Was I surprised to read all those letters about the origins of "My Gal's a Corker"! The reason for the surprise is because I wrote that song and lyrics in 1941. Here is the story: My parents sent me to camp Marquette in Brattleboro, Vermont for three summers. The summer of 1941 it rained for thirty out of the 40 days we were there. A friend of mine, Billy Byrnes, and I put together a few skits that we presented to the rest of the gang. My family lived in Manhattan and I had a girlfriend that attended Marymount (91st and Fifth Ave.). I went to Loyola at 83rd and Park. I wrote the song and kept it a few years. In 1948 I typed it and saved it until the computer age. At that time, I saved it to the computer. If you find it strange that I have kept something for so long, please know that I still have stuff I wrote in grammar school. And here is exactly the way I wrote it:

MY GAL'S A CORKER

My gal's a corker,
She's a New Yorker.
And I do everything to keep her in style.

She's got a mop of hair
Just like a grizzly bear---
Yes boys, that's where my money goes.

She's got a pair of eyes
Just like two lemon pies---
Yes boys, that's where my money goes.

She's got a big, long nose
Just like a fireman's hose---
Yes boys, that's where my money goes.

She's got a pair of lips
Just like potatoe chips---
Yes boys, that's where my money goes.

She's got a pair of tits
Just like two ice picks---
Yes boys, that's where my money goes.

She's got a swivel back
Just like Jaimaca track---
Yes boys, that's where my money goes.

She's got a pair of hips
Just like two battleships---
Yes boys, that's where my money goes.

She's got a pair of legs
Just like two whiskey kegs---
Yes boys, that's where my money goes.

She's got a pair of feet
Just like the Navy's fleet---
Yes boys, that's where my money goes.

My gal's a corker,
She's a New Yorker.
And I do everything to keep her in style.


Unfortunately I can't reproduce the music here but it was a fast Dixieland Rag beat (like "Toot Toot Tootsie, or "Sitting On The Levee"

Bestest, RAY