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Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up...
DigiTrad:
BE KIND TO YOUR WEB-FOOTED FRIENDS
Related threads:
Lyr Req: Fine Feathered Friends (34)
Lyr Req: Be Kind to My Web-Footed Friend... (40)
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Subject: Lyrics From: Richard Date: 04 Aug 98 - 01:40 PM Looking for the words to an old nonsense song that starts; "It was midnight on the ocean, not a streetcar was in sight...." Can't find it on the database Any ideas? Richard |
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Subject: Lyr Add: MIDNIGHT ON THE OCEAN From: Earl Date: 04 Aug 98 - 03:02 PM MIDNIGHT ON THE OCEAN (Tune: "Silver Threads Among the Gold")
It was midnight on the ocean, not a streetcar was in sight.
It was evening and the sunrise was setting in the west,
While the organ peeled potatoes, lard was rendered by the choir. |
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Subject: Lyr Add: MIDNIGHT ON THE OCEAN From: Gene Date: 04 Aug 98 - 03:13 PM Found another version at DEJANEWS - Search for: midnight AND (ocean AND streetcar) MIDNIGHT ON THE OCEAN
'Twas midnight on the ocean. Not a streetcar was in sight,
The man behind the counter was a woman, old and gray,
She said, "Good morning, stranger." Her eyes were dry with tears,
Her children all were orphans except one tiny tot
As I gazed through the oaken door, a whale went drifting by,
This story has a moral as you can plainly see: |
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Subject: Lyr Add: MIDNIGHT ON THE OCEAN From: Ferrara Date: 05 Aug 98 - 01:11 AM Here's what we sang. MIDNIGHT ON THE OCEAN Tune of verse: I don't recognize any source. Will try MidiText. Tune of chorus: Stars & Stripes Forever March
1. Twas midnight on the ocean
CHORUS ... There may have been other verses, but I think one just repeated the first verse ad nauseum. When you got tired, you changed the last lines of the chorus to read,
You may think that this is the end, |
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Subject: RE: From: BSeed Date: 05 Aug 98 - 01:52 AM I've seen the following attached, as well: One fine day in the middle of the night, Two dead boys got up to fight. Back to back they faced each other, Drew their swords and shot each other. A deaf policeman heard the noise, And came and killed the two dead boys. --seed |
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Subject: RE: From: murray.mpce.mq.edu.au Date: 05 Aug 98 - 05:27 AM The version that uses the tune to Stars and Stripes was a popular record in the 50s--I can't remember who did it. It was a man and wife and I want to say Les Paul and Mary Ford; but I don't think so. Anyway it has a chorus
Be kind to your web-footed friends Except at the end you sing
You may think that this is the end |
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Subject: Lyr Add: AIN'T WE CRAZY? (Harry McClintock) From: mafreeh Date: 05 Aug 98 - 11:36 AM AIN'T WE CRAZY? Written by H. McClintock [as credited on the record label] As recorded by Harry McClintock ("Radio Mac"), on Victor V-40101-A, 1928. [Listen at the Internet Archive.]
1. Now, I know a little ditty; it's as crazy as can be.
2. It's a song the alley-gators sing while coming through the rye
CHORUS: Ain't we crazy? Ain't we crazy?
