My Son John

A traditional song that appears under a lot of names, but most prominently "My Son John", "My Son Tim", and its original title "Mrs. McGrath". Though it originates during the Napoleonic Wars, it surged in popularity during World War I as a popular march for the Irish Volunteers.

It has been performed by countless folk musicians, and is widely considered a standard in the folk community. The earliest noted variant of *Mrs. McGrath* as *My Son John* occurs in a 1961 anthology assembled by Cyril Tawney ("Chicken on a Raft", "Grey Funnel Line" etc.) titled *A Soldiers Life for Me*.

It appeared as a bonus track only on the physical release copy of Bones in the Ocean, and was one of the earliest YouTube videos released by the band, filmed outside the Thornbury Library. The Longest Johns perform a version that most closely resembles the one performed by Smokey Bastard.

## Lyrics

These lyrics are based on the version performed by the Longest Johns in their YouTube video; the original lyrics can be found here.

>
> Oh my son John was tall an' slim
>
> An' he had a leg for ev’ry limb.
>
> But now he’s got no legs at all
>
> For he ran a race with a cannonball
>
>
>
> {Chorus}
>
> T'me-roo dun da, falee riddle da
>
> Whack fo’ the riddle t'me roo dun da
>
>
>
> Oh were ye drunk or were ye blind
>
> When ye left yer two fine legs behind?
>
> Or was it sailin’ on the sea
>
> Ground yer two fine legs right down to the knee?
>
>
>
> {Chorus}
>
>
>
> No I was not drunk, I was not blind
>
> When I left my two fine legs behind
>
> Nor was it sailing on the sea
>
> Ground m' two fine legs right down to the knee
>
>
>
> {Chorus}
>
>
>
> Every foreign war I’ll now denounce
>
> 'tween the King of England an' the King of France
>
> For I'd rather my legs as they used to be
>
> Than the King of Spain an' his whole navy
>
>
>
> {Chorus}
>
>
>
> Oh I was tall an' I was slim
>
> An' I had a leg for ev'ry limb
>
> But now I've got no legs at all
>
> For you can't win a race with a cannonball
>
>
>
> {Chorus}
>
>
>
> Oh I was tall an' I was slim
>
> An' I had a leg for ev'ry limb
>
> But now I’ve got no legs at all
>
> They done come off on a cannonball
>
>
>
> {Chorus 2x}
>
>
>
>
>

## Recordings

#### YouTube Videos

* Music Video
* 360° on the Tower Belle, Bristol Packet Boat
* Elden Sing

#### Gig Videos

* Falmouth International Sea Shanty Festival, 2014)
* Shrewsbury Folk Festival (28 Aug 2021)

#### Full Band Streams

* The Longest Johns Singing Stream from Newcastle (+special guests) (8 Dec 2018)
* Christmas Party with The Longest Johns!!! (19 Dec 2018)
* The Longest Johns and Friends, February Edition (New donation system) (27 Feb 2019)
* Singing Live Stream and Special Announcement... (7 Aug 2019)
* TLJ Christmas Party!! (18 Dec 2019)
* It's a stream! A Live stream! With The Longest Johns! (13 May 2020)
* Sweet Streams are Made of This | The Longest Johns Full Band Stream (In the Studio) (17 Mar 2021)
* We're Going to Wellermania! | The Longest Johns Full Band Stream (14 Apr 2021)
* In Space No One Can Hear You Stream (19 Oct 2022)

#### Chill Streams

* The Longest Johns - Andy and JD sing some folk songs and shanties! (2 Jun 2018)

#### Gaming Streams

* The Longest Johns Play Sea of Thieves but the servers die and we sing anyway (20 Mar 2018)
* Sing and Sail 2: Damp Boogaloo - 25/05/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sing & Sail & Kegs me Skellyboys! - 15/06/2020 Stream Full VOD
* GHOST SHIP! And some singing I guess... - 19/06/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings on a Monday afternoon, oh what a splendid sight to see - 29/06/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings on a Friday evening, oh what a salty sight to sea - 03/07/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings. Tonight we hit the high C's... - 10/07/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings. Tonight we sink to the low C's... - 13/07/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings! Let's ride the waves like majestic manatees! - 17/07/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Musical larceny on the big blue wet thing - 10/08/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Hoist Up The Thing! - 14/08/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Boat! Boat! Boat! Boat! Boat! - 21/08/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings, Arena edition! w/ KHARITES\_ & xSHUMBAx - 24/08/2020 Stream Full VOD
* It's Sea of Sings! Featuring Krotukk! Huzzah! - 28/08/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Super Monday Afternoon Singing Time On The Sea! - 07/09/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Musical larceny on the big blue wet thing - 14/09/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings! - 05/10/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings! Yarr and all that... - 16/10/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings! Let's Shant! With Kharites & TeachCourage! - 23/10/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings! 3 2 1 SHANT! - 26/10/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings! with Spammals! SHANT! - 1/11/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings! Welcome to the Shantydome! - 6/11/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Adventure with BehavingBeardly - 27/11/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Hijinks with Freyline - 29/11/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Let's get splashy - 14/12/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Jingle Drops Jingle Drops - 15/12/2020 Stream Full VOD
* Let's get piratical! Sea of sings! - 8/01/2021 Stream Full VOD
* Boo! Surprise Sea of Sings! - 21/01/2021 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings! Seasons or something! - 29/01/2021 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings with Azuki and HappyKrakenX - 08/02/2021 Stream Full VOD
* Sea of Sings - It's boat time - 22/02/2021 Stream Full VOD
* Bananas! Boil ’em, mash ’em, stick ’em in a stew... - 25/10/2021 Stream Full VOD
* Bo.........@? - 15/11/2021 Stream Full VOD

1. ↑ https://mainlynorfolk.info/steeleye.span/songs/mrsmcgrath.html