Early Sources & Early Versions Of The Song "Turkey In The Straw" (YouTube videos & song lyrics) 2025 reprint

turkey in the straw (first version 1942)

bloodboiler666, Uploaded on Oct 26, 2007

old time folk music
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Pancocojams Editor's Note: This actually isn't the first version of "Turkey In The Straw".

Read information about this song that is presented below.

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Edited by Azizi Powell

Latest Update- April 23, 2025

This is Part II of a two part pancocojams series on the song "Old Zip Coon" and the song "Turkey In The Straw". Both of these songs use the same tune.

This post provides information about early sources of the song "Turkey In The Straw". This post also include lyrics & videos of versions of the song "Turkey In The Straw".

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/04/two-versions-of-song-old-zip-coon-sound.html for Part I of this post. That 2013 post showcases the United States Old time music song "Old Zip Coon". 

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

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to the unknown composers of this song and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post and all those who are featured in these showcased videos. 
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This is an April 23, 2025 reprint of a 2013 pancocojams post with some additional content. That 2013 post is still published in this blog with some added content. As of April 23, 2025 there are no comments for that 2013 post.
  
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PANCOCOJAMS EDITOR'S NOTE ABOUT MINSTREL SONGS
Since this pancocojams blog focuses on African American culture and other Black cultures throughout the world, I would like to share the reason why I'm publishing posts on 19th century minstrel songs.
 
My focus on 19th century minstrel songs in this pancocojams blog shouldn't be interpreted to mean that I believe that Black Americans composed these songs. 

However, I believe that some themes, terms, and some previously existing floating verses that Black Americans did compose (largely as Southern plantation secular dance/work songs) were taken from those sources by White composers and used in a number of minstrel songs. White men are named as the composers of those songs without any acknowledgement of those Black sources. 

I recognize those Black contributions through these posts and I also recognize that some blackfaced minstrels were Black Americans. The influence of Black Americans in minstrelsy extends from the United States South to music traditions in other parts of the world including Great Britain and South Africa. 

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INFORMATION ABOUT & EARLY LYRICS FOR THE SONG "TURKEY IN THE STRAW"
Pancocojams Editor's Note:
"Turkey In The Straw" is a very well known American fiddle tune (instrumental). "Turkey In The Straw" used to be a dance song for people of all ages. However, it now is mostly considered to be a children's song.

"Turkey In The Straw" 's lyrics can be rightly considered to be "nonsense" verses. While the tune for "Turkey In The Straw" is the same as that used by a song which originally had racist lyrics, it appears that the early & the later lyrics for "Turkey In The Straw" weren't and aren't racist.

Like other songs of that era, it's difficult to determine how much of the early versions of "Turkey In The Straw" originated with African Americans or with White Americans. However, it's clear from documentation that early versions of "Turkey In The Straw" contain floating verses that are found in a number of songs that were sung by (Southern) Black Americans.

Here's a lengthy quote about "Turkey In The Straw" from http://www.contemplator.com/america/turkeyis.html
"Turkey In the Straw was one of the earliest American minstrel songs. It was a fiddle tune named Natchez Under the Hill befoe [sic] it was published with words in 1834 as Old Zip Coon. It was very popular during Andrew Jackson's presidency.

The first verse of Old Zip Coon is:
There once was a man with a double chin
Who performed with skill on the violin,
And he played in time and he played in tune,
But he wouldn't play anything but Old Zip Coon.

According to Linscott, the tune is derived from the ballad My Grandmother Lived on Yonder Little Green which in turn derived from the Irish ballad The Old Rose Tree

[LYRICS]

As I was a-gwine down the road,
With a tired team and a heavy load,
I crack'd my whip and the leader sprung,
I says day-day to the wagon tongue.
Turkey in the straw, turkey in the hay,
Roll 'em up and twist 'em up a high tuckahaw
And twist 'em up a tune called Turkey in the Straw.

[The words in italics are henceforth given "Chorus"]

Went out to milk, and I didn't know how,
I milked the goat instead of the cow.
A monkey sittin' on a pile of straw,
A-winkin' at his mother-in-law.

Chorus

Met Mr. Catfish comin' down stream.
Says Mr. Catfish, "What does you mean?"
Caught Mr. Catfish by the snout,
And turned Mr. Catfish wrong side out.

Chorus

Came to a river and I couldn't get across,
Paid five dollars for a blind old hoss;
Wouldn't go ahead, nor he wouldn't stand still,
So he went up and down like an old saw mill.

Chorus

As I came down the new cut road,
Met Mr. Bullfrog, met Miss Toad
And every time Miss Toad would sing,
Old Bullfrog cut a pigeon wing.

Chorus

Oh I jumped in the seat and I gave a little yell
The horses ran away, broke the wagon all to hell
Sugar in the gourd and honey in the horn

Chorus"
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Click http://www.gutenberg.org/files/27195/27195-h/27195-h.htm for song examples from Thomas W. Talley's 1922 collection Negro Folk Rhymes: Wise & Otherwise [henceforth referred to as "Talley: Negro Folk Rhymes"] that refer to going down a new cut road, "went to a river" etc, "milking a goat instead of a cow" etc, and dancing the pigeon wing.
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[Note added April 23, 2025- 
From https://englishteststore.net/lesson/english-idioms/cut-the-pigeon-wing-idiom-meaning-and-example-usage-in-sentences/ "Idioms often have intriguing origins, and this one is no exception. ‘Cut the Pigeon" " Wing’ finds its roots in the world of dance. In the 18th century, dancers would perform intricate moves, and one of them was the ‘Pigeon Wing.’ It was a swift, elegant motion, symbolizing grace and precision.

Meaning: Beyond Literal Interpretation

While the literal meaning of ‘Cut the Pigeon Wing’ refers to the dance move, its figurative interpretation is quite different. It signifies someone showing off or flaunting their skills or abilities, often in an ostentatious manner. It’s like a peacock spreading its feathers to attract attention."...

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ADDITIONAL EARLY SOURCES FOR SOME VERSIONS OF "TURKEY IN THE STRAW"
From http://www.bluegrassmessengers.com/turkey-in-the-straw--version-9-old-zip-coon.aspx
"Turkey in the Straw/Old Zip Coon/Natchez Under the Hill/Old Bog Hole

Bluegrass and old-time song and breakdown. Very widely known

ARTIST: by either? George Washington Dixon, George Nichols, or Bob Farrell- Old Zip Coon (1834) CATEGORY: Fiddle and Instrumental Tunes
DATE: 1834 (Five publications) as “Old Zip Coon;” Fuld reports the title "Turkey in de Straw" appeared in 1861; Earliest recording c. 1901 Silas Leachman;
RECORDING INFO “Old Zip Coon”: Arkansas Charlie [pseud. for Charlie Craver], "Old Zip Coon (Vocalion 5384, c. 1930); Hindermyer & Tuckerman [Goldy & Dusty], "Zip Coon" (Edison 51830, 1926)...
SOURCES “Turkey in the Straw”: Ceolas; Digital Tradition; Folk Index; Traditional Ballad Index; Randolph 274, "Turkey in the Straw" (2 texts plus a fragment, 1 tune); Randolph/Cohen, pp. 234-237, "Turkey in the Straw" (1 text, 1 tune -- Randolph's 274A); BrownIII 94, "Turkey in the Straw" (1 fragment); also 511, "The Preacher Song" (1 text, a complex mix of verses from "Turkey in the Stray" and "Some Folks Say that a Preacher Won't Steal" with the "Uncle Eph" chorus)"...
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My focus is on the songs "Some Folks Say that a Preacher Won't Steal" with the "Uncle Eph [Got A Coon & Gone].

Click http://www.fresnostate.edu/folklore/ballads/Br3423.html for information about & some lyrics of the song "Some Folks Say that a Preacher Won't Steal". Warning: What is now known as the n word is fully spelled out on that page.