3. It was midnight on the ocean; not a streetcar was in sight,
4. It was evening, and the rising sun was setting in the west.
5. While the organ pealed potatoes, lard was rendered by the choir.
6. The cows were making cowslips, and the bells were ringing wet, CHORUS: Ain't we crazy? ...
7. It was midnight on the ocean; not a horse-car was in sight
8. "Good evening, sir," the woman said, and her eyes were bright with tears* CHORUS: Ain't we crazy? ... - - -
[* My family sang a variant: MaryBeth |
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Subject: RE: From: Bill D Date: 05 Aug 98 - 08:19 PM And, I think, all of these are related to the old song "Nottamun Town" and perhaps to songs like "Benjamin Bownameer" , too ..there is a theme there that does not require 'detailed' memory, and as we see, new verses and arrangement happen all the time...(my family did not sing, but my Father recited this as a poem...very close to a couple of those versions..) |
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Subject: RE: dux From: dick greenhaus Date: 05 Aug 98 - 09:05 PM Web-footed friends appeard first, as I recall, on a Fred Allen radio show, sung, with feeling, by Portland Hoffa. A couple of weeks later, a less successful variant was aired: ...Be kind to the jackass and the donkey and the mule, Remember, Brooklyn is also a burro. |
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Subject: RE: From: murray@mpce.mq.edu.au Date: 05 Aug 98 - 09:15 PM Dick, does the version sung by Portland Hoffa have the "midnight on the ocean" verse as its first verse? If so It must be a predecessor to the one I am thinking of. Murray |
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Subject: RE: From: dick greenhaus Date: 06 Aug 98 - 11:46 AM Murray- Nope. Just started out with Be kind to your web-footed friends. Circa 1942. |
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Subject: RE: "midnight on the ocean" From: GUEST,S.Burns Date: 24 Jun 03 - 02:12 PM My Dad always said this bit. "And if you don't believe me, ask old blind Joe, who saw it all through a Knot hole in a picket fence." |
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Subject: RE: midnight on the ocean From: Jim Dixon Date: 06 Jul 03 - 09:16 AM MaryBeth: The Sons of the Pioneers also recorded a version of AIN'T WE CRAZY. It appears on the 5-CD Bear Family set "Songs of the Prairie." I transcribed this from a couple of sound samples:
Ain't we crazy? Ain't we crazy? We're gonna sing this song all night today. She said, "Good morning, stranger," and her eyes were dry with tears. She stuck her head beneath her foot and stood that way for years. Her children six were orphans, except one tiny tot Who lived in a house across the street above a vacant lot. Ain't we crazy? Ain't we crazy? We're gonna sing this song all night today. "Women and children first," he cried as he passed his plate for more. He took his hat from off the door and hung it on the floor. An ax came walking through the air as the clock struck twenty-six. I turned my eyes upon the skies and saw a cloud of bricks. |
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Subject: Lyr Add: MIDNIGHT ON THE OCEAN From: kytrad (Jean Ritchie) Date: 06 Jul 03 - 01:47 PM Well, none of you seem to have the "original" lyrics (the ones I know, that is!). Can't remember them all, but this is KY circa 1930s, sung to the tune of, "When the Work's All Done This Fall:" It was midnight on the ocean, not a streetcar was in sight, The sun was shining brightly but the moon it gave no light; The dark lit up the cowshed, the cows all chewed their cud, The lightning struck the prairie afire in the middle of the wood. A barefoot boy with boots on came strolling down the street, His boots were full of stockings, his socks were full of feet; He was born when he was a baby- to his grandma's pride and joy His only sister was a girl and his brother was a boy. He never was a triplett, born in one breed of twins, His feet were fastened to his legs and just below his shins. His arms were fastened to his neck but just below his shoulder, And when he was grown he was a man and every day got older. He married him a woman, who quickly became his wife, Now you know he couldn't stay single and lead a married life (Can't remember line....) They raised a dozen children, all born when they were young. The youngest was the baby, and the oldest was born first, The middle one was the best one and the best one was the worst. They lived their lives until they died, and the truth to you I'll tell The girls all went to Heaven and the boys all went to_________. (Note: The word at the end was usually the town or place the singer was in at the time. There's more, and I haven't remembered the words 100% right, but this will do to set the story! My brother still sings this. |
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Subject: Lyr Add: BAREFOOT BOY WITH SHOES ON From: GUEST,Q Date: 06 Jul 03 - 06:31 PM The version by Kytrad has verses similar to one called "The Barefoot Boy With Shoes On," by Asa Martin(?). Also called the cowboy version. We sang similar verses in the 1930s and in the Army, verses somewhat similar to the following lifted from this website: Barefoot Boy We always sang it to a marching tune, the last line of which I remember as Rim, Ram, Goddam, we're the Cavalry. No "Silver Hairs" or other slow tune. Oh, the night was dark and cloudy The moon was shining bright The stars were casting burning rays On the storm that raged that night Lightening struck the cowshed And the cows all chewed their cud Moonlight set the prairie on fire In the middle of the woods. Oh, the barefoot boy with shoes on Come a-shuffling down the street His pants were full of pockets And his boots were full of feet He was born when he was a baby His grandma's