Go to Sea

As with most old folk songs, the origins of this forebitter are shrouded in mystery; mid 19th century seems a reasonable guess though. It's been sung by many a sailor and a few others, including The Byrds (Jack Tarr The Sailor) and the Grateful Dead (Off to Sea Once More).
It's a salutary tale about the hardships endured by whalemen, especially those who spent all their hard earned on booze and women. And then there's the 'Rapper Brown' character, the boarding master who supplied sailors with room and board while ashore in exchange for the advance pay for their next round at sea, plus what they earned from the ship's captains for the sailors they recruited.