The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #9774   Message #64486
Posted By: murray@mpce.mq.edu.au
20-Mar-99 - 07:37 AM
Thread Name: Industrial revolution/agricultural songs
Subject: Lyr Add: Peg and Awl^^^
How about "Peg and Awl". It goes:

In the days of eighteen and one Peg and awl(2X)
In the year of eighteen and one,
Peggin' shoes is all I done,
Hand me down my pegs, my pegs, mu pegs, my awl

In the days of eighteen and two peg and awl (2X)
In the days of eighteen and two peggin' shoes is all I'd do.

Hand me down....

In the days of eighteen and three, peg and awl (2X)
In the days of eighteen and three, peggin shoes is all you'd see
Hand me down...

In the days of eighteen and four....
In the days of eighteen and four, I said I'd peg them shoes no more
Throw away my pegs, my pegs, my pegs, my awl

They've invented a new machine, peg and awl (2X)
They've invented a new machine. The prettiest thing you've ever seen
Throw away.....

Makes one hundred pair to my one, peg and awl (2X)
Makes 100 pair to my one, peggin' shoes it aint no fun
Throw away....

(Spoken by another band member) Some shoemaker!

It is recorded by the Carolina Tar Heels and is part of the "Anthologh of American Folk Music". I am pretty sure I have heard Pete Seeger sing it too.

Harry Smith claims that it was recorded many times, but doesn't appear in any of the standard printed sources.

Clarence Ashley does the singing except an unnamed band member chants the phrase "peg and awl" each time.

Murray