> Maddy Prior & The Carnival Band > Songs > I Saw Three Ships

I Saw Three Ships

[ Roud 700 ; Ballad Index OBB104 ; trad.]

Charlie Bate and others sang I Saw Three Ships Come Sailing In in 1957 in the live Christmas Day broadcast on BBC Radio, Sing Christmas and the Turn of the Year.

Maggie Goodall and Sue Harris sang I Saw Three Ships in 1986 on the anthology Yuletracks.

Maddy Prior and the Carnival Band sang I Saw Three Ships on their CD Carols and Capers (1991), maxi single I Saw Three Ships (1992), CD Carols at Christmas, (1998), and DVD An Evening of Carols and Capers (2005).

Kerfuffle sang Three Ships in 2009 on their Midwinter album Lighten the Dark.

Lyrics

Maddy Prior sings I Saw Three Ships

I saw three ships come sailing in
    On Christmas day, on Christmas day
I saw three ships come sailing in
    On Christmas day in the morning

And what was in those ships all three?

Our Saviour Christ and his lady.

Wither sailed those ships all three?

O they sailed into Bethlehem.

And all the bells on earth shall ring.

And angels in all heaven shall sing.

And all the souls on earth shall sing.

Then let us all rejoice amain!