On Deck and Below: The Irish at Sea: Music of the Western Ocean Packet

Tom Sullivan’s 1979 album On Deck and Below: the Irish at Sea: Music of the Western Ocean Packet, provides the listener with an authentic reconstruction of the chanties, forecastle songs (songs performed on the upper deck), and dance tunes once performed by Irish immigrant sailors of New York and Liverpool. Sullivan’s liner notes explain the associations of specific song-types with different nautical tasks and also provide the origin of each track and complete song lyrics.