A version of that song is also found in "Talley: Negro Folk Rhymes" under the name "They Steal Gossip". There’s an ongoing debate as to whether the word “preacher” was a substitution for the "n word" or vice versa.

Click http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=9197#1003259 for information about "Uncle Eph Got A Coon And Gone". That link is just one of the comments on that discussion thread about that song. Warning: What is now known as the n word is fully spelled out in that discussion thread.

The word "coon" in this song rerfers to "racoon". That said, it should be remembered that "coon" also was a 19th century referent for Black people that was used by some Black Americans & some White Americans, particularly in the South.

A YouTube video of "Uncle Eph Got A Coon And Gone" can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Acle20uGn1E

Floating verses found in "Uncle Eph Got A Coon" are also found in "Old Dan Tucker", "Possum Up A Gum Stump", "Liza Jane", "Shake Them 'Simmons" and a parody of Golden Slippers also have contributed. [from cited Mudcat link posted by Q, 2003]

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QUOTES FROM  WIKIPEDIA [added April 23, 2025]
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkey_in_the_Straw
" "Turkey in the Straw" is an American folk song that first gained popularity in the 19th century. Early versions of the song were titled "Zip Coon", which were first published around 1834 and performed in minstrel shows, with different people claiming authorship of the song. The melody of "Zip Coon" later became known as "Turkey in the Straw"; a song titled "Turkey in de Straw" with different music and lyrics was published in 1861 together with the wordless music of "Zip Coon" added at the end, and the title "Turkey in the Straw" then became linked to the tune of "Zip Coon".[1][2]

The song is related to a number of tunes of the 19th century and the origin of these songs has been widely debated.[3][4] Links to older Irish/Scottish/English ballads have been proposed, such as "The Old Rose Tree". The song became highly popular and many variations of the song exist. It was also frequently adapted and used in popular media.

Origin

"Turkey in the Straw" is thought to be originally a tune from 19th century minstrel shows, "Zip Coon" or "Old Zip Coon", published around 1834. The authorship of the song has been claimed by George Washington Dixon who popularized the song, as well as Bob Farrell and George Nicholls.[2] "Zip Coon" in turn has been linked to a number of 19th century folk songs believed to have older antecedents in Irish/Scottish/English folk songs. Songs proposed it has links to include "Natchez Under the Hill", "The Old Bog Hole", "The Rose Tree", "Sugar in the Gourd", "The Black Eagle", "Glasgow Hornpipe", "Haymaker's Dance", "The Post Office", "Old Mother Oxford", "Kinnegad Slasher" and others.[5][6]

Eloise Hubbard Linscott believes the first part of the song is a contrafactum of the ballad "My Grandmother Lived on Yonder Little Green", published in 1857 by Horace Waters, which is in turn said to be a contrafactum of the Irish/Scottish/English ballad "The Old Rose Tree" published by at least 1795 in Great Britain.[7] The link to "The Old Rose Tree" has been questioned,[4] but a number of musicologists suggest that it may be a composite of "The Rose Tree" and "The (Bonny) Black Eagle".[6] Similar tune was popular with fiddle players as early as 1820, and the tune of "Turkey in the Straw"/"Zip Coon" may have come from the fiddle tune "Natchez Under the Hill" believed to have been derived from "Rose Tree".[8][9]

The title "Turkey in the Straw" later became associated with the tune of "Zip Coon" in an unusual way. According to James J. Fuld, Dan Bryant copyrighted a song with new lyrics and music titled "Turkey in the Straw" on July 12, 1861, but with the wordless music of "Zip Coon" (titled "Old Melody") attached at the end. The tune of "Zip Coon" then became known as "Turkey in the Straw".[2]"...

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ADDITIONAL FEATURED VIDEOS & SOUND FILES OF "TURKEY IN THE STRAW"

Example #1:- RARE 1945 FOOTAGE! Callahan Brothers - TURKEY IN THE STRAW

OldTimeMusic, Feb 23, 2009

Callahan Brothers perform Turkey In the Straw in the 1945 Jimmy Wakely western "Springtime in Texas".

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Example #2 - Merry Singers-Turkey In The Straw

KiddieRecordKrazy, Uploaded on Mar 26, 2010

Old MacDonald Had a Farm
Merry Records

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Example #3: The Skillet Lickers-Turkey In The Straw



BBYMRLCCOTN, Uploaded on Feb 3, 2010

The Skillet Lickers-Turkey In The Straw

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"Old Joe Clark" (Five YouTube Examples Of This Old Time Music/Bluegrass Music Song)

The Biscuit Eaters, Feb 9, 2023

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Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part II of a two part pancocojams series on the Old Time Music /Bluegrass Music tune & song "Old Joe Clark".

This post showcases five YouTube video examples of the United States Old Time Music /Bluegrass Music tune & song "Old Joe Clark".

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/04/general-information-comments-about.html for Part I of this pancocojams series. That post presents some general information and comments about the song/tune "Old Joe Clark". The Addendum of that post presents some information about and examples of floating verses from "Old Joe Clark" that are found in some other American Old Time Music/Bluegrass Music songs.

The earliest sources for these songs suggest that Black Americans were the originators of a number of the early verses for "Old Joe Clark" and the other American Old Time Music/Bluegrass Music songs that include those verses. 

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

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are featured in these videos and sound file and thanks to all the publishers of these examples on YouTube.

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ADDITIONAL SHOWCASE YOUTUBE VIDEOS/SOUND FILES 
These videos are given in no particular order and are numbered for referencing purposes only.

EXAMPLE #1 - Old Joe Clark

OldTimeMusic, Feb 23, 2009

Callahan Brothers perform Old Joe Clark in the 1945 Jimmy Wakely western "Springtime in Texas".

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EXAMPLE #2 - Old Joe Clark

Doc Watson, Mar 14, 2014

Provided to YouTube by Universal Music Group

Old Joe Clark · Doc Watson · Merle Watson · Sam Bush · Marty Stuart · T. Michael Coleman · Alan O'Bryant

Home Sweet Home

℗ 1998 Sugar Hill Records, A Welk Music Group Company

Released on: 1998-01-01

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EXAMPLE #3 - Old Joe Clark  
 

Dan D. Dirges, Jan 25, 2015

Dan D. Dirges performs the classic traditional folk song, Old Joe Clark.

lyrics - Old Joe Clark

Old Joe Clark's a fine old man

Tell you the reason why

He keeps good likker 'round his house

that Good old Rock and Rye---------

 

Fare thee well, Old Joe Clark

Fare thee well, I say

Fare thee well, Old Joe Clark

I'm a going away------

 

Old Joe Clark, the preacher's son

Preached all over the plain

The only text he ever knew

Was High, low, Jack and the game

 

Old Joe Clark he had a mule

His name was Morgan Brown

And every tooth in that mule's head

Was sixteen inches around---------

 

Old Joe Clark had a yellow cat

She would neither sing or pray

She stuck her nose in the butermilk jar

And washed her sins away

 

Old Joe Clark he had a house

Fifteen stories high

And every story in that house

Was filled with chicken pie-----------

 

I went down to Old Joe's house

He invited me to supper

I stumped my toe on the table leg

And stuck my nose in the butter

 

Now I wouldn't marry a widder

Tell you the reason why

She'd have so many children

They'd make those biscuits fly------------

 

Sixteen horses in my team

The leaders they are blind

And every time the sun goes down

There's a pretty girl on my mind

 

Eighteen miles of mountain road

And fifteen miles of sand

If ever travel this road again

I'll be a married man-----------

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EXAMPLE #4 - Old Joe Clark Singing Game Demo

Musicplay, Aug 9, 2017

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This concludes Part II of this pancocojams series.

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Visitor comments are welcome.

