Born out of the pandemic, Shantyman is Ottawa-based artist Séan McCann’s sixth solo album. The record was released on Sept. 6 and is available exclusively on McCann’s website.
Like much of the art that has stemmed from time spent in COVID-19 isolation, McCann’s ethos in creating Shantyman was to satisfy the craving for human connection. McCann, who was born in Newfoundland, aimed to achieve this goal by comprising an album ladened with sea shanties—the ultimate workman song designed to be sung in raucous harmony in the face of challenges.
The sea shanty found itself at the center of a TikTok trend at the onset of 2021 after Scottish user Nathan Evans posted a clip of him singing one of the well-known tunes. But McCann, a self-professed “folk nerd,” has been singing the shanty song since he co-founded the East Coast band, Great Big Sea, long before its popularization on social media.
The Charlatan spoke with McCann about what it means to be a Shantyman, and the importance of imbuing his music with themes of home, mental health and social awareness.
The Charlatan (TC): You’ve just returned from a sold-out East Coast mini tour in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Charlottetown, P.E.I. and Fredericton, New Brunswick. How does it feel to return to live performances?
Séan McCann (SM): It was just a great relief and a great release. I’ve done all this stuff virtually and recorded this new album remotely and there really hasn’t been any physical, face-to-face stuff. This East Coast stuff puts the Shantyman back by the ocean where he belongs and these were full-on concerts. There were people who were singing back to me, and it just felt so normal and reminded me of what I do and who I really am.
TC: What influenced you to create this sea shanty album during isolation?
SM: When I was in university, I finished a degree in philosophy and went into a master’s of folklore, so I’ve always been a real folk nerd. The reason I did that was to try to find where these songs were, like how to access them. For me, the shanty has always been there. The first band I was in was singing sea shanties and being from Newfoundland they’re quite common.
TC: In the single, Shantyman’s Life, you sing about the everyday life of a workman. How does this song relate to overcoming the challenges posed by the pandemic?
SM: These sea shanties were songs specifically designed to help us accomplish difficult tasks and overcome hardships. I think that today we’re faced with the biggest challenge we’ve been faced with in our lifetimes. This challenge is so great—it’s global in scale. It won’t be conquered unless we all work together and do all the right things socially, medically and scientifically. I do believe these sea shanties showed up at the right time because we were in the thick of the dark winter of COVID and these great songs of resilience showed up again. The shanty showed up when the work needed to be done.
TC: The release of this album coincides with the 10-year anniversary of your sobriety and last year you published your memoir, One Good Reason, about overcoming alcohol addiction. Why is it important for you to engage in these more personal themes in your work?
SM: Everyone drinks and uses drugs for [different] reasons and in my experience, I had to face my truth and come to terms with it in order to get well again. That’s what saved me, music saved me. There’s real power in sharing and I know that when I do that, I have a strong impact on people who are listening. I know that in many cases it has triggered people to start their own recovery path.
TC: How do you hope that people will respond to the album?
SM: My hope is that when people hear the record and react to it, they’ll be out driving around in their car listening and singing their heads off. If I can get people to do that, that’ll be a major win and the best reward I could ever ask for.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Photo provided by Eric Alper.
