The Alley Cats - Puddin' N' Tain (1963 Doo Wop sound file, song lyrics, and rhyme examples)

PJDooWop, Sep 24, 2009

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Edited by Azizi Powell 

This  pancocojams series showcases a sound file of The Alley Cat's 1960s Do Wop record "Puddin Tane".

Information about The Alley Cats is included in this post along with the lyrics to that song. 

The Addendum to this post provides two excerpts from a 2014 pancocojams post entitled "Early Examples Of The Children's Rhyme "What's Your Name Puddin Tane" ". One of those excerpts provides examples of that rhyme. Another excerpt quotes a folklorist who differentiates the words "puddin tame" (or variant spellings of "tame") with the word "poontang" which has a sexual meaning.

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

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to The Alley Cats for their music, and thanks to the publisher of that sound file on YouTube. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE ALLEY CATS 
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Alley_Cats_(1960s_group)

"The Alley Cats were a musical group active in 1960s.

Brice Coefield and Sheridan Spencer belonged to a group named "The Untouchables" who had released unsuccessful singles for the Madison and Liberty labels.[1] At the end of 1962, these two joined with James Barker and Gary Pipkin, who had been with The Robins, and lead singer Bobby Sheen, who was coming off success with Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans,[1] to form The Alley Cats.

[…]

Their first record was their most popular: "Puddin N' Tain", a song based upon a children's playground chant,[2] entered the charts January 1963 and achieved a chart position of 43 in the United States when released on Philles Records 45rpm #108.[5]"...
-snip-
There are a number of music groups with the name "The Alley Cats". The music group that is showcased in this post was an African American 1960s Doo Wop group.

Here's information about Doo Wop music from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doo-wop
"Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated among African-American youth in the 1940s,[1] mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Baltimore, Newark, Detroit, and Washington, DC.[2][3] It features vocal group harmony that carries an engaging melodic line to a simple beat with little or no instrumentation. Lyrics are simple, usually about love, sung by a lead vocal over background vocals, and often featuring, in the bridge, a melodramatically heartfelt recitative addressed to the beloved. Harmonic singing of nonsense syllables (such as “doo-wop”) is a common characteristic of these songs.[4] Gaining popularity in the 1950s, doo-wop was "artistically and commercially viable" until the early 1960s, but continued to influence performers in other genres.[5]"....

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LYRIC: PUDDIN' N TAIN

(written by Brice Coefield, Alonzo Willis & Gary Pipkin; performed by The Alley Cats)

Puddin' n' tain, puddin' n' tain
Ask me again I'll tell you the same
Puddin' n' tain, puddin' n' tain
Ask me again I'll tell you the same
Puddin' n' tain, puddin' n' tain
Ask me again I'll tell you the same

You won't believe this story
While I was walking one bright and sunny day
I met a little sweet, sweet girl
Who chanced to walk my way
I asked her, her name
Here's what she said to me

Puddin' n' tain, puddin' n' tain
Ask me again I'll tell you the same

Oh, golly gee
If she would only belong to me
And I would tellw the world
The whole wide world
That I'm in love with

Puddin' n' tain, puddin' n' tain
Ask me again I'll tell you the same

Oh well now she's so pretty she's so fine
She's so sweet just my kind
All because she's pretty
All because she's fine
I want this girl to be mine

Now we're going steady
And I've found out her real name is Betty
I'll tell the world the whole wide world
That I'm in love with

Puddin' n' tain, puddin' n' tain
Ask me again I'll tell you the same

Now we're going steady
And I've found out her real name is Betty
And I'll tell the world the whole wide world
That I'm in love with

Puddin' n' tain, puddin' n' tain
Ask me again I'll tell you the same
(repeat)

Source: https://genius.com/The-alley-cats-puddin-n-tain-lyrics

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ADDENDUM: EXCERPTS FROM 2014 PANCOCOJAMS POST ABOUT THE HISTORY OF AND EARLY EXAMPLES OF THE RHYME "PUDDIN TANE"
From http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2014/11/early-examples-of-childrens-rhyme-whats.html for the pancocojams post entitled . Note: That pancocojams post also has a number of comments about and examples of the Puddin Tane rhyme.

