Early Sources & Early Examples Of Lines From "Bang Choo Choo Train" rhymes & cheers

Edited by Azizi Powell

Latest Revision - January 20, 2024

This pancocojams post provides information and my speculations about early sources for the "Bang Bang Choo Choo Train" rhymes/cheers and early examples of those rhymes and cheers.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, historical, cultural, and recreational purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the composers of the records that are mentioned in this post. Also, thanks to all those who are mentioned or featured in videos in this post and thanks to the publishers of the videos that are mentioned in this post or featured in this post.
-snip-
Editor's Note:(June 21, 2023)
The earliest documented example of "Bang Bang Choo Choo Train" rhymes and cheers that I have come across is from the 1970s.

The earliest example of this rhyme/cheer from my direct (face to face) collection in from 1997 (African American girls from Braddock, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania performing a foot stomping cheer).

"My back is aching" rhyme/cheers was popularized by its performance by the Clovers, the Black cheerleading squad in the 2000 American cheerleader movie Bring It On as well as in the 2003 movie Dickie Roberts: Child Star.  

However, signature lines that are associated with some "Bang Bang Choo Choo Train" rhymes/cheers -such as "my back is aching and my belts too tight, my balls are swinging from the left to the right" (or similar references) - can be found in some military cadences from the 1960s. That line is also included in one dirty" children's rhyme that I have come across from the 1970s.

Some website and social media posts indicate that the "Bang Bang Choo Choo Train" rhymes date from 1902. Those posts are probably a misquote of a since rewritten  statement in this pancocojams post that "Bang Bang Lulu" songs are the earliest sources for "Bang Bang Choo Choo Train" children's rhymes and cheers.

Early sources for children's rhymes, cheers, and songs aren't the same thing as early examples of those rhymes, cheers, and songs.

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Warning: Some of these examples and other examples on these linked pages may have profanity and/or explicit references. I've used amended spelling for the profanity and explicit references that are included in the examples given in this pancocojams post.

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"BANG BANG CHOO CHOO TRAIN" EARLY SOURCES & TIMELINE
"Bang Bang Choo Choo Train" is a widely known African American originated children's taunting rhyme and cheerleader cheer. This time frame provides what I believe to be early sources and influences for Bang Bang Choo Choo Train. The timeline for the early sources for these rhymes and cheers begins in 1902 and goes up to 2003. Additions and corrections are welcome.

These sources and timelines include some speculation on my part. Comments and corrections are welcome.

1902 Source : BANG BANG LULU [explicit adult songs]
The words "Bang bang choo choo train" probably were influenced by the early 20th century bawdy (dirty/sexually explicit) song "Bang Bang Lulu". The word "bang" in those songs meant "have sex with".  

Here's a brief excerpt about "Bang Bang Lulu" [This section is updated to the content of that page which was retrieved on January 5, 2022]
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bang_Bang_Lulu

" "Bang Bang Lulu" is a traditional American song with many variations. It derives from older songs most commonly known as "Bang Bang Rosie" in Ireland, "Bang Away Lulu" in Appalachia,[1] and "My Lula Gal" in the West.[2][6] The form "Bang Bang Lulu" became widespread in the United States from its use as a cadence during the World Wars. The song uses the tune of "Goodnight, Ladies".

Traditional song

All versions concern a woman and her various lovers. The early forms were sometimes very directly crude, violent, or infanticidal.[7] Published versions probably drastically understate the song's popularity,[1] particularly since the first mentions allude to 78[8] or 900[9] additional verses unfit for printing. Robert Gordon, the first head of the Library of Congress's Archive of American Folk Song, included his variants of Lulu among the "Inferno" section which was excluded from the library's general collection for its "bawdy and scatological subject matter".[10]

One verse appeared in Owen Wister's 1902 novel on p. 96 The Virginian:[8]

If you go to monkey with my Looloo girl,
I'll tell you what I'll do:
I'll carve out your heart with my razor, AND
I'll shoot you with my pistol, too—

Nine [verses that refer to LuLu]  appeared in Carl Sandburg's 1927 American Songbag among its "Railroad and Work Gangs" songs."...
 -snip-
Read those examples on that page.

The word "bang" in the song "Bang Bang Lulu" means "have sex with". http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/bang

In the "Bang Bang Choo Train" rhyme/cheer, some children may believe that the words 
"bang bang" represent the sound of gun fire. 