pride and joy His only sister was a girl and his brother was a boy (or reverse the sex in these two lines) He never was a triplet But he always was a twin His legs were fasened to his knees Just below his chin And his feet were fastened to his ankles Several inches from his shoulder And when he grew up he became a man And everyday got older He married him a woman Who quickly became his wife For you see he could not marry her And maintain a single life Her head was full of notions And her mouth was full of tongue They raised a dozen children All born when they were young. Six boys, five girls And then another child They never tried to raise them right Just let them grow up wild And late in the evening They'd send them off to bed Not sure if they were living And they wished all were dead. The youngest was a baby But the oldest was one first The good one was the bad one And the bad one was the worst They never knew their ages No, they never seemed to care 'Cause they knew they had a birthday And it came 'round once a year (or- twice) They never knew their father's age But they always had a hunch That he was born before their time And was the oldest of the bunch And when they died they could not speak Their names they could not tell The girls all went to heaven And the boys all went out West. The organ peeled potatoes, etc. (see above) We probably sang all of the verses posted in this thread and more, but never in any particular order. Someone sang a line, and the rest joined in. |
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Subject: Lyr Add: CRAZY MIXED UP SONG (C Grean, J Javits) From: Jim Dixon Date: 27 Jul 08 - 11:33 PM Transcribed from a "video" at YouTube: CRAZY MIXED UP SONG As sung by Homer & Jethro 1. 'Twas midnight on the ocean. Not a streetcar was in sight. The sun was shinin' brightly in the middle of the night. A barefoot boy with shoes on stood there sittin' in a tree, And when I put my glasses on, I heard this melody: CHORUS: Be kind to your web-footed friends, Fer a duck may be somebody's mother. Be kind to the denizen of the swamp. He's a dilly through and through. You may think that this is the end. [Well, it isn't, 'cause there is another chorus.]* 2. 'Twas midnight on the ocean when the rain begin to snow. The cows all started crowin' 'cause the time had come to go. This crazy mixed-up guy was swimmin' all around the lawn, Lookin' for the ending of this crazy mixed-up song. 3. 'Twas midnight on the ocean as he slowly rushed away. He thought it was tomorrow 'cause it wasn't yesterday, And now he lives in Tennessee beside the pyramids, Raisin' lots of nanny-goats with crazy mixed-up kids. *ON LAST CHORUS, SUBSTITUTE: "Well, it is." [I found a sound sample of the same song, with the same title, performed by Billy Cotton & His Band. ASCAP attributes CRAZY MIXED UP SONG to Charles R. Grean and Joan Ellen Javits. |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: GUEST,Mimisan Date: 08 Sep 08 - 05:09 PM Here is the version we heard from our Grand-Mother Priscilla. She is 96 and remembers most of it. The author is unknown to us. Enjoy! MIDNIGHT ON THE OCEAN It was midnight on the ocean, not a streetcar was in sight. The sun was shining brightly and it rained all day that night. T'was a summer's night in winter and the rain was hawling 'n squeeling. As the barefoot boy with shoes on stood there sitting on the ceiling. It was evening, the rising sun was setting in the North. And the little fishies in the trees were gayly flying forth. While the organ peeled patatoes, lard was rendered by the choir. When the sexton rang the dishrag, someone set the church on fire. " Holy smoke!" the preacher shouted, in the rain he lost his hair. Now his head resembles heaven, were there is no parting there. |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: EBarnacle Date: 09 Sep 08 - 04:48 PM The chorus as we sang it went: Be kind to your web footed friends, For a duck may be somebody's mother, They live in the cold of the swamp, Where the weather is very, very domp [That's the way we pronounced it] You may think that this is the end, Well it is. |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed U From: GUEST,jones Date: 20 Aug 09 - 12:00 PM My dad used to sing, back in the fifties: "Twas midnight on the ocean, not a streetcar was in sight The barefoot boy with shoes on stood sitting in the light . . . " He also sang "be kind to your webfooted friends" exactly as posted above by EBarnacle. I think my dad was born around 1918. |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: GUEST,susiewouke Date: 08 Oct 09 - 12:18 AM It was a dark and stormy night and the sun was shining bright and the roses dipped their petals in the mud, in the mud... And the doctor's lady cited that for sake of Willie's life they should stop the circulation of his blood. So they dipped his little head in a pot of molten lead and they laid my little Willie down to rest, down to rest. And the robbers came that night and they came without a light and they stole the mustard plaster off his chest. No more to tease the pussycat or to .....can't remember this part ...or to rub his little nose on the red hot kitchen stove....when they laid my little Willie down to rest. He kicked the bucket, and stubbed his toe, and made it bleed, and it bled blood...the blood was red, and then he said.....Ouch! That's all I can remember! |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed U From: GUEST,SophiaN Date: 18 Jan 10 - 02:23 PM I heard this from my friend One dark night when all was bright, two dead boys got up to fight. Back to back they faced each other, drew their swords and shot each other. |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: and e Date: 13 Feb 10 - 11:38 AM Similar to GUEST,susiewouke above Titled "Poor Willy" T'was