Roll the Old Chariot Along

Also known as a Drop of Nelson's Blood
 
Eric Illott, a shantyman from Bristol, apparently said that this song was used when scraping growth from the ship's hull during long voyages - barnacles, seaweeds and the like, which would slow the ship down. They used a device called the "Devil's Scrubbing Brush", two planks joined by a hinge and with long nails driven through. This was lowered into the sea over the "sharp end", and hauled by ropes backwards under the hull, scraping off the fouling. The verses, which had to be kept going as long as the job lasted, mentioned all the things the shantyman would rather be doing instead of scratching his bottom in mid-ocean.  The song is said to be African-American in origin and in some versions a golden wheel is used in place of the chariot. According to Hugill, it was sung around the Dismal Swamp in Georgia at corn shucking and log rollings. Doerflinger writes that it was based on the words of a Salvation Army hymn, and the tune is a Scottish reel.  "Nelson's Blood" is brandy, (not rum). After Trafalgar, Nelson's body was put into a cask of brandy to preserve it for the voyage back to London. When the Victory docked, it was discovered that the crew had tapped into the cask and drunk the lot.

 

Roll the old Chariot along

Oh, a drop of Nelson's blood wouldn't do us any harm
Oh, a drop of Nelson's blood wouldn't do us any harm
Oh, a drop of Nelson's blood wouldn't do us any harm
And we'll all hang on behind.

So we'll roll the old chariot along
An' we'll roll the golden chariot along.
So we'll roll the old chariot along
An' we'll all hang on behind!

Oh, a plate of Irish stew wouldn't do us any harm
Oh, a plate of Irish stew wouldn't do us any harm…

Oh, a nice fat cook wouldn't do us any harm
Oh, a nice fat cook wouldn't do us any harm…

Oh, a roll in the clover wouldn't do us any harm
Oh, a roll in the clover wouldn't do us any harm…

Oh, a nice watch below wouldn't do us any harm
Oh, a nice watch below wouldn't do us any harm…