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SOURCES FOR THESE RHYMES/CHEERS
1944 - THE DUCKWORTH CADENCE
The left, right, left" words in "Bang Bang Choo Choo Train" rhymes/ cheers have their source in the Duckworth military cadence.

Here's some information about the Duckworth cadence from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_cadence

A V-Disc issued in 1944 credits the origin of "Sound Off" ("The Duckworth Chant") to Private Willie Lee Duckworth of Sandersville, Georgia, an African American soldier serving in the United States Army.

... as a company ... was returning from a long tedious march through swamps and rough country, a chant broke the stillness of the night. Upon investigation, it was found that a Negro soldier by the name of Willie Duckworth, on detached service with the Provisional Training Center, was chanting to build up the spirits of his comrades.

It was not long before the infectious rhythm was spreading throughout the ranks. Footweary soldiers started to pick up their step in cadence with the growing chorus of hearty male voices. Instead of a down trodden, fatigued company, here marched 200 soldiers with heads up, a spring to their step, and happy smiles on their faces. This transformation occurred with the beginning of the Duckworth Chant.

Upon returning to Fort Slocum, Pvt. Duckworth, with the aid of Provisional Training Center instructors, composed a series of verses and choruses to be used with the marching cadence. Since that eventful evening the Duckworth Chant has been made a part of the drill at Fort Slocum as it proved to be not only a tremendous morale factor while marching, but also coordinated the movements of close order drill with troop precision.^[2]

This original cadence was recorded as "Sound Off":

Sound-off; 1 - 2; Sound-off; 3 - 4; Cadence count; 1 - 2 - 3 - 4; 1 - 2 — 3 - 4.

This cadence, known as the "Duckworth Chant," still exists with variations in the different branches of the U.S. military. Duckworth's simple chant was elaborated on by Army drill sergeants and their trainees, and the practice of creating elaborate marching chants spread to the Air Force, Marine Corps, and Navy.

A musical version of the chant was recorded by Vaughn Monroee and His Orchestra (Voc.: Vaughn Monroe & Chorus ...on March 7, 1951. ..

A variant of that cadence was used in the 1949 movie Battleground and in the 1981 movie Taps...It appears in two versions in the film, both ending in the same cadence.

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EARLY EXAMPLES 

1966 [or earlier] -  "MY BACK IS ACHING AND MY BELT'S TOO TIGHT, ETC.
The lines "my back is aching and my belt's too tight" etc. have their source in military cadences. 

  
Here are two examples. of military cadences with those lines:

Warning: These examples and other examples on these linked pages may have profanity and/or explicit references.

1.  From http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=2915&messages=92 "Military Jodies?", EuGene

Date: 23 Jun 07 04:29 PM and 05:39 PM

"Your pants pulled up, your belt's pulled tight,
Your balls are swingin from left to right.

Them nuts ain't got a thing to do,
'Cause 4F Jody's took over for you."
**
[quoted for demographic information] ..."I was in the Army going through Basic and AIT in 1966 - 1967."...

**
2.  https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/3m5awn/military_personnel_whats_the_most_funny/

Posted byu/sirbitman, 2015
"Military personnel whats the most funny /politically incorrect military cadence you heard?

avy my belts to tight my balls are swinging from left to right left left left right left"
-snip-
In children's rhymes and cheers, "My back is aching etc".lines are chanted by themselves or are included in some "Bang Bang Choo Choo Train", "Brickwall Waterfall", "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky","Jigalow" rhymes and other rhymes/cheers.

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1960s 
https://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=2915#2085062
EuGene posted these two lines from a military cadence in his comment on 23 Jun 07 - 04:29 PM in this thread:

"Your pants pulled up, your belt's pulled tight,

Your balls are swingin from left to right."

-snip-

In response to another poster's query, EuGene indicated that he was "in the Army going through Basic and AIT in 1966 - 1967".

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1970

Here's an example of a girls' chant from New York City, 1970 that shows the influence of  both the Duckworth military cadence and the "Belt too tight" military cadence:

Warning- This example includes profanity.

