Salty Singalongs

Don't: Be surprised if your well-prepared song takes off in an unexpected direction or gets an enthusiastic response, or if people start arguing about your "interpretation" and you didn't know you had one.

Do: Get right to it.

Don't: Give long preambles about your last trip to Italy or what this song means to you or how bad your morning was. If you did this on a ship, you'd get so wet.

Do: Shout out lines and participate when appropriate.

Don't: Heckle mean-spiritedly. "It won't be tolerated," Peterson says, and with several part-time pirates in the room, that sounds dangerous.

Do: Remember: If at first you don't succeed . . . keep singing. "Some of these guys sound horrible at first," chantey singer Janie Meneely says. But soon, "these [formerly] quavering voices begin to boom out, and the pitch is true and the singers seem to be standing a bit taller."

Don't: Worry if you're feeling too shy. There's always next week.

Sites for Singing Along

The Ship's Company Chanteymen lead "chantey sings" at five venues across the region. Here's their monthly schedule:

ROYAL MILE PUB , first Tuesday, 8-10 p.m. This venue, where the chantey sings got started, boasts a menu of mostly traditional Scottish fare and a selection of more than 80 Scotch whiskys. Established in 1981, the family-run pub and restaurant has a true neighborhood feel.

2407 Price Ave., Wheaton, 301-946-4511, http://www.royalmilepub.com.

THE WHARF RAT , second Wednesday, 8-10 p.m . According to chantey singer Janie Meneely, this spot, just blocks from the water in Baltimore's historic Fells Point neighborhood, is the "quintessential mariner's bar." Known for its wide beer selection and nautical feel (there's a tall ship and a parrot in its logo), the Rat tends to have smaller sings, and at times the bar crowd gets rowdy, Meneely says. "But the atmosphere is so salty, we'd be loath to go anywhere else," she says.

801 S. Ann St., Baltimore, 410-276-9034, http://www.thewharfrat.com.

GALWAY BAY, third Wednesday, 8-10 p.m. The Annapolis sing moved here recently when it outgrew the basement bar of the Maryland Inn. A homey but large Irish restaurant and pub, with antique folk instruments on the brick walls, Galway Bay has a reputation for pouring fine pints and encouraging conversation. (There's not a TV in the place.) The sings in Annapolis often draw families, Chanteyman Myron Peterson says.

63 Maryland Ave., Annapolis, 410-263-8333, http://www.galway2006.com.

STACY'S COFFEE PARLOR, fourth Tuesday, 7-9 p.m. The newest of all the sing venues, this coffeehouse is drawing crowds of about 20 people -- "and without liquor!" says Chanteyman Mike Bosworth, who leads the event there. Meneely says it has a "cozy living room" feel and attracts a younger crowd.

709 W. Broad St., Falls Church, 703-538-6266, http://www.stacyscoffee.com.

THE WELLWOOD, fourth Wednesday, 8-10 p.m . The Wellwood in Charlestown, Md., the most distant-from-D.C. of all the sing venues, has been owned by the same family for more than 40 years. The Chanteymen have use of the club's bar area, a large open space with plenty of seating. The sings -- in June, July and August only -- can be a bit eclectic, Meneely says, including Irish music and "just plain drinking songs."

523 Water St., Charlestown, Md., 410-287-6666, http://www.wellwoodclub.com.

· For information on other events where the Chanteymen perform, as well as on the group Ship's Company, visit http://www.shipscompany.org.