Sad news this past week as the world’s last living REAL shantyman, George “Tall 12” Frederick, passed away at the age of 79.
Tall 12 was the real deal: A whaling gunman who would set out every morning from the town of Barrouallie in St. Vincent in a 6-person row boat with a harpoon gun mounted at the bow to hunt pilot whale. St. Vincent remains one of only two places in the world with an exemption to the International Whaling Convention and the people of Barrouallie still hunt and eat whale to this day - the continuation of a necessity of survival in what was historically a town accessible only by sea.
Our conversations with Tall 12 and the time we spent in studio with him was a huge influence on 'Departure' and opened our eyes to some of the core, vital aspects of shanties.
We had the unbelievable pleasure of meeting, listening to, and singing with Tall 12 in October of 2022. We travelled to Barrouallie and spent a week filming a documentary and album with him - both of which we will release after Departure is complete.
He was an absolute live wire - full of jokes (or “antics” as he called them), stories, and of course incredible songs. In fact, James learned our version of Seven Long Years from the big man himself.
Tall 12 was also the very tail end of a long tradition of Vincentian shanties.
We spoke with his friend Vincent Reid, filmmaker and producer Akley Olton, and musicologist and shantyman Dan Lanier - all of whom knew Tall 12 for years - about his life and legacy and you can check out that whole interview here. We’ll also get an audio version posted on all podcast platforms this week.
So pour yourself a nice glass of rum and settle in for some stories and songs in memory of a true shanty legend.