"i remember a song girls would sing more than the guys..in the polo grounds projects 155th 8th ave.. a group of girls singing it loud walking from school everyday from ps 156 i think it was..it went

youre left
youre left
your left right left
my ass is shakin
my belts too tight
my balls are shakin from left to right
umm funky nassau
umm funky nassau
your momma
your poppa
youre greasy nanny
youre awful nanny
you toot and toot ?
dont prostitute
dont try to switch
you dirty bi-ch*
no hesitation
no revelation
just go to hell
and ring my bell

 

it was 1970 I remember…
-snip-
*The complete word is spelled out in this example"
-GUEST,frank from ny, 18 Dec 07 - 02:14 AM; : Jody's children - kids' rhymes from military chant; https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=73808

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1978

MY LEFT

My left my left my left right left

My left my left my left right left

My left my left my left right left

My back achin my belt too tight

My booty shaking from the left to the right

My?- My ? My-hoochie coochie ?

-https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2020/06/kids-explain-their-rhymes-games-and-songs/ "Kids Explain Their Rhymes, Games, and Songs" June 5, 2020, Posted by: Stephanie Hall [sound file of Children's rhymes, games, and songs performed by Mrs. Currier's 4th grade class, Blue Ridge Elementary School, Ararat, Virginia, 1978; An African American girl shares this rhyme that she learned from her cousin Lavera who lives in New York]

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1980s

chili chili bang bang let's see rica do her thang

i can't

why not

i just can't

why not?

cause my back hurt and my bra too tight with my hips shakin from the left to the right

to the left

to the right

to that left

back to the right

 

good ass thread yella. taking me back to summer times in the 80's!
-Cherica Cherry,08-18-2006, Location Houston [Texas], https://www.lipstickalley.com/threads/hood-cheers.43158/ "Hood cheers"

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1995 - Hip Hop (Bass music) record - Giddy Up Let's Ride

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFD8ehlKXC4
Lyrics Planet, Jan 4, 2022 

[…]

Bang bang, choo choo train
Let me see you do your thing
Woah-oh-oh
Let's get this party started
Woah-oh-oh
Giddy up, giddy up
Woah-oh-oh
Let's get this party jumpin'
Here we go, here we go, here we go, here we go

[…]

….Go left, go right
Go left, right, left, right
My back is aching, my belt's too tight
My booty shakin' from left to right
Go left, go right
Go left, right, left, right
My back is aching, my belt's too tight
My booty shakin' from left to right
Go left, go right
Go left, right, left, right
My back is aching, my belt's too tight
My booty shakin' from left to right”….

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1997 - FOOT STOMPING CHEER (collected from African American girls in Braddock, Pennsylvania)

Bang, Bang Choo Choo Train.
Watch [girl's name] do her thang.
[Girl] I can't.
Group: Why not?
[Girl] I can't.
Group: Why not?
[Girl] Because my back is achin.
{And} My bra's too tight.
My hips keep movin' from the left to the right
Group: Her back is achin.
Her bra's too tight.
Her hips keep movin from the left to the right."

-snip-
This foot stomping cheer is repeated from the beginning, with each girl in the group having one turn as the soloist. (The turns were determined by how fast the girls shouted first, second, third etc.) 
-snip-

-African American girls ages 7-12 years; (Alafia Children's Ensemble, Braddock, Pennsylvania), 10/1997; collected by Azizi Powell. 10/97; These exact words were also collected by Azizi Powell from African American girls 7-12 years; Pittsburgh, PA (11/2001 & additional dates through 2005 as a hand clap rhyme)

*I gave this date as 1999 in a 24 Oct 06 - 03:57 AM Mudcat discussion thread post https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=94034&messages=460&page=1 [Origins: Down by The Banks Of The Hanky Panky". Unfortunately, I don't have any documentation of that exact date.

"Bang Bang Choo Choo Train" is often found as part of the "Brickwall Waterfall" rhymes. It is also found in combination with other children's rhymes, with or without the "Brick wall Waterfall" basic verse.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/01/brickwall-waterfall-examples-analysis.html for the related pancocojams post "Brickwall Waterfall" (Examples & Analysis)

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2000- BRING IT ON  movie

The predominately Black cheerleading squad "The Clovers" in this American movie  performed a cheer routine that briefly included the line "Bang Bang choo choo train/wind me up, I'll do my thang".
Click https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nO1o78pl-Bc for a sound file of that recording.