The Black American Sources For The Children's Song "Who Did Swallow Jonah?"

Cedarmont Kids, Mar 20, 2014

Music video by Cedarmont Kids performing Who Did (Swallow Jonah)?. (C) 1995 Cedarmont Kids **** Edited by Azizi Powell This pancocojams post presents information that documents Black American sources for the children's song "Who Did Swallow Jonah?". A YouTube video of that song is also showcased in this post along with two lyric versions of that song. The content of this post is presented for folkloric and cultural purposes. All copyrights remain with their owners. Thanks to the unknown composers of this song. Thanks also to all those who are associated with this showcased video and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. **** INFORMATION ABOUT THE SONG "WHO DID SWALLOW JONAH?" From https://www.fresnostate.edu/folklore/ballads/FSWB386B.html 
"DESCRIPTION: "Who did (x4), Who did swallow Jo-Jo-Jonah?... Who did swallow Jonah down?" "Whale did... swallow Jonah whole." "Noah in the arky... bailed." "Daniel... in the lion's den." "David... killed Goliath."

AUTHOR: unknown

EARLIEST DATE: 1899 (Barton-Old Plantation Hymns); 1893 (Dett/Fenner/Rathbun/Cleveland-Religious Folk Songs Of The Negro* - Hampton Institute) (see notes)

KEYWORDS: Bible religious humorous

FOUND IN: US(Ap,SE)

[…]

ALTERNATE TITLES:

Daniel in the Den of Lions

The Whale Did, I Know He Did

[…]

NOTES

The index to the 1893 edition [of Dett/Fenner/Rathbun/Cleveland-Religious Folk Songs Of The Negro-Hampton Institute] has "Peter on the Sea" on page 88 (Thomas P. Fenner and Frederic G. Rathbun, Cabin and Plantation Songs (New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1893)). I have not seen page 88. – BS"
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"Ap" = Appalachia [region of the United States]

SE"= Southeast [region of the United States]
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* The word "Negro" is no longer used as a referent for Black Americans (African Americans). The United States Census stopped using "Negro" in its 2010 report. However, many Black Americans and other people had stopped using that referent in the late 1990s if not before then.  

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TWO LYRIC VERSIONS OF "WHO DID SWALLOW JONAH?"

These lyrics are given in no particular order and are given numbers for referencing purposes only

SONG LYRICS #1
From https://missionbibleclass.org/songs/english-songs/old-testament-songs/who-did-swallow-jonah-song/
"VERSE 1

Who did, who did, who did, who did
Who did swallow Jo, Jo, Jonah?
Who did, who did, who did, who did
Who did swallow Jo, Jo, Jonah?
Who did, who did, who did, who did
Who did swallow Jo, Jo, Jonah?
Who did swallow Jonah, up?

VERSE 2

Fish did, fish did, fish did, fish did
Fish did swallow Jo, Jo, Jonah
Fish did, fish did, fish did, fish did
Fish did swallow Jo, Jo, Jonah
Fish did, fish did, fish did, fish did
Fish did swallow Jo, Jo, Jonah
Fish did swallow Jonah, up!

ADDITIONAL VERSE:

Daniel, Daniel, Daniel, Daniel
Daniel in the li, li, li,li
Daniel, Daniel, Daniel, Daniel
Daniel in the li, li, li, li
Daniel, Daniel, Daniel, Daniel
Daniel in the li, li, li, li
Daniel in the lions den"
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This versions confirms with the earliest documented versions of this song which have the words "the fish did" and not "the whale did". However, the words "the whale did" are used in most contemporary versions of this song because they conform with the Biblical story of Jonah and the whale. Also, it appears that most contemporary versions of this song that I've come across have the words "Who did swallow Jonah down (instead of the word "up" as it is found in this mission bible class version.) 

I haven't read or heard the earliest versions of this song [as given in the fresnostate folkloric archives cited above] so I don't know what words were used in those examples.  

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SONG LYRICS #2
From https://makingmusicfun.net/htm/f_mmf_music_library_songbook/who-did-swallow-jonah-lyrics
"Lyrics for 'Who Did Swallow Jonah?'

Who did, who did,
Who did, who did,
Who did swallow
Jo, Jo, Jo, Jo,
Who did, who did,
Who did, who did,
Who did swallow
Jo, Jo, Jo, Jo,
Who did, who did,
Who did, who did,
Who did swallow
Jo, Jo, Jo, Jo,
Who did swallow Jonah,
Who did swallow Jonah,
Who did swallow Jonah down?

Whale did, whale did,
Whale did, whale did,
Whale did swallow
Jo, Jo, Jo, Jo,
Whale did, whale did,
Whale did, whale did,
Whale did swallow
Jo, Jo, Jo, Jo
Whale did, whale did,
Whale did, whale did,
Whale did swallow
Jo, Jo, Jo, Jo,
Whale did swallow Jonah,
Whale did swallow Jonah,
Whale did swallow Jonah down.

Gabriel, Gabriel,
Gabriel, Gabriel,
Gabriel blow your
Trum, trum, trum, trum,
Gabriel, Gabriel,
Gabriel, Gabriel,
Gabriel blow your
Trum, trum, trum, trum,
Gabriel, Gabriel,
Gabriel, Gabriel,
Gabriel blow your
Trum, trum, trum, trum,
Gabriel blow your trumpet,
Gabriel blow your trumpet,
Gabriel blow your trumpet loud.

Noah, Noah,
Noah, Noah,
Noah in the
Arky, arky,
Noah, Noah,
Noah, Noah,
Noah in the
Arky, arky,
Noah, Noah,
Noah, Noah,
Noah in the
Arky, arky,
Noah in the arky,
Noah in the arky,
Noah in the arky bailed.

Daniel, Daniel,
Daniel, Daniel,
Daniel in the
Li, li, li, li,
Daniel, Daniel,
Daniel, Daniel,
Daniel in the
Li, li, li, li,
Daniel, Daniel,
Daniel, Daniel,
Daniel in the
Li, li, li, li,
Daniel in the lion's,
Daniel in the lion's,
Daniel in the lion's den.

Peter, Peter,
Peter, Peter,
Peter on the
Sea, sea, sea, sea,
Peter, Peter,
Peter, Peter,
Peter on the
Sea, sea, sea, sea,
Peter, Peter,
Peter, Peter,
Peter on the
Sea, sea, sea, sea,
Peter walking on the,
Peter walking on the,
Peter walking on the sea.

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The Influence Of African American/West Indian Work Songs On Shanties (Wikipedia Article Excerpt)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post presents an excerpt from a Wikipedia article about shanties (chanties).

This excerpt focuses on the influence African American/West Indian works songs on shanties.

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

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to the unknown composers of chanties (shanties) and thanks to the authors of this Wikipedia page. 
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This post is part of an ongoing pancocojams series on African Americans and West Indians chanties (shanties).

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2022/03/information-about-sea-shanty-collector.html for the closely related pancocojams post entitled "Information About Sea Shanty Collector Stan Hugill And Information About Harding, A West Indian Man Who Was The Source For A Number Of Shanties."

Also, click the tags given below for previous posts and subsequent posts on this subject.

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WIKIPEDIA ARTICLE EXCERPT

Note: This article uses the outdated and demeaning referent "negro" a number of times.  

