Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: and e
Date: 01 Jun 20 - 06:00 PM

This is from Songs and Ballads: Folk Material and Old Favorites (Manuscript, ca 1933) by James Kenneth Larson, McCammon, Idaho

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: and e
Date: 01 Jun 20 - 05:03 PM

CHARLIE'S FATE
(From LaVon Larsen, McCammon, Idaho (1920s))

Charlie went down in the bucket;
The bucket went down in the well;
His wife cut the rope on the bucket,
And Chrlie went down into ---
Ting-a-ling-ling--tra-la-la-la!
How sweet are the voices that come from afar!
Ting-a-ling-ling--tra-la-la-la,
As I play on my Spanish guitar!

When Charlie got down into Hades,
He met with a terrible hap;
He stepped on a red-hot shovel,
And unttered the word, "I'll be---!"
Ting-a-ling-ling--tra-la-la-la!
How sweet are the voices that come from afar!
Ting-a-ling-ling--tra-la-la-la,
As I play on my Spanish guitar!

When Satan heard Charlie a-cussing,
He locked him right up in a cell;
"I'm a jolly good old fellow,
But no cussing will I have in---!"
Ting-a-ling-ling--tra-la-la-la!
How sweet are the voices that come from afar!
Ting-a-ling-ling--tra-la-la-la,
As I play on my Spanish guitar!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: Mrrzy
Date: 25 Aug 19 - 12:06 AM

I know several don't-sing-the-expected-word songs, but not this one, is it to a known tune? I like it!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: GUEST
Date: 24 Aug 19 - 12:43 AM

My father was shot for sheep steeling    My mother was burnt as a witch.    My sister’s a dancer in Italy, so I guess I’m a son of a ...

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: GUEST,Lin
Date: 12 Oct 18 - 03:49 AM

Sorry, should have said a 'Johnny' because that was explained to me as the slang term for a type of miner.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: GUEST,Lin
Date: 12 Oct 18 - 03:38 AM

The version passed down in my family is just a wee bit different...

Johnny got into the bucket
The bucket went down in the well
His wife cut the string on the bucket
And Johnny fell down into....

Ting a ling ling a ling tra la la la
Sweet are the voices that come from afar
Ting a ling ling a ling tra la la la
As he played on his Spanish guitar

When Johnny got down into mmmm mmmm
He met with a terrible slam
He stepped on a red hot shovel
And uttered the words "I'll be..."

Ting a ling ling a ling tra la la la
Sweet are the voices that come from afar
Ting a ling ling a ling tra la la la
As he played on his Spanish guitar

When Satan a'heard him cussin
He threw him right into a cell
Said "I'm a jolly good fellow
But don't 'llow no cussin in....

Ting a ling ling a ling tra la la la
Sweet are the voices that come from afar
Ting a ling ling a ling tra la la la
As he played on his Spanish guitar (pum pum)

*The song also came with an explanation...
Johnny is a miner, 'The bucket' is the basket/cage they are lowered into the mine is called. The wife part was the mine owners claims that somebody cut the rope so it wasn't their fault. (There was more to the story, but all I can remember is that the cell part was a survivor getting locked up for causing trouble for the mine bosses by claiming it was not sabotage that caused the accident)

Think the official date may be wrong also as my great aunt swore she learned it from the old folks when she was a kid (1900s-1920s)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: GUEST
Date: 07 Dec 17 - 06:41 PM

I learned that song about 40 years ago at summer camp, and we sang it all the time:

Charlie fell into a bucket,
Then the bucket fell into a well.
His wife cut the rope to the bucket,
And Charlie fell straight down to...
Tring-ala-ling and a tra-la-la-la,
So sweet are the voices we hear from afar.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: GUEST,Guest, Lois
Date: 19 Jun 15 - 05:47 AM

Charlie Went Down In The Bucket (My understanding of this
song is that Charlie's wife is the sweet voice and she is playing on her Spanish guitar.)
The following is the way I learned the song some 80 plus yrs. ago.)

Charlie went down in the bucket
And the bucket went down in the well,
His wife cut the rope on the bucket
And Charlie went on down to ….   
Tring, ling, ling, ling, tra, la, la, la,
Sweet is the voice that comes heard from afar
Tring, ling, ling, ling, tra, la, la, la,
As she played on her Spanish guitar.

