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Subject: Lyr Add: BLACK LUNG (Hazel Dickens) From: Jim Dixon Date: 21 Apr 23 - 10:17 AM This song was mentioned by GUEST,henryp on 28 Mar 23, and it may be the same song that Stilly River Sage mentioned earlier, on 19 Mar 23: BLACK LUNG As recorded by Hazel Dickens on “Classic Labor Songs from Smithsonian Folkways,” 2006. He’s had more hard luck than most men could stand. The mines were his first love, but never his friend. He’s lived a hard life, and hard he’ll die. Black lung’s done got him. His time is nigh. Black lung, black lung, you’re just biding your time. Soon all this suffering I’ll leave behind. But I can’t help but wonder what God had in mind To send such a devil to claim this soul of mine. He went to the boss man, but he closed the door. Well, it seems you’re not wanted when you’re sick and you’re poor. You’re not even covered in their medical plans, And your life depends on the favors of men. Down in the poorhouse on starvation’s plan, Where pride is a stranger and doomed is a man, His soul full of coal dust till his body’s decayed And everyone but black lung’s done turned him away. Black lung, black lung, your hand’s icy cold. As you reach for my life, you torture my soul. Cold as that waterhole down in the dark cave Where I spent my life’s blood, digging my own grave. Down at the graveyard, the boss man came With his little bunch of flowers. Dear God! What a shame. Take back those flowers. Don’t you sing no sad songs. The die has been cast now. A good man is gone. |
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Subject: Lyr Add: OUR FATHERS OF OLD (Rudyard Kipling) From: Jim Dixon Date: 20 Apr 23 - 08:10 PM And here is the complete poem that a guest quoted on 27 Mar 23, from Rewards and Fairies by Rudyard Kipling (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1910), page 309: ‘OUR FATHERS OF OLD’ (Rudyard Kipling) EXCELLENT herbs had our fathers of old— Excellent herbs to ease their pain— Alexanders and Marigold, Eyebright, Orris, and Elecampane. Basil, Rocket, Valerian, Rue, (Almost singing themselves they run) Vervain, Dittany, Call-me-to-you— Cowslip, Melilet, Rose of the Sun. Anything green that grew out of the mould Was an excellent herb to our fathers of old. Wonderful tales had our fathers of old— Wonderful tales of the herbs and the stars— The Sun was Lord of the Marigold, Basil and Rocket belonged to Mars. Pat as a sum in division it goes— (Every plant had a star bespoke)— Who but Venus should govern the Rose? Who but Jupiter own the Oak? Simply and gravely the facts are told In the wonderful books of our fathers of old. Wonderful little, when all is said, Wonderful little our fathers knew. Half their remedies cured you dead— Most of their teaching was quite untrue— ‘Look at the stars when a patient is ill, (Dirt has nothing to do with disease,) Bleed and blister as much as you will, Blister and bleed him as oft as you please.’ Whence enormous and manifold Errors were made by our fathers of old. Yet when the sickness was sore in the land, And neither planet nor herb assuaged, They took their lives in their lancet-hand And, oh, what a wonderful war they waged! Yes, when the crosses were chalked on the door— Yes, when the terrible dead-cart rolled, Excellent courage our fathers bore— Excellent heart had our fathers of old, None too learned, but nobly bold Into the fight went our fathers of old. If it be certain, as Galen says, And sage Hippocrates holds as much— ‘That those afflicted by doubts and dismays Are mightily helped by a dead man’s touch,’ Then, be good to us, stars above! Then, be good to us, herbs below! We are afflicted by what we can prove; We are distracted by what we know— So—ah so! Down from your heaven or up from your mould, Send us the hearts of our fathers of old! |
