Edited by Azizi Powell
This pancocojams post showcases a video of the song/dance "The Git Up" and with a video of the Tik Tok Gitup Dance Compilation.
The lyrics of Blanco Brown's "Gitup Dance" are included along with Blanco Brown's comments about how this song became viral.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the composer and primary performer of this song. Thanks to all those who are featured in these videos and all those who are quoted in this post. Thanks also to the publishers of these videos on YouTube.
****
SHOWCASE VIDEOS
Video #1: Blanco Brown - The Git Up (Official Music Video)
Blanco Brown, Sep 13, 2019
My debut album HONEYSUCKLE & LIGHTNING BUGS is out now! :
-snip-
Statistics as of January 1, 2020 at 11:54 AM EST
total # of views- 35,423,985
total # of likes - 435K
total # of dislikes - 14K
total # of comments - 14,093
****
Video #2: Tik Tok Gitup Dance Compilation || Two Step Cowboy Boogie || Country Music || Git up Dance
AwesomeTikTok, Jun 10, 2019
Statistics as of January 1, 2020 at 11:58 AM EST
total # of views- 2,673,607
total # of likes - 16K
total # of dislikes - 897
total # of comments - 785
****
LYRICS: THE GIT DOWN
(Blanco Brown)
[Intro]
Right now
I just need you to get real loose
Get comfortable
Grab your loved ones or grab your love, partner
And if you're by yourself, no worries
Just follow after me
[Chorus]
Go'n and do the two-step, then cowboy boogie
Grab your sweetheart and spin out with 'em
Do the hoedown and get into it (Woo-hoo-hoo)
Take it to the left now and dip with it
Go'n throw down, take a sip with it
Now lean back, put your hips in it (Woo-hoo-hoo)
Let's have some fun
[Verse 1]
To the left, to the left now (To the left, to the left)
To the right, to the right (To the right)
Now take your left hand and (Uh)
Put it on your side (Put it on your side)
Go'n roll your shoulders (Roll your shoulders)
Do the slip and slide (Do the slip and slide)
This next part's my favorite part, uh
'Cause it's time to shine
[Chorus]
Go'n and do the two-step, then cowboy boogie
Grab your sweetheart and spin out with 'em
Do the hoedown and get into it (Woo-hoo-hoo)
Take it to the left now and dip with it
Go'n throw down, take a sip with it
Now lean back, put your hips in it (Woo-hoo-hoo)
It's simple, you can do it
[Verse 2]
Slide to the left (Left), slide to the right (Right)
Now cool down (Hoo), have a good time (Yeah)
Slide to the left (Left), slide to the right (Right)
Do the butterfly (Oh), have a good time
'Round, 'round, 'round and 'round you go
It's time to show out right now and take to the floor
[Chorus]
Go'n and do the two-step, then cowboy boogie
Grab your sweetheart and spin out with 'em
Do the hoedown and get into it (Woo-hoo-hoo)
Take it to the left now and dip with it
Go'n throw down, take a sip with it
Now lean back, put your hips in it (Woo-hoo-hoo)
[Bridge]
(To the left)
Take it down now, take it, take it down now
Take it down now, take it, take it down now
(To the right)
Bring it up now, bring it, bring it up now
Bring it up now, bring it, bring it up now
(To the front)
Take it down and crisscross
Bring it up, now crisscross
(To the back)
Do whatever you like right here (Get down)
Just have fun
[Chorus]
Go'n and do the two-step, then cowboy boogie
Grab your sweetheart and spin out with 'em
Do the hoedown and get into it (Woo-hoo-hoo)
Take it to the left now and dip with it
Go'n throw down, take a sip with it
Now lean back, put your hips in it (Woo-hoo-hoo), uh
[Interlude]
That was not so bad, that was, that, that was not so bad, was it?
That was not so bad, that, that, that was not so bad, was it?
That was not so bad, that was, that, that was not so bad, was it?
That was not so bad, that, that, that was not so bad, was it?
[Chorus]
Go'n and do the two-step, then cowboy boogie
Grab your sweetheart and spin out with 'em
Do the hoedown and get into it (Woo-hoo-hoo)
Take it to the left now and dip with it
Go'n throw down, take a sip with it
Now lean back, put your hips in it (Woo-hoo-hoo)
Source: https://genius.com/Blanco-brown-the-git-up-lyrics
Information about how Blanco Brown came up with this song and dance are included on that genius.com page along with Blanco Brown's comments about the song "Old Town Road" which is often compared to "The Git Up" song.
That page also included Blanco Brown's response to the question: When did Blanco realize this song was catching on?
"The first thing that I seen that made me feel like the record or the dance—I didn’t really know which one—was catching on was after a guy re-posted on his page named DJ Shocker and he hit me in my inbox and said, “Bro this video is going to be at a million views by the end of the day because the numbers are just coming fast.” And I started watching it, so then I hit him up. People were like, oh, we might be onto one, and I seen people re-posting mine, and maybe like a week later it had over 4 or 5 million views on Facebook. Then it slowed down on Instagram. Nick from Fox 46 news, he did the dance. Then it turned up, and it was like perfect timing right before Labor Day weekend. Then people started doing the dance and then I said okay, I guess it’s officially a challenge, and then Delicious did it.
And Andre Drummond reposted on his stories and these like all my peoples, you know what I’m saying? So it was like, wow, it’s really doing something. Then it slowed down again. I was like, “Come on now, Jesus, what we doing? Let’s get that momentum that ain’t going to stop.” Before you know it, I didn’t know it was bubbling on TikTok because a guy named Ajani, that’s his name—I’m shouting out all my people that was part of my story—posted it on his page and he did it several times until it caught on. And by time he did it the last fourth or fifth time, it had done caught on, it had like 9 million plus views throughout the platform, but I couldn’t trace him. So then we got that fixed, and that’s how it all kind of came full circle. Then the YouTube videos came in. I mean it was just God given."
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
Showing posts with label Pop music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pop music. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 1, 2020
Monday, March 2, 2015
Mickey Mouse Clubhouse's "Hot Dog (Hot Diggity Dog)" Song - Its Lyrics & Its Cultural Influences
Edited by Azizi Powell
This post showcases the American children's television Mickey Mouse Clubhouse song "Hot Dog (Hot Diggity Dog)".
Two video examples of that song and the song's lyrics are included in this post. Additional videos and comments are included in this post and the Addendum to this post that refer to the cultural influences on the lyrics to that song, the "Hot Dog" dance as performed in these videos, and also to one of the costumes worn in the second video of that song and dance.
This song is a departure from the usual music featured in this blog which showcases Black music in the United States and around the world. While I believe that African American culture influenced some parts of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse's "Hot Dog (Hot Diggity Dog)" song, by no means do I think that that African American culture is the only cultural influence on this song.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic reasons.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the composers of this song. Thanks to all those quoted in this post and to the producers, singers, and musicians in each of these videos. Thanks also to the publishers of these videos on YouTube. Special thanks to my toddler granddaughter for introducing me to lots of creative children's songs and videos, including "Hot Dog (Hot Diggity Dog)".
****
INFORMATION ABOUT MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mickey_Mouse_Clubhouse
"Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is an American animated interactive television series produced from 2006 to Present. The series, Disney Television Animation's first computer animated series, was aimed at preschoolers....
Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Goofy, and Pluto star in the series, which focuses on interacting with the viewer to stimulate problem solving."
-snip-
The song "Hot Dog (Hot Diggity Dog)" is sung at the end of every episode of this series.
****
SHOWCASE VIDEOS
Example #1: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse - 'Hot Dog Dance' - Disney Official
DisneyJuniorUK, Published on Sep 12, 2012
Hot Dog Hot Dog Hot Diggidy Dog! Can you learn all of the moves and sing a long to the Hot Dog dance? Mickey and friends will show you how to do the Hot Dog dance!
****
Example #2: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse - Halloween Hotdog Dance
DisneyJuniorUK, Published on Oct 30, 2013
Join Mickey Mouse and friends as they celebrate Halloween together!
****
LYRICS - HOT DOG (HOT DIGGITY DOG) Version #1
(Mickey Mouse Clubhouse)
Hot Dog, Hot Dog, Hot Diggity Dog
Now, we've got ears, it's time for cheers
Hot Dog, Hot Dog, the problem's solved...
Hot Dog, Hot Dog, Hot Diggity Dog!
[character interruption]
Mickey: What a Hot Dog Day!
Hot Dog, Hot Dog, Hot Diggity Dog
It's a brand new day, what'cha waitin' for?
Get up, stretch out, stomp on the floor...
Hot Dog, Hot Dog, Hot Diggity Dog!
Hot Dog, Hot Dog, Hot Diggity Dog
We're splittin' the scene, we're full of beans
So long for now, from Mickey Mouse...
Mickey: That's me!
And the Mickey Mouse...Club...House!
Source: http://disney.wikia.com/wiki/Hot_Dog_Dance
****
LYRICS - HOT DOG (HOT DIGGITY DOG) Version #2
(Mickey Mouse Clubhouse)
Hot dog! (Hot dog) Hot dog!
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
Now we got ears, it's time for cheers
Hot dog, hot dog, the problem's solved
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
Grab my boots and a sandwich
Let's start a parade
Get the coconut drum kit
For Daisy to play
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
We're taking off, we're dancing now
Hot dog, leapfrog, and holy cow
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
It's a brand new day
Whatcha waiting for?
Get up, stretch out, stomp on the floor
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
We're splitting the scene
We're full of beans
So long for now from Mickey Mouse
(That's me!)
And the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
Source: http://tmbw.net/wiki/Lyrics:Hot_Dog!
-snip-
Both websites indicate that "Hot Dog" (Hot Diggity Dog) is sung by "They Might Be Giants". The song was recorded in 2006. The name of the song's composer isn't given on that website or on any other website about this song that I visted.
****
CULTURAL INFLUENCES - THE SONG'S LYRICS [Version #2]
Hot dog
"hot dog - "sausage on a split roll," c.1890, popularized by cartoonist T.A. Dorgan. It is said to echo a 19c. suspicion (occasionally justified) that sausages contained dog meat. Meaning "someone particularly skilled or excellent" (with overtones of showing off) is from 1896. Connection between the two senses, if any, is unclear. Hot dog! as an exclamation of approval was in use by 1906." http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=hot+dog
**
From http://disney.wikia.com/wiki/Hot_Dog_Dance
The song is title[d] "Hot Dog!" and is performed by They Might Be Giants. It echoes Mickey's first spoken words in the 1929 short The Karnival Kid."
-snip-
That cartoon video is found below under my comments about the dance that is performed in that Clubhouse cartoon.
**
Hot diggity dog
This phrase is lifted from the 1956 American Pop song "Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom)". The song was "recorded by Perry Como and went to #1 on the Billboard pop music chart later that year. The song's melody is based on Emmanuel Chabrier's 1883 composition, España...
The phrase "hot diggity dog!" dates to at least 1928, when Al Jolson was recorded saying "Hot diggity dog! Hot kitty! Hot pussycat! Didn't I tell you you'd love it?" after a performance of the tune "There's a Rainbow 'Round My Shoulder""... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_Diggity_(Dog_Ziggity_Boom).
-snip-
A video of Perry Como singing "Hot Diggity" is included in the Addendum to this post. A video of Emmanuel Chabrier's "España" is also included in the Addendum.