Charlie went on down to Hades
And he landed with a terrible slam
He landed on a red hot shovel
And said, "I don't give a …."
Tring, ling, ling ling, tra, la, la, la
Sweet is the voice that comes from afar
Tring ling, ling, ling, Tra, la, la, la
She played on her Spanish guitar.

Now the Devil heard Charlie a'cursing
And he locked him up in a cell
He said, "Guess you know I'm the Devil
But we allow no cursing in …."
Tring, ling, ling, ling, tra, la, la, la,
Sweet is the voice that comes from afar
Tring, ling, ling, ling, tra, la, la, la,
She played on her Spanish guitar.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: GUEST,Guest
Date: 19 Jun 15 - 05:17 AM

I learned this song from my blind cousin, 81 yrs. ago. He sung it as "Charlie went down in a bucket."

Oh Satan heard Charlie a cursin'
And he locked him up in a cell
He said, "I guess you know I'm the devil
And I don't allow any cursin' in hell."

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: GUEST
Date: 20 May 15 - 07:05 PM

I learned this song at an all girls camp, many of our camp songs with male main characters were naturally changed to females (for example we sang "father Abraham, had many DAUGHTERS..." etc.). This song was one of those that was changed, so it went something like this, though I probably have the name wrong.

Oh Sally went down in the bucket,
The bucket went down in the well,
Someone let go of the bucket,
And Sally went down into...

Ting a ling, ling ling ling, tra la la la,
Sweet are the voices we hear from afar,
Ting a ling, ling ling ling, tra la la la,
She played on her Spanish guitar.

Now Sally was walkin' in Hades,
As meek and as mild as a lamb,
She stepped on a red hot poker,
And said "well I'll be..."

Ting a ling, ling ling ling, tra la la la,
Sweet are the voices we hear from afar,
Ting a ling, ling ling ling, tra la la la,
She played on her Spanish guitar.

The devil heard Sally a cussin',
And locked her right up in a cell,
He said "Now young lady you must understand,
They'll be no more cussin' in..."

Ting a ling, ling ling ling, tra la la la,
Sweet are the voices we hear from afar,
Ting a ling, ling ling ling, tra la la la,
She played on her Spanish guitar!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: GUEST,S. D. Lindstrom
Date: 29 Nov 14 - 04:05 AM

My mother sang to my brother and I one last verse. She always slowed the tempo down for "dramatic effect" I guess. It went something like this:

    If you're ever walking in Hades
    Let me give you a tip.
    The devil don't cotton to cussin'
    So if you do you'll be in deep...

    Ting ling ling ling and fa la la la
    Sweet little voices we hear from afar
    Ting ling ling ling and fa la la la
    He played on his spanish guitar...Ole'!

The first part of the song went pretty much like what is already written here with just minor changes (probably depends a lot on which part of the south you come from). Thanks for the trip down memory lane. It always tickled me to hear my mom sing this 'cause we would sing with her but real soft like we were getting away with something bad. She passed last year at the ripe old age of 83 but she was still a card right up to the end. And we still miss her sense of humor.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: GUEST
Date: 17 Jun 13 - 10:29 AM

The first verse is the same as we sang ("his wife cut the rope to the bucket, and Johnny went straight down to--"). I can't remember the second verse at all, unfortunately.

We sang the last verse as:

Well Satan heard Johnny a-cussin'
And locked him up in a cell
He said "We won't have you, no sir!
We don't use that language in--'

And the chorus was:

Ting-a-ling, ting-a-ling, tra-la-la-la
Sweet as the music when heard from afar
Ting-a-ling, ting-a-ling, tra-la-la-la
He played on his Spanish guitar

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: GUEST,young at heart
Date: 02 Jun 13 - 09:28 PM

Whoops! My cursor must have been in the wrong place when I added that last question. "Does anyone out there have more verses?" is NOT part of the song. Sorry about that.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: GUEST,young at heart
Date: 02 Jun 13 - 09:01 PM

I checked out this website hoping to find more verses than the 3 my grandmother taught me back in the 40's. She was a nurse at a boy's camp in the early 20's and I got the impression that many of the songs and games she taught me came from there. The following are the words she sang.