[retrieved March 16, 2022]

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_shanty#Influence_of_African-American_and_Caribbean_work_songs
…"In the first few decades of the 19th century, European-American culture, especially the Anglophone—the sailors' "Cheer'ly Man" and some capstan songs notwithstanding—was not known for its work songs[citation needed]. By contrast, African workers, both in Africa and in the New World, were widely noted to sing while working. According to Gibb Schreffler, an Assistant Professor of Music at Pomona College, European observers found African work-singers remarkable (as Schreffler infers from tone of their descriptions). Schreffler further infers that that work songs may have been foreign to European culture[40] (See, however, references to nautical work songs among European sailors appearing in such sources as The Tempest[41]). Such references begin to appear in the late 18th century, whence one can see the cliché develop that Black Africans "could not" work without singing. For example, an observer in Martinique in 1806 wrote, "The negroes have a different air and words for every kind of labour; sometimes they sing, and their motions, even while cultivating the ground, keep time to the music."[42] So while the depth of the African-American work song traditions is now recognized,[43] in the early 19th century they stood in stark contrast to the paucity of such traditions among European-Americans[citation needed]. Thus while European sailors had learned to put short chants to use for certain kinds of labor, the paradigm of a comprehensive system of developed work songs for most tasks may have been contributed by the direct involvement of or through the imitation of African-Americans.[40] The work contexts in which African-Americans sang songs comparable to shanties included:

Boat-rowing on rivers of the south-eastern U.S. and Caribbean;

Corn-shucking parties on plantations of the south-eastern U.S.;

The work of stokers or "firemen," who cast wood into the furnaces of steamboats plying great American rivers;

Stevedoring on the U.S. eastern seaboard, the Gulf Coast, and the Caribbean—including "cotton-screwing" (using a large jackscrew to compress and force cotton bales into the holds of outbound ships at ports of the American South).

During the first half of the 19th century, some of the songs African-Americans sang also began to appear in use for shipboard tasks, i.e. as shanties.[44]

[…]

Perceptions of contemporary observers

Commenters on the ethnic or national origins of shanties, writing in the 19th century when shanties were still in wide use, generally supposed the genre to originate in the United States and recognized parallels to African-American singing—as opposed to earlier English traditions from Britain.[52] An early article to offer an opinion on the origin of shanties (though not calling them by that name), appearing in Oberlin College's student paper in 1858, drew a comparison between Africans' singing and sailor work songs.

Along the African coast you will hear that dirge-like strain in all their songs, as at work or paddling their canoes to and from shore, they keep time to the music. On the southern plantations you will hear it also, and in the negro melodies every where, plaintive and melodious, sad and earnest. It seems like the dirge of national degradation, the wail of a race, stricken and crushed, familiar with tyranny, submission and unrequited labor ... And here I cannot help noticing the similarity existing between the working chorus of the sailors and the dirge-like negro melody, to which my attention was specially directed by an incident I witnessed or rather heard.[53]

The author went on to relate an incident in which he once heard "a well known strain of music", finding to his surprise that it was being sung by Black men rowing canoes. He claimed they were singing, "Heigh Jim along, Jim along Josey, Heigh Jim along, Jim along Jo!"[54] The implication is that this song was similar to a sailor song, probably the well-known shanty, "Haul Away, Joe" or "Haul Away for Rosie", viz.: "Way, haul away; O, haul away, my Rosey; Way, haul away; O, haul away, Joe."[55] The writer did not make a further connection to the minstrel song "Jim Along Josey",[56] a relationship to which is obvious, although it is unknown whether this was the inspiration for the shanty or vice versa.

In much of the shanty repertoire known today one finds parallels to the minstrel songs that came to popularity from the 1840s.[57] The poetic meter of the couplets of many minstrel songs is identical to those in shanties, and the non sequitur-type "floating verses" of those songs were heavily borrowed. In an influential early article about shanties, New York journalist William L. Alden drew a comparison between shanties and both authentic African-American songs and the quasi-African-American minstrel songs:

The old sailor songs had a peculiar individuality. They were barbaric in their wild melody. The only songs that in any way resemble them in character are "Dixie", and two or three other so-called negro songs by the same writer. This man, known in the minstrel profession as "Old Emmett", caught the true spirit of the African melodies—the lawless, half-mournful, half-exulting songs of the Kroomen. These and the sailor songs could never have been the songs of civilized men ... Undoubtedly many sailor songs have a negro origin. They are the reminiscences of melodies sung by negroes stowing cotton in the holds of ships in Southern ports. The "shanty-men," those hards of the forecastle, have preserved to some extent the meaningless words of negro choruses, and have modified the melodies so as to fit them for salt-water purposes. Certain other songs were unmistakably the work of English sailors of an uncertain but very remote period.[58]

Alden was not writing as a research historian, but rather as an observer of the then-current shanty-singing. His, then, was an impression of shanties based on their style and manner of performance, and he was writing at a time when shanties had yet to become framed by writers and media as belonging to any canon of national "folk music".

[…]

20th century

Formative writing

Folklorists of the first decade of the 20th century, especially those from Britain, included shanties among their interests in collecting folk songs connected with the idea of national heritage. Cecil Sharp and his colleagues among the English Folk-Song Society were among the first to take down the lyrics and tunes of shanties directly from the lips of veteran sailors and to publish them more or less faithfully.[73] Their efforts were matched by a number of less-rigorous articles and published collections issued by former sailors themselves.[74] By the 1920s, the body of literature on shanties had grown quite large, yet it was of variable quality. Most editors presented "ideal" versions of songs—not reflecting any one way the shanty may have been sung, but rather a composite picture, edited for print. Bowdlerization and omission of lyrics were typical.[75] Moreover, few authors were trained folklorists and even fewer maintained a critical historical methodology. Editors customarily published fanciful, often nostalgic introductions to the material that included unsubstantiated statements. As a result, though much of the vanishing shanty repertoire was preserved in skeletal form, aspects of the genre were re-envisioned according to contemporary perceptions.[76]

These early 20th century collectors' choices of what to include, what to exclude, and how to frame the repertoire all had an effect on how following generations have viewed the genre. Because sailors who had sung shanties were by this time very old or dead, and the general public had little opportunity to experience performances of shanties, the representations by these authors were all the more influential in mediating information and creating the impression of "standard" versions of songs.[76]

[…]

The 1914 collection by Frank Thomas Bullen, Songs of Sea Labour,[83] differed from the work of writers such as Masefield in having a more practical, rather than romantic, tone. Bullen, an Englishman, was an experienced shantyman, who sailed during the heyday of shanties to ports in the Southern U.S. and the Caribbean.[84] He took a firm stance that only true work songs should be included in his collection, thus resisting the temptation to let shanties slide into the genres of ballads or other off-duty songs. (Pressure of his publisher forced him to include two sea songs, clearly demarcated, at the end of the book.[85]) And rather than shape the shanties to appear as narrative pieces, he noted that, since most shanties would usually be improvised, it would be disingenuous to present more than one or two sample verses. As for his framing of the genre's origins, Bullen stated his belief that, "[T]he great majority of these tunes undoubtably emanated from the negroes of the Antilles and the Southern states, a most tuneful race if ever there was one, men moreover who seemed unable to pick up a ropeyarn without a song ..."[86] And Bullen's musicologist editor, Arnold, claimed, "[T]he majority of the Chanties are Negroid in origin ..."[87] Bullen's insistence on including only true work songs in the collection meant that he likely omitted songs—generally those for heaving tasks, like capstan work—which had been easily borrowed from the land-based traditions of various nations. The effect of including only the most exclusively work-oriented songs meant that a higher percentage of African-American songs were represented.