**
"it's time for cheers"
it's time for us to cheer; it's time for us to be happy (cheerful)
**
"Get the coconut drum kit"
A drum made out of coconut for Daisy [the female duck character in the Clubhouse] to play. A video of a coconut drum is included in the Addendum.
**
"Hot dog, leapfrog, and holy cow"
These words all refer to animals and probably have no other meaning in this song beyond that. However, both "hot dog" and "holy cow" are exclamations.
"Holy cow!" (and similar) is an exclamation of surprise used mostly in the United States, Canada, Australia and England. It is a minced oath or euphemism for "Holy Christ!"
Holy Cow! dates to at least 1905.[1]!...The phrase was used by baseball players at least as early as 1913[3] and probably much earlier.[4] The phrase appears to have been adopted as a means to avoid penalties for using obscene or indecent language and may have been based on a general awareness of the holiness of cows in some religious traditions.[5]"From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_cow_(expression)
"Leapfrog is a children's game in which players vault over each other's stooped backs." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leapfrog
**
"Stomp on the floor"
means to dance energetically
From http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/stomp
"Stomp - a jazz composition, especially in early jazz, marked by a driving rhythm and a fast tempo.
a dance to this music, usually marked by heavy stamping of the feet.
Origin 1820-1830"
-snip-
"Stomps" is a referent for music/dance originated in African American culture.
**
"We're splitting the scene"
means "We're leaving this place
Definition: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/split
"To split" meaning "to leave, to depart" probably originated in African American slang.
**
We're full of beans
In the context of this song, that sentence means "we're full of energy and enthusiasm". http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/be+full+of+beans.
However, saying that a person is full of beans may also be a serious insult since being "full of beans" also can mean being "full of 'crap'".
****
THE TUNE USED FOR MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE "HOT DOG" SONG?
The words "hot diggity" in the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse song evoke the lyrics from the 1956 song "Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom)". However, the tune of Mickey Mouse song reminds me of an earlier song "Three Little Fishes". Here's a video of that song:
Andrews Sisters - Three Little Fishes
warholsoup100, Uploaded on May 28, 2011
-snip-
Information about The Andrews Sisters and the lyrics to the "Three Little Fishes" song are included in the publisher's statement for this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaJ-Ou5gTdw
****
THE "HOT DOG" DANCE
According to http://disney.wikia.com/wiki/Hot_Dog_Dance
"The Hot Dog Dance" is the dance Mickey and the gang do at the end of every episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Every character has a different dance move he or she does to the song...
Trivia
How everyone performs the dance:
◾Mickey: Swings his body back and fourth while swaying his arms and kicking his feet out.
◾Minnie: Similar to Mickey, but swings out her arms while kicking her heels.
◾Goofy: Flaps his arms like a bird while squatting up and down and kicking out his legs.
◾Pluto: Squats up and down while leaning from side to side.
◾Donald: Swings his arms back and fourth while hopping on his feet.
◾Daisy: Sways her arms side to side and leans to the opposite side.
◾In Season 1, the dance was referred to as the "Mouskadance"."
-snip-
It seems to me that each Mickey Mouse Clubhouse character is doing his or her own version of the same dance.
I believe that this "Hot Dog" dance is another name for the African American originated "Hootchie Kootchie Dance" ("Shimmy Dance") that Minney Mouse does in Mickey Mouse's first cartoon "The Karnival Kid". (from about 1:05 to 1:29 in that video. After which Mickey Mouse calls out "Hot dogs Hot dogs" that he is selling from a cart. In the back of that cart is a sign "Minnie Shimmy Dancer".
Mickey Mouse The Karnival Kid (1929)
chitchcock92, Published on Jul 21, 2012
Mickey Mouse at age 1, said his first words in this cartoon. Mickey (voiced by Walt Disney) said "Hot dogs! Hot dogs"
-snip-
Here's a video of the Shimmy from the 1920s:
The Roaring Twenties - Dancing The Shimmy
Aaron1912,Published on Mar 10, 2012
Before the Charleston there was the Shimmy. Shake your body all over.
-snip-
The Shimmy dance originated among African Americans.
Characteters in the American children's educational cartoon characters "SuperWhy" do a similar dance while singing the song "Hip Hip Hooray" at the end of each of their cartoons. As is the case with the "Hot Dog" dance, each Super Why character does this dance their own way. Here's a video of that song and dance:
YouTube - SUPER WHY! - -Hip Hip Hooray!- - PBS KIDS.HD
jasnoorvirk noor, Uploaded on Feb 23, 2012
-snip-
The Super Why! cartoon series debuted in 2007. It may be a coincidence that these two cartoon series end each episode in what appears to me to be similar ways. Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Why! for information about Super Why! cartoons.
****
WASHBOARD INSTRUMENT IN THE VIDEO OF MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE HALLOWEEN VERSION OF THIS SONG
[Example #2 above]
I found it interesting that Goofy [the tall dog character] is wearing a washboard (rubboard/frottoir) as part of his Halloween costume. Here's information about that musical instrument:
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washboard
"A washboard is a tool designed for hand washing clothing. With mechanized cleaning of clothing becoming more common by the end of the 20th century, the washboard has become better known for its originally subsidiary use as a musical instrument...
Washboards with brass ridges are still made, and some who use washboards as musical instruments prefer the sound of the somewhat more expensive brass boards. One of the few musical instruments invented entirely in the United States is the Zydeco Frottoir (Zydeco Rubboard), a distillation of the washboard into essential elements (percussive surface with shoulder straps) designed by Clifton Chenier and built by Willie Landry in 1946."
-snip-
A video of a Zydeco band including a musician playing a frottoir is found in the Addendum below.
****
ADDENDUM: VIDEOS
Example #1: Emmanuel Chabrier - España Rhapsody For Orchestra
glagolitic, Published on Sep 10, 2013
The BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leonard Slatkin
Recorded live at the Royal Albert Hall on Friday 19th July 2002
-snip-
"España" is the tune used for the 1956 song "Hot Diggity". Emmanuel Chabrier (January 18, 1841 – September 13, 1894) was a French Romantic composer and pianist...Gustav Mahler called España "the beginnings of modern music". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emmanuel_Chabrier
****
Example #2: Perry Como Live - Hot Diggity - 1956
furn738, Uploaded on Jun 2, 2011
The melody for Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom) is based on Emmanuel Chabrier's 1883 composition, "España."
****
Example #3: COCONUT HAND DRUM
Sergi Garcia, Published on May 4, 2014
The drums of coconut are common throughout South-East Asia.
They are used to make rhythms.
Hand covering the opening can get different effects.
Includes stick.
****
Example #4: Queen Ida and The Bon Temps Zydeco Band - Rosa Majeur
sexmex5, Uploaded on Apr 6, 2008
Good Zydeco
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
This post showcases the American children's television Mickey Mouse Clubhouse song "Hot Dog (Hot Diggity Dog)".
Two video examples of that song and the song's lyrics are included in this post. Additional videos and comments are included in this post and the Addendum to this post that refer to the cultural influences on the lyrics to that song, the "Hot Dog" dance as performed in these videos, and also to one of the costumes worn in the second video of that song and dance.
This song is a departure from the usual music featured in this blog which showcases Black music in the United States and around the world. While I believe that African American culture influenced some parts of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse's "Hot Dog (Hot Diggity Dog)" song, by no means do I think that that African American culture is the only cultural influence on this song.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic reasons.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the composers of this song. Thanks to all those quoted in this post and to the producers, singers, and musicians in each of these videos. Thanks also to the publishers of these videos on YouTube. Special thanks to my toddler granddaughter for introducing me to lots of creative children's songs and videos, including "Hot Dog (Hot Diggity Dog)".
****
INFORMATION ABOUT MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mickey_Mouse_Clubhouse
"Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is an American animated interactive television series produced from 2006 to Present. The series, Disney Television Animation's first computer animated series, was aimed at preschoolers....
Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Goofy, and Pluto star in the series, which focuses on interacting with the viewer to stimulate problem solving."
-snip-
The song "Hot Dog (Hot Diggity Dog)" is sung at the end of every episode of this series.
****
SHOWCASE VIDEOS
Example #1: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse - 'Hot Dog Dance' - Disney Official
DisneyJuniorUK, Published on Sep 12, 2012
Hot Dog Hot Dog Hot Diggidy Dog! Can you learn all of the moves and sing a long to the Hot Dog dance? Mickey and friends will show you how to do the Hot Dog dance!
****
Example #2: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse - Halloween Hotdog Dance
DisneyJuniorUK, Published on Oct 30, 2013
Join Mickey Mouse and friends as they celebrate Halloween together!
****
LYRICS - HOT DOG (HOT DIGGITY DOG) Version #1
(Mickey Mouse Clubhouse)
Hot Dog, Hot Dog, Hot Diggity Dog
Now, we've got ears, it's time for cheers
Hot Dog, Hot Dog, the problem's solved...
Hot Dog, Hot Dog, Hot Diggity Dog!
[character interruption]
Mickey: What a Hot Dog Day!
Hot Dog, Hot Dog, Hot Diggity Dog
It's a brand new day, what'cha waitin' for?
Get up, stretch out, stomp on the floor...
Hot Dog, Hot Dog, Hot Diggity Dog!
Hot Dog, Hot Dog, Hot Diggity Dog
We're splittin' the scene, we're full of beans
So long for now, from Mickey Mouse...
Mickey: That's me!
And the Mickey Mouse...Club...House!
Source: http://disney.wikia.com/wiki/Hot_Dog_Dance
****
LYRICS - HOT DOG (HOT DIGGITY DOG) Version #2
(Mickey Mouse Clubhouse)
Hot dog! (Hot dog) Hot dog!
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
Now we got ears, it's time for cheers
Hot dog, hot dog, the problem's solved
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
Grab my boots and a sandwich
Let's start a parade
Get the coconut drum kit
For Daisy to play
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
We're taking off, we're dancing now
Hot dog, leapfrog, and holy cow
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
It's a brand new day
Whatcha waiting for?
Get up, stretch out, stomp on the floor
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog
We're splitting the scene
We're full of beans
So long for now from Mickey Mouse
(That's me!)
And the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
Source: http://tmbw.net/wiki/Lyrics:Hot_Dog!
-snip-
Both websites indicate that "Hot Dog" (Hot Diggity Dog) is sung by "They Might Be Giants". The song was recorded in 2006. The name of the song's composer isn't given on that website or on any other website about this song that I visted.
****
CULTURAL INFLUENCES - THE SONG'S LYRICS [Version #2]
Hot dog
"hot dog - "sausage on a split roll," c.1890, popularized by cartoonist T.A. Dorgan. It is said to echo a 19c. suspicion (occasionally justified) that sausages contained dog meat. Meaning "someone particularly skilled or excellent" (with overtones of showing off) is from 1896. Connection between the two senses, if any, is unclear. Hot dog! as an exclamation of approval was in use by 1906." http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=hot+dog
**
From http://disney.wikia.com/wiki/Hot_Dog_Dance
The song is title[d] "Hot Dog!" and is performed by They Might Be Giants. It echoes Mickey's first spoken words in the 1929 short The Karnival Kid."
-snip-
That cartoon video is found below under my comments about the dance that is performed in that Clubhouse cartoon.
**
Hot diggity dog
This phrase is lifted from the 1956 American Pop song "Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom)". The song was "recorded by Perry Como and went to #1 on the Billboard pop music chart later that year. The song's melody is based on Emmanuel Chabrier's 1883 composition, España...
