Annotation:Old Whaler (The)
X:1 T:Old Whaler, The C:J. Sharpe M:2/4 L:1/8 R:Reel B:Coes Album of Jigs and Reels, something new, for professional and amateur violinists, B:leaders of orchestras, quadrille bands, and clog, reel and jig dancers; consisting of a B:Grand Collection of entirely New and Original Clog-Hornpipes, Reels, jigs, B:Scotch Reels, Irish Reels and Jigs, Waltzes, Walk-Arounds, etc. (1876, p. 31) N:Coes performed with the San Francisco Minstrels in California from 1852 to 1859. Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion K:D A,|{E}D/C/D/F/ A/^G/A/c/|d/e/f/e/ d/c/B/c/ |d/c/d/B/ A/F/D/F/|C/D/E/F/ E/G/F/E/| {E}D/C/D/F/ {B}A/=G/A/c/|d/e/f/e/ d/c/^A/c/|d/e/f/e/ d/c/^A/B/|bz/b/ z/a/g|z/A/ F/A/ dz:| |:f/g/|a/b/a/f/ d/e/f/d/|e/f/d/f/ e/d/B/c/|d/c/d/B/ A/F/D/F/|A,/E/ (3E/E/E/ E/G/F/E/| {E}D/C/D/F/ A/^G/A/c/|d/e/f/e/ d/c/^A/B/|b z/b/ a/a/g|z/A/ F/A/ dz:|]
OLD WHALER, THE. AKA and see "New London Reel (2)," "Tip Top Hornpipe (1)," "Way Down There." American, Reel (2/4 time). D Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. "The Old Whaler" is attributed to J. Sharpe in George H. Coes' Coes Album of Jigs and Reels (1876). It earlier was printed in Elias Howe's 1000 Jigs and Reels (c. 1867) as "Tip Top Hornpipe (1)." Still earlier, it appeared in James Buckley's Buckley's New Banjo Method (1860) as "New London Reel (2)", and even earlier in another Buckley publication, Buckley's Violin Tunes (1855) under the title "Way Down There." The reason for the variety of names is not known, but all have blackface minstrel associations.
