On the 1956 album Josh At Midnight, Josh White and Sam Gary do a version of this song (probably the first I ever heard as a young 'un). The lyrics were decidedly tamer, especially in regard to anything directly mentioning slavery, though the liner notes do address the issue.

From the liner notes:

Raise A Rukus - The spiritual and blues are the better known creative works of the American Negro, but he also created any number of delightful dance and play songs. Raise A Rukus is one of these. And, as in the spiritual and blues, the words were often complaints against the Negro's status, first as a slave, and later as a second class citizen. When he sang "raise a rukus", he wasn't just referring to having a good time.

Raise A Rukus

Chorus:
Why don't you come along,
Little children come along,
While the moon is shining bright;
Get on board,
Down by the river shore,
We're gonna raise a rukus tonight!

Old Aunt Dinah went to town,
(Raise a rukus tonight!)
Ridin' a billy-goat, leadin' a hound,
(Raise a rukus tonight!)
Hound dog barked, billy-goat jumped,
(Raise a rukus tonight!)
Threw Aunt Dinah on her rump.
(Raise a rukus tonight!)

(Chorus)

Some folks says that the preacher won't steal,
(Raise a rukus tonight!)
But, I caught two in my cornfield;
(Raise a rukus tonight!)
One had a shovel and one had a hoe,
(Raise a rukus tonight!)
And they were digging up potatoes by the row.
(Raise a rukus tonight!)

(Chorus)

Way down yonder in Chitlin' Switch,
(Raise a rukus tonight!)
Bullfrog jumped from ditch to ditch,
(Raise a rukus tonight!)
Bullfrog jumped from the bottom of the well,
(Raise a rukus tonight!)
Swore, by God, he jumped from Hell.
(Raise a rukus tonight!)

(Chorus)