Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Yellow God (J M Hayes)

Subject: Lyr Add: THE GREEN EYE OF THE YELLOW GOD
From: bill\sables
Date: 22 Oct 00 - 08:19 AM

One of the monologues I heard as a young lad and have just found the words again. It was a lot like "The Boy stood on the Burning Deck." Most people only know the first verse which is all I could remember till now.


THE GREEN EYE OF THE YELLOW GOD
by J Milton Hayes

There's a one-eyed yellow idol to the North of Khatmandu,
There's a little marble cross below the town;
There's a broken-hearted woman tends the grave of Mad Carew,
And the Yellow God forever gazes down.

He was known as "Mad Carew" by the subs at Khatmandu,
He was hotter than they felt inclined to tell;
But for all his foolish pranks, he was worshiped in the ranks,
And the Colonel's daughter smiled on him as well.

He had loved her all along, with a passion of the strong,
The fact that she loved him was plain to all.
She was nearly twenty-one and arrangements had begun
To celebrate her birthday with a ball.

He wrote to ask what present she would like from Mad Carew;
They met next day as he dismissed a squad;
And jestingly she told him that nothing else would do
But the green eye of the little Yellow God.

On the night before the dance, Mad Carew seemed in a trance,
And they chaffed him as they puffed at their cigars;
But for once he failed to smile, and he sat alone awhile,
Then went out into the night beneath the stars.

He returned before the dawn, with his shirt and tunic torn,
And a gash across his temple dripping red;
He was patched up right away, and he slept through all the day,
And the Colonel's daughter watched beside his bed.

He woke at last and asked if they could send his tunic through;
She brought it, and he thanked her with a nod;
He bade her search the pocket saying, "That's from Mad Carew,"
And she found the little green eye of the god.

She upbraided poor Carew in the way that women do,
Though both her eyes were strangely hot and wet;
But she wouldn't take the stone and Mad Carew was left alone
With the jewel that he'd chanced his life to get.

When the ball was at its height, on that still and tropic night,
She thought of him and hastened to his room;
As she crossed the barrack square she could hear the dreamy air
Of a waltz tune softly stealing through the gloom.

His door was open wide, with silver moonlight shining through;
The place was wet and slipp'ry where she trod;
An ugly knife lay buried in the heart of Mad Carew,
'Twas the "Vengeance of the Little Yellow God."

There's a one-eyed yellow idol to the north of Khatmandu,
There's a little marble cross below the town;
There's a broken-hearted woman tends the grave of Mad Carew,
And the Yellow God forever gazes down.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 22 Oct 00 - 08:22 AM

Now do it with the hand actions!!

Been a fan of this for ages, never been able to find it all in one piece though....

LTS

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: Bernard
Date: 22 Oct 00 - 09:33 AM

This one is often done at the Railway Folk Club by resident Geoff 'the door' Smith (so called because he collects the door money...).

The Railway Website

How come we didn't get a rending of this at Llanstock, Bill? ;-)

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: bill\sables
Date: 22 Oct 00 - 10:11 AM

Hi Bernard did you ever hear "We'll Eat Again" about a family in an Air raid shelter who only had tinned peas left to eat. It is quite funny. Cheers Bill

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: rabbitrunning
Date: 22 Oct 00 - 11:44 AM

Hey, Bill, don't just tantalize us! Post the lyrics to "We'll Eat Again"!

Now I'm all curious...

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: Bernard
Date: 22 Oct 00 - 11:52 AM

Sounds like it could be one of Les Barker's?

One of his that I like starts:
Oh, my love, my darling
I've hungered for
My lunch
At this Little Chef!

(Tune - Unchained Melody)

As Les publishes his own stuff, I must not post any more of the song - it's his livelihood!

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: Roger in Sheffield
Date: 22 Oct 00 - 12:25 PM

I don't have it here but Kevin Henry does this one between flute tunes on his CD.......now whats the CD called???????

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: Roger in Sheffield
Date: 22 Oct 00 - 12:31 PM

Kevin Henry

Subject: Lyr Add: WE'LL EAT AGAIN (Watt Nichol)
From: bill\sables
Date: 22 Oct 00 - 02:45 PM

It was actually writen by Scotsman Watt Nichol who played around the clubs in the 60s. Here it is

