Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On

Subject: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: Ooljana
Date: 13 May 03 - 04:07 AM

This is the last song on the CD named "Celtic Mouth Music".But it sounds more like country.Does anybody know the lyrics? and where is this song really from?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: masato sakurai
Date: 13 May 03 - 05:58 AM

Sound clip is HERE (V.A., Celtic Mouth Music). This song, sung by Emma Shelton, was recorded by Maud Karpeles in Flagpond, Tennesee, in September 1950 (originally on FOLKTRAX 907. Dr. Maud Karpeles, Appalachian Collection, North Carolina and Tennessee). It is also a fiddle tune (played by Stan Jackson on V.A., Traditional Fiddle Music of the Ozarks: Volume I: Along the Eastern Crescent, Rounder).

~Masato

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: masato sakurai
Date: 13 May 03 - 06:08 AM

According to The Folk Music Index:

Pretty Little Girl with a Blue Dress On
Rm* - Miss Sally at the Party
1. Jackson, Stan. Traditional Fiddle Music of the Ozarks. Volume 1, Rounder 0435, CD (1999), cut#39

Miss Sally at the Party
Rm* - Pretty Little Girl with a Blue Dress On
1. Claunch, W. E.. Great Big Yam Potatoes. Anglo-American Fiddle Music from Missi., Southern Culture AH002, LP (1985), cut# 5

(*Rm - Related melody. This melody is related to another melody)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: s&r
Date: 14 May 03 - 02:46 AM

I think it's called "Make my Day" and goes something like:
Pretty little Girl
Pretty little girl with a blue dess
Pretty little girl with a blue dress sitting in the sun
Makemy day
Smile for me

Labi Siffre?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: GUEST,Q
Date: 14 May 03 - 03:11 AM

Sometimes she has a red dress on.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: Stewie
Date: 14 May 03 - 07:33 AM

In her 'red dress', she turns up in all manner of songs such as Leadbelly's 'Poor Howard', Uncle Dave's 'Come on buddie don't you want to go' and Jim Jackson's 'Old Dog Blue'.

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: Charley Noble
Date: 14 May 03 - 07:49 AM

She's been around. Sometimes she hangs with Johnney, when he's not off to Hilo. Sometimes she entertains other folks while Johnney is away.

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: GUEST
Date: 14 May 03 - 08:20 AM

Masato,

   In your note above you make the following observation:

"This song, sung by Emma Shelton, was recorded by Maud Karpeles in Flagpond, Tennesee, in September 1950 (originally on FOLKTRAX 907. Dr. Maud Karpeles, Appalachian Collection, North Carolina and Tennessee)."

    A year or so ago, I located this important collection in the Library of Congress, and finally obtained copies through Interlibrary Loan from a school in California. The quality of the original recordings and/or reproductions was not very good, but still worth the effort.

    This was Karpeles effort to go back and try to find people still living that she and Cecil Sharp had contacted in their original collecting expeditions. A number of them were still around. So this collection, only a part of which was commercially released as far as I know, amounts to the recorded version of Sharp's Southern Appalachian music. Most of the recorded versions are the same as the published versions in Sharp's collection.

    Do you, or does anyone else know, if these recordings have ever been re-released commercially or where the commercial rights to them might be these days? It would be wonderful if the Library of Congress or someone else would make all of these recordings available. I understand that the Library of Congress is in the process of transferring some of its folk music collections to CD. This would make is much easier and much less expensive to get copies from them. However there would probably be some complications with the LOC releasing this particular material since some of it has been previously released commercially and is probably copywrited. T.O.M.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: GUEST
Date: 14 May 03 - 08:22 AM

I'm not sure why my message above listed me as GUEST rather than TURTLE OLD MAN, but T.O.M. is "Turtle Old Man". I seem to have lost some standing here and will have to check it out. My apologies. T.O.M.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: Noreen
Date: 14 May 03 - 08:57 AM

Reset your cookie, T.O.M..
It's nothing personal, just happens!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: masato sakurai
Date: 14 May 03 - 09:17 AM

T.O.M., the info with track listings on FTX-907 is this: BLACK IS THE COLOUR: Maud's Appalachian Collection -1-.

~Masato

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: John Minear
Date: 14 May 03 - 09:34 AM

Thanks for the track listings, Masato. My information on some of that was unclear. Anyone know the current status of FOLKTRAX?

Thanks, Noreen. My cookie had gotten stale, so I reset. Identity is a fragile thing at best. T.O.M.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: Noreen
Date: 14 May 03 - 09:59 AM

Charley, she gets more rest when Johnny's away, without all that wakin' and shakin'...

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: Steve Benbows protege
Date: 14 May 03 - 01:29 PM

sounds like "Take me back to tulsa" to me.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: Stewie
Date: 14 May 03 - 06:58 PM

T.O.M.

Here is a link to Folktrax website which has full listing of recordings:

Click Here

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: Ooljana
Date: 15 May 03 - 02:41 AM

s&r,
"Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On" is the title from the tracklist.So I don't think it's called "Make my Day".It's chorus goes something like:

Pretty little girl with a blue dress on (X3)
Stole my ... and then she's gone.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: John Minear
Date: 15 May 03 - 02:43 PM

Stewie,

    Thanks very much for the connection to Folktrax. I'm glad to know that they are still in business and thrilled to find out that the Karpeles collection in currently available from them on CD. T.O.M.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: GUEST,Pete Walker
Date: 05 Nov 08 - 02:59 PM

This halyard shanty comes from "Shanties from the Seven Seas" by Stan Hugall, singing of A. L. Lloyd, and various forgotten sources over the years. Also called "Shake Her, Johnny, Shake Her" and "Gal With A Blue Dress On"

A gal asleep with a blue dress on,
> Shake 'er Johnny, shake ''er!
She waitin' there for your Uncle Tom,
> Shake 'er and we'll wake 'er.

This gal she did look good to me,
For I have been ten months at sea.

She's a Down East gal wid a Down East style,
For a dollar a time it's all worth while.

Wake up you bitch and let us in,
Wake up you bitch we want some gin.

Roust an' shake her is the cry,
The bloody topmast sheave is dry!

The big wind comes from the Wes'-nor'-west,
This gal ain't gonner get no rest.

What can you do in Tiger Bay,
But give them flash gals all your pay.

Shake 'er, bullies, oh helm's a-lee,
She'll git washed out wid a big green sea.

Her oilskins they are all in pawn,
It's wet an' draughty 'round Cape Horn.

So roust 'er up from down below,
An' haul away for Uncle Joe.

This gal she is a high-brown lass,
High-brown lass in a flash blue dress.

So roust 'er up be quick I say,
An' make yer port an' take yer pay.

Soon we'll be down Mobile Bay,
Screwin' cotton for to git our pay.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 05 Nov 08 - 06:01 PM

As Charley Noble said (2003, above), this gal's been around.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: Joe Offer
Date: 05 Nov 08 - 07:02 PM

I've crosslinked this thread at least temporarily with the "Wake Her, Shake Her" series of songs, but I'm not so sure they are related. Both speak of a girl in a blue dress, but they sure seem like different songs to me.

-Joe-

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Pretty Little Girl With a Blue Dress On
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 05 Nov 08 - 08:03 PM

I can't see a relationship either, other than the blue dress. In another thread somewhere, it was noted that the blue dress verse really floated around, showing up in a number of fiddle-dance songs.