East Anglian singers produce NHS sea shanty to encourage people to get Covid jab
The NHS's first-ever sea shanty has been released.
Last updated 2nd Jun 2021
A group of singers from the East of England has produced the NHS's first-ever sea shanty to try and encourage people to get their Covid vaccine.
The Motley Crew, who are based in Brightlingsea in Essex, have been working with the team behind Suffolk and North East Essex's vaccination programme to come up with their take on the famous tune 'Wellerman'.
The sea shanty originally hit the charts earlier this year after going viral on Tik Tok.
Now the words have been re-written to encourage people to go an get their vaccination when its offered to them.
David Bridle, the Motley Crew’s Bosun, said: “We’ve all had the jab and were delighted to lend our voices to such an important campaign.
“After a year when we’ve mostly met on Zoom, we’re looking forward to adding it to our live shows when we’re able to perform again soon.”
Brightlingsea-based record producer Ray Hayden, of Opaz Multimedia mastered the recording and also gave his time for free. “Ray did an amazing job for us,” said David, “Having a professional involved was fantastic – we’d never have sounded so good without him.”
Simon Morgan, the local Intergrated Care System's head of communications, and who had the original idea for this unusual project, said: “Over the last couple of years the sea shanty has enjoyed a much-deserved boost in popularity, which got us thinking that having our own sea shanty composition to boost vaccination uptake, especially among younger audiences, would be a great idea.
“Our system is extremely grateful to members of the Motley Crew who have done an incredible job to reinforce the message of getting a vaccination when invited to do so.”
Dr Ed Garratt, Executive Lead for the Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care System, said: “Our teams of staff and volunteers are doing a great job of inviting people back for their second doses, which are really important to give maximum protection from the virus; more than one third of adults have had both doses.
“So if you receive an invitation, whether for your first or second dose, please do act on it as soon as possible.
“We are proud of our success to-date and thanks to so many people, particularly the incredible efforts of the volunteers and staff who have contributed so much.”
The group created the song in partnership with the ICS who accepted no payment for the work.