These are exact quotes from that 2014 post.

The first excerpt provides some examples of that rhyme and the second excerpt quotes a quote a folklorist differentiates between the words "puddin tame" and its variant spellings and the word "poontang" which has a sexual meaning. 

Excerpt #1
From Mudcat: Puddin Tane, posted by Azizi, September 1, 2007
https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=104417 Folklore: Puddin Tane & Other Rhyming Sayings
..."The following examples are from this resource: Western Folklore, Vol. 13, No. 2/3 (1954), pp. 190-198 - "Children's Taunts, Teases, and Disrespectful Sayings from Southern California," by Ray B. Browne.

[Note: the numbers ascribed to these examples by the article's author]
27a.
What's your name?
Pudd'n Tame.
Ask me again
And I'll tell you the same.

27b.
What's your name?
Pudd'n Tame.
Where do you live?
Down the lane.
Ask me again
And I'll tell you the same.

[footnotes: from California, also from Alabama, ca. 1935; cf. Musick, 432; for one version same, and one: "What's your name / John Brown / ask me again / and I'll knock you down."]

27c
What's your name?
President Monroe
Ask me again
And you still won't know."

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Excerpt #2
"From: http://listserv.linguistlist.org/cgi-bin/wa?A2=ind0110A&L=ads-l&P=R5702 [link no longer working]
Subject: Pudding tame
From: "Douglas G. Wilson"
Reply-To: American Dialect Society
Date: October 4, 2001
"Of course in researching the history of "poontang" I came upon remarks to the effect that this word seems to be reflected in a children's rhyme (still current, I think) along the lines of
What's your name?
Pudding tame.
[Ask me again and I'll tell you the same.]

In fact "pudding tame" and variants (pudding/puddin' [and] tame/tane/tang) are used today with the sense "I won't tell you my name" (e.g., often as a 'handle' or pen-name on the Internet, = "Anonymous"). The expression was used in the "X-files" TV program in 1999.

The rhyme appeared in the US by 1895, when it was cited in "Dialect Notes". Already we're out of the "poontang" milieu, I think; but in case there's any doubt, I find quoted from 1861 a version supposedly from ca. 1825 (apparently from Sussex?):
What's yer naüm?
Pudding and taüm.

Back a little further (ca. 1590), I find reason to believe there was approximately:
[What is your name?]
Pudding of Thame.

Now at least the expression has some surface sense, maybe. Thame is a place-name -- in particular a town in Oxfordshire, I believe. So "pudding of Thame" might have been the name of a food, perhaps similar (or at least analogous) to Oxford sausage, say. Still the expression is meaningless in the context, and I wonder whether

(1) it might even earlier have been something else ("pudding at home"? "Pudding Tom"? "pudding time"?) which maintained the rhyme in some early or regional pronunciation, and whether
(2) there is some recognizable double-entendre or other joke here in16th-century (or earlier) English.

Any ideas?
-- Doug Wilson
-snip-
This is the complete post from that site. It was referenced in a discussion of the word "poontang" by the "take my word for it" website http://www.takeourword.com/pt.html "The Etymology of Slang Sexual Terms." That take my word for it page included a hyperlink [that is now broken] to the comment that's given above along with this statement: "He [linguist Doug Wilson ] concludes that the two [poontang and Puddin Tane] are not related, and he gives some good evidence."
-snip-
I've re-formatted this post to make it easier to read."

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Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.
 

Did Black Americans Originate The Rhyming Sayings "See You Later Alligator" And Its Usual Response "Afterwhile Crocodile?"

 Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part III of a three part pancocojams series on the popular catchphrases "See You Later. alligator and its usual response "After while, crocodile".

Part III of this pancocojams series includes my editorial comments and some article excerpts that I believe corroborate my position that the sayings "See you later, alligator", and "Afterwhile, crocodile" originated from and were first popularized by Black Americans.  

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2021/03/two-records-of-see-you-later-alligator.html for Part I of this pancocojams series. Part I showcases two YouTube examples of this song. The first example is a sound file by Bobby Charles, that song's composer and the second is a YouTube video of Bill Hailey & The Comets performing the most popular cover recording of that song.

