As a broadside, this song was published in John Ashton's Real Sailor Songs (1891). Vaughan Williams collected a version from the singing of J. Whitby in 1905. Cecil Sharp recorded another performance in Cambridgeshire in 1911. Additional records exists, suggesting this was a widely popular song at the time. George "Pop" Maynard, Martin Carthy, and others began recording versions in the middle of the 20th century. Carthy's 1969 Dave Swarbrick describes:
A song about that most beautiful and most precarious of emotions—resignation, and with a tune to match.
This song gives its title to Roy Palmer's 1973 book The Valiant Sailor, and Roy Harris sings it on the accompanying album.