The creak of the ships and the lap of the waves against the shore are the sounds that normally accompany Hyde Street Pier at night, but once a month the voices of hundreds raised in song fill the air. From 8 p.m. to midnight on the first Saturday of the month, sea chantey singers fill the ferryboat Eureka to make music together.

Lead chantey man and park ranger Peter Kasin said the Chantey Sing is for everyone, even if they’ve never sung a chantey before.

“It’s quite an experience — you’re connecting with your maritime history, you’re connecting with other people and in a big crowd if you don’t feel like you’re a great singer, you can hide,” he said. “But you don’t need a refined voice to sing these — it’s a very accessible and easy thing to sing.”

At January’s event, roughly half the crowd raised their hands when Kasin asked how many were first timers to the chantey sing — but with the easy repetitive choruses and enthusiastic regulars sprinkled throughout the boat, everyone was able to bellow out the songs together with gusto all night long.

Edith Greene has been a Chantey Sing regular since 1989. At the most recent sing, she and her daughter Judith Greene-Janse, and granddaughter Jasmijn Janse were singing together in the front row. That night was Jasmijn’s first time leading a song, which she planned as a present for her grandmother.

“It was amazing and fun and it made grammie happy, which was the best part,” Jasmijn said.

Edith grew up singing chanteys with her family in Maine, and has sung some of those for the chantey sing group in addition to leading the crowd in more well known songs. Regardless of what she’s singing, Edith loves to be a part of the monthly sing.

“I really enjoy singing the songs with a group, it sounds wonderful.” she said.

Back to Gallery Songs of the Sea: Chantey Sing at Hyde Street Pier 8 1 of 8 Photo: Lea Suzuki, The Chronicle 2 of 8 Photo: Lea Suzuki, The Chronicle 3 of 8 Photo: Lea Suzuki, The Chronicle 4 of 8 Photo: Lea Suzuki, The Chronicle 5 of 8 Photo: Lea Suzuki, The Chronicle 6 of 8 Photo: Lea Suzuki, The Chronicle 7 of 8 Photo: Lea Suzuki, The Chronicle 8 of 8 Photo: Lea Suzuki, The Chronicle















Other regulars bring instruments — leading crowd favorites with a guitar, banjo or just their voice and heaps of enthusiasm as they take turns throughout the night. Anyone is welcome to listen, lead or just sing along to a chorus when they feel ready.

“Even if they’re shy,” Kasin said. “A great chantey man named Stan Hugill once said that singing a chantey is like being thrown a lifeline if you’re overboard. It doesn’t matter where you grab it, as long as you grab it before it all goes by.”

Kathleen Duncan and Lea Suzuki are guest contributors to The Regulars. The Regulars is a weekly photo and video column focusing on the people who frequent places of the city. To see more, visit www.sfchronicle.com/theregulars. If you know a regular, e-mail regulars@sfchronicle.com.