Information about Bobby Charles and information about Bill Hailey & The Comets are included in Part I along with the lyrics for the song "See You Later Alligator".

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2021/03/two-excerpts-from-online-article-and.html for Part II of this pancocojams series. Part II presents an excerpt of  the 2020 article ‘See You Later Alligator ' Originated In U.S. Teenagers' Slang" by Pascal Tréguer and an excerpt of a 2012 National Public Radio (NPR) transcript of a "Fresh Air" segment about Bobby Charles, the composer of the song "See You Later, Alligator".  

The content of this post is presented for cultural and linguistic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners. 

Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.

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SOME PANCOCOJAMS EDITOR'S COMMENTS (WITH SOME ONLINE EXCERPTS)
These comments are presented as a series of thoughts and article excerpts that are separated by asterisks.

In Part II of this pancocojams series, I quoted Pascal Tréguer's 2020 article  ‘See You Later Alligator Originated In U.S. Teenager's Slang"

From https://wordhistories.net/2017/12/29/see-later-alligator/#:~:text=The%20colloquial%20see%20you%20later,after%2C%20a%20while%2C%20crocodile.

Pascal Tréguer indicates that "The earliest instance of see you later, alligator and its expected response afterwhile crocodile that I have found was from Teenagers’ Slang Expressions Are Explained by Columnists, by “Jackie and Jane, Star-Bulletin Teen Columnists”, published in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin (Honolulu, Hawaii) of 1st May 1952:

[…]

Lots of the Hawaii-style slang can be credited to or blamed on the Mainland. Some of it’s strictly jive talk. And of course there’s the additional “pidgin” and Hawaiian words to dress it up.

[…]

Besides the everyday “slang,” many high school students use expressions such as “toodle-oo tofu,” “so long, dai-kong,” or “see you later, alligator.” "
-end of quote-
The words in italics and the words in bold font were given that way in that article.
-snip-
Notice the use of the word "jive" in that 1952 article. 
Here's an excerpt from
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_jive_talk#:~:text=Jive%20talk%2C%20Harlem%20jive%20or,in%20African%2DAmerican%20society%2C%20peaking
"Jive talk, Harlem jive or simply Jive (also known as the argot of jazz, jazz jargon, vernacular of the jazz world, slang of jazz, and parlance of hip[1]) is an African-American Vernacular English slang that developed in Harlem, where "jive" (jazz) was played and was adopted more widely in African-American society, peaking in the 1940s."....

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If indeed these colloquial rhyming sayings did originate with American teenagers, which population/s of American teenagers were those columnist referring to?

(I ask this question from the standpoint of 2021, knowing that in the early 1950s White people were almost always considered the default population for any good historic events or any positive creations or inventions.)

Instead of the position that "American teenagers" came up with the srhyming sayings "See you later alligator" and "Afterwhile, crocodile", my position is that African Americans were the creators of those sayings. To be even more specific, I wouldn't be surprised to learn that those sayings came from the 1950s or earlier African American Jazz culture. And I wouldn't be surprised to learn that African American teenagers help popularize those sayings in the United States and elsewhere.
-snip-
I used italics to highlight these referents.

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In the 1950s when I heard the rhyming saying "See you later, alligator" and its usual response "Afterwhile crocodile" iad when I used those sayings then and up until fairly recently, I thought that "alligator" and "the crocodile" just referred to the animals with those names. (I wrote that near the end of this comment that I wrote in a Mudcat folk music discussion thread that I started in May 2005 entitled "I'm Rubber . You're Glue: Children's Rhymes" https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=81350 )

Subject: RE: I'm Rubber . You're Glue: Children's Rhymes
From: Azizi
Date: 24 May 05 - 09:09 PM 

"Snuffy[name of another Mudcat commenter], when I was growing up in New Jersey in the 1950s I remember hearing and saying: "What's your number? Cucumber".

Here's another rhyme in the pattern of your example posted on 24 May 05 - 07:16 PM.:

Where you live?
In a sieve.
-snip-

This pattern of short rhyming sentences is very much a part African American [and others] oral tradition.

