

* The Whelan's - Dublin (3 Dec 2021)
* Old Songs (25 Feb 2022)
* Le Poisson Rouge, NYC (27 Feb 2022)
* Songbyrd, Washington, DC (3 Mar 2022)
* Exeter Phoenix (26 April 2022)
* The Studio at the Factory - Dallas, TX (23 Nov 2022)
* Cursus Festival (26 May 2023)
* Beardy Folk Festival (16 Jun 2023)

#### Full Band Streams

* It's The Most Wonderful Stream of the Year (22 Dec 2021)
* Ex-Stream Sports (15 Feb 2022)
* Cadbury Stream Egg (13 Apr 2022)
* Strème de Menthe (27 Jul 2022)
* Heinz Baked Stream (14 Sep 2022)
* Streamworks (18 Jan 2023)
* Do Androids Stream of Electric Sheep (3 Aug 2023)

#### Gaming Streams

* We're Back!! First Sing & Sail of 2022 - 10/01/2022

1. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nantucket
2. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quakers
3. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nantucket\_sleighride
4. ↑ https://www.coolantarctica.com/gallery/whales\_whaling/0007.php
5. ↑ https://www.etymonline.com/word/jetsam
6. ↑ https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Try\_pot
7. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naval\_long\_gun
8. ↑ https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/hull