The Lowestoft Boat - Elgar, Edward

"The Fringes of the Fleet, No. 1 In 1915, ''The Daily Telegraph'' commissioned Rudyard Kipling to write articles on aspects of the defense of the nation on the sea. They were subsequently published in a booklet titled “The Fringes of the Fleet”. Each section was prefaced by a short poem. In 1916 Lord Charles Beresford asked Elgar to set of some of the verses as songs. Elgar chose to set four of them as a song-cycle, originally for four men’s voices. They were quite popular and Elgar re-wrote them for mixed voices."

⌛ Period → Romantic

◈ Genre / Form Partsongs

♬ Voicing → SATB

◆ Difficulty

Advanced (Grade 5-6)

¶ Language → English

Parts 4

Instruments Piano

Pages 16

CPDL # 76285

Editor David Anderson

Posted 2023-10-12

License Personal

¶Lyrics / Text

The Lowestoft Boat (East Coast Patrols) In Lowestoft a boat was laid, Mark well what I do say! And she was built for the herring trade, But she has gone a-rovin’, a-rovin’, a-rovin’, The Lord knows where! They gave her Government coal to burn, And a Q. F. gun at bow and stern, And sent her out a-rovin’, etc. Her skipper was mate of a bucko ship Which always killed one man per trip, So he is used to rovin’, etc. Her mate was skipper of a chapel in Wales, And so he ^ights in topper and tails— Religi-ous tho’ rovin’, etc. Her engineer is ^ifty-eight, So he’s prepared to meet his fate, Which ain’t unlikely rovin’, etc. Her leading-stoker’s seventeen, So he don’t know what the Judgments mean, Unless he cops ’em rovin’, etc. Her cook was chef in the Lost Dogs’ Home, Mark well what I do say! And I’m sorry for Fritz when they all come A-rovin’, a-rovin’, a-roarin’ and a-rovin’, Round the North Sea rovin’, The Lord knows where!

16 views