Here's some additional examples of jive talk used by children, youth,and adults:

See ya later, alligator.
After while, crocodile?

****
What's the word, mocking bird?
What I said, cabbage head.

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If I'm lyin I'm flyin.
[and] grits aint groceries
and Mona Lisa is a man.

-snip-
Incidentally, Music Slang Expressions* indicates that the word 'alligator' in the rhyme provided above referred to a jazz musician:

Alligator       Originally, a slang term for "Musician".
Very early in Jazz history, musicians referred
to themselves as "alligators". Now it simply refers
to any Swing Devotee (abbrev. 'Gator or Gate)
Note: Louis Armstrong is often called 'Gate Mouth',
from the same source.

Ex:
'Cat' #1: See ya later, alligator.

'Cat' #2: After while, crocodile.

 
Gate or Gator   Jazz musician. Originally used as a
loving and warm description of Louis Armstrong.
Folks said his mouth was as large as a "Satchel",
from which came one of his nick-names -"Satchmo".
He was also called "Gate Mouth", referring to an
 'Alligator's mouth' (see Alligator definition above)
from which we get the expression "Gate" or
"Gator" - originally denoting a person as a musician,
but today it denotes anyone.

Ex: 'Skin me' "Gate". (Shake hands)

 -snip-

Well, if 'alligator' mean a musician, what does 'crocodile' mean? [Maybe that question belongs in the current 'Imponderable' thread].

Frankly, that definition kinda fishy to me...I'm sticking to my belief that most people who said "See ya latah alligatah; afta while crocodile" figured they were talking about the animals with those names- nothing more and nothing less.
-end of quote-
*The website Music Slang Expressions was given as a hyperlink. Unfortunately, when I tried to access that site on March 10, 2021 that link is no longer active. However, I found several websites that quote the first part of that quote [the part about the early Jazz meaning for the word "alligator", including this website: https://abigpond.com/blog/2006/07/02/later-gator/

"Later Gator
July 2, 2006 By Al Martine
"I have a habit of using the phrase ‘Later Gator’ or the politically correct ‘Later Gatorette’ in emails/IM. Over the last couple months, I’ve been asked by a couple friends whose first language isn’t English to explain.

After a little searching on Google, I’ve found a suitable answer. It apparently comes from the Swing/Jazz era in the US:

Popular Music Slang Expressions:

Alligator

Originally, a slang term for ‘Musician’. Very early in Jazz history, musicians referred to themselves as ‘alligators’. Now it simply refers to any Swing Devotee (abbrev. ‘Gator or Gate)

 Note: Louis Armstrong is often called ‘Gate Mouth’, from the same source.

Ex: ‘Cat’ #1: See ya later, alligator.

Cat’ #2: After while, crocodile.” "

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Here are some other online resources about the Jazz meaning of the words "alligator", "gator", and some other words. Note: I found no Jazz meaning for "crocodile" so I guess in that rhyming saying "crocodile" is just used because it rhymes with the English word while (In a while" and "afterwhile".

Cab Calloway's book Hepster Dictionary Of Jive: Commonly used Jive terms & phrases, [https://www.apassion4jazz.net/jive-terms.html] published by Cab Calloway around 1939 includes this entry "Alligator (n): jitterbug."*

Here's an entry from that Hepster Dictionary for the word "gate":
"Gate (n): a male person (a salutation), abbr. for "gate-mouth."
-snip-
*My guess is that "jitterbug" here means a man who jitterbugs (plays jitterbug music)? 

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Here's some glossary entries from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_jive_talk Glossary of Jive Talk
"Alligator - A devotee of jazz or swing music. Perhaps alludes to sharp-dressing with alligator leather.[10]

Gate  - Any man, usually used as a greeting. "Yo, gate, what's the word from the herd?"

Gatemouth - A horn player who has a large mouth or a mouth that is habitually open. Playing brass instruments often results in larger cheeks and a callus on the player's lip. The larger cheeks is the origin of the word "chops". After 1930, however, "Gatemouth" generally referred only to Louis Armstrong.[12]"

Jive- Cab Calloway defines this in the 1930s as "Harlemese speech", meaning the style of slang. In basic terms jive means talk.[13] It can also mean kidding with someone. It is often confused with jibe which means "be in accordance with".

