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Tuesday, May 6, 2025

Some Early Examples Of "The Duckworth Chant" ("Sound Off") Military Cadences.


Michael Cavanaugh, Jul 22, 2013

"In mid-1944, then-Pvt. Willie Lee Duckworth Sr., detached from Camp Kilmer NJ to Ft. Slocum NY for Provisional Training, devised a marching cadence.  It is known first as the Duckworth Chant, later as the Jody Call;  it was also copyrighted as Sound Off and various pop recordings were made of it.  Although he first [revised* it on post, Duckworth led it (as the introduction here recounts) marching back from bivouac in nearby Ardsley.  After Duckworth returned to post, he was called in by the Commanding Officer, Col. Bernard Lentz.   (He is shown in front of the tent.)   During WWI Lentz had invented The Cadence System of Teaching Close-Order Drill, and was enthusiastic about Duckworth's cadence.  

In the time remaining before returning to Kilmer, Lentz detailed Duckworth to work on the cadence with instructors in the Provisional Training Center, including T/Sgt Henry "Jack" Felice, seen on the viewer's right in the group shot, and WO Edward "Eddie" Sadowski, then leader of the post band, the 378th Army Service Forces Band.  Felice reads the introduction, then leads the standard version of the Duckworth Chant;  together these formed the A side of a V-Disc recorded at Slocum in Raymond Hall in 1945 with inmates of what had then become the Rehabilitation Center. (That is Felice leading the Chant in the marching photo with the water tower in the background.)  

After the War, Lentz copyrighted the chant as Sound Off;  he shared the royalties with Duckworth, and to this day they continue to come in to both the Duckworth and Lentz families.   In 2009 a committee of local admirers led by Rosby Gordon placed this granite marker on the grounds of the courthouse in Washington Co, GA, T/4 Duckworth's home county;  at the same time a portion of GA State Hwy 252, running in front of Duckworth's house, was named in his honor.   Duckworth's chant, the Jody, remains a staple both of military life and of popular culture  (from the soundtracks of military-themed films to jingles such as SpongeBob Squarepants)."
-snip-
I reformatted this summary to enhance its readability. 

*This word is given as "devised" in this summary.

No transcription is given of this sound file.

****
Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post presents some early (1944-1950s) sound file, video, or word only examples  of "The Duckworth Chant" ("Sound Off") military cadences.

"The Duckworth Chant" ("Sound Off") are call & response military cadences that sparked the creation of other American call & response marching and running chants during World War II and beyond.

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

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to Willie Lee Duckworth for his cultural legacy and thanks to all the collectors and researchers of "The Duckworth Chant" ("Sound Off') and other military cadences. Things to all those who are quoted in this pancocojams post and thanks to the producers and publishers of these YouTube examples. Thanks also to all those who composed verses for this Duckworth Chant ("Sound Off"). 
-snip-
Click 
https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/05/information-about-willie-lee-duckworth.html for the closely related pancocojams post entitled "Information About Willie Lee Duckworth, The First Creator Of "The Duckworth Chant" ("Sound Off") Military Cadences."

Here's a statement that is included in that post from a 2008 draft pdf by Michael Cavanaugh:
"There was no audio recording of the original chant, nor any known attempt to transcribe its original lyrics. Reading between the lines of several published lyrics, it is clear that some of them trace to Ft. Slocum and are as early as late 1944. Over time various stories have been told about its origins."...
-snip-
Excerpts of that pdf are quoted in the pancocojams post whose link is given above.

****
EARLY VERSIONS OF THE DUCKWORTH CHANT ("SOUND OFF")
These versions aren't given in any particular order and are numbered for referencing purposes only. 

Version #1
This version is given at the top of this post.

****
Version #2
https://www.musixmatch.com/lyrics/Vaughn-Monroe/Sound-Off-the-Duckworth-Chant

"Lyrics Of Sound Off (The Duckworth Chant) by Vaughn Monroe
The heads are up The chests are out The arms are swinging

Let′s go back and count some more
I had a good home, but I left (you're right)
I had a good home, but I left (you′re right)
Jody was there, when I left (you're right)
Jody was there, when I left (you're right)
I left gal away out west
I thought this army life was best
Now she′s someone elses wife
And I′ll be marchin' the rest of my life
The captain rides in a jeep
The general rides in a limosine
But we′re just out of luck
The heads are up
The chests are out
The arms are swinging
Ennie, Meanie, Minnie, Moe
And let's go back and count somemore
Writer(s): Willie Lee Duckworth, Bernard Lentz" -snip- Bernard Lenz was the commanding officer of the United State's army base Fort Slocum,New York when Private Willie Lee Duckworth chanted what became cadence call ("Jody call") that is now known as "The Duckworth Chant" (also known as "Sound Off"). **** Version #4 http://www.hardscrabblefarm.com/ww2/cadence_calls.htm

Second World War Cadence - SOUND OFF

By Michael Stucke, 2003 Brian Mead "An old Army legend is told... in May, 1944, an fatigued marching column, returning to barracks at Ft. Slocum, New York, picked up the step with a chant heard in the ranks. Others repeated it and the "Duckworth Chant" or "Sound Off" was born. Pvt. Willie Duckworth, an African American soldier created the chant that we know today.