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Subject: Lyr Add: CHOLERA CAMP (Rudyard Kipling) From: Jim Dixon Date: 20 Apr 23 - 07:04 PM Here’s the complete poem that Howard Kaplan quoted on 27 Mar 23, from The Seven Seas by Rudyard Kipling (London: Methuen and Co., 1896), page 186: CHOLERA CAMP (Rudyard Kipling) We’ve got the cholerer in camp—it’s worse than forty fights; We’re dyin’ in the wilderness the same as Isrulites; It’s before us, an’ be’ind us, an’ we cannot get away, An’ the doctor’s just reported we’ve ten more to-day! Oh, strike your camp an’ go, the bugle’s callin’, The Rains are fallin’— The dead are bushed an’ stoned to keep ’em safe below; The Band’s a-doin’ all she knows to cheer us; The chaplain’s gone and prayed to Gawd to ’ear us— To ’ear us— O Lord, for it’s a-killin’ of us so! Since August, when it started, it’s been stickin’ to our tail, Though they’ve ’ad us out by marches an’ they’ve ’ad us back by rail; But it runs as fast as troop-trains, and we can not get away; An’ the sick-list to the Colonel makes ten more to-day. There ain’t no fun in women nor there ain’t no bite to drink; It’s much too wet for shootin’, we can only march and think; An’ at evenin’, down the nullahs, we can ’ear the jackals say, 'Get up, you rotten beggars, you’ve ten more to-day!’ ’Twould make a monkey cough to see our way o’ doin’ things— Lieutenants takin’ companies an’ captains takin’ wings, An’ Lances actin’ Sergeants—eight file to obey— For we’ve lots o’ quick promotion on ten deaths a day! Our Colonel’s white an’ twitterly—’e gets no sleep nor food, But mucks about in ’orspital where nothing does no good. ’E sends us ’eaps o’ comforts, all bought from ’is pay— But there aren’t much comfort ’andy on ten deaths a day. Our Chaplain’s got a banjo, an’ a skinny mule ’e rides, An’ the stuff ’e says an’ sings us, Lord, it makes us split our sides! With ’is black coat-tails a-bobbin’ to Ta-ra-ra Boom-der-ay! ’E’s the proper kind o’ padre for ten deaths a day. An’ Father Victor ’elps ’im with our Roman Catholicks— He knows an ’eap of Irish songs an’ rummy conjurin’ tricks; An’ the two they works together when it comes to play or pray; So we keep the ball a-rollin’ on ten deaths a day. We’ve got the cholerer in camp—we’ve got it ’ot an’ sweet; It ain’t no Christmas dinner, but it’s ’elped an’ we must eat. We’ve gone beyond the funkin’, ’cause we’ve found it doesn’t pay, An’ we’re rockin’ round the Districk on ten deaths a day! Then strike your camp an’ go, the Ruins are fallin’, The Bugle’s callin’! The dead are bushed an’ stoned to keep ’em safe below! An’ them that do not like it they can lump it, An’ them that can not stand it they can jump it; We’ve got to die somewhere—some way—some’ow— We might as well begin to do it now! Then, Number One, let down the tent-pole slow, Knock out the pegs an’ ’old the corners—so! Fold in the flies, furl up the ropes, an’ stow! Oh, strike—oh, strike your camp an’ go! (Gawd ’elp us!) |
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Subject: Lyr Add: SNEEZLES (A. A. Milne) From: Jim Dixon Date: 19 Apr 23 - 03:17 PM Mrrzy mentioned this on 13 Dec 13. From Now We are Six by A[lan] A[lexander] Milne (New York: E. P. Dutton & Co., 1927), page 12. I have tried to regularize the stanza and line breaks, which are very irregular in the original, although the meter and rhyme are regular. SNEEZLES By A. A. Milne Christopher Robin Had wheezles and sneezles. They bundled him into his bed. They gave him what goes With a cold in the nose And some more for a cold in the head. They wondered if wheezles Could turn into measles, If sneezles would turn into mumps. They examined his chest For a rash, and the rest Of his body for swellings and lumps. They sent for some doctors In sneezles and wheezles To tell them what ought to be done. All sorts and conditions Of famous physicians Came hurrying round at a run. They all made a note Of the state of his throat. They asked if he suffered from thirst. They asked if the sneezles Came after the wheezles, Or if the first sneezle came first. They said: "If you teazle A sneezle or wheezle, A measle may easily grow, But humour or pleazle The wheezle or sneezle, The measle will certainly go." They expounded the reazles For sneezles and wheezles, The manner of measles when new. They said: “If he freezles In draughts and in breezles, Then phtheezles may even ensue.” Christopher Robin Got up in the morning. The sneezles had vanished away, And the look in his eye Seemed to say to the sky: "Now, how to amuse them today?” |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Mrrzy Date: 18 Apr 23 - 04:31 PM George Collins "was taken sick and died" |
