Itchen Ferry Song

Tune traditional, Words ©Brian Hooper and Jeff Henry

Old Itchen Ferry on a Saturday night;
The women do quarrel, and the men they do fight.
The women drink whisky as well as the men,
And when their cup's empty they do fill it again.
Singing tooralai, ooralai ooralai ay,
Drinking all night and working all day,
Let's drink and be merry, no sorrow abide,
In old Itchen Ferry on a Saturday night.

Down by the Itchen there's a village so fair,
There's no other village can even compare;
The women are handsome and the menfolk are strong,
It's to old Itchen Ferry that we raise our song

In old Itchen Ferry, a welcome you'll find;
We'll take you to S'ampton if you're so inclined.
From sunrise to sunset we'll row with good cheer
But by night it's a rough place, you'd better stop here

We don't put on airs and graces round here,
We eat honest bread and we drink honest beer.
The men of Southampton, they think they're so good,
But it's ferry-men keeps their fine shoes from the mud

All through the winter when the sky it is grey
It's down to the river to work for our pay
It's down to the yard with me adze and me plane
'til it's knocking-off time and it's home once again

We'll call out for whisky, strong ale and rum
At the good old Yacht Tavern where we have our fun;
There's nowhere so fine or so dandy a sight
As old Itchen Ferry on a Saturday night