Jive talk - "Whaddya say, gate? Are you in the know, or are you a solid bringer-downer?" —Cab Calloway. "Are you Hep to the Jive" —Cab Calloway."

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It wouldn't be surprising if the rhyming sayings "See you later, alligator" and "Afterwhile crocodile" originated from Black Americans since so much of United States' slang came from and still comes from us.

Check out these three excerpts:
1. From https://stacker.com/stories/3361/americas-most-common-slang-words-explained
America's Most Common Slang Words Explained
by Zack Abrams, July 30, 2019
..."Slang has always had a contentious relationship with ordinary English. A century ago, the word was used to describe language that was unseemly and vulgar; only more recently have we accepted slang as a valid alternate lexicon generally used by younger people. Much of today’s slang comes from African American Vernacular English, or AAVE, the English dialect commonly spoken by the African American community and popularized by hip-hop, rap, and R&B artists. Some slang also comes from the African American LGBTQ+ community, particularly drag culture."....

**
2. From https://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/african-american-vernacular-english African American Vernacular English
..."Many expressions used in AAVE have ‘crossed over’ into mainstream colloquial AMERICAN ENGLISH: hip or hep, referring to someone who is very knowledgeable about popular (especially inner-city African-American) culture; dude as a generic reference for any male: That dude be crazy."

**
3. From https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2018/12/30/2018-slang-words-appropriation_a_23629985/
"These Were 2018's Hottest Slang Words — But Should You Use Them?

Words matter and you can choose to use them thoughtfully.

By Sima Shakeri, December 31, 2018
"Many of the words and phrases that blew up on social media this year come from Black Twitter, American black culture and African-American Vernacular English (AAVE).

[…]

What is AAVE?

AAVE is a dialect of English spoken by many African Americans and some black Canadians. It has its own grammatical structures, vocabulary, and accents, which makes it just as valid a variant of English as British English.

[…]

"Every year new slang from Black culture is beat into the ground by people who just catch wind of it, without any knowledge or care of its origin. RIP Turnt and Bye Felicia," writer and comedian Luna Malbroux shared in a blog.

Dominant groups get to decide, for example, when and if certain words are worth appropriation, when and how the words should be used, and then when the word becomes cliché, overused and therefore passé.

Robin Boylorn, communications professor

But some words [from African American Vernacular English]  are so ubiquitous in current North American English, that it's hard to remember they were ever AAVE at all. Terms like "cool," "my bad," "hater," "24/7," "back in the day," "high-five," "lame" and "rip off" are only a few that started out in black communities but are now used everywhere and by everyone, according to Vox.

Everyone, including Black people, is erroneously taught that Black genius is more or less, public property with no clear 'ownership.'

Chaédria LaBouvier

This is linked to the history of slavery in the U.S. The most accepted theory is that slaves combined their native languages with English, or invented new words entirely. White people would then hear slaves use the terms, and would start to use them too, which led to these words becoming popularized. Even after slavery ended, this pattern continued, according to Margaret Lee, a linguist and author who spoke to Vox.”….
-snip-
The words in italics are written that way in that article.

Although cultural appropriation is a topic that is worthy of discussion, in this post I'm interested in the comments about the fact that examples of African American Vernacular English have become common terms and sayings in standard American English.

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In the scheme of things, it's not all that important who came up with the rhyming sayings "See you later, alligator", its usual response "Afterwhile, crocodile" and other similar rhyming words.

However, I believe that the failure to credit these sayings to Black folks is another example of the disregarding Black creativity while automatically and perhaps unconsciously crediting  White folks with our creativity. Doing so has real harmful consequences to Black people's self esteem and group esteem. 

So if I'm asked who created these rhyming sayings (and even if I'm not asked that question), I will say we (African Americans) did. PeriodT.

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This concludes Part III of this pancocojams series.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome. 

Two Excerpts From An Online Article And A National Public Radio Transcript About The Saying "See You Later Alligator" And Its Standard Response "After While Crocodile"

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part II of a three part pancocojams series on the popular catchphrases "See You Later. alligator and its usual response "After while, crocodile".

