Roll the Old Chariot
(We'll Roll the Golden Chariot Along / A Drop of Nelson's Blood)
Source: Sandburg's "The American Songbag" (1927)
Roll the old chariot along Roll the old chariot along Roll the old chariot along And we'll all hang on behind!A plate of hot scouse wouldn't do us any harm, etc. A new plum duff wouldn't do us any harm, etc. A glass of whiskey hot wouldn't do us any harm, etc.
Source: Thomas Wood's "The Oxford Songbook, II" (1927)
Doerflinger (Songs of the Sailor and Lumberman) identified this as (a parody of) a revival song heard, for example, at Salvation Army gatherings, where the singers resolved not to “drag on behind”. More generally, the song has roots in black folk music and was included in several collections of spirituals (Dett, Fenner & Rathbun, Johnson, Sandburg). As a sailing song, the intention was to “all hang on behind.” As Dick Maitland wrote, “The Golden Chariot! That’s the chariot you ride upstairs on”. Doerflinger associated his tune as a form of Drunken Sailor.
David Coffin’s performance at the 2010 Portsmouth Maritime Folk Festival has become a point of introduction for many shanty enthusiasts.