Origins: Wembalo Origin

Subject: Origins: Wembalo Origin
From: Crowdercref
Date: 10 Jul 08 - 03:10 PM

The song 'Wembalo' appeared in the journal 'Old Cornwall ' in (vol. III p521) 1942
It was reprinted in Merv Davey's book 'Hengan' of 1983.
The first verse given is this:

My father he died and I cannot tell you how,
He left me six horses to follow the plough,
With my whim wham wembalo
Drowsy me boys in benbalo
Little boys in Benbalo living near the bloom.

Similar texts are found in early copies of Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes, the first text cited by the Opies is in Gammer Gurton's Garland, 1810. The word 'Wembalo seems to be a variant on a variable 'nonsense chorus '.

Any clues of other early origins, sources, collection would be very welcome.

Thanks

Crowdercref.

Subject: RE: Origins: Wembalo Origin
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 10 Jul 08 - 04:26 PM

Halliwell, The Nursery Rhymes of England, 4th ed., 1846

CXIX
"Douce, in his MS. Additions to Ritson's 'Grammer Gurton's Garland,' gives one version of the following song, in which Jack Straw is introduced in the chorus."

My father he died, but I can't tell you how,
He left me six horses to drive in my plough:

With my wing wang waddle oh,
Jack sing saddle oh,
Blowsey boys bubble oh,
Under the broom.

I sold my six horses and I bought me a cow,
I'd fain have made a fortune, but did not know how:

With my, &c.

I sold my cow, and I bought me a calf;
I'd fain have made a fortune, but lost the best half:

With my, &c.

I sold my calf, and I bought me a cat;
A pretty thing she was, in my chimney corner sat:

With my, &c.

I sold my cat, and bought me a mouse;
He carried fire in his tail, and burnt down my house:

With my, &c.

Subject: RE: Origins: Wembalo Origin
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 10 Jul 08 - 04:56 PM

S. Baring-Gould, ed., A Book of Nursery Songs and Rhymes, London, 1895

VIII. The Foolish Boy

My father died and I can't tell y' how,
He left me six horses to follow the plough.

With a whing, whing, waddle, O!
With a string, strang, straddle, O!
Blossy boys! Babble, O! under the broom.

I sold my six horses, and bought me a cow,
I'm going to get money, but I can't tell how.
With a whing. etc.

I sold my cow and I bought me a calf,
By that my bargain I lost just half.
With a whing, etc.

I sold my calf and I bought me a cat,
And in the chimney corner the pretty thing sat.
With a whing, etc.

I sold my cat and I bought me a mouse,
Set fire to her tail, and she burnt down the house.
With a whing, etc.

I sold my mouse, and i bought me a wife,
She cut my throat with an old rusty knife.
With a whing, etc.

Notes by Baring-Gould:

VIII. The Foolish Boy
This song is known in every nursery through England. There are various alterations in the burden. One is:-
'Whimma whimmee wobble, O!
Jigga-jiggee-joggle, O!
Little boys a wobble, O! lived under the gloam.'
This from Somersetshire;
another from Yorkshire is:-
Withamy, widy, waddle, O!
Jack has sold his saddle, O!
Bubble, ho! pretty boy, over the brow.'
See Halliwell, 'Nursery Rhymes,' p. 92, 'The Baby's Opera.' [Ed. not noted].

Subject: RE: Origins: Wembalo Origin
From: Crowdercref
Date: 10 Jul 08 - 05:17 PM

Many thanks Q

Crowdercref

Subject: RE: Origins: Wembalo Origin
From: Azizi
Date: 10 Jul 08 - 05:28 PM

I hope this isn't considered too much thread drift from the original poster's question, but...

I'm struck by what I call the "faulty exchange" pattern in both of the examples of "The Foolish Boy".

"I sold my cow and I bought me a calf,
By that my bargain I lost just half.
With a whing, etc.

I sold my calf and I bought me a cat,
And in the chimney corner the pretty thing sat".
etc.

I'm wondering, Q, is this the earliest example of this kind of pattern that you've found, and could this be the "prototype" for the use of that pattern in African American verses and songs such as

I went to the river
And couldn't get across.
Jumped on an alligator
And thought it was a horse.

or

I went to the river
And I couldn't get across'
Paid five dollars
For an old blind horse
[p. 185 Dorothy Scarborough On The Trail Of Negro Folk Songs
{Hatboro, Penn; Folklore Associates edition, 1963, originally published by Harvard Univ. Press, 1925}

and

Hush, little baby, don't say a word,
Mama's going to buy you a mockingbird.
And if that mockingbird don't sing,
Mama's going to buy you a diamond ring.
And if that diamond ring turns brass,
Mama's going to buy you a looking glass.
And if that looking glass gets broke,
Mama's going to buy you a billy goat.
And if that billy goat won't pull,
Mama's going to buy you a cart and bull.
And if that cart and bull turn over,
Mama's going to buy you a dog named Rover.
And if that dog named Rover won't bark,
Mama's going to buy you a horse and cart.
And if that horse and cart fall down,
You'll still be the sweetest little baby in town.
[various sources]

-snip-

Is this stretching a search for sources for these songs too far?

Subject: RE: Origins: Wembalo Origin
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 10 Jul 08 - 05:50 PM

A stretch too far? I think so. These progression songs are widespread, and, I think, could arise independently.
Some can be traced with some certainty, but I don't believe in single sources for ideas that are a part of every groups thought patterns.

Subject: RE: Origins: Wembalo Origin
From: Azizi
Date: 10 Jul 08 - 06:21 PM

Thanks for your response, Q.

To clarify, I didn't mean to imply that I was seeking a single source for any particular rhyme or song from any particular population. Instead I was wondering if this was the earliest example of that type of British song that you had read.

As to whether those British progression songs influenced African American progression songs, I know that there's no way of knowing regarding specific songs. But in general, I believe it's likely to have occurred. In addition, I also would expect that that type of song structure was influenced by memories of traditional African folk tales and African folk songs that have a progression of items exchanged after another. I've read some of these folk tales, and I'm sure there are many that I haven't read.

**

Thread drift over...

Subject: RE: Origins: Wembalo Origin
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 10 Jul 08 - 07:37 PM

The version in Iona and Peter Opie, 1955 (1959), The Oxford Nursery Rhyme Book, has essentially the same verses with the title, 'The Ploughboy in Luck,' but the refrain differs:

With a whim, wham, wabble ho!
Jack's lost his saddle Oh!
Blossy boys, bubble oh!
Over the brow.

Subject: RE: Origins: Wembalo Origin
From: Uncle_DaveO
Date: 11 Jul 08 - 12:15 PM

Not precisely on thread, but a related song in the DT: The Swapping Song

Dave Oesterreich

Subject: RE: Origins: Wembalo Origin
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 11 Jul 08 - 01:43 PM

Definitely related, however.
Uncle Dave, you also refreshed my badly eroded memory in that thread- 56919; a href="/thread.cfm?threadid=56919"> Swapping ,
where I had already posted one of these songs.

Subject: RE: Origins: Wembalo Origin
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 11 Jul 08 - 01:44 PM

Swapping