"The Banks Of Newfoundland" is the earliest

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

composition set down in music notation. It was composed by Chief Justice

Francis Forbes Sir Francis William Forbes (1784 – 8 November 1841) was a Chief Justice of Newfoundland, and the first Chief Justice of New South Wales. Early life Forbes was born and educated in Bermuda, the son of Dr. Francis Forbes M.D. and his wife Mar ...

in 1820 and published in a piano arrangement by

Oliver Ditson Oliver Ditson (October 20, 1811 – December 21, 1888) was an American businessman and founder of Oliver Ditson and Company, one of the major music publishing houses of the late 19th century. Early life and career Oliver Ditson was born in Bos ...

of Boston. Originally composed as a dance, it was treated as a march by the soldiers of

Royal Newfoundland Regiment The Royal Newfoundland Regiment (R NFLD R) is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army. It is part of the 5th Canadian Division's 37 Canadian Brigade Group. Predecessor units trace their origins to 1795, and since 1949 Royal N ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

; it later became the Regiment's authorized

march March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of Marc ...

. It has also been associated with the

Royal St. John's Regatta The Royal St. John's Regatta is North America's oldest annual sporting event with documented proof of 1816 boat races. There is credible contention that St. John's regattas were held even earlier than 1816, likely in the 18th century. The races o ...

since its early days. As a Regatta tune it is more popularly known as "Up The Pond", and is traditionally played as the crews pass the bandstand on their return to the stakes. It was later made the official tune of the Regatta. An entirely different "The Banks of Newfoundland" is a song in ballad form, created as a parody of "Van Dieman's Land." It voices the lament of a sailor on a voyage from Liverpool to New York, on which one must pass the cold Grand Banks.

Lyrics

THE BANKS OF NEWFOUNDLAND :You bully boys of Liverpool :And I'll have you to beware, :When you sail on them packet ships, :no dungaree jackets wear; :But have a big monkey jacket :all ready to your hand, :For there blows some cold

nor'westers Nor'westers or the Kalbaishakhi ( bn, কাল বৈশাখী) ( or, କାଳ ବୈଶାଖୀ), Bordoisila as known in Assam, are localised rainfall and thunderstorm event which occurs in Bangladesh and Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, ...

:on the Banks of Newfoundland. :''We'll scrape her and we'll scrub her'' :''with holy stone and sand,'' :''For there blows some cold nor'westers'' :''on the Banks of Newfoundland.'' :We had Jack Lynch from Ballynahinch, :Mike Murphy and some more, :And I tell you by's, they suffered like hell :on the way to Baltimore; :They pawned their gear in Liverpool :and they sailed as they did stand, :But there blows some cold nor'westers :on the Banks of Newfoundland. :''We'll scrape her and we'll scrub her'' :''with holy stone and sand,'' :For there blows some cold nor'westers'' :''on the Banks of Newfoundland.'' :Now the mate he stood on the

fo'c'sle The forecastle ( ; contracted as fo'c'sle or fo'c's'le) is the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or, historically, the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters. Related to the latter meaning is the phrase " be ...

head :and loudly he did roar, :Now rattle her in me lucky lads, :you're bound for America's shore; :Come wipe the blood off that dead man's face :and haul or you'll be damned, :But there blows some cold nor'westers :on the Banks of Newfoundland. :''We'll scrape her and we'll scrub her'' :''with holy stone and sand,'' :For there blows some cold nor'westers'' :''on the Banks of Newfoundland.'' :So now it's reef and reif, me boys :With the Canvas frozen hard :and this mountain pass every Mother's son :on a ninety foot topsail yard :nevermind about boots and oilskins :but holler or you'll be damned :But there blows some cold nor'westers :on the Banks of Newfoundland. :''We'll scrape her and we'll scrub her'' :''with holy stone and sand,'' :''And we'll think of them cold nor'westers'' :''on the Banks of Newfoundland.'' :So now we're off the Hook, me boys, :and the land is white with snow, :And soon we'll see the pay table :and we'll spend the whole night below; :And on the docks, come down in flocks, :those pretty girls will say, :Ah, It's snugger with me than on the sea, :on the Banks of Newfoundland. :''We'll scrape her and we'll scrub her'' :''with holy stone and sand,'' :''And we'll think of them cold nor'westers'' :''on the Banks of Newfoundland.''

Lyrics

References

See also