The phrase "hot diggity dog!" dates to at least 1928, when Al Jolson was recorded saying "Hot diggity dog! Hot kitty! Hot pussycat! Didn't I tell you you'd love it?" after a performance of the tune "There's a Rainbow 'Round My Shoulder""... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_Diggity_(Dog_Ziggity_Boom).
-snip-
A video of Perry Como singing "Hot Diggity" is included in the Addendum to this post. A video of Emmanuel Chabrier's "España" is also included in the Addendum.
**
"it's time for cheers"
it's time for us to cheer; it's time for us to be happy (cheerful)
**
"Get the coconut drum kit"
A drum made out of coconut for Daisy [the female duck character in the Clubhouse] to play. A video of a coconut drum is included in the Addendum.
**
"Hot dog, leapfrog, and holy cow"
These words all refer to animals and probably have no other meaning in this song beyond that. However, both "hot dog" and "holy cow" are exclamations.
"Holy cow!" (and similar) is an exclamation of surprise used mostly in the United States, Canada, Australia and England. It is a minced oath or euphemism for "Holy Christ!"
Holy Cow! dates to at least 1905.[1]!...The phrase was used by baseball players at least as early as 1913[3] and probably much earlier.[4] The phrase appears to have been adopted as a means to avoid penalties for using obscene or indecent language and may have been based on a general awareness of the holiness of cows in some religious traditions.[5]"From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_cow_(expression)
"Leapfrog is a children's game in which players vault over each other's stooped backs." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leapfrog
**
"Stomp on the floor"
means to dance energetically
From http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/stomp
"Stomp - a jazz composition, especially in early jazz, marked by a driving rhythm and a fast tempo.
a dance to this music, usually marked by heavy stamping of the feet.
Origin 1820-1830"
-snip-
"Stomps" is a referent for music/dance originated in African American culture.
**
"We're splitting the scene"
means "We're leaving this place
Definition: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/split
"To split" meaning "to leave, to depart" probably originated in African American slang.
**
We're full of beans
In the context of this song, that sentence means "we're full of energy and enthusiasm". http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/be+full+of+beans.
However, saying that a person is full of beans may also be a serious insult since being "full of beans" also can mean being "full of 'crap'".
****
THE TUNE USED FOR MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE "HOT DOG" SONG?
The words "hot diggity" in the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse song evoke the lyrics from the 1956 song "Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom)". However, the tune of Mickey Mouse song reminds me of an earlier song "Three Little Fishes". Here's a video of that song:
Andrews Sisters - Three Little Fishes
warholsoup100, Uploaded on May 28, 2011
-snip-
Information about The Andrews Sisters and the lyrics to the "Three Little Fishes" song are included in the publisher's statement for this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaJ-Ou5gTdw
****
THE "HOT DOG" DANCE
According to http://disney.wikia.com/wiki/Hot_Dog_Dance
"The Hot Dog Dance" is the dance Mickey and the gang do at the end of every episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Every character has a different dance move he or she does to the song...
Trivia
How everyone performs the dance:
◾Mickey: Swings his body back and fourth while swaying his arms and kicking his feet out.
◾Minnie: Similar to Mickey, but swings out her arms while kicking her heels.
◾Goofy: Flaps his arms like a bird while squatting up and down and kicking out his legs.
◾Pluto: Squats up and down while leaning from side to side.
◾Donald: Swings his arms back and fourth while hopping on his feet.
◾Daisy: Sways her arms side to side and leans to the opposite side.
◾In Season 1, the dance was referred to as the "Mouskadance"."
-snip-
It seems to me that each Mickey Mouse Clubhouse character is doing his or her own version of the same dance.
I believe that this "Hot Dog" dance is another name for the African American originated "Hootchie Kootchie Dance" ("Shimmy Dance") that Minney Mouse does in Mickey Mouse's first cartoon "The Karnival Kid". (from about 1:05 to 1:29 in that video. After which Mickey Mouse calls out "Hot dogs Hot dogs" that he is selling from a cart. In the back of that cart is a sign "Minnie Shimmy Dancer".
Mickey Mouse The Karnival Kid (1929)
chitchcock92, Published on Jul 21, 2012
Mickey Mouse at age 1, said his first words in this cartoon. Mickey (voiced by Walt Disney) said "Hot dogs! Hot dogs"
-snip-
Here's a video of the Shimmy from the 1920s:
The Roaring Twenties - Dancing The Shimmy
Aaron1912,Published on Mar 10, 2012
Before the Charleston there was the Shimmy. Shake your body all over.
-snip-
The Shimmy dance originated among African Americans.
Characteters in the American children's educational cartoon characters "SuperWhy" do a similar dance while singing the song "Hip Hip Hooray" at the end of each of their cartoons. As is the case with the "Hot Dog" dance, each Super Why character does this dance their own way. Here's a video of that song and dance:
YouTube - SUPER WHY! - -Hip Hip Hooray!- - PBS KIDS.HD
jasnoorvirk noor, Uploaded on Feb 23, 2012
-snip-
The Super Why! cartoon series debuted in 2007. It may be a coincidence that these two cartoon series end each episode in what appears to me to be similar ways. Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Why! for information about Super Why! cartoons.
****
WASHBOARD INSTRUMENT IN THE VIDEO OF MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE HALLOWEEN VERSION OF THIS SONG
[Example #2 above]
I found it interesting that Goofy [the tall dog character] is wearing a washboard (rubboard/frottoir) as part of his Halloween costume. Here's information about that musical instrument:
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washboard
"A washboard is a tool designed for hand washing clothing. With mechanized cleaning of clothing becoming more common by the end of the 20th century, the washboard has become better known for its originally subsidiary use as a musical instrument...
Washboards with brass ridges are still made, and some who use washboards as musical instruments prefer the sound of the somewhat more expensive brass boards. One of the few musical instruments invented entirely in the United States is the Zydeco Frottoir (Zydeco Rubboard), a distillation of the washboard into essential elements (percussive surface with shoulder straps) designed by Clifton Chenier and built by Willie Landry in 1946."
-snip-
A video of a Zydeco band including a musician playing a frottoir is found in the Addendum below.
****
ADDENDUM: VIDEOS
Example #1: Emmanuel Chabrier - España Rhapsody For Orchestra
glagolitic, Published on Sep 10, 2013
The BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leonard Slatkin
Recorded live at the Royal Albert Hall on Friday 19th July 2002
-snip-
"España" is the tune used for the 1956 song "Hot Diggity". Emmanuel Chabrier (January 18, 1841 – September 13, 1894) was a French Romantic composer and pianist...Gustav Mahler called España "the beginnings of modern music". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emmanuel_Chabrier
****
Example #2: Perry Como Live - Hot Diggity - 1956
furn738, Uploaded on Jun 2, 2011
The melody for Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom) is based on Emmanuel Chabrier's 1883 composition, "España."
****
Example #3: COCONUT HAND DRUM
Sergi Garcia, Published on May 4, 2014
The drums of coconut are common throughout South-East Asia.
They are used to make rhythms.
Hand covering the opening can get different effects.
Includes stick.
****
Example #4: Queen Ida and The Bon Temps Zydeco Band - Rosa Majeur
sexmex5, Uploaded on Apr 6, 2008
Good Zydeco
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
Four Records With The Title "Eenie Miney Miney Mo" (Jazz, Dancehall/Pop)
Edited by Azizi Powell
This post showcases four sound file/video examples of non-children's records with the title "Eeny Meenie Minie Mo". In order of their presentation in this post, the featured artists are Billie Holiday, Sean Kingston & Justin Beiber, Sid Phillips, and Benny Goodman and His Orchestra.
These are just a small sample of the non-children's records that have been released with the title "Eenie Meenie Minie Mo". Those records include country music and Hip-Hop.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to all the featured artists. Thanks also to the composers of these songs, and thanks to the publishers of these videos on YouTube. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post.
****
FEATURED VIDEOS
These videos are presented in chronological order based on their publishing dates on YouTube with the examples with the oldest dates presented first.
Example #1: Billie Holiday - Eeny Meeny Miney Mo
Канал на purple0accident, Uploaded on May 19, 2009
The Complete Billie Holiday on Columbia CD 1
Lyrics:
Eeny meeny miney mo
Catch your troubles by the toe
If it hollers let it go
Let it fly away
Eeny meeny miney mo
It's the saying high and low
Hear it everywhere you go
Every time of day
Big Ben rings it
Vallee sings it
Whiteman swings it
Even Mr. Crosby sings it
-snip-
Slight corrections were made to the lyrics that were given in this video's summary statement.
"Big Ben" refers to the famous clock in London, England.
"Vallee" is singer Rudy Valle"
"Whiteman" is Jazz band leader Paul Whiteman.
"Mr. Crosby" is singer Bing Crosby.
****
Example #2: Sean Kingston, Justin Bieber - Eenie Meenie ft. Justin Bieber
seankingstonVEVO, Uploaded on Apr 28, 2010
Music video by Sean Kingston performing Eenie Meenie.
-snip-
Excerpt from the lyrics:
"Eenie meenie miney mo
Catch a bad chick by her toe
If she holla (if, if, if she holla) let her go"...
'Cause shawty is a eenie meenie miney mo lova
Shawty is a eenie meenie miney mo lova
Shawty is a eenie meenie miney mo lova
Shawty is a eenie meenie miney mo lova"
Source: http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/seankingston/eeniemeenie.html
-snip-
"Shawty" (Shorty) is an African American Vernacular English referent for a young female. That referent has nothing to do with a person's height.
-snip-
From http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=18910
"This song, about a girl who just can't seem to decide whether she wants to be in a relationship, is a duet between Jamaican-American singer Sean Kingston and Canadian singer Justin Bieber. The song was written by The Jackie Boyz...
The song utilizes the children's counting rhyme "Eenie Meenie Miny Moe" throughout. The rhyme has existed in various forms since the 1850s, or perhaps earlier, and is common in many languages, with similar-sounding nonsense syllables. It has been utilized before in songs including "Eeny Meeny Miney Mo," a popular song written in 1935 by Johnny Mercer and Matty Malneck and the similarly titled "Eeny Meeny Miny Moe," which was an European hit for Dutch girl group Luv' in 1979."
****
Example #3: Eeny Meeny Miney Mo
78Upm, Published on Apr 18, 2012
Eeny Meeny Miney Mo
Foxtrot by Johnny Mercer & Matt Malneck
From film: To beat the band
Edgar Jackson presents:
Sid Phillips and his rhythm
Vocal chorus: Jack Cooper
A nice swingy recording of the early Sid Phillips mentioning some of the REX recording artists of that time: Gracie Fields, Jack Payne and Charlie Kunz.
****
Example #4: Benny Goodman "Eeny Meeny Miney Mo" Helen Ward LYRICS ARE HERE rare visuals
Tim Gracyk,Published on Nov 7, 2014
Benny Goodman and His Orchestra: "Eeny Meeny Miney Mo" on Victor 25195, recorded in 1935.
What a brisk tempo!
The song is by Johnny Mercer and Matt Malneck. It was featured in the film To Beat The Band.
Eeny meeny miney mo--
Catch your troubles by the toe.
If it hollers, let it go.
Let it fly away!
Eeny meeny miney mo--
It's the saying high and low.
Hear it everywhere you go
Any time of day.