Somewhere between these perspectives was Cecil Sharp's, whose English Folk-Chanteys (1914) was published in the same year, and was based on shanties he collected from aged English sailors in Britain.[88] Sharp responds to Bullen's claims of African-American origins by ceding that many shanties were influenced through the singing of Black shantymen[89]—a position that assumes English folk song was the core of the tradition by default. The title of Sharp's work reflects his project of collecting and grouping shanties as part of what he conceived to be a rather continuous English folk song tradition. Sharp states in the introduction that he deliberately excluded shanties which were obviously (i.e. to him) born of popular songs.[90] This idea is problematic when one considers that the popular songs that were feeding shanties were largely American and based in real or imagined African-American musical traits. However, Sharp believed that by eliminating such shanties based on popular songs, he could concentrate those that were "folk" songs. Of his own admission, Sharp lacked any shantying or sea experience to intuitively judge shanties like someone such as Bullen, however he offers his objectivity, recording precisely what was sung to him, as consolation.[90] While Sharp's manner of documenting shanties was more or less objective, the field of his research and his biases in what to collect certainly influenced the outcome of this study.[91] And whereas Bullen's work was fairly inaccessible, Sharp was influential as the leader of a cohort of scholars who were actively creating the young field of folk song research.”…

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Information About & Lyrics For "Granny Will Your Dog Bite?" ("Chicken In The Bread Tray")

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Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part I of the  pancocojams series on the Old Time Music tune and song "Granny Does Your Dog Bite?". "Granny Will Your Dog Bite?" is also known as "Chicken In The Bread Tray" and other titles.

This post presents several excerpts about the tune/song "Granny Will Your Dog Bite". These excerpts include lyrics for that song. Additional lyrics for "Granny Will Your Dog Bite" are also included in this post.

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2021/09/two-sound-files-two-videos-of-old-time.html for Part II of this pancocojams series. Part II presents two sound files and two videos of the Old Time Music tune/song "Granny Will Your Dog Bite".
 
The content of this post is presented for folkloric, historical, cultural, and entertainment purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to the unknown composers of "Granny Will Your Dog Bite". Thanks to the collectors of this song and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.

****
EXCERPTS ABOUT THE SONG "GRANNY DOES YOUR DOG BITE"
These excerpts are presented in no particular order. Numbers are added for referencing purposes only.

Excerpt #1
From https://tunearch.org/wiki/Annotation:Granny_Will_Your_Dog_Bite%3F_(1)
...GRANNY, WILL YOUR DOG BITE? [1]. AKA and see "Betty Martin," "Boating Up Sandy (3)," "Brad Walters," "Chippy Get Your Hair Cut," Gippy Get Your Hair Cut," "Hog Eye an' a 'Tater," "Hog Eye Man (The)," "Hog Eye [1]," "Jake Gilly," "Jake Gillie," "Old Mother Gofour," "Old Granny Rattle-Trap (1)," "Pretty Betty Martin," "Very Pretty Martin," "Sally in the Garden (1)," "Tip Toe Fine," "Fire in the Mountain (1)," "Fire on the Mountain (1)." American, Reel and Song Tune. USA; Kentucky, Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma. ...

This melody is a popular and widespread American old-time instrumental and song that can be found under several titles and in numerous variants. Tthe title "Granny Will Your Dog Bite" is itself also a floating title attached to several unrelated tunes. As a reel, it was frequently played at Mid-Western fiddle contests. 

R.P. Christeson says his version is dissimilar to the tune of the same title in Ford (1940), but is similar to "Tip Toe, Pretty Betty Martin" in the same book. Bayard (1981) notes the resemblance between this tune and the "Betty Martin" variants, many listed as alternates above. He believes the tune possibly has Norwegian connections (though he did not elaborate or offer sustaining information). The tune was recorded for the Library of Congress by musicologist/folklorist Vance Randolph from Ozarks Mountains fiddlers in the early 1940's (in particular from Arkansas fiddler Lon Jordan, in 1941), and was recorded commercially by Crockett's Kentucky Mountaineers in 1928. See also related tunes "Gate to Go Through" and "Old Coon Dog (2)."

 Ford (1940) said that "occasional verses" were sung by fiddlers while playing the tune, and indeed, various verses have been collected from both white and black sources. (Ford's collection area was the Mid-West, often Missouri, and Thede printed Oklahoma versions). Charles Wolfe (1991) remarks the tune has been collected widely from Mississippi to California, and notes that Ray Browne (writing in The Alabama Folk Lyric, 445) heard it often as a banjo tune popular more with blacks than whites.

 [,,,]

African-American collector Thomas Talley, in his Negro Folk Rhymes (edited in a new edition by Charles Wolfe in 1991) printed lyrics under the title "Chicken in the Bread Tray." They go:

Auntie, will yo dog bite?
No, Chile, No!
Chicken in the bread tray
A makin' up dough

Auntie, will yo broom hit?
Yes, Chile, Pop!
Chicken in the bread tray,
Flop, Flop, Flop!

Auntie, will you oven bake?
Yes, Jes fry!
What's dat chicken good fer?
Pie, Pie, Pie!

Auntie, is yo pie good?
Good as you could 'spec,
Chicken in the bread tray;
Peck, Peck, Peck!

Bruce Baker found the following reference in the North Carolina State Archives (Raleigh, N.C.) in the Lowry Shuford Collection in a folder marked "Civil War Reminiscences." The folder contains a document titled "From 1861 to 1865 As I Remember" by J. A. Bush, Sr., of Lenoir, N.C., wherein he writes:

D. A. Griffin was one of them (i.e. the musicians). When he came to Lenoir to be sworn in, he was playing on his fife, 'Oh, Granny, will your little dog bite? No, child, no.' He took his fife to camp with him and played every evening.

Baker concludes that, while there is no way of knowing which of the "Granny" tunes was the one Griffin played, the reference it "does suggest the tune was playable on a fife and that this floating lyric was floating around Caldwell Co., N.C., in the early 1860s."...
-snip-
The first portion of this comment beginning with the title "Granny Does Your Dog Bite?" was reformatted to enhance its readability.

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Excerpt #2
[given as is with typing or spelling errors]
From https://www.loc.gov/folklife/LP/AfroAmFolkMusicMissL67_opt.pdf "Afro-American Folk Music from Tate and Panola Counties, Mississippi"

[page] 10

A5 Granny, Will Your Dog Bite

Spoken and played on the washtub by Compton Jones, ncar Senatobia,

MississiPPi, September 5, 1970. Recorded by David Evans. 

This highly repetitious piece, which consists here of fifteen almost identical couplets, is one of the most popular in this community. I have recorded it as a banjo piece, a children's rhyme, a fife and drum piece, a piece played on the drums only, and a chant by teenage girl cheerleaders at a community baseball game, accompanied by beating on the grandstand. Its popularity lies in the fact that the drum or other percussion instrument is made to correspond in its beats to the rhythm of the words.

When drummers do this, they say that they are making the drum "talk it." This ability to make the drums " talk it" is highly regarded in the community and is considered the sign of a good drummer. Older drummers often criticize the younger ones for making their beats depart too much from the rhythm of the words. 

Some performers in the area substitute "Sally" for "Granny" in this piece. The words are commonly encountered in both the black and white folk song traditions of the South, and Dorothy Scarborough says that it is a piece that "every Southerner knows." Its usual form is something like the following:

Chicken in the bread tray scratchinf( 0 111 dough.
Grall/l )' , will your dog bile? No, cbild, 110.

These lines are commonly heard as a "floating" couplet in various squaredance fiddle tunes.

The importance placed upon making a drum "talk it" can probably be related to the widespread African (especially West African) institution of "talking drums." In many African languages pitch and rhythm are important factors in the determination of word meaning. As a result, messages, usually of a proverbial or traditional nature, can be beaten on drums and understood by the speakers of the language. It would appear that this concept has persisted, in a considerably diluted and altered form, among black people in the United States. In the English language proper pitch and rhythm are not necessary for understanding, but something of the value placed upon them in African languages has been retained, as has the idea that speech can be reproduced on a musical instrument. The ability to make a guitar, harmonica, saxophone, or any instrument "talk" is one of the most important aesthetic criteria in all forms of black music and is particularly highly valued in this area of Mississippi. Usually, however, this expression is used only metaphorically, and it is not expected that the musician will actually play something that can be understood as a spoken statement. The recordings in this part of Mississippi of "Granny, Will Your Dog Bite" are, therefore, rather unusual in their strong emphasis upon correspondence between spoken text and instrumental rhythm. Like many African talking-drum messages, the words of this piece are almost proverbial. The real significance of the expression, if any, is difficult to determine. Questions about it only produce laughter and chuckles and the repetition of the phrase "Granny, will your dog bite? No, child, no." A probable reason for the laughter is the fact that the line is popular among children and therefore not to be given serious consideration. It functions with children as a practice rhythm for percussion

[page] 11

playing. It is very similar to the kinds of one-measure phrases that form the rhythmic units in fife and drum music (cf. AI) and in much of the string-band dance music, which is moribund in the area today.

