Lyr Add: My Old Iron Cross (from Harry Champion)

Subject: Lyr Add: MY OLD IRON CROSS (from Harry Champion)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 02 Feb 11 - 10:58 AM

Another music-hall song—
This time I found some lyrics online and tweaked them a bit to agree with my hearing of the recording I found at The Internet Archive:


MY OLD IRON CROSS
Words and music by Huntley Trevor.
As sung by Harry Champion, 1915.

1. I'm the bloke that broke the bank at Monte Carlo.
I'm the hero of a dozen dirty knights.
I went down in a submarine to give the Kaiser one.
It went off, "Bang!" and off I went and landed in the sun.
There I met the Kaiser and he said, "I'm up the stick.
If you can get me out of here, I'll treat you mighty quick."

Oh, my old Iron Cross, my old Iron Cross,
What a waste, I do declare!
Over there in Germany they're giving them away.
You can have a dozen if you shout, "Hooray!"
The Kaiser said to me, "Old cock, my kingdom for an 'oss!"
I gave him one the missus dries the clothes on,
And he gave me the old Iron Cross.

2. I've been busy as a bee a-building trenches,
But I stopped because I wore away my spade.
I'd been digging for a fortnight with the mud up to my neck,
My clothes all torn and tattered and I looked a perfect wreck.
All at once a thousand Germans shouted, "Give us meat!"
I gave them a sausage that I dug up for a treat.

Oh, my old Iron Cross, my old Iron Cross,
What a waste I do declare!
Over there in Germany they're giving them away.
You can have a dozen if you shout, "Hooray!"
The Kaiser shouted, "Meat, meat, meat!" I gave him some, of course.
Though he only had a nibble at my old hambone,
He gave me the old Iron Cross.

3. I was scouting round a place they call Schlimazel,
With a thousand Russian lancers out for blood.
The officer commanding us had gone to get a drink,
So I sent the cabin boy for one in less than half a wink.
Then we stormed the trenches and we made the Germans run,
Captured several prisoners and missed the Kaiser's son.

Oh, my old Iron Cross, my old Iron Cross,
What a waste I do declare!
Over there in Germany they're throwing them away.
You can have a thousand if you shout, "Hooray!"
The Crown Prince said, "Don't go so well." It filled me with remorse,
So I told him how to get to Tipperary,
And he gave me the old Iron Cross.

Let's sing—REPEAT FIRST CHORUS.

SPOKEN: Like the Kaiser—made of pig iron!