Oh, Johnny went down in the bucket, oh, Johnny went down in the well,
His wife cut the string on the bucket,and Johnny went straight down to...
Tinga linga linga linga linga linga tra la la la
Music is sweeter when heard from afar
Tinga linga linga linga linga linga tra la la la
When played on a Spanish guitar.

Now Johnny went straight down to Hades and fell with an awful slam.
He stepped on a red hot shovel and said "Well I will be...
Tinga linga linga linga linga linga tra la la la
Music is sweeter when heard from afar
Tinga linga linga linga linga linga tra la la la
When played on a Spanich guitar.

The Devil came right up to Johnny and locked him up in a cell.
He said "Look here young fellow. We'll have no such language in
Tinga linga linga linga linga linga tra la la la
Music is sweeter when heard from afar
Tinga linga linga linga linga linga tra la la la

Does anyone out there have more verses?
When played on a Spanish guitar.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: GUEST
Date: 28 Nov 12 - 12:44 PM

Oh Johnny fell down in the bucket
the bucket fell down in the well
his wife cut the rope to the bucket
and Johnny fell clear down to ...

Johnny fell clear down to Hades
and struck with a terrible bam
he stepped on a red hot poker
and uttered the words I'll be...

Oh the Devil heard Johnny a cussin'
And threw him right into a cell
He said I'll have no cussin'
a way down here in ...

ting a ling ling ling ling tra la la la
sweet are the voices that come from a far
ting a ling ling ling ling tra la la la
as I play on my spanish guitar

As sung by my father as long as I can remember, with his Martin guitar he bought in high school. He was born in 1918 and is still alive.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket
From: GUEST,Mac
Date: 19 Feb 12 - 03:54 AM

My wife learned this song from her Mother as a child but her version said " these were the voices he heard from the fire" instead of " sweet were the voices he heard from afar" and it was Charley instead of Johnny.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket (Ozark
From: GUEST,lisa
Date: 04 Nov 11 - 03:48 PM

page 3:
Charlie Went Down In The Bucket from Bonnie K.
First, the lyrics:
Charlie went down in the bucket,
The bucket went down in the well.
His wife cut the rope to the bucket
And Charlie went straight down to ―
Tring, ling, ling, ling-
Tra, la, la, la
Sweet were the voices he heard from afar
Tring, ling, ling, ling-
Tra, la, la, la
As he played on his Spanish guitar.
Charlie went straight down to Hades
And hit with an awful 'Wham!'
He stumped his toe on a red hot poker
And said, 'I don't give a ―
Tring, ling, ling ling,
Tra, la, la, la,
Sweet were the voices he heard from afar
Tring ling, ling, ling, Tra, la, la, la
As the played on his Spanish guitar
Now the Devil heard Charlie a'cursing
And locked him up in a cell
I know you're a mighty fine fellow
But we allow no cursing in ―
Tring, ling, ling, ling,
Tra, la, la, la,
As he played on his Spanish guitar.

Subject: RE: Req/Add: Johnny fell down in the bucket
From: GUEST,mlp1957mm
Date: 29 May 05 - 11:18 AM

I've been looking for the second verse for some time now. I couln't remeber it. Thanks. We always sang the last verse like this:

   Now Satan heard Johnny A cussin'
   And locked him up in a cell.
   He said now Johnny old fellow
   We don't 'low cussin' in
   Tring ling ling tra la la la
   He played on his Spanish Guitar

Subject: RE: Req/Add: Johnny fell down in the bucket
From:
Date: 13 Mar 05 - 02:22 AM

My Great-Grandad always sang the last verse like this:

the Devil heard Johnny a cussin'
and locked him right up in a cell
he said "now look here, young feller
they'll be no such cussin' in"
tring a ling ling tra la la la....

Subject: RE: Req/Add: Johnny fell down in the bucket
From: GUEST,embargo15
Date: 21 Jan 05 - 04:08 PM

Thanks! It's been driving me nuts for weeks.

Yes, the tring-ling chorus always chimed in to bleep out naughty words. It was almost like a voice over.

My father claimed that there were over a hundred verses, but I couldn't even remember the first one! Thanks again for refershing a childhood memory.