[Pancocojams Editor's Note: This summary includes here a lists of publication from 1922 through 1968 that include “Granny will your dog bite. The booklet text continues with these lyrics that end that commentary about that particular song.]

Granny, will your dog bite? Granny, will she bite?
Granny, will your dog bite? No, child, no.
Granny, will your dog bite? GranllY, will she bite?
Grallny, will your dog bite? No, child, no, child, no, child, no.
Etc.

****
Excerpt #3
From https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=24197

1. Subject: RE: Granny does your dog bite?
From: Uncle Jaque
Date: 09 Aug 00 - 10:57 PM

" "Granny" was a popular fiddle tune in the 1850s, and was adapted by Military Fife-and-Drum Corps on both sides of the Civil War. It is a regular part of the repitoire of the 3rd Maine Regimental Field Music (F&DC) Reenactment Unit, of which I am a Member. It has a really kickin' rudimental drum beat to it - particularly the bass, which really thunders. I too would like to know the lyrics; all I know is "Granny will yer dawg baht?; Hellfahre, no!". On the Ken Burns CW series, a historian recalls how when one Volunteer Regiment had all of it's Musicians shot down in battle, one enteprising Infantryman with a fiddle approached the Commanding Officer with the offer to "fiddle the boys in" on the next charge... which he did, to a rousing rendition of "Granny". It was his last tune."...

**
2. Subject: RE: Granny does your dog bite?
From: PoohBear
Date: 09 Aug 00 - 10:59 PM

"That sounds like one of the lines from the chorus of "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" "

**
3. Subject: RE: Granny does your dog bite?
From: Grab
Date: 10 Aug 00 - 08:30 AM

"PoohBear, it is - it's one of the lines in the chorus. The chorus is all names of fiddle tunes which Johnny and the Devil play. "Devil went back to Georgia" incidentally has a different chorus - same tune but with different fiddle tune names."

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4. Subject: RE: Granny does your dog bite?
From: GUEST,Journeyman Alto
Date: 26 Oct 16 - 10:33 AM

" "Granny does your dog bite, your hen peck, your rooster fight?
Your turkey walk a rail fence?" "No child no."
"Granny does your dog bite?" "No child no child,
Pappy took his biter off a long time ago." "

****
Excerpt #4
From  https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=51808
1. Subject: RE: Origin of Ida Red
From: GUEST
Date: 25 Sep 02 - 09:57 PM

"Bob Wills lyrics: the verse "My Old Missus ...set me free" occurs in many variations in Negro songs. "Chicken in the breadpan" is another floating or borrowed verse.

One of the many "set me free" verses, this one from Newman L. White, 1928, American Negro Folk-Songs, reported from Alabama, 1915.

My ole mistis promised me
When she died she'd set me free.
She lived so long
That her head got ball,
And the Lord couldn't kill her with a hickory maul.

Also this one from Alabama, 1915 (same reference):
Chicken in the bread tray
Scratching out dough;
Sally, will your dog bite?
No, child, no."

There are innumerable verses of this type, sung by both Negroes and Whites, and used in play-parties by children and adults. They pop up wherever a filler verse in needed.

**
2. Subject: RE: Origin of Ida Red
From: GUEST
Date: 25 Sep 02 - 11:21 PM

"So, far, it seems that "Ida Red" is an old fiddle tune to which have been applied verses from numerous sources.

[…]

There is a parallel fiddle tune called "Chicken in the Bread Tray" or "Granny, Will Your Dog Bite?" Here is what Talley says about it*. "Ira Ford, in his Traditional Music of America (1940) lists this as a square dance tune, with the lyrics as "occasional verses" fiddlers sang in calling sets. It has been called [Chicken- Granny] and has been collected widely from Mississippi to California [Note- also by Brown in North Carolina and by Randolph in Missouri]." "Ray Browne, in The Alabama Folk Lyric [1979], notes that he has heard it often as a banjo tune and that it "seems to be a greater favorite with Negros than Whites." The opening quatrain appears often in white old-time music recordings of the 1920s." Lines appear in "Shootin' Creek - Ida Red."...
-snip-
Regarding Guest's statement "Here is what Talley says about it", Guest is probably referring to Thomas W. Talley. Here's a quote from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_W._Talley "Thomas Washington Talley (October 9, 1870 – July 14, 1952) was a chemistry professor at Fisk University and a collector of African American folk songs

[...]

Negro Folk Rhymes (Wise and Otherwise)

Talley began collecting rural black folk songs later in his life. Talley's first collection, published in 1922, Negro Folk Rhymes (Wise and Otherwise) contained 349 secular folksongs and spirituals. Already being well-known as the first such collection assembled by an African-American scholar,[2] the book was seen at the time as a "masterpiece of the field".[5] It was not only the first compilation of African-American secular folk songs, but also of folk songs of any kind from Tennessee.[2] An edited edition of Negro Folk Rhymes" was re-released in 1991. Additional published works about music by Talley include The Origin of Negro Traditions and A Systematic Chronology of Creation.[1]

 The publication of Negro Folk Rhymes marked a turning point in the study of African-American verse. Before its publication, little note had been taken of black secular traditions. Talley's book, along with a later collection by Howard Odum and Guy Johnson, called attention to these works."...
-snip-
It's possible that Thomas W. Talley could have written that information that Guest shared, but I think it's more likely that they were added to the 1991 edition of Negro Folk Rhymes by Charles Wolf, that edition's editor.

**

3. Subject: RE: Origin of Ida Red
From: Stewie
Date: 26 Sep 02 - 07:59 PM

"Pope's Arkansas Mountaineers recorded a 'chicken in the breadpan' variant under the title 'Hog-eye' which has some lyric similarities with the 'Hog-eye Man', best known as a sea shanty. It is included in NLCR 'Old-Time String Band Songbook' and has been released on CD in Dr Bill McNeil's box set 'Somewhere in Arkansas: Early Country Music Recordings From Arkansas 1928-1932' Center for Arkansas and Regional Studies, no catalogue #. Below is McNeil's transcription:

HOG-EYE

Chicken in the breadpan kicking up dough
Sally will your dog bite? No, child, no
Sally's in the garden sifting sand
Sally's upstairs with the hog-eye man

Sally's in the garden, sifting, sifting
Sally's in the garden sifting sand
Sally's in the garden, sifting sifting
Sally's upstairs with the hog-eye man

Sally will your dog bite? No, child, no
Daddy cut his biter off a long time ago
Sally's in the garden sifting sand
Sally's upstairs with the hog-eye man

Sally's in the garden, sifting, sifting
Sally's in the garden sifting sand
Sally's in the garden, sifting sifting
Sally's upstairs with the hog-eye man

Source: transcription by W.K. McNeil of Pope's Arkansas Mountaineers 'Hog-Eye' recorded in Memphis TN on 6 February 1928 and issued as Vi 21295."

****
Excerpt #5
From https://secondhandsongs.com/work/236043
Added by mduval32323

"Granny Will Your Dog Bite

Written by [Traditional]

Language: English

Comments
Traditional American reel and song tune first recorded as an instrumental by the Virginia Ramblers (aka Floyd County Ramblers) in August 1930.

Granny will your dog bite, dog bite, dog bite,
Granny will your dog bite , Lord, child no;
Wolf bit 'er biter off long time ago.

