The William Main Doerflinger Memorial Sea Shanty Session – September 18th, 2011

Fifteen years ago, a group of sea shanty enthusiasts got together for an old fashioned shanty sing. Their first meeting was, fittingly enough on the windjammer Peking at South Street Seaport. For many years they met monthly at the Seaman’s Church … Continue reading

The William Main Doerflinger Memorial Shanty Session, 5/15/11

Last week we posted about the upcoming first William Main Doerflinger Memorial Shanty Session to be held at the Noble Maritime Collection at Snug Harbor.    The shanty sing was well attended and the space was beautiful as well as historic.  The … Continue reading

The William Main Doerflinger Memorial Sea Shanty Sessions at the Noble Maritime Collection at Snug Harbor

This Sunday, May 15, from 2 to 5 PM, the first monthly  William Main Doerflinger Memorial Sea Shanty Session will be held at the Noble Maritime Collection at the Snug Harbor Cultural Center at 1000 Richmond Terrace, building D, in … Continue reading

Remembering Frank Woerner, “Folk Father” & Shanty Singer

I was stunned and saddened to read that shanty singer and folklorist Frank Woerner has died. I haven’t seen an obituary yet, but I came across a Facebook post by Alison Kelley who wrote, “It is with great shock and … Continue reading

William Main Dorflinger Virtual Shanty Sing — Sunday, September 20th

Earlier this month, we posted about the virtual return of the San Francisco Maritime Association’s Hyde Street Pier Sea Chantey Sing series beginning this Saturday on September 19, 2020. Click here for details. For even more maritime music, on Sunday, … Continue reading

Sea Shanty Sessions 20th Anniversary Celebration at the Noble Maritime Collection at Snug Harbor

In the summer of 1995, a group of lovers of the music of the sea got together on the deck of the windjammer Peking at the South Street Seaport Museum on the East River in New York to sing sea shanties. … Continue reading

Snug Harbor Shanties, A Short Documentary — Singing the History that Can’t be Found in Textbooks

My novel, The Shantyman, begins with a fictionalized Bill Doerflinger recording the tale told by a retired ship’s captain of a shantyman who saved his ship and its crew. The old captain lives close to the sailor’s retirement home, Sailor’s Snug … Continue reading

The Shantyman, Quarterdeck Editor’s Choice, Reviewed by George Jepson

Yesterday we posted an interview by George Jepson from the May/June issue of the McBooks Press newsletter “Quarterdeck.”  Here is Jepson’s review of my latest novel “The Shantyman” from the same issue. The Shantyman by Rick Spilman   George Anderson, retired from a … Continue reading

Saving Robbins Reef Light – a Noble Effort

In November we posted about the Old Orchard Shoals Light, off Staten Island, NY, which was completely destroyed on October 30th by Hurricane Sandy.  The 130-year-old Robbins Reef Lighthouse, on the other side of the island   survived the storm, but still suffered significant damage.  As reported by the Staten Island … Continue reading

Shanty Sing at the Noble Maritime Collection at Snug Harbor this Sunday, Nov 18th

Despite the best efforts of Superstorm Sandy, the monthly Sea Shanty Session at the Noble Maritime Collection at the Snug Harbor Cultural Center is carrying on and will be held this Sunday November 18, 2012 from 2 until 5 PM. Admission is by donation, … Continue reading

Sea Songs in New York – Sailing to Staten Island: The Immigrant Experience, and Other Events

This will be a great couple of weeks around New York harbor for lovers of the music of the sea.  “Sailing to Staten Island: The Immigrant Experience” is a free concert Saturday night at the Noble Maritime Collection at Snug … Continue reading

Shanty Sings All Over – Mystic, New York, San Francisco, Port Townsend & Washington DC

This Saturday night, January7th, the Mystic Seaport will be hosting a “Chantey Blast and Pub Sing” from 1-5 PM in the Frohsinn Hall (aka the German Club), 54 Greenmanville Avenue, in Mystic CT as a fundraiser for the 33rd Annual Mystic Seaport Sea … Continue reading

Busy Weekend in New York Harbor – Mermaids, Sloops & Song

This will be  busy weekend around the Hudson River and New York harbor.     At Croton Point Park,  on the east bank of the Hudson River, just north of New York City, the Clearwater’s Great Hudson River Revival – … Continue reading

The Leaving of Liverpool

“The Leaving of Liverpool” is a wonderful sea song,  capturing both the promise of a new voyage and the sadness of leaving loved ones behind.   It was “collected” by William Main Doerflinger in 1951 from Dick Maitland, an old sailor at New York’s … Continue reading