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I'se The B'y
Bonavista — Town — Bonavista harbour, looking north. The large building in the center of the photo houses a replica of John Cabot's ship, Matthew.
I's the b'y that builds the boat
And I's the b'y that sails her
I's the b'y that catches the fish[1]
And brings them home to Liza. (or Lizer)
Chorus: Hip yer partner, Sally Thibault
Hip yer partner, Sally Brown
Fogo, Twillingate, Moreton's Harbour
All around the circle!
Sods and rinds[2] to cover your flake[3]
Cake[4] and tea for supper
Codfish in the spring o' the year
Fried in maggoty butter.
Chorus:
I don't want your maggoty fish[5]
They're no good for winter
I could buy as good as that
Down in Bonavista.
Chorus:
I took Liza to a dance
As fast as she could travel
And every step that she did take
Was up to her knees in gravel.
Chorus:
Susan White, she's out of sight
Her petticoat wants a border
Old Sam Oliver in the dark
He kissed her in the corner.
Chorus:
Website http://www.townofbonavista.com/
And I's the b'y that sails her
I's the b'y that catches the fish[1]
And brings them home to Liza. (or Lizer)
Chorus: Hip yer partner, Sally Thibault
Hip yer partner, Sally Brown
Fogo, Twillingate, Moreton's Harbour
All around the circle!
Sods and rinds[2] to cover your flake[3]
Cake[4] and tea for supper
Codfish in the spring o' the year
Fried in maggoty butter.
Chorus:
I don't want your maggoty fish[5]
They're no good for winter
I could buy as good as that
Down in Bonavista.
Chorus:
I took Liza to a dance
As fast as she could travel
And every step that she did take
Was up to her knees in gravel.
Chorus:
Susan White, she's out of sight
Her petticoat wants a border
Old Sam Oliver in the dark
He kissed her in the corner.
Chorus:
Website http://www.townofbonavista.com/
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Newfoundland folksong, of unknown authorship. The words and music are believed to be indigenous to that province.
"I's the B'y" is a lively dance song, the lyrics of which reflect Newfoundlanders' dependence on the sea. Variant spellings of the title, including "I'se the B'y," "I'se da Boy," etc., are seen frequently. Bonavista (2006 population: 3,764) is a town on the Bonavista Peninsula, Newfoundland in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. |
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"I's the B'y" is in the Newfoundland English dialect,
and translates to standard English as "I'm the Boy" or "I'm the Guy"
wikipedia
and translates to standard English as "I'm the Boy" or "I'm the Guy"
wikipedia
Bonavista-- Location of Bonavista in Newfoundland (hop one peninsula north from St. John's)
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Notes
fish: Unless otherwise specified, "fish" in Newfoundland English almost always refers to codfish, rind: A long strip of bark, normally from a standing spruce or fir, and used for various fisheries and building purposes, flake: A platform built on poles and spread with boughs for drying codfish on land, cake: Ship's biscuit or hardtack, magotty fish: Fish when not cured correctly would become infested with Blow-fly larva, |
Additional Resources
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I's the b'y that builds the boat And I's the b'y that sails her I's the b'y that catches the fish And brings them home to Liza. (or Lizer) Chorus: Hip yer partner, Sally Thibault
Hip yer partner, Sally Brown Fogo, Twillingate, Moreton's Harbour All around the circle! Cake and tea for supper
Codfish in the spring o' the year Fried in maggoty butter. I don't want your maggoty fish They're no good for winter I could buy as good as that Down in Bonavista. I took Liza to a dance
As fast as she could travel And every step that she did take Was up to her knees in gravel. [Chorus] Susan White, she's out of sight Her petticoat wants a border Old Sam Oliver in the dark He kissed her in the corner. |
Explanatory Quotes From Koppie's Blog (many thanks!)
I'm the boy that builds the boat, and I'm the boy that sails her. This song is about self-sufficient fishermen from Newfoundland, Canada.
This refers to three towns on the northeast coast of Newfoundland - a "circle" that would be navigated by the fishermen during fishing season.
The fishermen would dry the fish so they would last through the winter season. The fish would be sun-dried on platforms, covered with grass sod and tree bark. Apparently, the singer not only built and sailed the boat by himself, but also dried his own fish.
"Cake" is hard tack. Best euphamism I've ever heard for the stuff (it's rock hard).
Predictably, Bonavista is another coastal town on the east coast of Newfoundland, but is far away from the "circle" described above. The singer is haggling with someone over the quality of the fish, with someone claiming they could get that quality anywhere.
The chorus, and final verse, refer to a dance, presumably held at one of the local fishing towns. Historically, these were modest communities and had little "big city" culture. The girls turned out for the dance, but one girl in particular, who was remarkably pretty, nevertheless was so poor she couldn't afford a border on her petticoat. That didn't seem to matter to Sam Oliver.
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Explanatory notes from Koppie's Blog
This version has local filming -- I really like this one.