Big Ben rings it.
Vallee sings it.
Whiteman swings it.
Even Mr. Crosby bings it.
Eeny meeny miney mo--
Catch your troubles by the toe.
If it hollers, let it go.
Let it fly away!
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
This post showcases four sound file/video examples of non-children's records with the title "Eeny Meenie Minie Mo". In order of their presentation in this post, the featured artists are Billie Holiday, Sean Kingston & Justin Beiber, Sid Phillips, and Benny Goodman and His Orchestra.
These are just a small sample of the non-children's records that have been released with the title "Eenie Meenie Minie Mo". Those records include country music and Hip-Hop.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to all the featured artists. Thanks also to the composers of these songs, and thanks to the publishers of these videos on YouTube. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post.
****
FEATURED VIDEOS
These videos are presented in chronological order based on their publishing dates on YouTube with the examples with the oldest dates presented first.
Example #1: Billie Holiday - Eeny Meeny Miney Mo
Канал на purple0accident, Uploaded on May 19, 2009
The Complete Billie Holiday on Columbia CD 1
Lyrics:
Eeny meeny miney mo
Catch your troubles by the toe
If it hollers let it go
Let it fly away
Eeny meeny miney mo
It's the saying high and low
Hear it everywhere you go
Every time of day
Big Ben rings it
Vallee sings it
Whiteman swings it
Even Mr. Crosby sings it
-snip-
Slight corrections were made to the lyrics that were given in this video's summary statement.
"Big Ben" refers to the famous clock in London, England.
"Vallee" is singer Rudy Valle"
"Whiteman" is Jazz band leader Paul Whiteman.
"Mr. Crosby" is singer Bing Crosby.
****
Example #2: Sean Kingston, Justin Bieber - Eenie Meenie ft. Justin Bieber
seankingstonVEVO, Uploaded on Apr 28, 2010
Music video by Sean Kingston performing Eenie Meenie.
-snip-
Excerpt from the lyrics:
"Eenie meenie miney mo
Catch a bad chick by her toe
If she holla (if, if, if she holla) let her go"...
'Cause shawty is a eenie meenie miney mo lova
Shawty is a eenie meenie miney mo lova
Shawty is a eenie meenie miney mo lova
Shawty is a eenie meenie miney mo lova"
Source: http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/seankingston/eeniemeenie.html
-snip-
"Shawty" (Shorty) is an African American Vernacular English referent for a young female. That referent has nothing to do with a person's height.
-snip-
From http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=18910
"This song, about a girl who just can't seem to decide whether she wants to be in a relationship, is a duet between Jamaican-American singer Sean Kingston and Canadian singer Justin Bieber. The song was written by The Jackie Boyz...
The song utilizes the children's counting rhyme "Eenie Meenie Miny Moe" throughout. The rhyme has existed in various forms since the 1850s, or perhaps earlier, and is common in many languages, with similar-sounding nonsense syllables. It has been utilized before in songs including "Eeny Meeny Miney Mo," a popular song written in 1935 by Johnny Mercer and Matty Malneck and the similarly titled "Eeny Meeny Miny Moe," which was an European hit for Dutch girl group Luv' in 1979."
****
Example #3: Eeny Meeny Miney Mo
78Upm, Published on Apr 18, 2012
Eeny Meeny Miney Mo
Foxtrot by Johnny Mercer & Matt Malneck
From film: To beat the band
Edgar Jackson presents:
Sid Phillips and his rhythm
Vocal chorus: Jack Cooper
A nice swingy recording of the early Sid Phillips mentioning some of the REX recording artists of that time: Gracie Fields, Jack Payne and Charlie Kunz.
****
Example #4: Benny Goodman "Eeny Meeny Miney Mo" Helen Ward LYRICS ARE HERE rare visuals
Tim Gracyk,Published on Nov 7, 2014
Benny Goodman and His Orchestra: "Eeny Meeny Miney Mo" on Victor 25195, recorded in 1935.
What a brisk tempo!
The song is by Johnny Mercer and Matt Malneck. It was featured in the film To Beat The Band.
Eeny meeny miney mo--
Catch your troubles by the toe.
If it hollers, let it go.
Let it fly away!
Eeny meeny miney mo--
It's the saying high and low.
Hear it everywhere you go
Any time of day.
Big Ben rings it.
Vallee sings it.
Whiteman swings it.
Even Mr. Crosby bings it.
Eeny meeny miney mo--
Catch your troubles by the toe.
If it hollers, let it go.
Let it fly away!
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
Saturday, May 4, 2013
Debunking The Urban Myth About "Hooka Tooka Soda Cracka"
Edited by Azizi Powell
Revised September 8, 2018 [removed links to my now inactive cocojams.com website]
Revised September 8, 2018 [removed links to my now inactive cocojams.com website]
Latest Update- March 14,2025 [comments are turned off as of __?; Turning off the comments feature for a particular YouTube video means that all of the comments that were published in that video's discussion thread are deleted.]
****
"Hooka Tooka Soda Craka" is a song that is most often associated with the Rhythm & Blues singer Chubby Checker or the Folk/Pop singer Judy Henske.
A number of places online I read a story about this song that fans attributed to Judy Henske. According to that story Judy Henske said that the lyrics to "Hooka Tooka Soda Cracker" come from Black American children* who would sing this song to warn their mothers who were prostitutes that the police were outside the building where the mothers were working. For example, read this YouTube sound file publisher's summary:
Hooka Tooka Two
Man06ful, Uploaded on Aug 22, 2009
"the main lyrics here came from a skip rope song by children of prostitutes playing outside the whore houses. Somehow Judy Henske found this song - svaed [sic] it. The kids were holding soda crackers and chewing tobacco to pass to their mothers if there was a bust."
-snip-
This video uploader expands on that story in his or her comments on that sound file's viewer comment thread:
"Henske made up the lyrics - Green Rocky Road - and had a law suit for years with Chubby Checker who - used her lyrics. Henske introduced the song - explaining the bit about kids in front of whore houses holding chewing tobbacco and soda crackers for their mothers if there was a bust - because in jail they werent allowed cigarettes and the bread was mouldy. The rythme - lyrics are exactly like other skip rope songs....
-Man06ful, 2010 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsAt9hrrKh0
-snip-
The story that "Hooka Tooka Soda Cracka" comes from a "skip rope song by children of protitutes playing outside the whore houses" just doesn't seem credible to me.
It ssems probable to me that this story is an elaboration by fans of a joking comment that Judy Henske made during an introduction to that song, an elaboration which was not only accepted by some of her fans, but grew to include the "holding soda cracker and chewing tobacco" portion. According to a blogger with the screen name "old frat" on this 1996 discussion thread https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups#!topic/rec.music.folk/SkUpw3iKaQs "Hooka Tooka My Soda Cracker"
"Judy Henske does a great version of this song ["Does your mama chaw tobacca?], and is probably the one you remember.
On the album, it starts with a humorous monologue intro where she asks the group to repeat the chorus. She then says, "You sound like a bunch of kids outside a Chicago whorehouse." The song itself doesn't really seem to be about this subject at all --or I've been mssing the true meaning of soda cracker all of my life."
-snip-
The question about which album this comment is found in was answered in 2003 by Joe Offer on this thread of the Mudcat Folk & Blues music forum http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=59549 "Lyr Req: PLease help 'Hucka CHucka soda cracka'?":
"I found the Henske arrangement - it's on her self-titled album, released on Elektra in 1963 and recently reissued on CD. She calls it "Hooka Tooka," and says it's traditional, arranged by Henske."
If this story [about the children singing in front of a Chicago whore house] isn't an elaboration by her fans of a comment that Judy Henske made about the quality of her audience's singing that "Hooka Tooka" song, [and] if Judy Henske actually believed the story about the song being used by children to warn their mothers of a police bust story, I have these questions:
How did that singer learn that the jump rope rhyme/song "Hooka Tooka Soda Cracka" was used by those Black children* (in Chicago or elsewhere) as a means of warning their mothers or other women in that whore house that a police bust was imminent? Did she hear the children singing that song and then go up to them and ask them why they were singing it? If the children told her that story, did she believe it without checking it? And how would she check such a story? Isn't it possible that those Black children made up a fanciful story for that White woman?
Also, how did she know that they were "holding soda crackers and chewing tobacco to give to their mothers if there was a bust?" Where were these items placed while they were turning a jump rope and jumping rope? Furthermore, is it consistent with mothers' behaviors that they would force their children or encourage their children to play in front of the house where they are whoring so that their children would warn them in a pre-arranged manner of a possible police bust?
In my opinion, that this story has been accepted by so many people without questioning its crediblity speaks to [is a reflection of] Americans' negative stereotypes about Black women.
Even if Judy Henske somehow learned that "Hooka Tooka Soda Craker" was sung by some children in Chicago to warn their mothers of a police bust, that doesn't mean that this song was first sung for that reason. Nor does it mean that this song was always sung for that reason.
*[April 8, 2014] In response to a comment that is added to this post, I admit that I haven't read that Judy Henske attributed this song to Black children singing this song in front of Chicago whorehouses to warn their prostitute mothers that the police were coming, but just to children singing this song in front of a Chicago whorehouse. I've read that story several places including https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/rec.music.folk/SkUpw3iKaQs [Bill Schiers, 3/26/96 refers to children without any race given.] That said, although I've done no research to test that theory, I still believe that when most people besides me read that theory, they think that it refers to Black children/Black prostitutes. Read my full response to this commenter in the comment section below.
****
CORRECTING THAT URBAN MYTH
I believe that the song "Hooka Tooka Soda Cracka" is an American (probably African American) adaptation of the United Kingdom children's counting out rhyme "Icka Backa Soda Cracker". I also believe that the United Kingdom children's singing game "Walking On The Green Grass" is another source of "Hooka Tooka Soda Cracker" song. The American song "Green Green Rocky Road" sometimes include a version of "Hooka Tooka Soda Cracka".
By the way, the end word of "hooka tooka soda cracka" rhymes with the second line in that couplet -"does your mama chew tobacca". The "does your mama chew tobacco" line probably originated as a "dig" (an insult, rip, diss). That phrase definitely predates Judy Henske's 1963 song, "Hooka Tooka" song e.g. read the entry "Green Green Rocky Road" given below which "was collected [in 1955] from the children of Lilly Chapel School in York, Alabama and is found in "Negro Songs From Alabama" by Harold Courlander".
I'll let others debate whether Judy Henske or Ernest Evans (Chubby Checker) was the first to write the "Hooka Tooka" song.
****
FEATURED SOUND FILES AND VIDEOS
Example #1: Chubby Checker Hooka Tooka
Marcello Felici, ploaded on Feb 27, 2012
Hooka Tooka 1963
****
Example #2: hookatooka
.
redheadedberry, Uploaded on Feb 22, 2009
-snip-
Girls singing "Hooka Tooka" around a camp fire.
****
Example #3: Taj Mahal & André Christovam - Green Green Rocky Road
Annecysavoie | December 27, 2008
Heineken Concerts - Bourbon Street - São Paulo - 2000
****
Acka Backa Soda Cracker!
julietlovesjoe Published on Jun 12, 2012
They played a game at Luka's concert this morning. Check it out!! 6/12/2012
****
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND THANKS
The content of this post is presented for folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the composers of this song. Thanks also to those whose comments I quoted. Also, thanks to those featured in these videos, to the producers of these videos, and to the video's publishers on YouTube.