a dark and stormy night And the moon was shining bright And the flowers, they were drooping in the mud, When the doctors, they decided That to save my darling child, They'd have to stop the circulation of his blood. So, they dipped his darling head In a pot of boiling lead, And they laid my little Willy down to rest. But the robbers came at night, And they came without a light, And they stole the mustard plaster off his chest. No more, Little Brat, To tease the pussy-cat, No more between his teeth To pull it's tail ... No more to rub its nose On the red-hot kitchen stove, 'Cause my Darling Willy's gone and kicked the pail. [Spoken] Poor Willy! |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: GUEST Date: 31 Mar 10 - 10:12 PM How about this version, a la Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, around 1955: Twas midnight on the ocean Not a streetcar was in sight The sun was shining brightly In the middle of the night A barefoot boy with shoes on Stood there sitting in a tree And when I put my glasses on I heard this melody Be kind to your web-footed friends For a duck may be some-bodies mother Be kind to the denizen of the swamp He's a lily through and through You may think that this is the end Well, it isn't 'cause there is a-nother chorus Twas midnight on the ocean as the rain began to snow The cows were all a'crowin 'cause the time had come to go This crazy mixed up guy was swimming all around the lawn Lookin' for the ending of this crazy, mixed up song Be kind to your web-footed friends For a duck may be some-bodies mother Be kind to the denizen of the swamp He's a lily through and through You may think that this is the end Well, it isn't 'cause there is a-nother chorus Twas midnight on the ocean as he slowly rushed away He thought it was tomorrow 'cause it wasn't yesterday And now he lives in Tennessee beside the pyramids Raisin' lots of Nanny Goats with crazy mixed up kids Be kind to your web-footed friends For a duck may be some-bodies mother Be kind to the denizen of the swamp He's a lily through and through You may think that this is the end Well, it is |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: GUEST Date: 09 Jun 11 - 08:27 AM The version my dad told me had elements of all of the above mixed together, but I didn't see this verse, which came at some point after the "hero" of our story has a fight & gets killed (he can't remember the verse but I think it had to do with the boys fighting back to back...) "Oh kill me, kill me, kill me quick, spare my life!" he cried, And the villain shot him through the head and killed him till he died. A fair young maid came down the path; her form was bent with years. Her eyes were full of sunshine and her cheeks were full of tears, And recognizing the dying man, she quickly yelled, "Who is he?" The dead man raised his corpseless head and cried, "By the great Gods, 'tis Lizzy!" And we used the version "be kind to your web footed friends, for a duck may be somebody's mother, be kind to your friends in the swamp, where the weather is very very domp" |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: GUEST,Doc Trivia Date: 09 May 12 - 01:24 PM The second verse of The Crazy Mix-Up Song I'd heard -- by Peter Lind Hayes and Mary Healy -- went like this: Twas midnight on the ocean on the day I married him He didn't know his name was Fred that's why I called him Jim We settled down in London, France behind the pyramids And raised a little family of crazy, mixed-up kids. |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: GUEST,Amy Date: 12 Jul 12 - 10:56 PM My mothers second verse; Twas midnight on the ocean as the rain began to snow he hurried to me slowly because the time had come to go I said I'd wait forever if it didn't take to long, and silently we harmonized this crazy mixed up song. |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: GUEST Date: 16 Dec 12 - 11:03 AM OK this is how my father used to say it when we were kids. Twas midnight on the ocean not a streetcar was in sight The sun was shining brightly on a rainy rainy night A barefoot boy with shoes on stood sitting in the grass And the fishes in the treetops were climing on their hands and knees |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: GUEST Date: 24 Jan 13 - 01:33 AM high in the mountains lying on the grass i saw a boogeyman sliding on his ask no questions tell no lies i saw a boogeyman doing up his flies are a nusaince, flies are a pest i saw a boogeyman putting on his vest |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: GUEST Date: 06 Feb 16 - 10:12 PM My dad used to sing this crazy song. I can remember part of the words, but not all of them. Twas moonlight on the ocean, not a street car was in sight .......for it rained all day that night I saw a thousand miles away a house just out of sight Its walls projected backward, the front was round the back It stood alone with others, the fence was whitewash black. The stars lay thick upon the ground, the mud shone in the sky ...... I can't put it all together. I wish I had written it down!! |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: Mark Ross Date: 07 Feb 16 - 02:44 PM I think the Homer and Jethro version has Chet Atkins playing lead guitar. Mark Ross |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: GUEST Date: 31 Jul 16 - 01:23 AM Here's a link to the Peter Lind Hayes-Mary Healy recording of the song. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yqQytUBYNA |
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Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Midnight on the Ocean / Crazy Mixed Up... From: GUEST Date: 31 Jul 16 - 01:25 AM Let's try that link again. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yqQytUBYNA |
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