Part II of this pancocojams series presents an excerpt of  the 2020 article ‘See You Later Alligator ' Originated In U.S. Teenagers' Slang" by Pascal Tréguer and an excerpt of a 2012 National Public Radio (NPR) transcript of a "Fresh Air" segment about Bobby Charles, the composer of the song "See You Later, Alligator".  

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2021/03/two-records-of-see-you-later-alligator.html for Part I of this pancocojams series. Part I showcases two YouTube examples of this song. The first example is a sound file by Bobby Charles, that song's composer and the second is a YouTube video of Bill Hailey & The Comets performing the most popular cover recording of that song.

Information about Bobby Charles and information about Bill Hailey & The Comets are included in Part I along with the lyrics for the song "See You Later Alligator".

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2021/03/did-black-americans-originate-rhyming.html for Part III of this pancocojams series. Part III includes my editorial comments and some article excerpts that I believe corroborate my position that the sayings "See you later, alligator", and "Afterwhile, crocodile" originated from and were first popularized by Black Americans. 

The content of this post is presented for cultural and linguistic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners. 

Thanks to Pascal Tréguer and thanks to all those who were associated with the NPR radio show that is quoted in this post.
-snip-
I encourage pancocojams visitors to read that entire article Pascal Tréguer. I also encourage pancocojams visitors to hear that entire NPR radio show and read that entire NPR radio show transcript on the "Puddin Tane" saying . 

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ARTICLE EXCERPT:
" ‘See You Later Alligator Originated In U.S. Teenager's Slang"
by Pascal Tréguer (no publishing date is given, but two comments have the publishing dates of April 8, 2020)
From https://wordhistories.net/2017/12/29/see-later-alligator/#:~:text=The%20colloquial%20see%20you%20later,after%2C%20a%20while%2C%20crocodile.
"The colloquial see you later, alligator, which originated in American English, is a catchphrase used on parting. The expected response is in, or after, a while, crocodile.

[…]

The earliest instance of see you later, alligator that I have found is from Teenagers’ Slang Expressions Are Explained by Columnists, by “Jackie and Jane, Star-Bulletin Teen Columnists”, published in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin (Honolulu, Hawaii) of 1st May 1952:

Lots of the Hawaii-style slang can be credited to or blamed on the Mainland. Some of it’s strictly jive talk. And of course there’s the additional “pidgin” and Hawaiian words to dress it up.

[…]

Besides the everyday “slang,” many high school students use expressions such as “toodle-oo tofu,” “so long, dai-kong,” or “see you later, alligator.”

These sayings invite expressions like “see you soon, goon,” and “hit the road, toad.”

On 15th February 1954, The Kansas City Times (Kansas City, Missouri) published Words, Wit and Wisdom, in which William Morris wrote:

It has long been my conviction that the most effervescent and everchanging department of the American language is the subdivision labeled “Teenage slang.” So I suggested that my younger readers send in the favorite expressions of their teenage set.

Well the mails have brought literally hundreds of letters and postcards from youngsters all over the country. Here are just as few and catchphrases like:

[…]

Melt down and float away: meaning get lost, drop dead, or in grown-up language, go away.

Go dad: meaning wonderful.

Solid Jackson: meaning excellent.

See you later, alligator: meaning good-bye.
 

On 28th February 1954, The Sunday Sun (Baltimore, Maryland) published Do Kids Speak English?, in which Lester Rand, president of the Youth Research Institute, “an organization which exclusively surveys the tastes, attitudes and buying habits of young people five through 25”, explained that youngsters develop their own talk as a way of excluding grownups; about see you later, alligator, he said:

“The ‘alligator’ is an all-encompassing term and relieves the party of having to recite several names.”

The author of the article, Beulah Racklin, wrote that, additionally:

Rhyming expressions, which are mainly for effect rather than to convey any actual meaning, are very popular and somewhat confusing like ‘Do you know what I mean, jellybean?’ ‘Let me have steak, Jake,’ ‘Have a piece of salami, Tommy,’ etc. In few instances does the person addressed comply with the speaker’s demands. In most cases names are changed for ones that rhyme.