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
"Hooka Tooka Soda Craka" is a song that is most often associated with the Rhythm & Blues singer Chubby Checker or the Folk/Pop singer Judy Henske.
A number of places online I read a story about this song that fans attributed to Judy Henske. According to that story Judy Henske said that the lyrics to "Hooka Tooka Soda Cracker" come from Black American children* who would sing this song to warn their mothers who were prostitutes that the police were outside the building where the mothers were working. For example, read this YouTube sound file publisher's summary:
Hooka Tooka Two
Man06ful, Uploaded on Aug 22, 2009
"the main lyrics here came from a skip rope song by children of prostitutes playing outside the whore houses. Somehow Judy Henske found this song - svaed [sic] it. The kids were holding soda crackers and chewing tobacco to pass to their mothers if there was a bust."
-snip-
This video uploader expands on that story in his or her comments on that sound file's viewer comment thread:
"Henske made up the lyrics - Green Rocky Road - and had a law suit for years with Chubby Checker who - used her lyrics. Henske introduced the song - explaining the bit about kids in front of whore houses holding chewing tobbacco and soda crackers for their mothers if there was a bust - because in jail they werent allowed cigarettes and the bread was mouldy. The rythme - lyrics are exactly like other skip rope songs....
-Man06ful, 2010 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsAt9hrrKh0
-snip-
The story that "Hooka Tooka Soda Cracka" comes from a "skip rope song by children of protitutes playing outside the whore houses" just doesn't seem credible to me.
It ssems probable to me that this story is an elaboration by fans of a joking comment that Judy Henske made during an introduction to that song, an elaboration which was not only accepted by some of her fans, but grew to include the "holding soda cracker and chewing tobacco" portion. According to a blogger with the screen name "old frat" on this 1996 discussion thread https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups#!topic/rec.music.folk/SkUpw3iKaQs "Hooka Tooka My Soda Cracker"
"Judy Henske does a great version of this song ["Does your mama chaw tobacca?], and is probably the one you remember.
On the album, it starts with a humorous monologue intro where she asks the group to repeat the chorus. She then says, "You sound like a bunch of kids outside a Chicago whorehouse." The song itself doesn't really seem to be about this subject at all --or I've been mssing the true meaning of soda cracker all of my life."
-snip-
The question about which album this comment is found in was answered in 2003 by Joe Offer on this thread of the Mudcat Folk & Blues music forum http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=59549 "Lyr Req: PLease help 'Hucka CHucka soda cracka'?":
"I found the Henske arrangement - it's on her self-titled album, released on Elektra in 1963 and recently reissued on CD. She calls it "Hooka Tooka," and says it's traditional, arranged by Henske."
If this story [about the children singing in front of a Chicago whore house] isn't an elaboration by her fans of a comment that Judy Henske made about the quality of her audience's singing that "Hooka Tooka" song, [and] if Judy Henske actually believed the story about the song being used by children to warn their mothers of a police bust story, I have these questions:
How did that singer learn that the jump rope rhyme/song "Hooka Tooka Soda Cracka" was used by those Black children* (in Chicago or elsewhere) as a means of warning their mothers or other women in that whore house that a police bust was imminent? Did she hear the children singing that song and then go up to them and ask them why they were singing it? If the children told her that story, did she believe it without checking it? And how would she check such a story? Isn't it possible that those Black children made up a fanciful story for that White woman?
Also, how did she know that they were "holding soda crackers and chewing tobacco to give to their mothers if there was a bust?" Where were these items placed while they were turning a jump rope and jumping rope? Furthermore, is it consistent with mothers' behaviors that they would force their children or encourage their children to play in front of the house where they are whoring so that their children would warn them in a pre-arranged manner of a possible police bust?
In my opinion, that this story has been accepted by so many people without questioning its crediblity speaks to [is a reflection of] Americans' negative stereotypes about Black women.
Even if Judy Henske somehow learned that "Hooka Tooka Soda Craker" was sung by some children in Chicago to warn their mothers of a police bust, that doesn't mean that this song was first sung for that reason. Nor does it mean that this song was always sung for that reason.
*[April 8, 2014] In response to a comment that is added to this post, I admit that I haven't read that Judy Henske attributed this song to Black children singing this song in front of Chicago whorehouses to warn their prostitute mothers that the police were coming, but just to children singing this song in front of a Chicago whorehouse. I've read that story several places including https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/rec.music.folk/SkUpw3iKaQs [Bill Schiers, 3/26/96 refers to children without any race given.] That said, although I've done no research to test that theory, I still believe that when most people besides me read that theory, they think that it refers to Black children/Black prostitutes. Read my full response to this commenter in the comment section below.
****
CORRECTING THAT URBAN MYTH
I believe that the song "Hooka Tooka Soda Cracka" is an American (probably African American) adaptation of the United Kingdom children's counting out rhyme "Icka Backa Soda Cracker". I also believe that the United Kingdom children's singing game "Walking On The Green Grass" is another source of "Hooka Tooka Soda Cracker" song. The American song "Green Green Rocky Road" sometimes include a version of "Hooka Tooka Soda Cracka".
By the way, the end word of "hooka tooka soda cracka" rhymes with the second line in that couplet -"does your mama chew tobacca". The "does your mama chew tobacco" line probably originated as a "dig" (an insult, rip, diss). That phrase definitely predates Judy Henske's 1963 song, "Hooka Tooka" song e.g. read the entry "Green Green Rocky Road" given below which "was collected [in 1955] from the children of Lilly Chapel School in York, Alabama and is found in "Negro Songs From Alabama" by Harold Courlander".
I'll let others debate whether Judy Henske or Ernest Evans (Chubby Checker) was the first to write the "Hooka Tooka" song.
****
FEATURED SOUND FILES AND VIDEOS
Example #1: Chubby Checker Hooka Tooka
Marcello Felici, ploaded on Feb 27, 2012
Hooka Tooka 1963
****
Example #2: hookatooka
.
redheadedberry, Uploaded on Feb 22, 2009
-snip-
Girls singing "Hooka Tooka" around a camp fire.
****
Example #3: Taj Mahal & André Christovam - Green Green Rocky Road
Annecysavoie | December 27, 2008
Heineken Concerts - Bourbon Street - São Paulo - 2000
****
Acka Backa Soda Cracker!
julietlovesjoe Published on Jun 12, 2012
They played a game at Luka's concert this morning. Check it out!! 6/12/2012
****
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND THANKS
The content of this post is presented for folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the composers of this song. Thanks also to those whose comments I quoted. Also, thanks to those featured in these videos, to the producers of these videos, and to the video's publishers on YouTube.
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Boney M - Brown Girl In The Ring (Video, Lyrics, & Comments)
Boney M, May 29, 2015
****
Edited by Azizi Powell
Revised: August 23,2026
This pancocojams post features a 2015 YouTube video of Boney M singing the Caribbean children's song "Brown Girl In The Ring" in 1979.
This pancocojams post also provides the text of that version, as well as comments about the "Brown Girl In The Ring" game song.
The content of this post is presented for folkloric and entertainment purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the unknown composer/s of this original children's song and thanks to the composer of Boney M's version of this song. Thanks to Boney M for their musical legacy, thanks to all those who are quoted in this post, and thanks to the publisher of this post on YouTube.
-snip-
The version of the Boney M video that was originally embedded in this post is no longer available (as of March 5, 2017). I embedded another video of Boney M singing that song.
****
INFORMATION ABOUT BONEY M
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boney_M.
Boney M. is a vocal group created by German record producer Frank Farian. Originally based in West Germany, the four original members of the group's official line-up were Liz Mitchell and Marcia Barrett from Jamaica, Maizie Williams from Montserrat and Bobby Farrell from Aruba. The group was formed in 1975 and achieved popularity during the disco era of the late 1970s. The group has sold more than 50 million albums worldwide with most sales in the UK and Germany.
****
INFORMATION ABOUT THE BONEY M VERSION OF "BROWN GIRL IN THE RING"
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_Girl_in_the_Ring_(song)
"Arguably the most popular version of the song, Boney M.'s version was originally a single B-side to the group's #1 hit single "Rivers of Babylon" (1978). When "Rivers of Babylon" had slipped to #20 in the UK charts, radio stations suddenly flipped the single, seeing "Brown Girl in the Ring" going all the way to #2 and becoming a hit in its own right. Liz Mitchell had previously recorded the song in 1975 with the group Malcolm's Locks, as the B-side of their single "Caribbean Rock"...
"Rivers of Babylon/Brown Girl in the Ring single is the sixth best-selling single of all time in the UK with sales of 2 million.[3]
1993 Remix."
****
LYRICS: BROWN GIRL IN THE RING*
(Boney M version)
Brown girl in the ring
Tra la la la la
There's a brown girl in the ring
Tra la la la la la
Brown girl in the ring
Tra la la la la
She looks like a sugar in a plum
Plum plum
Show me your motion
Tra la la la la
Come on show me your motion
Tra la la la la la
Show me your motion
Tra la la la la
She looks like a sugar in a plum
Plum plum
Blue Hill water* run dry
Got nowhere to wash my clothes
Blue Hill water* run dry
Got nowhere to wash my clothes
I remember one Saturday night
We had fried fish and Johnny-cakes
I remember one Saturday night
We had fried fish and Johnny-cakes
Beng-a-deng
Beng-a-deng
-snip-
* "Blue Hill" refers to a location in Jamaica.
Here are some explanations about other words in this song:
"ring" = circle
**
"in the ring" = standing in the middle of a circle
"She looks like a sugar in a plum" - My guess is that this means that the girl looks very sweet.
**
"johnny-cake"
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnnycake
"Johnnycake (also jonnycake, johnny cake, journey cake, shawnee cake and johnny bread) is a cornmeal flatbread that was an early American staple food and is prepared on the Atlantic coast from Newfoundland to Jamaica."
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Viewer comments are welcome.
****
Edited by Azizi Powell
Revised: August 23,2026
This pancocojams post features a 2015 YouTube video of Boney M singing the Caribbean children's song "Brown Girl In The Ring" in 1979.
This pancocojams post also provides the text of that version, as well as comments about the "Brown Girl In The Ring" game song.
The content of this post is presented for folkloric and entertainment purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the unknown composer/s of this original children's song and thanks to the composer of Boney M's version of this song. Thanks to Boney M for their musical legacy, thanks to all those who are quoted in this post, and thanks to the publisher of this post on YouTube.
-snip-
The version of the Boney M video that was originally embedded in this post is no longer available (as of March 5, 2017). I embedded another video of Boney M singing that song.
****
INFORMATION ABOUT BONEY M
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boney_M.
Boney M. is a vocal group created by German record producer Frank Farian. Originally based in West Germany, the four original members of the group's official line-up were Liz Mitchell and Marcia Barrett from Jamaica, Maizie Williams from Montserrat and Bobby Farrell from Aruba. The group was formed in 1975 and achieved popularity during the disco era of the late 1970s. The group has sold more than 50 million albums worldwide with most sales in the UK and Germany.
