I LONG TO BE SINGLE AGAIN

Oh, when I was single,
Oh, then, Oh, then;
Oh when I was single,
Oh, then;
Oh, when I was single
My pockets would jingle,
And I long to be single again!

My wife got a fever,
Oh, then, Oh, then,
My wife got a fever,
Oh, then;
My wife got a fever,
And I hope it don't leave her,
For I long to be single again1

My wife she died
Oh, then Oh, then;
My wife she died,
My wife she died,
And I laughed till I cried,
Because I was single again!

Went off to the funeral
Oh, then Oh, then,
Went off to the fueral,
Oh, then;
I heaved and I signed,
And I laughed till I cried;
And I started off courting again!

I married another,
Oh, then, Oh, then;
I married another
Oh, then;
I married another,
The Devil's grandmother;
And I long to be single again!

Be good to the first,
Oh, then, Oh, then,
Be good to the first,
Oh, then;
Be good to the first,
For the last is the worse,
And you'll long to be single again!

Pg 33, Songs and Ballads: Folk Material and Old Favorites, by James Kenneth Larson. Idaho. Undated [c1933].

See online here:

https://archive.org/details/1933-1972jameskennethlarson/page/n31/mode/1up