Lyr. Add: THE JOLLY SHANTY BOY
Trad., Michigan

1
I am a jolly shanty boy
Who loves to sing and dance.
I wonder what my girls would say
If they could see my pants?
2
With fourteen patches on the knee
And six upon the stern,
I'll wear them while I'm in the woods
And home when I return.
3
For I am on my jolly way,
I spend my money free.
I have plenty- come and drink
Lager beer with me.
4
I'll write my love a letter,
I'll give the ink a tip,
And if that don't fetch her up to time,
I guess I'll let her slip.
5
For I don't care for rich or poor,
I'm not for strife or grief;
I'm ragged, fat, and lousy, and
As tough as Spanish beef.
6
Those dark-eyed single lasses,
They think a heap of me.
You ought to see me throw myself
When I go on a spree.
7
Rigged up like a clipper ship
Sailing round the Horn,
Head and tail up like a steer
Rushing through the corn.
8
Now to conclude and finish,
I hope I've offended none.
I've told you of my troubles,
Since the day that I begun.
9
With patched-up clothes and rubber boots
And mud up to the knees,
With lice as big as chili beans
Fighting with the fleas.

Pp. 11-12, lyrics only.
E. C. Beck, 1948, "Lore of the Lumber Camps," Univ. Michigan Press.