I first heard Van Ronk sing this at the old Cellar Door in DC around 1981; the first time I'd ever heard him live. It was a great concert! Dave introduced the song with the story mentioned on the other thread about the kids on the street chanting the "Hookah, tookah soda cracker" bit to warn the "ladies" upstairs that the cops were about to pay a visit. I like his version much better than the prettified one that Peter, Paul and Mary recorded.