Subject: RE: Req/Add: Johnny fell down in the bucket
From: Snuffy
Date: 21 Jan 05 - 03:36 PM

How about something like this, with a short third verse

While Johnny was walking in Hades
As meek and as calm as a lamb,
He stepped on a red-hot poker,
And said Well, I'll be...
Tring-ling-ling-ling-ling-ling tra-la-la-la
Sweet as the voices we hear from afar,
Tring-ling-ling-ling-ling-ling tra-la-la-la
He played on his Spanish guitar.

Satan said, Look here, young fellow,
We'll allow no cussin in....
Tring-ling-ling-ling-ling-ling tra-la-la-la
Sweet as the voices we hear from afar,
Tring-ling-ling-ling-ling-ling tra-la-la-la
He played on his Spanish guitar.

Subject: RE: Req/Add: Johnny fell down in the bucket
From: Joe Offer
Date: 21 Jan 05 - 12:43 PM

Yeah, Robin - that's the way I figured it, too; but I think the Tring-ling is supposed to fill in for naughty words like "hell" and "damn."
-Joe Offer-

Subject: RE: Req/Add: Johnny fell down in the bucket
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 21 Jan 05 - 07:38 AM

Try

While Johnny was walking in Hades
As meek and as calm as a lamb,
He stepped on a red-hot poker,
And said Well, I'll be...
Ting-ling-ling-ling-ling-ling tra-la-la-la
Satan said, Look here, young fellow,
Ting-ling-ling-ling-ling-ling tra-la-la-la
We'll allow no cussin in....

which obviously goes ummediately into a chorus of some sort, or perhaps another verse or the first verse again (in order to 'cover up' the obvious missing words)... maybe it never finishes.... :-)

It's very much 'English Humour' style ....

Subject: ADD: Johnny fell down in the bucket
From: Joe Offer
Date: 21 Jan 05 - 01:22 AM

Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket

Johnny fell down in the bucket,
The bucket fell down in the well.
His wife cut the rope to the bucket
And Johnny fell down into...
Tring-ling-ling-ling-ling-ling tra-la-la-la
Sweet as the voices we hear from afar,
Tring-ling-ling-ling-ling-ling tra-la-la-la
He played on his Spanish guitar.

While Johnny was walking in Hades
As meek and as calm as a lamb,
He stepped on a red-hot poker,
And said Well, I'll be...

Satan said, Look here, young fellow,
We'll allow no cussin in....

Sung by Miss Gloria Trail, Farmington, Arkansas, 5 October 1941

Source: Vance Randolph, Ozark Folksongs, #420

---

I don't quite get how the second verse is supposed to be organized. Can you explain, Embargo?

---

Click to play

-Joe Offer-

---

Here's the Traditional Ballad Index entry:

Johnny Fell Down in the Bucket

DESCRIPTION: "Johnny fell down the bucket, The bucket fell down the well, His wife cut the rope... And Johnny fell down into -- (nonsense chorus)." "Johnny was walking in Hades, As meek and calm as a lamb, She stepped on a red-hot poker, And said, Well, I'll be --"
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1941 (Randolph)
KEYWORDS: humorous Hell wordplay
FOUND IN: US(So)
REFERENCES (1 citation):
Randolph 420, "Johnny Fell Down the Bucket" (1 text, 1 tune)
Roud #7631
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "Hallelujah"
NOTES: Like "Hallelujah" or "Hopalong Peter," this is one of those "hidden word" songs -- the verse leads you to expect the last word, which is usually not fit for polite company. But instead of saying the word, it breaks off into the chorus. - RBW
File: R420

---

Go to the Ballad Search form
Go to the Ballad Index Instructions
Go to the Bibliography
Go to the Discography

The Ballad Index Copyright 2011 by Robert B. Waltz and David G. Engle.

Subject: Lyr Req: Johnny fell down in the bucket
From: GUEST,embargo15
Date: 21 Jan 05 - 12:43 AM

My father used to sing a folk song ... "Johnny fell down in the bucket, the bucket fell down in the well" each verse ended with "tingling, tingling ... I played on my spanish guitar." I'd love to find the lyrics for sentimental reasons. Can anyone help?