Also known as simply "Blow, boys, blow", this topsail halyard shanty originated on the West Africa run, during the days of the slave trade. Later it passed into use on the Atlantic packets. The skipper's name is variously as Bully Hayes, Bully Simms and One-Eyed Kelly. The stanza about the packet-ship firing its guns may refer to an anti-slavery patrol or a Civil War blockade ship. The embargo mentioned could be either the slave-trade embargo of 1800 or the military embargo of 1812. Many singers choose to modify the lyrics to make them more "politically correct" according to modern standards. This has been recorded by A. L. Lloyd, Maddy Prior and the Girls, The Hardtackers and others. I don't remember where or from whom I learned this.