Gavin Atkin's weblog for the sort of people who like looking inside boat sheds. It's about old boats, traditional boats, boat building, restoration, the sea and the North Kent Coast
Call my romantic, call me soft-hearted, but in winter and particularly around Christmas I often think of those who are busy at sea, carrying the world’s goods or fishing, or protecting their homelands in hostile often bitterly cold and difficult conditions.
Tough men, they must be, and to go with that thought, here’s a tough little song performed by diamond Hull geezer Mike Waterson.
The folk scene in the UK is mourning the sad loss of one of its heroes, the magnificent singer and songwriter Mike Waterson, who grew up and lived as a young man in Hull, a major fishing port by the Humber.
This video shows how one sick, elderly man could use the quiet truth of a song to hold a large audience spellbound. Bravo for a brave performance Mike!
Look out for another classic of his, Three Day Millionaire, if you can – it’s not on YouTube but it describes the life and ambitions of a young lad in the fishing trade honestly and with humour and deserves to be sung widely. There’s a brief preview at this download site.
http://www.last.fm/music/The+Watersons/_/Three+Day+Millionaire
The Guardian newspaper marked his passing with both an obituary and a personal memoir. Not bad for a man who worked in the building trade for most of his life.
He will be very much missed.