****
INFORMATION ABOUT THE BONEY M VERSION OF "BROWN GIRL IN THE RING"
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_Girl_in_the_Ring_(song)
"Arguably the most popular version of the song, Boney M.'s version was originally a single B-side to the group's #1 hit single "Rivers of Babylon" (1978). When "Rivers of Babylon" had slipped to #20 in the UK charts, radio stations suddenly flipped the single, seeing "Brown Girl in the Ring" going all the way to #2 and becoming a hit in its own right. Liz Mitchell had previously recorded the song in 1975 with the group Malcolm's Locks, as the B-side of their single "Caribbean Rock"...
"Rivers of Babylon/Brown Girl in the Ring single is the sixth best-selling single of all time in the UK with sales of 2 million.[3]
1993 Remix."
****
LYRICS: BROWN GIRL IN THE RING*
(Boney M version)
Brown girl in the ring
Tra la la la la
There's a brown girl in the ring
Tra la la la la la
Brown girl in the ring
Tra la la la la
She looks like a sugar in a plum
Plum plum
Show me your motion
Tra la la la la
Come on show me your motion
Tra la la la la la
Show me your motion
Tra la la la la
She looks like a sugar in a plum
Plum plum
Blue Hill water* run dry
Got nowhere to wash my clothes
Blue Hill water* run dry
Got nowhere to wash my clothes
I remember one Saturday night
We had fried fish and Johnny-cakes
I remember one Saturday night
We had fried fish and Johnny-cakes
Beng-a-deng
Beng-a-deng
-snip-
* "Blue Hill" refers to a location in Jamaica.
Here are some explanations about other words in this song:
"ring" = circle
**
"in the ring" = standing in the middle of a circle
"She looks like a sugar in a plum" - My guess is that this means that the girl looks very sweet.
**
"johnny-cake"
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnnycake
"Johnnycake (also jonnycake, johnny cake, journey cake, shawnee cake and johnny bread) is a cornmeal flatbread that was an early American staple food and is prepared on the Atlantic coast from Newfoundland to Jamaica."
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Viewer comments are welcome.
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Pop, Jazz Song "Undecided " - Lyrics, Sound Files, & Videos
Edited by Azizi Powell
This post showcases lyrics of the Pop, Jazz song "Undecided" ("You're Undecided Now" as well as five sound files or videos of that song.
The content of this post is presented for historical, folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
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LYRICS: UNDECIDED
(Sid Robin and Charlie Shavers, 1938)
First you say you do
And then you don't
And then you say you will
And then you won't
You're undecided now
So what are you gonna do?
Now you want to play
And then it's no
And when you say you'll stay
That's when you go
You're undecided now
So what are you gonna do?
I've been sitting on a fence
And it doesn't make much sense
'cause you keep me in suspense
And you know it
Then you promise to return
When you don't
I really burn
Well, I guess I'll never learn
Aand I show it
If you've got a heart
And if you're kind
Then don't keep us apart
Make up your mind
You're undecided now
So what are you gonna do.
Reposted from http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Undecided-lyrics-Ray-Charles/739B31F78D4A019F48256C24000B0CF9
Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Undecided for information about this song.
****
FEATURED VIDEOS
Example #1: Django Reinhardt - Undecided (1939)
Uploaded by aadjuijn on Jul 10, 2008
Django Reinhardt et le Quintette du Hot Club de France, avec Stéphane Grappelli Stéphane Grappelli (vln); Django Reinhardt (g solo); Joseph Reinhardt, Eugène Vées, Pierre "Baro" Ferret (g); Emmanuel Soudieux (b); Beryl Davis (vcl)
1939 August 25 - London
****
Example #2: Ella Fitzgerald & Chick Webb - Undecided (1939)
Published on Jun 21, 2012 by overjazzrecords
Ella Fitzgerald & Chick Webb - Undecided - The Overjazz Channel aims to offer only the best recordings of the begining era of modern music.(Re)discover more genius compositions from the parents of todays music and subscribe for free to stay connected to our channel and easily access our video updates!
The Overjazz Channel on Youtube
****
Example #3: ERROLL GARNER - Undecided (recorded in 1949)
Uploaded by ramoburg on Oct 19, 2009
RECORDED IN 1949. Erroll Louis Garner (June 15, 1921 January 2, 1977) was an American jazz pianist and composer known for his swing playing and ballads. His best-known composition, the ballad Misty, has become a jazz standard. Allmusic.com calls him "one of the most distinctive of all pianists" Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1921, Erroll began playing piano at the age of 3...
****
Example #4: Delta Rhythm Boys*
Uploaded by rolddogojazz on Jul 1, 2011
-snip-
* The title of this video was corrected by several viewers.
The video uploader had erroneous identified the singers as "The Mills Brothers".
I don't know this film clip's date.
****
Example #5: The Ames Brothers with Les Brown and His Orchestra -Undecided (1951)
Uploaded by CatsPjamas1 on Jun 13, 2011
Charted at #2 in September 1951. Originally a #8 hit for Ella Fitzgerald with the Chick Webb Orchestra in 1939. Also #10 for Ray Anthony and His Orchestra in November 1951 and #28 for Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians in December 1951. Original Billboard review: "The classic jazz opus is done up Brown with the Ames' pounding out the catchy and infrequently heard lyric. A splendid beat disking which could score, particularly in jukes and with jockeys". Overall Billboard rating: 87 out of 100.
Written by Sydney Robin and Charlie Shavers.
The other side of this record is "Sentimental Journey" which I've also posted.
****
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND THANKS
Thanks the composers and performers of this song. Thanks also to those whose information & transcriptions I quoted in this post, and thanks to the uploaders of these featured sound files & videos.
Finally, thank you for visiting pancocojams.
Viewer comments are welcome.
This post showcases lyrics of the Pop, Jazz song "Undecided" ("You're Undecided Now" as well as five sound files or videos of that song.
The content of this post is presented for historical, folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
****
LYRICS: UNDECIDED
(Sid Robin and Charlie Shavers, 1938)
First you say you do
And then you don't
And then you say you will
And then you won't
You're undecided now
So what are you gonna do?
Now you want to play
And then it's no
And when you say you'll stay
That's when you go
You're undecided now
So what are you gonna do?
I've been sitting on a fence
And it doesn't make much sense
'cause you keep me in suspense
And you know it
Then you promise to return
When you don't
I really burn
Well, I guess I'll never learn
Aand I show it
If you've got a heart
And if you're kind
Then don't keep us apart
Make up your mind
You're undecided now
So what are you gonna do.
Reposted from http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Undecided-lyrics-Ray-Charles/739B31F78D4A019F48256C24000B0CF9
Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Undecided for information about this song.
****
FEATURED VIDEOS
Example #1: Django Reinhardt - Undecided (1939)
Uploaded by aadjuijn on Jul 10, 2008
Django Reinhardt et le Quintette du Hot Club de France, avec Stéphane Grappelli Stéphane Grappelli (vln); Django Reinhardt (g solo); Joseph Reinhardt, Eugène Vées, Pierre "Baro" Ferret (g); Emmanuel Soudieux (b); Beryl Davis (vcl)
1939 August 25 - London
****
Example #2: Ella Fitzgerald & Chick Webb - Undecided (1939)
Published on Jun 21, 2012 by overjazzrecords
Ella Fitzgerald & Chick Webb - Undecided - The Overjazz Channel aims to offer only the best recordings of the begining era of modern music.(Re)discover more genius compositions from the parents of todays music and subscribe for free to stay connected to our channel and easily access our video updates!
The Overjazz Channel on Youtube
****
Example #3: ERROLL GARNER - Undecided (recorded in 1949)
Uploaded by ramoburg on Oct 19, 2009
RECORDED IN 1949. Erroll Louis Garner (June 15, 1921 January 2, 1977) was an American jazz pianist and composer known for his swing playing and ballads. His best-known composition, the ballad Misty, has become a jazz standard. Allmusic.com calls him "one of the most distinctive of all pianists" Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1921, Erroll began playing piano at the age of 3...
****
Example #4: Delta Rhythm Boys*
Uploaded by rolddogojazz on Jul 1, 2011
-snip-
* The title of this video was corrected by several viewers.
The video uploader had erroneous identified the singers as "The Mills Brothers".
I don't know this film clip's date.
****
Example #5: The Ames Brothers with Les Brown and His Orchestra -Undecided (1951)
Uploaded by CatsPjamas1 on Jun 13, 2011
Charted at #2 in September 1951. Originally a #8 hit for Ella Fitzgerald with the Chick Webb Orchestra in 1939. Also #10 for Ray Anthony and His Orchestra in November 1951 and #28 for Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians in December 1951. Original Billboard review: "The classic jazz opus is done up Brown with the Ames' pounding out the catchy and infrequently heard lyric. A splendid beat disking which could score, particularly in jukes and with jockeys". Overall Billboard rating: 87 out of 100.
Written by Sydney Robin and Charlie Shavers.
The other side of this record is "Sentimental Journey" which I've also posted.
****
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND THANKS
Thanks the composers and performers of this song. Thanks also to those whose information & transcriptions I quoted in this post, and thanks to the uploaders of these featured sound files & videos.
Finally, thank you for visiting pancocojams.
Viewer comments are welcome.
Monday, May 28, 2012
Videos of Gaitana's Song "Be My Guest" & Guetta/Rowland's Song "When I Take Over"
Edited by Azizi Powell
A number of commenters in this YouTube video thread http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLsTn_li5d8 wrote that Ukrainian vocalist's Gaitana's Eurovision entry sounded very much like David Guetta and Kelly Rowland's song "When I Take Over".
This post showcases back to back videos of those two songs so that it would be easier for people to hear them and decide for themselves whether these songs do indeed sound alike.
The content of this post is presented for historical, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes. The copyrights remain with their owners.
My thanks to the composers, performers, and the producers of these featured videos. My thanks also to the uploaders of these videos.
****
FEATURED VIDEOS
(These videos are placed in no particular order.)
Gaitana - Be My Guest - Live - Grand Final - 2012 Eurovision Song Contest
Published on May 26, 2012 by eurovision
Powered by http://www.eurovision.tv/
Ukraine: Gaitana - Be My Guest live at the Grand Final of the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest
-snip-
Gaitana is a Ukrainian singer and songwriter. Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaitana_(singer) for more information about Gaitana.
A commenter on the above video's viewer comment thread reported that Gaitana ended up taking 15 place in the Eurovision finals :o(
Congratulations to the winner of this contest from Sweden.
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David Guetta - When Love Takes Over (Featuring Kelly Rowland)
Uploaded by davidguetta on Jun 8, 2009
David Guetta - When Love Takes Over (FeatKelly Rowland)
Astralwerks - Caroline
(P) 2009 Gum Prod, licence exclusive EMI Music France
-snip-
David Guetta is a French house music producer and DJ. Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Guetta for more information on David Guetta.
Kelly Rowland is an American recording artist, songwriter, dancer, actress, and one of the founding members of the American R&B group "Destiny's Child". Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelly_Rowland
RELATED LINK
Hat tip to Arturo for his article on Gaitana in http://www.racialicious.com/2012/05/25/the-friday-mixtape-eurovision-2012-edition "The Friday Mixtape – Eurovision 2012 Edition". I admit that prior to reading that article, I wasn't aware of Eurovision, Gaitana, David Guetta, or either one of the two song's featured in this pancocojams post.
**
Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurovision_Song_Contest for information about Eurovision.
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Viewer comments are welcome.
A number of commenters in this YouTube video thread http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLsTn_li5d8 wrote that Ukrainian vocalist's Gaitana's Eurovision entry sounded very much like David Guetta and Kelly Rowland's song "When I Take Over".
