When he was born, it was sometimes hard to put him to sleep. He'd just lay in his bed until he was too tired, then cry. When my wife had enough of trying, it would be my turn. I'd carry him around, spinning and dancing, and hope for the best. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it did not.

One day, I played music on the Amazon Echo in our room. Classical didn't work, soft jazz didn't work, and baby lullabies didn't do a damned thing. In desperation, I turned to the music that my wife grew to hate - "Alexa, play sea shanties from Pandora."

It worked. Simple, repetitive melodies and choruses, easy to find the patterns. He would calm down, snuggle against my shoulder, and sleep. We'd leave them playing quietly as he slept, and it worked. Not just shanties, but Irish and Scottish music as well.

Once he started talking, he wanted to hear them all the time. In the car while driving anywhere, at home, at my parents' house - if there was a radio, he wanted shanties. He knew the songs and sang them, loudly, quietly, and at school once he started going. Not quite on-key, but close. His favorite was "The Mermaid" by Great Big Sea, and we always had to stay in the car until the song was done.

He was three when he started school. After a bit, we had a conference with the teachers. They commented on his choice of songs - other kids were learning "the wheels on the bus go round and round...", And he was singing "Drunken Sailor" instead. Soon after, we went to his pediatrician for a check-up, and he sang for her. She was... surprised, and speechless for a bit. No one had sung "Drunken Sailor" or "Barrett's Privateers" for her before. She asked if I was at least teaching him G-rated pirate songs, and I had to tell her that thought had never entered my mind - pirates weren't really kid-friendly. When he started on "Old Maui" and singing "we don't give a damn when the day is done," she had to cover her face with a chart so he wouldn't see her laughing.

I once caught him singing something under his breath: "... on the briny ocean toss..." while playing in his room. I had to look up the lyrics - it was "Farewell to Nova Scotia."

Worse, I was bathing him when he started singing, "I once new a lass with a great big ass..." Shit... He had heard the Poxxy Boggards ONCE in the car, and I quickly turned it off once I heard the lyrics. Oops... I mentioned it to my wife, and then played the song for her. She sort of recognized it - it was playing in the car that day when she picked him up, and since she never listens to the lyrics, didn't bother skipping the song. So, Poxxy Boggards gets removed from that playlist - I don't need THAT call from the teachers.

Yesterday he was singing, "Ol' Molasses" to my parents. The looks on their faces when he sang "You killed my grandpa, killed my pa, and you're sure as hell is a-killing me!" at the top of his lungs...

He doesn't know the full lyrics. He doesn't sing on-key all the time. But it's funny as hell to see see him sing about the "toil and strife we whaler men undergo", or about getting drunk and fighting. My wife is less happy, but as long as he's having fun, she's ok.