"Sound Off"

(CHORUS) SOUND OFF (By individual)

1 - 2 (By troops)

SOUND OFF (By individual)

3 - 4 (By troop)

CADENCE COUNT (By individual)

1 - 2 - 3 - 4, 1 - 2 --- 3 - 4 (By troops)

VERSE 1 The heads are up and the chests are out

The arms are swinging in cadence count.

Repeat - Chorus after every verse

VERSE 2 Head and eyes are off the ground, Forty inches, Cover down.

VERSE 3 It won't get by if it ain't GI,

It won't get by if it ain't GI,

VERSE 4 I don't mind taking a hike

If I can take along a bike.

VERSE 5 I don't care if I get dirty

As long as the Brow gets Gravel Gertie.

VERSE 6 The Wacs and Waves will win the War

So tell us what we're fighting for.

VERSE 7 They send us out in the middle of the night To shoot an azimuth without a light.

VERSE 8 There are lots plums upon the tree

For everyone exceptin' me.

VERSE 9 The first platoon, it is the best.

They always pass the Colonel's tests.


JODY CALLS - Who is Jody? Jodie (Jody) is a mysterious, often sinister character that stays home and indulges in the good life as a civilian. This person can be a male or a female depending on the spin of the verses and is ready to comfort or take away your wife, girlfriend, sister or possessions while you are soldiering. Jody may be synonymous with G.I. Joe, a variation of John Doe. The verses are never-ending and are often made up for a particular person, place, unit or situation.

Here's a sample: You had a good home when you left (By individual)

You're right (By troops)

You had a good home when you left (By individual)

You're right (By troops)

Jodie was there when you left (By individual)

You're right (By troops)

Jodie was there when you left (By individual)

You're right (By troops)

(CHORUS) SOUND OFF (By individual)

1 - 2 (By troops)

SOUND OFF (By individual)

3 - 4 (By troop)

CADENCE COUNT (By individual)

1 - 2 - 3 - 4, 1 - 2 --- 3 - 4 (By troops)

You had a good home when you left (By individual)

You're right (By troops)

Jodie was there when you left (By individual)

You're right (By troops)

Her mamma was there when you left (By individual)

You're right (By troops)

Her papa was there when you left (By individual)

You're right (By troops)

(CHORUS)

You had a good home when you left (By individual)

You're right (By troops)

Your baby was there when you left (By individual)

You're right (By troops)

The police were there when you left (By individual)

You're right (By troops)

And that's why you left (By individual)

You're right (By troops)

(CHORUS)

The Captain rides in a jeep,

You're right (By troops)

The Sergeant rides in a truck,

You're right (By troops)

The General rides in a limousine

You're right (By troops)

But your just out a luck.

You're right (By troops)

(CHORUS)


Occasionally, one hears a cadence or "Jody" in films or records. These may not be exactly authentic but most capture the feeling of the period and the spirit of the cadence. "Battleground" has scenes of this call that is closer than most."... **** Version #4 - BATTLEGROUND - 1949 clip 2


dday0606, Apr 5, 2008

Closing scene of Battleground, coming off the line. -snip- From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battleground_(film) "Battleground is a 1949 American war film directed by William A. Wellman and starring Van Johnson, John Hodiak, Ricardo Montalbán, George Murphy, and James Whitmore. It follows a fictional company of the 327th Glider Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division as they fight in the siege ofBastogne during the Battle of the Bulge, in World War II.

[...]

A widespread critical and commercial success, the film won Best Story and Screenplay (Pirosh) and Best Cinematography – Black-and-White (Paul C. Vogel) at the 22nd Academy Awards, out of six total nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director for Wellman. James Whitmore, for his second-ever film role, was nominated for an Oscar and won a Golden Globe Award for his performance.".. -snip- My apologies. This video is given in this pancocojams post without a transcript.

**** Video #5- Duckworth Chant Ft Slocum 1945 VDisc SSgt Woodard WAC
s

Michael Cavanaugh, Jul 22, 2013

This is a 1945 recording from V-Disc of the Duckworth Chant

in Raymond Hall, Ft. Slocum NY.  It is led by S/Sgt Gladys "Woodie" Woodard of the WAC detachment, and is a specific WAC version of the chant.  The visual is of that detachment marching in Central Park in late June 1944, just after the Duckworth Chant was composed at Ft Slocum by Pvt. Willie Lee Duckworth Sr.;  it is very likely that this is what the WACs in the photo are vocalizing.  The detachment is led by 1/Sgt Dorothy "Dot" Hood;  S/Sgt Woodard is in the front rank, 3rd from the viewer's right. -snip- from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_Army_Corps "The Women's Army Corps (WAC) was the women's branch of the United States Army. It was created as an auxiliary unit, the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC), on 15 May 1942, and converted to an active duty status in the Army of the United States as the WAC on 1 July 1943. Its first director was Colonel Oveta Culp Hobby.[1][2] The WAC was disbanded on 20 October 1978, and all WAC units were integrated with male units."... -snip- My apologies. This video is given in this pancocojams post without a transcript.

**** Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

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