This post showcases back to back videos of those two songs so that it would be easier for people to hear them and decide for themselves whether these songs do indeed sound alike.
The content of this post is presented for historical, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes. The copyrights remain with their owners.
My thanks to the composers, performers, and the producers of these featured videos. My thanks also to the uploaders of these videos.
****
FEATURED VIDEOS
(These videos are placed in no particular order.)
Gaitana - Be My Guest - Live - Grand Final - 2012 Eurovision Song Contest
Published on May 26, 2012 by eurovision
Powered by http://www.eurovision.tv/
Ukraine: Gaitana - Be My Guest live at the Grand Final of the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest
-snip-
Gaitana is a Ukrainian singer and songwriter. Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaitana_(singer) for more information about Gaitana.
A commenter on the above video's viewer comment thread reported that Gaitana ended up taking 15 place in the Eurovision finals :o(
Congratulations to the winner of this contest from Sweden.
****
David Guetta - When Love Takes Over (Featuring Kelly Rowland)
Uploaded by davidguetta on Jun 8, 2009
David Guetta - When Love Takes Over (FeatKelly Rowland)
Astralwerks - Caroline
(P) 2009 Gum Prod, licence exclusive EMI Music France
-snip-
David Guetta is a French house music producer and DJ. Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Guetta for more information on David Guetta.
Kelly Rowland is an American recording artist, songwriter, dancer, actress, and one of the founding members of the American R&B group "Destiny's Child". Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelly_Rowland
RELATED LINK
Hat tip to Arturo for his article on Gaitana in http://www.racialicious.com/2012/05/25/the-friday-mixtape-eurovision-2012-edition "The Friday Mixtape – Eurovision 2012 Edition". I admit that prior to reading that article, I wasn't aware of Eurovision, Gaitana, David Guetta, or either one of the two song's featured in this pancocojams post.
**
Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurovision_Song_Contest for information about Eurovision.
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Viewer comments are welcome.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Song Sources For Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky
Edited by Azizi Powell
Latest Update - April 29, 2025
This pancocojams post showcases nine examples of songs or rhymes that influenced the development of the playground rhyme "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" or versions of that rhyme.
I don't mean to indicate or imply that the featured songs in this post are the only songs or the only creative works that influenced the development of the huge family of playground rhymes known as "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" (or similar first lines/titles).
Significantly, this post only includes two "frog in the well" songs, although many more of these very very old songs are important to the development of the playground rhyme "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky".
The content of this post is presented for historical, educational, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes. The copyrights remain with their owners.
My thanks to the composers and performers of this music. My thanks also to the videographers and uploaders of these featured videos, and thanks to Joseph Scott for the information given below in the Feb 11, 2014 update to this post.
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SHORT FORMS AND LONG FORMS OF "DOWN BY THE BANKS OF THE HANKY PANKY" RHYMES
In analyzing "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" rhymes (including examples in this rhyme family with similar titles), I've categorized those examples as having a short form or a long form.
Short Form:
There are numerous versions of "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" (or similar titles). One standard short version of this rhyme is:
down by the river of the hanky banky
where the bullfrog jumps from bank to bank
say eeps oops soda pop
He missed the lilypad
And went KERPLOP!
-snip-
Long Form:
An example of the long version of this rhyme often mentions Pop music singer Michael Jackson.
Here's one example of the long version of "Down By The Banks..."
Down by the river with the hanky bankys
Where the bullfrogs jump from bank to banky
say an
epp
opp
epp
bop
bop
Skittle dittle curly pop
I pledge allegence to the flag
That Micheal jackson makes me gag
Diet Pepsi came to town
Coca-Cola pushed him down
Orange soda picked him up
Now I'm drinking 7 up
7up caught the flu
Now I'm drinking Moutain Dew
Moutain Dew fell off the moutain
Now I'm drinking from a fountian
Foutain Broke
Now I'm drinking plain old Coke
-Guest; http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=940347/15/2007 "Origins: Down by the Banks of the Hanky Panky", July 15, 2007
-snip-
That example is included in this pancocojams post: http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2014/04/folk-etymology-forms-of-references-to.html
Forms Of The Name "Billie Jean" In "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" Rhymes
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FEATURED EXAMPLES
These examples are presented in chronological order based on the song's recording date, and not the date that the video was posted on YouTube.
Note that there are earlier examples of songs that influenced "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" rhymes. One of those songs is May Irwin's "Foolish Frog", 1907.
Click http://www.fresnostate.edu/folklore/ballads/Br3189.html
"DESCRIPTION: A bull frog "with nothin else to do" falls, jumps around, and falls in a well. The preacher warns that the Devil is looking for folks with "nothin else to do" If you want your wings, stay home with your family instead of going to other frogs' farms
The example given as #3 below may have the same or similar lyrics and tune as the song that May Irwin sung, a song that is documented that she got from Black American sources.
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Example #1: Chubby Parker & His Old Time Banjo - King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O [1928)
misterbamboostick, Published on Jul 23, 2012
Chubby Parker & His Old Time Banjo - King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O (from Harry Smith's 'Anthology of American Folk Music : Ballads'). Support your favourite artists : buy vinyl, cd's or legal downloads. I don't own the rights to this song, I just want to share good music.
****
Example 2: Eep, Ipe, Wanna Piece of Pie
Fats Waller - Topic Published on Aug 23, 2015
Provided to YouTube by The Orchard Enterprises
Eep, Ipe, Wanna Piece of Pie · Fats Waller
Historical Jazz Recordings: 1938-1940
[Update: October 30, 2020]
The sound file that was originally embedded in this post is no longer available.
Click https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcv1NJeP-SU&ab_channel=OnlyJazzHQ
for a sound file of this Jazz tune.
****
Example #3: "Foolish Frog" by Blind Blake (1952)
Uploaded by folkgrassboy on Jul 30, 2008
Featured on VOLUME 2 of his Art Records releases. Calypso from the Bahamas.
Featured on VOLUME 2 of his Art Records releases. Calypso from the Bahamas. Here are the lyrics with slight variation: Away down yonder in Yankety Yank A bullfrog jumped from bank to bank Cause there wasn't nothin' else to do; He stubbed his to and in he fell An' de neighbors all say that he went to...well, 'Cause he hadn't nothin' else to do. cho: An' jus' lots of folks is like dis foolish frog of mine, A-runnin' into trouble jus' to pass de time. An' de devil's allus loafin' 'round jus' to grab de kind That never hasn't nothin' else to do. When dey buried dat frog, de preacher said, "De reason why dis young frog is dead, "'Cause there wasn't nothin 'else to do." An' all you frogs jus' a listen to me, Yo' bettah stay at home wid yo' family, When you hav'nt nothin' else to do. Some frogs I know is pow'ful fond Of spendin' dey time in' nother frog's pond, 'Cause dey hasn't nothin'else to do. But dis consolation, de Good Book brings, De frog of dem habits won't wear no wings, 'Cause he hasn't nothin' else to do. Now all of yo' people dat heah dis song, Yo' knows why dis po' frog went wrong, 'Cause he hadn't nothin' else to do. You'd bettah keep busy on any kind of pay, Till de big horn blow on de judgement day, Den you will hab somethin' else to do.
-snip-
[Added September 19, 2021:
From https://archive.org/stream/frankcbrowncolle03fran/frankcbrowncolle03fran_djvu.txt
The Frank C. Brown Collection of North Carolina Folklore; the folklore of North Carolina, collected by Dr. Frank C. Brown during the years 1912 to 1943, in collaboration with the North Carolina Folklore Society"
****
Example #4. David Seville My Friend The Witch Doctor [1958]
oldtimer874, Uploaded on Oct 20, 2011
****
Example #5: The Jetsons - Eep Opp Ork Ah-Ah [1962]
ladythatsmyskull, Uploaded on Jan 22, 2007
Originally performed by Howard Morris. Jetsons music video featuring 'Jet Screamer' from 60's TV show.
****
Example #6: Joe Perkins - Little Eeefin' Annie [1963]
Uploaded by TheLimePopsicle on Aug 15, 2009
Charted at #76 on Billboard Hot 100 in September 1963. Vocal by Joe and the "eefin" is performed by Jimmie Riddle. This was Joe's only Hot 100 entry.
-snip-
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eefing:
"Eefing (also written eeephing, eephing, eeefing, eefin, or eefn' and doubtless other ways) is an Appalachian (United States) vocal technique similar to beatboxing, but nearly a century older. Jennifer Sharpe describes it as "a kind of hiccupping, rhythmic wheeze that started in rural Tennessee more than 100 years ago.""...
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Example #7. Manfred Mann Do Wah Diddy Very Good quality Live, [1964]
videosMLR, Uploaded on Jul 6, 2011
-snip-
The lyrics "do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do" are found in some post 1982 versions of "Down By The Banks..." This line is particularly found when the "Coca Cola came to town" rhyme is combined with certain versions of "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" that mention Michael Jackson.
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Example #8: Pete Seeger - The Foolish Frog [1973]
Steve Johnson, Published on Apr 12, 2013
Birds, Beasts, Bugs and Fishes (Little and Big) - 1998
-snip-
Pete Seeger's "Foolish Frog" book, song, and short animated film was first released in 1973. Those products are significant for helping to introduce children to the story of the foolish frog. Seeger learned this song from his father who based it upon May Irwin's "Foolish Frog". However, the lyrics and tune that Pete Seeger popularized are quite different from the contemporary "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky' rhymes. The tune used for "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" rhymes* is the same as or very similar to the "The Three Little Fishies" song. Click https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=541HKD8alfg for a 1939 sound file of that song.
*There are a number of examples of the long form "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky rhyme" in the comment threads of YouTube videos of the short form of that rhyme. However, to date, I've not come across any video of the long form of that rhyme, and I've never heard it chanted in person. Therefore, I'm not sure what tune it uses.
****
Example #9: Michael Jackson - Billie Jean [1982]
Uploaded by michaeljacksonVEVO on Oct 2, 2009
Music video by Michael Jackson performing Billie Jean. © 1982 MJJ Productions Inc.
****
Example #10: Coca cola went to town [1982?]
Published on Mar 21, 2012 by Nadia Smalling
****
UPDATE: February 11, 2014
Subject: RE: Folklore: Do kids still do clapping rhymes?
From: GUEST,Joseph Scott
Date: 11 Feb 15 - 05:37 PM
"Down by the banks of the Hanky-Panky
Where the bullfrogs jump from bank to banky"
_Norfolk, The Marine Metropolis Of Virginia_ by G. Nowitsky, 1888, includes
"He came to the banks
Of the Pasquotank,
Where the bull-frogs jump
From bank to bank...."
_With The Guns In South Africa_ 1901 includes
"'Way down on the Hanky-Pank,
Where the bullfrogs jump from bank to bank,
Because they have nuthin' else to do-oo-oo !"
An article "'Coon' Tales From The Bahamas" in _The English Illustrated Magazine_ in 1905 included
"Once 'pon a time was a berry good time,
Monkey chew terbacco en spit white lime,
Cockroach keep time.
Bullfrog jump from bank to bank,
En he hin' quattah don' touch wattah."
E.C. Perrow recalled hearing this in Tennessee in 1905:
"...
Way daown yander in China-rank
The bullfrog jumped frum bank to bank...."
