When the Boat Comes In (song)
"When The Boat Comes In" (or "Dance Ti Thy Daddy") is a traditional English folk song, originating in North East England. An early source for the lyrics,Joseph Robson's "Songs of the bards of the Tyne", published 1849, can be found on the FARNE archive[1]; in FARNE's notes to the song, it is stated that these lyrics were written by William Watson around 1826.
It was popularised as the theme tune to the 1970s BBC drama serial When The Boat Comes In in an arrangement by the composer David Fanshawe.
Lyrics
There are two distinct sets of lyrics in popular culture for the song. The theme to the TV series of the same name, sung by Alex Glasgow, was released as a BBC single and uses the traditional lyrics. The song was also used in the TV advertisement for Young's fish, Sea to Plate campaign which uses the same lyrics as The Wiggles. The lyrics from traditional version of the song, used by the TV series, differ significantly from those of the TV advertisement.
| Traditional version (From Farne) | Young's fish advertisement transcription | |
|---|---|---|
| First verse | ||
| Come here, my little Jacky | Dance to your Daddy, my little laddie | |
| Now I've smoked my backey | Dance to your Daddy, my little man | |
| Let's have a bit crackey | Thou shalt have a fish and thou shalt have a fin | |
| Till the boat comes in | Thou shalt have a codlin when the boat comes in | |
| Dance to thy daddy, sing to thy mammy, | Thou shalt have haddock baked in a pan | |
| Dance to thy daddy, to thy mammy sing; | Dance to your Daddy, my little man | |
| Thou shalt have a fishy on a little dishy, | Dance to your Daddy, my little laddie | |
| Thou shalt have a fishy when the boat comes in. | Dance to your Daddy, my little laddie | |
| Dance to your Daddy, my little man | ||
| Second verse | ||
| Here's thy mother humming, | When thou art a young boy, you must sing and play, | |
| Like a canny woman; | Go along the shore and cast your shells away, | |
| Yonder comes thy father, | Build yourself a castle, watch the tide roll in, | |
| Drunk, he cannot stand. | Dance to your Daddy, my little man. | |
| Dance to thy daddy, sing ti' thy mammy, | Dance to your Daddy, my little laddie, | |
| Dance to thy daddy, ti' thy mammy sing; | Dance to your Daddy, my little man, | |
| Thou shalt have a fishy on a little dishy, | ||
| Thou shalt have a haddock when the boat comes in. | ||
| Third verse | ||
| Our Tommy's always fuddling, | When thou art a young man, go unto the trades, | |
| He's so fond of ale, | Find yourself a skill, and wages you’ll be paid | |
| But he's kind to me, | Then with all your wages, buy yourself some land | |
| I hope he'll never fail. | Dance to your Daddy, my little man | |
| Dance to thy daddy, sing ti' thy mammy, | Dance to your Daddy, my little laddie, | |
| Dance to thy daddy, ti' thy mammy sing; | Dance to your Daddy, my little man, | |
| Thou shalt have a fishy on a little dishy, | ||
| Thou shalt have a bloater when the boat comes in. | ||
| Fourth verse | ||
| I like a drop mysel', | When thou art a man and go to take a wife | |
| When I can get it sly, | Find yourself a lass and love her all your life | |
| And thou, my bonny bairn, | Find yourself a lass and love her all your life | |
| Will lik't as well as I | Dance to your Daddy, my little man. | |
| Dance to thy daddy, sing ti' thy mammy, | Dance to your Daddy, my little laddie, | |
| Dance to thy daddy, ti' thy mammy sing; | Dance to your Daddy, my little man | |
| Thou shalt have a fishy on a little dishy, | ||
| Thou shalt have a mackerel when the boat comes in. | ||
| Fifth verse | ||
| May we get a drop, | When thou art an old man, father to a son | |
| Oft as we stand in need; | Sing to him the old songs, sing of all you've done | |
| And weel may the keel row | Pass along the old ways, then let his song begin | |
| That brings the bairns their bread. | Dance to your Daddy, my little man. | |
| Dance to thy daddy, sing ti' thy mammy, | Dance to your Daddy, my little laddie, | |
| Dance to thy daddy, ti' thy mammy sing; | Dance to your Daddy, my little man, | |
| Thou shalt have a fishy on a little dishy, | ||
| Thou shalt have a salmon when the boat comes in. | ||