Related to another fiddle tune Sally in the Garden / Hog Eye, which says "Sally will your dog bite, no sir, no..."

****
Excerpt #6
From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmoZPpnCO8o&ab_channel=DanyRosevear "Granny will your dog bite? - a traditional fiddle tune" published by Dany Rosevear, July 31, 2018

Granny will your dog bite, cow kick, cat scratch?
Granny will your hen peck, sow root the corn patch?
Granny will your duck quack, old grey goose hiss?
Granny will your dog bite? "No, child, no!"

Open up the gate and walk on through,
Spy an old dog but he won’t bite you.
Granny will your dog bite? "No, child, no!"
Hog bit’er pecker off a long time ago.

Chicken in the bread pan, bread pan, bread pan,
Chicken in the bread pan, scratching out dough.
Rooster in the barnyard, barnyard, barnyard,
Rooster in the barnyard, a-strutting while he crows.

****
Excerpt #7
From https://fornoob.com/what-does-the-line-granny-does-your-dog-bite-no-child-no-mean-in-the-song-the-devil-went-down-to-georgia/
1. "Question
what does the line ‘granny does your dog bite no child no’ mean in the song ‘the devil went down to georgia?

its blowing my mind"

**
2. Answer
"The old square dance tune is called "Granny Will Your Dog Bite". Various pre-Civil War versions include the lines about cнιcκens peckin' dough out of a bread pan and the line asking if the dog bites. "Granny does your dog bite? No, child no."

 **
3. Answer
"All of the phrases after "He played..." are traditional fiddle tunes.

 1) Fire on the mountain

 2) House of the rising sun

 3) ᑕнιcκen in the bread pan

 4) Granny does your dog bite

 Johnny played some combination of these songs to beat the devil"

****
This concludes Part II of this pancocojams series on "Granny Does Your Dog Bite?"

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Information & Selected Comments About The 19th Century & 20th Century Bawdy Folk Character Deacon Jones (with lyrics)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post presents information and comments about the bawdy* African American folk character Deacon Jones. These comments are from the Mudcat folk music forum.
*"Bawdy" = "raunchy", "risque'", "indecent", "dirty"  

The content of this post is presented for folkloric and entertainment purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
-snip-
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2021/09/louis-jordan-his-tympany-five-deacon.html for the closely related pancocojams post entitled "Louis Jordan & His Tympany Five -"Deacon Jones" (YouTube video & discussion thread comments)".

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SELECTED COMMENTS ABOUT DEACON JONES FROM MUDCAT FOLK MUSIC FORUM

From  https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=98843  Lyr Req: Deacon Jones

WARNING: This discussion thread contains a considerable amount of profanity. The only "curse" word that is quoted in this pancocojams post is given with dashes in place of some letters.

These selected comments are given in chronological order with the oldest comments given first. The numbers are given for referencing purposes only.  Additional comments-including lyrics- are found in that Mudcat discussion thread. 

1. "Deacon Jones is a long-lived folk figure in the south, a churchgoing stalwart who is always up for preachin', prayin', dicin', drinkin' and mowin' down the women.

He is famously mentioned in "Alabama Jubilee," and called "The black sky-pilot of old Dixie Land" in Skidmore and Walker's 1917 "It Takes a Long Tall Brown Skin Gal to Make a Preacher Lay His Bible Down." But those songwriters were working off an earlier and much raunchier tradition.

The Mississippi Shieks have a verse:

Old Deacon Jones he was a preachin' king,
They caught him round the house tryin' to shake that thing."

But the Shieks couldn't have gotten away with putting the original "Deacon Jones" on a record. Making it hard now, of course, to reconstruct the song."
-GUEST,Bob Coltman, Date: 09 Feb 07

**
2. "About all I remember is one line from one of the 'acceptable' songs, "Alabama Jubilee" (American Memory), "You ought to see Deacon Jones when he rattles them bones."

A song composed by G. P. Lampard back in 1878 is in American Memory, "Deacon Jones Collection or the Church Sexton." Again, not too good.

Paul Laurence Dunbar, in his Lyrics of Lowly Life, 1896, included his "Deacon Jones Grievance." Everybody used to know Deacon Jones.

We seen to have lost much of the Deacon Jones repertoire. Nothing in Randolph-Legman, Cray, or Stag Lines."
-Q (Frank Staplin), Date: 09 Feb 07 - 02:10 PM

**
3. "Hello Q,

 Yes, I scoured through Talley, Newman I. White, Dorothy Scarborough and both books by Odum and Johnson, but the elusive Deacon doesn't seem to appear in any of them. I have the feeling that this song was never cleaned up for polite company as "Uncle Bud" sometimes was.

"Deacon Jones" seems to be on the same pattern as "Uncle Bud," though I can't put together any very helpful lines. On the sound sample referenced above, the best I can do sounds like:

DEACON JONES

[ My honey when he get the wall, ?? ]
Bet a hundred dollar he could f--k* 'em all,

 Cho:   Deacon Jones, Deacon Jones, Deacon Jones, Deacon Jones.

 ...

Jack off the one and put the turn [?] to two, Cho

Got anywhere ... [ ? ] to him,
F--k* the devil any ... [ ? ] slim. Cho"
-GUEST,Bob Coltman, Date: 09 Feb 07
-snip-
*This word is fully spelled out in these lyrics.

**
4. "Though Louis Jourdan's estate apparently has a policy of not releasing his "Deacon Jones" lyrics -- perhaps because he made it as a successful mainstream R&B man and wanted to leave his less creditable songs behind him -- these lyrics do appear in an article about him, which calls it "some of his greatest ethnic performances."

They are, of course, cleaned up, and excerpted. Can anyone quote his version in its complete form?

DEACON JONES

As sung by Louis Jourdan (part only)
Who gets all the chicken breast
And leaves all the gizzards for the rest?
Deacon Jones, yes yes yes ...

And when a sister's feeling blue,
Who's always there to woo?
Deacon Jones, oh yeah ...

And before any of the church money is spent,
Who takes out his usual ten percent?
You guessed it ... Deacon Jones.

That at least gives you a notion what the general shape of it is. Bob
-GUEST,Bob Coltman, Date: 09 Feb 07

** 
...5. "Meanwhile, I found a clip of Louis Jordan (correct this time; above I inadvertently spelled him like the French actor) doing the opening of his "Deacon Jones." This makes it clear that his version is recomposed as a pop song -- so beyond this, I think we can eliminate his version as of any interest to this thread. Still, for completeness' sake, and because it's fun, here is his take on the good(?) Deacon:

 DEACON JONES

 As performed by Louis Jordan

(Spoken) Good evening, brothers and sisters, I'm very sorry to announce that Deacon Jones will not be present at the services today. Had a slight accident. But he wants everybody to be happy -- because when you're happy, that's what counts. Brothers and sisters and sisterettes, Deacon Jones sends his deepest regrets --

(Sung)

To the members of the flock who are new around here,
There is something 'bout the Deacon that I want to make clear:

Who's honored and respected? (Band members:) Deacon Jones!
Who's SO unaffected? (all) Deacon Jones,
When the sinner's moanin' low,
Who will share his tale of woe,
(All:) Lordy Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!