So popular was the phrase that in 1955 it was one of the twenty-four slogans printed on the badges offered by Armour Star Franks, a brand of frankfurters…

[…]

“See You Later, Alligator, a song written and first recorded in 1955 by the American singer-songwriter Bobby Charles (Robert Charles Guidry – 1938-2010) capitalised on the popularity of the catchphrase among children and teenagers.

(In the Catalog [sic] of Copyright Entries (Washington, 1956), it appeared as See Ya Later, Alligator, words and music by Robert Charles Guidry, copyright claimed by Robert Charles Guidry, registered on 6th September 1955, as number EU409054.)

The most popular recording of the song, however, is that made by Bill Haley* & His Comets later in 1955; it appears for example in this advertisement for Millikan’s Records, published in The Hammond Times (Hammond–East Chicago, Indiana) on 30th December 1955”….
-snip-
-end of quote-
The words in italics and the words in bold font were given that way in that article.

****
EXCERPT FROM A 2012 FRESH AIR (NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO) TRANSCRIPT:
THE UNTOLD STORY OF BOBBY CHARLES 
https://www.npr.org/2012/06/13/150960729/the-untold-story-of-singer-bobby-charles
June 13, 2012 1:10 PM ET; Heard on Fresh Air; Ed Ward (host) 

"When he was around 13, Robert Charles Guidry began singing with a band around his hometown of Abbeville, La., deep in the Cajun swamps. The group played Cajun and country music and, after he passed through town and played a show, Fats Domino's music. It was a life-changing experience for the young man, and he found himself with a new ambition: to write a song for Fats.

One night as he left a gig, Charles said to his friends, "See ya later, alligator," and one of them yelled back, "In a while, crocodile." Charles stopped in his tracks. "What did you say?" he asked. The friend repeated it. At that moment, as would happen countless times in the future, the song "See You Later, Alligator" came to him, fully formed.

Fats didn't want the song, and told the young man he didn't want to sing about alligators. Somehow, though, the kid wound up singing the song over the phone to Leonard Chess, whose Chess Records in Chicago was the hottest blues label in town. Chess didn't hesitate: He sent the kid a ticket and when Charles showed up at his office, Chess said something I can't say on the air. The sentence ended with the word "white" and a question mark, though.

Chess recorded him, though, and put the song out, changing Guidry's name to Bobby Charles; almost immediately, Bill Haley grabbed it for himself. Haley's record was one of the best sellers of 1956, and both Chess and Charles made some decent money from it. They tried follow-ups called "Watch It, Sprocket," which wasn't something people actually said, and "Take It Easy, Greasy," which was, but the record was a little too, well, greasy to be too popular. Charles recorded for Chess until 1958, but his records only sold locally. Along the way, though, he seems to have pioneered a genre called swamp pop.

He also got to realize a dream. One evening, Fats Domino played Abbeville, and Fats invited Charles to a show in New Orleans. The young singer said he had no way to get there. "Well," the fat man said, "you'd better start walking." And sure enough, a song popped into Charles' head: "Walking To New Orleans." "…

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Two Records Of "See You Later, Alligator" by Bobby Charles & by Bill Hailey & The Comets (YouTube examples, information, & song lyrics)

the 45prof, June 25, 2019

“Bobby Charles” was singer-songwriter Robert Guidry, who also wrote “Walking To New Orleans” for Fats Domino and ”(I Don’t Know Why) But I Do” for Clarence “Frogman” Henry. His “Later Alligator” was released in November 1955 but didn’t chart on Billboard until March ’56, weeks after Bill Haley’s top-10 cover version had peaked ...

**** Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part I of a three part pancocojams series on popular catchphrases such as "See You Later. alligator & "After while, crocodile".

Part I showcases two YouTube examples of this song. The first example is a sound file by Bobby Charles, that song's composer and the second is a YouTube video of Bill Hailey & The Comets performing the most popular cover recording of that song.

Information about Bobby Charles and information about Bill Hailey & The Comets are included in this post along with the lyrics for the song "See You Later Alligator".

