A wee bit about Dreg Songs

This morning, my friend Bob Walser, posted a photo to his Facebook feed with a picture of some artifacts from last summer, with the caption "Remembering Scotland last June, and the wonderful people who brought Dreg Songs back to life."

Of course I had to inquire what Dreg Songs were and I thought you might like to know too.

Until the late 1800s the Firth of Forth was well known for it's Oysters, Dreg Songs were the songs that were sung to Charm the Oysters into the nets. It was thought these songs were lost until the day when a collection of early recordings were handed in to the Library of Congress here in America.

The following video is a must see and will tell you much more than I could ever hope to. It can be found on the Caledonia Mercury site.

For more information you can visit Bob Walser's site and follow a few other links to learn more about these fabulous songs! Enjoy :)

Ahoy, mateys - spread the word! Wayne Palsson leads our June 7th PT song circle.

Wayne Palsson has been singing chanteys and maritime songs up and down the West Coast for the past several years, focusing on songs with rich tones reflecting the fishing and maritime trades.  His own nautical experience on the high seas and local waters helps to anchor his interpretations of traditional chanteys and forebitters (leisure songs), new and local sea songs, and even a few overlooked classics by Gilbert and Sullivan. Wayne is the host of Northwest Seaport’s Chantey Sing, a monthly sing-a-long that continues a decades-old tradition of maritime music in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest (visit www.nwseaport.org).  Wayne has appeared in Northwest Folklife Festivals and Tacoma’s First Nights, participated in many of the chantey camps in the region, hosts the annual Chantey Sings at the Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival, and produces maritime concerts.