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2003 - DICKIE ROBERTS: FORMER CHILD STAR movie
The rhyme "Bang Bang Choo Choo Train" was part of the "Brickwall Waterfall" taunting rhyme in the 2003 movie Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star
Here's that movie excerpt:
'Sally Finney: "Brick wall, waterfall. Dickie thinks he got it all but he don't, and I do, so Boom with that attitude. Peace, punch Captain Crunch. I've got something you can't touch. Bang- Bang choo-choo train. Wind me up I do my thing. Reeses Pieces, 7-Up. You mess with me, I'll mess you up."
Source: http://imdb.com/title/tt0325258/quotes "Memorable quotes for Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star (2003)"

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2010
National news article about a 6 year old girl whose parents removed her from a children's community cheerleader squad because they considered the "Bang Bang choo Choo Train" cheer to be inappropriate for children. https://jezebel.com/6-year-old-girl-dropped-from-cheerleading-squad-after-m-5641651 

and

https://prince.org/msg/100/343980 [another online discussion about this cheer]
[first comment: ] tinaz 09/17/10

"Did the parents overreact??

here is a clip about a 6 y/o who was a cheerleader, the parents, or should I say the mom, cuz the dad never said a word, didnt like a cheer so she raised a stink and her kid got kicked off.. I think she didnt like being told she couldnt have her way so thats why she freaked! if you object to a cheer, dont let your kid participate, now the poor girl is gonna get grief from other kids when she gets older for her mom being a total bitch...

What do you all think? the cheer was this..

My back is aching, my skirts to tight, my booty is shaking from left to right...,"

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2012/2021

R&B singer Ciara's 2012 record "Got Me Good" includes the lines
"My back is aching, my bra too tight
My hip's shaking from left to right
My back is aching, my bra too tight
My booty's shaking from the left to the right
My back is aching, I'm so in love
Baby, all I know is you got me good"
-snip-
Ciara's R&B song "Got Me Good" was revived in 2021 via Tik Tok dance compilation in 2021. 
Those clips repeat the portion of the record when she sings "My back is aching, my bra's too tight my hips are shaking from the left to the right". 

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2016
GoNoodle's "Peanut Butter In A Cup" Cheer

ALL  Peanut butter in a cup we sing this song to pump us UP!

Bing Bang choo choo train, come on Bridgette do your thang…

BRIDGETTE: I can’t!

ALL:  Why not?

BRIDGETTE: I just can’t!

ALL:  Why not?

BRIDGETTE: My back’s aching, the sun’s too bright, my hips popping from left to right. To the left. To the right, to the left, To the right.

ALL: Left, right, left, right, left, right, left, right, left, right…

Peanut butter in a cup we sing this song to pump us UP! Bing Bang choo choo train, come on Lindsay do your thang…

LINDSAY: I can’t!

ALL:  Why not?

LINDSAY: I just can’t!

ALL:  Why not?

LINDSAY: My back’s aching, the sun’s too bright, my hips popping from left to right. To the left. To the right, to the left, To the right.

ALL: Left, right, left, right, left, right, left, right, left, right"...
-snip-
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2022/01/gonoodles-2016-peanut-butter-in-cup.html for the YouTube video and complete lyrics for this cheer. 

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ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES AND COMMENTS ABOUT THIS CHEER

The line "bras' too tight" is often changed to "skirt's too tight". I've also seen it given as "shoes too tight". As noted, the line "hips are shaking from the left to the right" has been chanted as "booty's shaking from the left to the right" for decades.

The word "bang bang" is sometimes interpreted as referring to gun fire. When those words are spoken, chanters often pantomine shooting a gun by pointing their fingers.

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Some cheerleader versions of "Bang Bang Choo Choo Train" avoid the controversy surrounding the "skirt too tight/booty shaking" lines by removing those words and replacing them with lines that focus on other actions:

Here are two videos of examples of those versions:

Example #1: Bang Bang Choo Choo Train



wkumusicgirl Uploaded on Nov 6, 2007

My niece doing a cheer.
-snip-
Here's my transcription of this example:
Bang Bang Choo Choo Train
Wind me up, and I'll do my thing.
Get it. Get it. Get it. Get it.
Go it. Got it. Got it. Got it.
And "Oomph! [clap] and let it roll.
Oomph! [clap] and let it roll."

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Example #2: Bang bang choo choo train



BallisHeet, Published on Aug 10, 2012

Boynton Rage Cheerleading
-snip-
Here's my transcription of this example:
"Bang Bang choo choo train
Come on [athletic team name], do your thing.
Get it. Get it. Get it. Get it.
Go it. Got it. Got it. Got it.
And "Oosh! and let it roll.
Oosh! and let it roll."

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