Running Down to Cuba

The history of this song is somewhat obscure. The earliest known reference to it occurs in a 1924 book titled "A Gipsy of the Horn", in which author Rex Clements recounts his sailing career some 20 years earlier. In describing the different types of shanties and the work they accompanied, he calls this one a "shanty for doing nothing at all":

It was like the others with solo and chorus and was sometimes started by a discontented crowd who felt they were having their old iron worked up unnecessarily. One of the men would begin: "I've got a sister nine foot high!" and was taken up by the chorus: "Way down in Cuba!" but, instead of heaving, the words were followed by three short jumps. It was very infrequently heard and always came to an abrupt end after the first line, in obedience to an angry order from the mate to "Stop that!"

The only known historical set of lyrics comes from a 1948 collection called American Sea Songs and Chanteys; editor Frank Shay calls it an "elusive Mississippi River song" and offers just two verses.

It's unclear where several of the modern verses originated, but the song gained a significant boost in popularity after its inclusion in the 2013 video game Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, and many newer versions (including the Johns') use some variation on the lyrics used in the game.

Lyrics

As performed on the 30 Aug 2023 livestream.

Running down to Cuba with a load of sugar
('Way me boys to Cuba)
Make 'er run, you lime juice squeezers
(Running down to Cuba) [continues throughout verses]

{Chorus}
'Way me boys to Cuba
Running down to Cuba

I got a sister, she's nine feet tall
She sleeps in the kitchen with her feet in the hall

{Chorus}

The captain, he will trim the sails
Winging that water over the rails

{Chorus}

Give me a girl can dance fandango
Round as a melon and sweet as a mango

{Chorus}

Load that sugar and homeward go
'Cause mister mate he told me so

{Chorus 2x}

Recordings

YouTube Videos

• Shanties from AC4 Black Flag: Supercut
• Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced Shanties Part 2

Full Band Streams

• Ghost in the Mastream (30 Aug 2023)

Gaming Streams

• The Longest Johns Play Sea of Thieves but the servers die and we sing anyway (20 Mar 2018)
• Giveaway Giveaways on the Waves! - 12/04/2021