WE'LL EAT AGAIN by Watt Nichol

The Year was nineteen forty three;
The time was midnight in Peterlee;
The place a shelter for air raids,
Where a family had been for the last three days.
Never taken unaware
Mother had stored some tinned food there,
And father laughed and gaily scoffed
For the damp had taken the labels off.
And when it came to eating times
A can was chosen by eeney meeney rhymes.
But every can they went to choose
Provoked another doze of blues,
A dozen cans failed to please
For each bare can contained green peas.
Now if the peas had been small in size
With the garden variety that satisfies.
But all were king size soaked in brine
The great big stodgy marrofat kind.
And though mother warned they might cause wind
Father consumed each and every tin.
Just one tin left, "What can it be"
Leave little Willie for to see.
" Corned beef or Spam God please"
"What is it Willie?" "Ah more green peas"
Their laughter seemed to fill the night,
When a knock at the door gave them all a fright.
"Turn those lights way down low,
This is wartime don't you know.
During a raid you'll all sit tight,
Completely silent and deadly quiet."
Well father farted, what a belter,
Nearly cracked the air raid shelter.
Mother hit him with her slipper
and father replied with another riper.
Little Willie, thinking it was all a game
He tried his best to do the same.
And whilst mother raves and rants
Little Willie shit his pants

This is one for Spaw
Cheers Bill

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 22 Oct 00 - 06:41 PM

Ah, culture at last!!

LTS who loves peas. Any peas. Little tiny petit pois or the big luminous marrowfat ones. Love 'em. yum...

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: Steve Parkes
Date: 23 Oct 00 - 07:36 AM

There's a big(-ish) book of monologues available in the UK, and if I could remember the name I'd tell you. Actually, I've mentioned it before -- 'alf a mo ...

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: Steve Parkes
Date: 23 Oct 00 - 07:40 AM

... and so have one or two other people. Here's a good place.

Steve

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: Bernard
Date: 23 Oct 00 - 07:44 AM

Bill - when you wrote 'This is one for Spaw', surely you meant 'This is one is Spaw'!!!

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: Steve Parkes
Date: 23 Oct 00 - 10:21 AM

Liz, WRT the "hand actions", are you referrring to the send-up where someone stands behind the reciter and does amusing but silly things with eggs and stuff? It's very funny the first time or two you see it, as is the "hecklers" version, where two military types in full red-coated fig -- supposedly ex-colleagues of Carew -- keep interrupting from the audience.

I have been known to go into transports of poetic delight about TGEOTLYG, but I won't today (loud cheers). Suffice it to say, it's not much as literature goes -- "good bad poetry", as George Orwell put it -- but as a bit of story-telling, it's as good as any folk song or story. It's gone down very well indeed when I've done it straight. That goes for many of the soppy Victorian songs like The Miner's Dream of Home, or Father Dear Father Come Home With Me Now, or Just Like The Ivy: just make the effort and keep your face straight, and they'll take it seriously.

Steve

Subject: Lyr Add: THE GREEN EYE OF THE LITTLE YELLOW GOD
From: AndyG
Date: 24 Oct 00 - 05:44 AM

Many years ago I found my dad's war-time scrapbook, (he served in the RAF) amongst the "gems" was a service parody of The Green Eye of the Little Yellow God.

Sadly I no longer possess that scrap of paper and remember only fragments of it.

The hero was "Large Carews", Carews being a beer available to troops serving in India at that time.

The Green Eye of the Little Yellow God.

There's a one eyed yellow idol to the North of Khatmandu,
There's another one a little further down;
There's a golden haired young flapper tends the grave of Large Carews,
And the Yellow Idol forever gazes down.

He was known as "Large Carews" by the subs with whom he boozed,
He was hotter than they felt inclined to tell;
But for all his foolish drunks, he was worshiped in the runks,
And the Colonel's daughter liked a drop as well.

etc...

AndyG

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 24 Oct 00 - 09:08 AM

Andy, that sounds great, wonder if anyone can supply the rest..... I know where there may be a copy, but it is in a museum collection that is not on display, and I don't have any reason to go and ask for it again......

Yes, the arm movements are those done by a person standing behind the orator, putting in suitable gestures, although I've never seen any eggs. Morecambe and Wise did a great version of it many centuries ago....

LTS

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Green Eye of the Little Yellow God
From: Steve Parkes
Date: 24 Oct 00 - 11:14 AM

"... a gash upon his forehead, dripping red ..." -- only it's yellow, Liz!

Subject: The Green Eye of the Yellow God
From: Fiolar
Date: 26 Feb 02 - 08:53 AM

Fans of J Milton Hayes' great monlogue may be interested to know that Sean Tyrell does a version on his new CD "Belladonna." It is sung rather than recited.

Subject: RE: The Green Eye of the Yellow God
From: banjomad (inactive)
Date: 26 Feb 02 - 02:06 PM

Sean Tyrell obviously did'nt get the joke if he thinks this is a serious song