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2021/03/two-excerpts-from-online-article-and.html for Part II of this pancocojams series. Part II presents an excerpt of  the 2020 article ‘See You Later Alligator ' Originated In U.S. Teenagers' Slang" by Pascal Tréguer and an excerpt of a 2012 National Public Radio (NPR) transcript of a "Fresh Air" segment about Bobby Charles, the composer of the song "See You Later, Alligator".  

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2021/03/did-black-americans-originate-rhyming.html for Part III of this pancocojams series. Part III includes my editorial comments and some article excerpts that I believe corroborate my position that the sayings "See you later, alligator", and "Afterwhile, crocodile" originated from and were first popularized by Black Americans. 

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

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to Bobby Charles and to Bill Hailey & The Comets for their musical legacies. Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the publishers for these examples on YouTube. 

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INFORMATION ABOUT BOBBY CHARLES
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Charles
"Robert Charles Guidry (February 21, 1938 – January 14, 2010), known as Bobby Charles, was an American singer-songwriter.[1]

Early life

An ethnic Cajun, Charles was born in Abbeville, Louisiana, and grew up listening to Cajun music and the country and western music of Hank Williams. At the age of 15, he heard a performance by Fats Domino, an event that "changed my life forever," he recalled.[2]

Career and highlights

Charles helped to pioneer the south Louisiana musical genre known as swamp pop. His compositions include the hits "See You Later, Alligator", which he initially recorded as "Later Alligator", but which is best known from the cover version by Bill Haley & His Comets, and "Walking to New Orleans" and "It Keeps Rainin'", written for Fats Domino.

[…]

Because of his south Louisiana–influenced rhythm and blues vocal style, Charles sometimes has been thought to be black, when in fact he was white.[3]

[…]

Honors

In September 2007, the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame honored Charles for his contributions to Louisiana music with an induction.”…

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INFORMATION ABOUT BILL HAILEY AND THE COMETS
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Haley
"William John Clifton Haley (July 6, 1925 –February 9, 1981) was a pioneering American rock and roll musician. He is credited by many with first popularizing this form of music in the early 1950s with his group Bill Haley & His Comets and million-selling hits such as "Rock Around the Clock", "See You Later, Alligator", "Shake, Rattle and Roll", "Rocket 88", "Skinny Minnie", and "Razzle Dazzle". His recordings have sold over 60 million records worldwide.[1][2]"...

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LYRICS: SEE YOU LATER, ALLIGATOR (originally titled "LATER ALLIGATOR)
(written by Bobby Charles)

Well, I saw my baby walkin'
With another man today
Well, I saw my baby walkin'
With another man today
When I asked her what's the matter
This is what I heard her say

See you later, Alligator
After 'while crocodile
See you later, Alligator
After 'while crocodile
Can't you see you're in my way now
Don't you know you cramp my style

When I though of what she told me
Nearly made me lose my head
When I though of what she told me
Nearly made me lose my head
But the next time that I saw her
Reminded her of what she said

See you later, Alligator
After 'while crocodile
See you later, Alligator
After 'while crocodile
Can't you see you're in my way now
Don't you know you cramp my style

She said I'm sorry pretty daddy
You know my love is just for you
She said I'm sorry pretty daddy
You know my love is just for you
Won't you say that you'll forgive me
And say your love for me is true

I said wait a minute 'gator
I know you mean it just for play
I said wait a minute 'gator
I know you mean it just for play
Don't you know you really hurt me
And this is what I have to say

See you later, Alligator
After 'while crocodile
See you later, Alligator
After 'while crocodile
Can't you see you're in my way now
Don't you know you cramp my style

See you later, Alligator
After 'while crocodile
See you later, Alligator

So long
That's all
Goodbye

 

Written By Bobby Charles

Release Date [for the Bill Hailey & The Comets" record] - December 12, 1955

Source: https://genius.com/Bill-haley-and-his-comets-see-you-later-alligator-lyrics

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YOUTUBE VIDEO EXAMPLE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Hb66FH9AzI&ab_channel=LoizosLoizou

LoizosLoizou, Oct. 22, 2013

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