Newman White (1892-1948) wrote in the 1920s: "From childhood I have known...:
'Way down yonder in Pasquotank
Bull frog jumped from bank to bank"
-snip-
In another Mudcat Folk Music forum comment, (guest) Joseph Scott identified himself as a blues researcher.
****
RELATED LINKS
http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/02/down-by-banks-of-hanky-panky-video.html "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" (video & different text examples)
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
Latest Update - April 29, 2025
This pancocojams post showcases nine examples of songs or rhymes that influenced the development of the playground rhyme "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" or versions of that rhyme.
I don't mean to indicate or imply that the featured songs in this post are the only songs or the only creative works that influenced the development of the huge family of playground rhymes known as "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" (or similar first lines/titles).
Significantly, this post only includes two "frog in the well" songs, although many more of these very very old songs are important to the development of the playground rhyme "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky".
The content of this post is presented for historical, educational, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes. The copyrights remain with their owners.
My thanks to the composers and performers of this music. My thanks also to the videographers and uploaders of these featured videos, and thanks to Joseph Scott for the information given below in the Feb 11, 2014 update to this post.
****
SHORT FORMS AND LONG FORMS OF "DOWN BY THE BANKS OF THE HANKY PANKY" RHYMES
In analyzing "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" rhymes (including examples in this rhyme family with similar titles), I've categorized those examples as having a short form or a long form.
Short Form:
There are numerous versions of "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" (or similar titles). One standard short version of this rhyme is:
down by the river of the hanky banky
where the bullfrog jumps from bank to bank
say eeps oops soda pop
He missed the lilypad
And went KERPLOP!
-snip-
Long Form:
An example of the long version of this rhyme often mentions Pop music singer Michael Jackson.
Here's one example of the long version of "Down By The Banks..."
Down by the river with the hanky bankys
Where the bullfrogs jump from bank to banky
say an
epp
opp
epp
bop
bop
Skittle dittle curly pop
I pledge allegence to the flag
That Micheal jackson makes me gag
Diet Pepsi came to town
Coca-Cola pushed him down
Orange soda picked him up
Now I'm drinking 7 up
7up caught the flu
Now I'm drinking Moutain Dew
Moutain Dew fell off the moutain
Now I'm drinking from a fountian
Foutain Broke
Now I'm drinking plain old Coke
-Guest; http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=940347/15/2007 "Origins: Down by the Banks of the Hanky Panky", July 15, 2007
-snip-
That example is included in this pancocojams post: http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2014/04/folk-etymology-forms-of-references-to.html
Forms Of The Name "Billie Jean" In "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" Rhymes
****
FEATURED EXAMPLES
These examples are presented in chronological order based on the song's recording date, and not the date that the video was posted on YouTube.
Note that there are earlier examples of songs that influenced "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" rhymes. One of those songs is May Irwin's "Foolish Frog", 1907.
Click http://www.fresnostate.edu/folklore/ballads/Br3189.html
"DESCRIPTION: A bull frog "with nothin else to do" falls, jumps around, and falls in a well. The preacher warns that the Devil is looking for folks with "nothin else to do" If you want your wings, stay home with your family instead of going to other frogs' farms
AUTHOR: Credited to Charles E. Trevathan
EARLIEST DATE: 1907 (recording, May Irwin); Protobilly gives
a composition date of 1896, but with no documentation."....
Also. click https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRiXFErbIsY&ab_channel=JoanMorris%26WilliamBolcom-Topic for a YouTube sound file cover of this song entitled "May Irwin's "Frog" Song" [published by Joan Morris & William Bolcom - Topic Aug 26, 2014 ; from "After The Ball Plus Highlights From "Vaudeville"...
The example given as #3 below may have the same or similar lyrics and tune as the song that May Irwin sung, a song that is documented that she got from Black American sources.
****
Example #1: Chubby Parker & His Old Time Banjo - King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O [1928)
misterbamboostick, Published on Jul 23, 2012
Chubby Parker & His Old Time Banjo - King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O (from Harry Smith's 'Anthology of American Folk Music : Ballads'). Support your favourite artists : buy vinyl, cd's or legal downloads. I don't own the rights to this song, I just want to share good music.
****
Example 2: Eep, Ipe, Wanna Piece of Pie
Fats Waller - Topic Published on Aug 23, 2015
Provided to YouTube by The Orchard Enterprises
Eep, Ipe, Wanna Piece of Pie · Fats Waller
Historical Jazz Recordings: 1938-1940
[Update: October 30, 2020]
The sound file that was originally embedded in this post is no longer available.
Click https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcv1NJeP-SU&ab_channel=OnlyJazzHQ
for a sound file of this Jazz tune.
****
Example #3: "Foolish Frog" by Blind Blake (1952)
Uploaded by folkgrassboy on Jul 30, 2008
Featured on VOLUME 2 of his Art Records releases. Calypso from the Bahamas.
Featured on VOLUME 2 of his Art Records releases. Calypso from the Bahamas. Here are the lyrics with slight variation: Away down yonder in Yankety Yank A bullfrog jumped from bank to bank Cause there wasn't nothin' else to do; He stubbed his to and in he fell An' de neighbors all say that he went to...well, 'Cause he hadn't nothin' else to do. cho: An' jus' lots of folks is like dis foolish frog of mine, A-runnin' into trouble jus' to pass de time. An' de devil's allus loafin' 'round jus' to grab de kind That never hasn't nothin' else to do. When dey buried dat frog, de preacher said, "De reason why dis young frog is dead, "'Cause there wasn't nothin 'else to do." An' all you frogs jus' a listen to me, Yo' bettah stay at home wid yo' family, When you hav'nt nothin' else to do. Some frogs I know is pow'ful fond Of spendin' dey time in' nother frog's pond, 'Cause dey hasn't nothin'else to do. But dis consolation, de Good Book brings, De frog of dem habits won't wear no wings, 'Cause he hasn't nothin' else to do. Now all of yo' people dat heah dis song, Yo' knows why dis po' frog went wrong, 'Cause he hadn't nothin' else to do. You'd bettah keep busy on any kind of pay, Till de big horn blow on de judgement day, Den you will hab somethin' else to do.
-snip-
[Added September 19, 2021:
From https://archive.org/stream/frankcbrowncolle03fran/frankcbrowncolle03fran_djvu.txt
The Frank C. Brown Collection of North Carolina Folklore; the folklore of North Carolina, collected by Dr. Frank C. Brown during the years 1912 to 1943, in collaboration with the North Carolina Folklore Society"
[page] 189
"Way Down Yonder in Pasquotank;
244. Our particular rhyme he says be has known from boyhood.
Forms of it showing the rhyme with "bank" (though
not the proper
noun Pascjuotank ) have been reported from Virginia (FSV 151
),
Tennessee (JAFL .xxvi 135), Soudi Carolina (JAFL xliv 425.
Negroes), Alabama (ANFS 244), and Mississippi (JAFL xxvi
135)-
'Pasquotank.' Contributed, probably in 191 3, by the Reverend L. D.
Haynian of Elizabeth City, Pasquotank county. ...
Way down ycmder in Pasquotank.
Where the bullfrogs jump from bank to bank,
They jump so high they break their shank.
The old grey goose went "yankety yank.'"
-snip-
Click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CImi8VwNN1A for the Pete Seeger version of this 19th century song.
****
Example #4. David Seville My Friend The Witch Doctor [1958]
oldtimer874, Uploaded on Oct 20, 2011
****
Example #5: The Jetsons - Eep Opp Ork Ah-Ah [1962]
ladythatsmyskull, Uploaded on Jan 22, 2007
Originally performed by Howard Morris. Jetsons music video featuring 'Jet Screamer' from 60's TV show.
****
Example #6: Joe Perkins - Little Eeefin' Annie [1963]
Uploaded by TheLimePopsicle on Aug 15, 2009
Charted at #76 on Billboard Hot 100 in September 1963. Vocal by Joe and the "eefin" is performed by Jimmie Riddle. This was Joe's only Hot 100 entry.
-snip-
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eefing:
"Eefing (also written eeephing, eephing, eeefing, eefin, or eefn' and doubtless other ways) is an Appalachian (United States) vocal technique similar to beatboxing, but nearly a century older. Jennifer Sharpe describes it as "a kind of hiccupping, rhythmic wheeze that started in rural Tennessee more than 100 years ago.""...
****
Example #7. Manfred Mann Do Wah Diddy Very Good quality Live, [1964]
videosMLR, Uploaded on Jul 6, 2011
-snip-
The lyrics "do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do" are found in some post 1982 versions of "Down By The Banks..." This line is particularly found when the "Coca Cola came to town" rhyme is combined with certain versions of "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" that mention Michael Jackson.
****
Example #8: Pete Seeger - The Foolish Frog [1973]
Steve Johnson, Published on Apr 12, 2013
Birds, Beasts, Bugs and Fishes (Little and Big) - 1998
-snip-
Pete Seeger's "Foolish Frog" book, song, and short animated film was first released in 1973. Those products are significant for helping to introduce children to the story of the foolish frog. Seeger learned this song from his father who based it upon May Irwin's "Foolish Frog". However, the lyrics and tune that Pete Seeger popularized are quite different from the contemporary "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky' rhymes. The tune used for "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" rhymes* is the same as or very similar to the "The Three Little Fishies" song. Click https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=541HKD8alfg for a 1939 sound file of that song.
*There are a number of examples of the long form "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky rhyme" in the comment threads of YouTube videos of the short form of that rhyme. However, to date, I've not come across any video of the long form of that rhyme, and I've never heard it chanted in person. Therefore, I'm not sure what tune it uses.
****
Example #9: Michael Jackson - Billie Jean [1982]
Uploaded by michaeljacksonVEVO on Oct 2, 2009
Music video by Michael Jackson performing Billie Jean. © 1982 MJJ Productions Inc.
****
Example #10: Coca cola went to town [1982?]
Published on Mar 21, 2012 by Nadia Smalling
****
UPDATE: February 11, 2014
Subject: RE: Folklore: Do kids still do clapping rhymes?
From: GUEST,Joseph Scott
Date: 11 Feb 15 - 05:37 PM
"Down by the banks of the Hanky-Panky
Where the bullfrogs jump from bank to banky"
_Norfolk, The Marine Metropolis Of Virginia_ by G. Nowitsky, 1888, includes
"He came to the banks
Of the Pasquotank,
Where the bull-frogs jump
From bank to bank...."
_With The Guns In South Africa_ 1901 includes
"'Way down on the Hanky-Pank,
Where the bullfrogs jump from bank to bank,
Because they have nuthin' else to do-oo-oo !"
An article "'Coon' Tales From The Bahamas" in _The English Illustrated Magazine_ in 1905 included
"Once 'pon a time was a berry good time,
Monkey chew terbacco en spit white lime,
Cockroach keep time.
Bullfrog jump from bank to bank,
En he hin' quattah don' touch wattah."
E.C. Perrow recalled hearing this in Tennessee in 1905:
"...
Way daown yander in China-rank
The bullfrog jumped frum bank to bank...."
Newman White (1892-1948) wrote in the 1920s: "From childhood I have known...:
'Way down yonder in Pasquotank
Bull frog jumped from bank to bank"
-snip-
In another Mudcat Folk Music forum comment, (guest) Joseph Scott identified himself as a blues researcher.
****
RELATED LINKS
http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/02/down-by-banks-of-hanky-panky-video.html "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" (video & different text examples)
****
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