Edited by Azizi Powell
This pancocojams post provides a compilation of some examples of the children's rhymes that are NOT part of the "true love together (two lips/tulips) family of rhymes.
The content of this post is presented for folkloric, recreational, and socio-cultural purposes.
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Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2020/10/examples-of-childrens-rhyme-two-lips.html for this closely related pancocojams post entitled "Examples Of The Children's Rhyme "True Love Together" (which are known as "Two Lips" Or "Tulips Together" Or "The Spades Go")"
Some of the examples in this 2020 pancocojams post were previously included in this pancocojams post or its comment section:
http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-real-meaning-of-spades-go-space-go.html "The REAL Meaning Of "The Spades Go" & "The Space Go" In Playground Rhymes".
Also, click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2016/09/the-saying-call-spade-spade-article.html for this closely related pancocojams post entitled "The Saying "Call A Spade A Spade" (article excerpts & comments)".
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PANCOCOJAMS EDITOR'S NOTES (revised Oct. 26, 2020 at 11:38 PM RT)
"The spades goes" and "the space goes" are introductory phrases for some of "True Love Forever" children's recreational rhymes. Those rhymes appear to be more widely known in the United States as "Two Lips" or "Tulips Together".
The phrase "the spades go" or "the space go" are also found in some versions of certain other children's rhymes (such as some examples of "Shimmy Shimmy Co Co Pa" and "Eenie Meenie" (often combined with "Take A Peach, Take A Plum" verses).
I believe that "the space goes "is a folk processed form of "the spades go". Notice that these examples always use the plural form of the word "spade" but the singular form of the word "space". There's a singular form of the word "space", but the word "space" has no plural form. My position is that the word "spades" in those rhyme examples refer to more than one person-hence the on purpose use of the plural form.
Colloquially, in the United States, in Great Britain, and in some other English speaking nations, "spades" is a pejorative colloquial referent for Black people. However, I believe that in these children's rhymes the introductory phrase " the spades go" isn't meant to be a derogatory referent. On the contrary, my position is that "the spades go" means that the children performing those rhymes are announcing that they are copying (or are attempting to copy) the cool and skillful way that Black people (and more specifically Black girls) do them.
Here's a portion of my comments in the 2012 pancocojams post "The REAL Meaning Of "The Spades Go" & "The Space Go" In Playground Rhymes http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-real-meaning-of-spades-go-space-go.html
... "it's my position that, early on, when a specific meaning was given to the introductory phrase the "spades go", that phrase meant "(This is the way) Black people go (say or do this rhyme). I don't believe that any pejorative connotations were/are attributed to the words "the spades go" in children's rhymes.
This was/is partly because Black girls were/are considered to be the sources of many of these rhymes, or were/are considered to be the "coolest" or "hippest" examples of how those rhymes should be performed. This same dynamic can be found in the use of introductory phrases as "the Black people say" or "the Black people sing" in vaudeville songs. And this same dynamic can be found in past and current attitudes that mainstream American (i.e. White America) had/has about Black people being the "go to" population when it comes to learning how to do popular R&B/Hip Hop dances."...
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As I have previously indicated, I believe that the "the spades" is a substitution for the words "the Blacks". Note that "the Blacks" is a socially unacceptable form of the referent "Black people".
Here's an example of the children's rhyme "Shimmy Shimmy Co Co Pop" which begins with the words "The Blacks go". That rhyme is included in a 1973 book of children's rhymes "Shimmy Shimmy Coke-Ca-Pop!, A Collection of City Children's Street Games & Rhymes", edited by John Langstaff, Carol Langstaff, (Garden City, New York, Double Day & Co; p. 76; 1973)
"The Blacks go down down baby
Down by the roller coaster
Sweet sweet baby
I don't wanna let you go
Shimmy shimmy shimmy shimmy
shimmy shimmy-pop!
Shimmy shimmy shimmy shimmy
shimmy shimmy coke-ca-pop!
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Unfortunately, I can't find my copy of that book, but I seem to recall that the editors didn't give any demographics for these rhymes except that were performed by children in United States cities. (Additions and corrections are very welcome.)
No racial demographics are included for this rhyme from that book or for most of the rhymes that are included in this compilation. However, my guess is that the contributors of most of these rhymes are White or otherwise are non-Black. But I wouldn't be surprised if rhymes with the words "the spades say" or "the space say" have been (or still are) chanted by Black people. However, I've been collecting children's recreational rhymes directly (mostly in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area) and indirectly (mostly online), and I don't recall ever hearing or coming across any examples of these rhymes from Black people (or from people who online self-identified as Black.).
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Read the content and comments in the pancocojams posts that are given as links for more about this topic.
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HOW THESE COMMENTS ARE PRESENTED
These examples are given in no particular chronological order (by date published off-line or online). These examples may include comments and notes about the rhyme, and/or comments about the meaning of "spades" in that rhyme, and/or information about how the rhyme was performed.
These examples are numbered for referencing purposes only.
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RHYME EXAMPLES
Example #1
"Ooh! The spades go, Down! Down! Baby! Down! Down the roller
coaster! Sweet, sweet baby! Sweet, sweet delectable! Shimmy, shimmy
cocoa pop! Shimmy, shimmy rock! Shimmy, shimmy cocoa pop! Shimmy,
shimmy rock! I met a girlfriend a triscuit! She said a triscuit a
biscuit! Ice cream, soda pop, vanilla on the top! Ooh Shelly, walking
down the street, ten times a week! I met it! I said it! I stole my
mother's credit! I'm cool! I'm hot! Sock me in the stomach three more times!
-From http://www.script-o-rama.com/movie_scripts/b/big-script-transcript-tom-hanks.html
-snip-
The American movie Big was released July 3, 1988. This is the second time the
lead character chanted the "Down Down Baby" rhyme in that movie. The first time
that rhyme began with the words "Down Down Baby".
Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2011/12/sources-of-big-movie-rap-shimmy-shimmy.html for the 2011 pancocojams post entitled "Sources Of The Movie Big's Rap Shimmy Shimmy Cocoa Pop". That post is Part I of a three part of a pancocojams series on playground rhymes sources for the "Shimmy Shimmy Cocoa Pop" "rap" in the 1988 American movie Big.
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Example #2
The space goes down, down baby,
down, down the roller coaster.
Sweet, sweet baby,
sweet, sweet, don't let me go.
Shimmy, shimmy, cocoa pop.
Shimmy, shimmy, rock.
Shimmy, shimmy, cocoa pop.
Shimmy, shimmy, rock.
I met a girlfriend - a triscuit.
She said, a triscuit - a biscuit.
Ice cream, soda pop,
vanilla on the top.
Ooh, Shelly's out, walking down the street,
ten times a week.
I read it. I said it.
I stole my momma's credit.
I'm cool. I'm hot.
Sock me in the stomach three more times!
-xxMarz456xx ; http://www.youtube.com/all_comments?v=p9z2hJwJuqg&page=2, 2009
Tom Hanks does the 'Big' rap - Friday Night with Jonathan Ross - BBC One
BBC, May 8, 2009
-snip-
This is one of a number of transcriptions of the recitation that Tom Hanks did on that BBC television show. There's A LOT of disagreement in that YouTube video's comment section and in the comment section for my pancocojams post on the sources of the Big movie's rap (whose link is given above) about whether Tom Hank's character said "spades" or "space" in that movie.
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Example #3
The spades the spades the spades go iny miny popsa kiney i love bomaragn a hop a scoth a liver roch a peach a plum i have a stick of chewing gum and if u want the other half this is wut you say: amen amen amendiego sandieago bostn bruins rah rah rah boo boo boo criss cross apple sauce do me a favor get lost while ur at it drop dead either that or lose ur head bang on trash cans bang on tin cans i can u can nobody else can sitting on the bench nuthing to do along comes some one..cohey coochey coo! andu tickle the other person
Source: Sally, May 6, 2005
http://www.streetplay.com/discus/
This link now leads to a members only forum and not to examples of rhymes.
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Example #4
The spades go eenie meenie pop-si-keenie ooh aah ogg-a-lini achi-pachi liver-achi say the magic words, a peach, a plum, a half a stick of chewing gum and if you want the other half this is what u say: amen amen a-man-di-ego san-diego hocus pocus ala-mocus, sis, sis, sis-coom-bah, montana montana rah rah rah, boo boo boo, 1-2, i hate you, criss-cross applesauce, do me a favor and get lost, while ur at it drop dead, then come back with no head.
haha it was a hand game we played at recess...
- Brandy (Post #360); http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=2204285338&topic=2724&post=25803#topic_top,October 08, 2006
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Example #5
The spades go eenie meenie
popsikeenie
I love boomerini
Otchi kotchi liveraci
say the magic word
a peach
a plum
a half a stick of chewing gum
and if you want the other half this is what you say
amen amen
amendiago sandiago
sis sis sis koomba
sharon and tommy sittin in a tree
bah ha ha
boo hoo hoo
criss cross
apple sauce
do me a favor and get lost.
and then it goes on..
- http://onceuponawin.com/2009/05/20/win-pics-the-hand-clap-game/, 5/20/2009 [This link is no longer active.]
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Example #6
“The Space Goes" sounds something like this:
The Space goes
bobo, skee waten taten
ah ah, ah ah boom boom boom
mini mini waten, bobo skee waten,
bobo, skee waten freeze!
::at freeze the players would freeze and whoever moved first lost::
- contortme - octoblog/Whee Blog, September 16, 2003, [This website is no longer active.]
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Example #7
The space goes
apple on a stick just makes me sick make my tummy go 2 4 6
not because im hungry
not because im clean
just because i kiss a boy behind the magazine
hey girls lets have some fun
here comes (name) with his pant undone
he can wiggle he can wobble he can do the twist
but most of all he cant do this close your eyes and count ten if you messs up start ova again
1, 2, 3, 4, ...
- Cece; Octoblog/Whee Blog , 10/9/2005, [This website no longer active]
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Example #8
Cinderella dressed in yella went up stairs to kiss her fella. She stepped on a crack and broke her back. Tried to stand and cut her hand. How many stitches did it take? The space goes boom boom skitty wat and tat and ah ah ah ah boom boom boom skitty witty wa wa, bubishka wa wa bubishka wa wa pow bang boom. I went to a Chinese restaurant to buy a loaf of bread bread bread. She put it in a half brown bag and this is what she said said said, my name is ki yi yippee yi, yippe yi ki yi humble berry, chocolate cherry, walla walla Washington, chop chop chow
- http://www.inthe80s.com/rhymes.shtml; retrieved on 8/13/2009
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Example #9
the spades go eenie meaning pop zuchinni
oh ah, oobaleenie
atchie katchie liveratchie say the magic words
a peach a plum a half a stick of chewing gum
and if you want the other half
this is what you say
amen amen a men of san diego hocus pocus alerocus
ses ses ses boom bah
rivers rivers rah rah rah
boo boo boo
criss cross apple sauce
do me a favor and get lost
while your at it drop down dead
either that or lose your head
banging on a trash can
banging on a tin can
you can i can nobody else can
sitting around, with nothing to do, along comes grandma
and gootchie gootchie goo!
-lissandsara, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mJ_f8Vczok&feature=related August 30, 2008
-snip-
"The Spades" is the title given to this YouTube video of two White girls reciting this rhyme.
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