Sail We Must: A Sea Story of Andrew Weatherall & An Irish Fisherman

In rural county Cork, a lone fisherman met a weary traveller who was on his way to a gig. They soon began to exchange stories, namely tales of the sea. During their conversation, the seafarer shared a sentiment that would stay with his passenger forever: “fail we may, sail we must.” The Tenth Man presents Sail We Must directed by Grizzly, a short film telling the beautiful story of the chance meeting between iconic artist Andrew Weatherall and fisherman Gerard Sheehy.

The 10-minute film explores how the words of wisdom Sheehy shared with Weatherall changed his path and went on to influence another generation of musicians and creatives. The film also features Cian Ó Cíobháin who was instrumental in finding Gerard, as well as Andrew’s close friend and collaborator Sean Johnston. All proceeds from this film and any screenings will go to Andrew’s family and the charities that meant the most to him.

Throughout Andrew Weatherall’s illustrious career, a phrase accompanied him: Fail We May, Sail We Must. The words became a track title on his debut album, they were written onto zines he edited, he had them tattooed onto his arms, and inspired a great deal more ink and art on people, prints and walls around the world.

A new short film Sail We Must tells the origin story of how The Guv’nor first came to hear the phrase and took it on as a personal mantra, influencing creatives all around the world. It is premiering online here on Mixmag.net today on the two year anniversary of Andrew Weatherall’s passing.

Speaking about the film, Grizzly directors Trevor Whelan and Rua Meegan say: “Sail We Must is a tribute to the iconic Andrew Weatherall and his loyal followers. When Richard Seabrooke and Eric Davidson (The Tenth Man) first approached us with the concept we immediately knew this would fit our style and were excited to tell the story of this inspiring chance encounter and pay tribute on the two year anniversary [of Andrew’s passing]. The documentary has an unbelievable twist at the end, it's a must-watch!