Who's so handsome and goodlookin'? Deacon Jones!
Who can smell a rooster cookin'? Deacon Jones!
Who gets all the chicken breast,
An' leaves the giblets for the rest?
(clip fades here)
--GUEST,Bob Coltman, Date: 10 Feb 07

**
6. "Here's my transcription from the video at YouTube [Pancocojams editor's note: The word "YouTube is given as a hyperlink to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmEtJ1gLVTk&ab_channel=nipsipone ]

DEACON JONES
As sung by Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five

Brothers an' sisters an' sisterettes,
Deacon Jones sends his deepest regrets.
To the members of the flock who are new around here,
There's somethin' 'bout the deacon that I want to make clear:

Who's honored an' respected? (Deacon Jones!)
Uh-huh, an' who's so kind an' unaffected? (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, an' when a sinner's moanin' low,
Who will listen to his tale of woe?
(Lordy, Lordy, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

Now, who's handsome an' good lookin'? (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, an' who is it that can smell a rooster cookin'? (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, an' who gets all the chicken breast,
An' leaves the giblets for the rest?
(Lordy, Lordy, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

CHORUS: Oh, Deacon Jones! (Deacon Jones!)
Oh, Deacon Jones! (Deacon Jones!)
Oh, Lordy, Lordy, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!
Oh, Deacon Jones! (Deacon Jones!)
Deacon Jones! (Deacon Jones!)
Oh, Lordy, Lordy, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!

Now, who is loved by all his neighbors? (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, an' who is it that will help you with your labors? (Deacon Jones!)
Uh-huh, he'll help you beat the rug,
An' also help you find a cider jug.
(Lordy, Lordy, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

Now, who's in charge of the contributions? (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, an' who attends to the distributions? (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, an' before any of the dough is spent,
Who is it that takes out his ten percent?
(Lordy, Lordy, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

CHORUS

Now, who attends the fraternal meetin's? (Deacon Jones!)
That's right, an' who extends all the hearty greetin's? (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, an' who's in charge of all the dues,
An' who's the only one with shoes?
(Lordy, Lordy, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

Now, who's the first to church on Sunday? (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, an' who's the last at work on Monday? (Deacon Jones!)
That's right, an' all the balance of the week,
Who is it that goes fishin' down the creek?
(Lordy, Lordy, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

CHORUS
- Jim Dixon, 30 May 11 

**
7. "Oh, this is a fun one, Bob. Jim did a great job on the transcription, but I found an entirely different "Deacon Jones" recording on Spotify. It's a pretty good recording had trouble understanding part of it [especially the first verse about singin'], but I'll do what I can:

DEACON JONES
As sung by Louis Jordan (March 3, 1944)

[spoken] Fellas, I'm very sorry that Deacon Jones couldn't get here for this session, but he told me to tall all of youse guys to be happy; 'cause when you're happy, that's what counts.

Brothers an' sisters an' sisterettes,
Deacon Jones sends his deepest regrets.
To the members of the flock who are new around here,
There's somethin' 'bout the deacon that I want to make clear:

Now, who's good for sister's singin'? [???] (Deacon Jones!)
That's right, that's right, and who is it that will keep her phone a-ringin'? (Deacon Jones!)
And when she's left all alone at night,
Who is it that will make her see the light?
(Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

Now, who's loved by all the congregation? (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, an' who does the sisters come to for consolation? (Deacon Jones!)
Yes, and when a sister's feelin' blue,
Who is it that consoles her in her pew?
(Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

CHORUS:
Hey, Deacon Jones! (Deacon Jones!)
Oh, Deacon Jones! (Deacon Jones!)
Oh, Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!
Oh, Deacon Jones! (Deacon Jones!)
Deacon Jones! (Deacon Jones!)
Oh, Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!

Now, who's the country's greatest lover? (Deacon Jones!)
That's right, brother, and who is it that will make all other cats take cover? (Deacon Jones!)
Uh-huh, and when your gal is leavin' you,
Now, tell me, who is she goin' to?
(Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

Now, who does the sisters pray for? [???] (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, an' who does all the husbands' labor? (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, an' when a husband sets a trap,
Who is it that always beats the rap?
(Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

CHORUS

Album title: Complete Jazz Series, 1943-1945

Fun, but certainly a lot tamer than what Bob was looking for...

Jo Stafford sang this song with the Pied Pipers, but her version is very tame.
-Joe Offer, 31 May 11

**
8. "That same album has another recording from October 4, 1943, that is half from Jim's version and half from the 1944 version I transcribed.

DEACON JONES
As sung by Louis Jordan (October 4, 1943)

[spoken] Good evening, brothers and sisters, I'm very sorry to announce that Deacon Jones will not be present at the service today. He had a slight accident, but he wants everybody to be to be happy; because when you're happy, that's what counts.

Brothers an' sisters an' sisterettes,
Deacon Jones sends his deepest regrets.
To the members of the flock who are new around here,
There's somethin' 'bout the deacon that I want to make clear:

Who's honored an' respected? (Deacon Jones!)
Now, who's so unaffected? (Deacon Jones!)
When a sinner's moanin' low,
Who will share his tale of woe?
(Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

Now, who's handsome an' good lookin'? (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, who can smell a rooster cookin'? (Deacon Jones!)
The good old deacon. Now, who gets all the chicken breast,
An' leaves the giblets for the rest?
(Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

CHORUS:
Deacon Jones! (Oh, Deacon Jones!)
Deacon Jones! (Oh, Deacon Jones!)
Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!

Now, who will keep a sister singin'? (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, who will also keep her phone a-ringin'? (Deacon Jones!)
Yes, yes. And when she's left all alone at night,
Who is it that will help her see the light?
(Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

Now, who's loved by all the congregation? (Deacon Jones!)
Yes, yes, brother. And who give them consolation? (Deacon Jones!)
Mm-hmm, when a sister's feelin' blue,
Who is it that consoles her in her pew?
(Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

CHORUS:
Deacon Jones! (Oh, Deacon Jones!)
Deacon Jones! (Oh, Deacon Jones!)
Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!

Now, who's the country's greatest lover? (Deacon Jones!)
Yes, yes, who makes all the other cats take cover? (Deacon Jones!)
Uh-huh, and when your gal is leavin' you,
Now, just tell me, who is she goin' to?
(Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

Now, who takes up all the contributions? (Deacon Jones!)
Yes, yes, an' who attends to the distributions? (Deacon Jones!)
An' before any of the dough is spent,
Who is it that takes out his ten percent?
(Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!)

CHORUS:
Deacon Jones! (Oh, Deacon Jones!)
Deacon Jones! (Oh, Deacon Jones!)
Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!

Deacon Jones! (Oh, Deacon Jones!)
Deacon Jones! (Oh, Deacon Jones!)
Lordy, Lord, hallelujah,
Lordy, Lord, hallelujah,
Lordy, Lord, hallelujah, Deacon Jones!


Album title: Complete Jazz Series, 1943-1945
-Joe Offer, 31 May 11

**
9. "FARE THEE WELL DEACON JONES

As recorded by Lucky Millinder and His Orchestra

Gather round me, children, while I tell the news.
Hates to tell you 'bout it 'cause I gets the blues.
No one saw the thing that happened but my wife,
But you can bet she saw the deacon when he lost his life.

Fare thee well; Deacon Jones has passed away. (Fare thee well.)
Fare thee well; Deacon Jones has passed away. (Fare thee well.)
Elder Brown, go ring the bell.
Deacon Jones fell in the well.
Fare thee well; Deacon Jones has passed away. (Fare thee well.)

Go and tell Deacon Jones fell in the well (in the well).
Go and tell Deacon Jones fell in the well (in the well).
He was down there drinkin' juice
When the bucket it broke loose.
Fare thee well, Deacon Jones; fare thee well.

You will find Deacon Jones down in the well, in the well.
You will find Deacon Jones down in the well, in the well.
He fell in last night at nine
And his dice jumped in behind.
Fare thee well, Deacon Jones; fare thee well; fare thee well.

Listen, brother Sammy, did you bring your horn?
'Course you got to serenade us while we mourn.
Ev'rybody, bow your heads and start to pray.
Brother Sammy's gonna blow it till the judgment day.

We took the congregation, led 'em to the well,
Led 'em to to the spot where the deacon fell.
The deacon stuck his head from a tree up high,
Said, "I would 'a' been dead but the well was dry."
-Jim Dixon, 16 Feb 14

****
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