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Subject: Lyr Add: THAT IS THE END OF THE NEWS (Noël Coward) From: Jim Dixon Date: 18 Apr 23 - 01:42 PM This was mentioned by Ken Brock on 08 Dec 13. THAT IS THE END OF THE NEWS Words and music by Noël Coward Originally performed by Joyce Grenfell in the musical revue “Sigh No More,” 1945. We are told very loudly and often To lift up our hearts. We are told that good humour will soften Fate's cruelest darts. So, however bad our domestic troubles may be, We just shake with amusement and sing with glee. Heigh-ho! Mum's got those pains again. Granny's in bed with her varicose veins again. Everyone's gay because dear cousin Florrie Was run down on Saturday night by a lorry. We’re so glad! Elsie’s miscarriage Occurred on the Wednesday after her marriage. When Albert fell down all The steps of the Town Hall, He got three bad cuts and a bruise. We're delighted To be able to say We're unable to pay Off our debts. We're excited Because Percy's got mange And we've run up a bill at the vet's. Three cheers! Ernie's got boils again. Everything's covered in ointment and oils again. Now he's had seven, So God's in His heaven And that is the end of the news. We are told that it's dismal and dreary To air our despairs. We are told to be gallant and cheery And banish our cares. So, when fortune gives us a cup of hemlock to quaff, We just give a slight hiccup and laugh, laugh, laugh. Heigh-ho! Everything's fearful. We do wish that Vi was a little more cheerful. The only result of her last operation Has been gales of wind at the least provocation. Now don't laugh! Poor Mrs Mason Was washing some smalls in the lavatory basin, When that old corroded Gas-heater exploded And blew her smack into the mews. We're in clover! Uncle George is in clink For refusing to work for the war. Now it's over. Auntie Maud seems to think He'll be far better placed than before. What fun! Dear little Sidney’s Produced a spectacular stone in his kidney. He's had eleven, So God's in His heaven, And that is the end of the news. Heigh-ho! What a catastrophe! Grandfather's brain is beginning to atrophy. Last Sunday night after eating an apple. He made a rude noise in the Methodist chapel. Good egg! Dear little Doris Has just been expelled for assaulting Miss Morris. Both of her sisters Are covered in blisters From standing about in the queues. We've been done in By that mortgage foreclosure, And Father went out on a blind. He got run in For indecent exposure And ever so heavily fined. Heigh-ho! Hi-diddle-diddle! Aunt Isabel's shingles have met in the middle. She's buried in Devon. So God's in His heaven. And that is the end of the news. |
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Subject: Lyr Add: ADELAIDE’S LAMENT (Frank Loesser) From: Jim Dixon Date: 18 Apr 23 - 10:45 AM This was mentioned by Ken Brock on 08 Dec 13: ADELAIDE’S LAMENT Words and music by Frank Loesser, written for the musical play “Guys and Dolls,” 1950. Sung by Vivian Blaine in both the original Broadway production and the 1955 film. It says here: “The average unmarried female, basically insecure, Due to some long frustration, may react With psychosomatic symptoms, difficult to endure, Affecting the upper respiratory tract.” In other words, just from waiting around for that plain little band of gold, A person can develop a cold. You can spray her wherever you figure the streptococci lurk. You can give her a shot for whatever she’s got but it just won’t work. If she’s tired of getting the fish-eye from the hotel clerk, A person can develop a cold. It says here: “The female remaining single, just in the legal sense, Shows a neurotic tendency—see note— [Spoken:] Note. Chronic organic symptoms toxic or hypertense, Involving the eye, the ear, the nose, and throat.” In other words, just from worrying whether the wedding is on or off, A person can develop a cough. You can feed her all day with the vitamin A and the Bromo-Fizz, But the medicine never gets anywhere near where the trouble is. If she’s getting a kind of name for herself, and the name ain’t his, A person can develop a cough. And furthermore, just from stalling, and stalling, and stalling the wedding trip, A person can develop La grippe! When they get on that train to Niagara and she can hear church bells chime, The compartment is air-conditioned and the mood sublime, Then they get off at Saratoga for the fourteenth time, A person can develop La grippe. La grippe! La post-nasal drip, With the wheezes and the sneezes and a sinus that’s really a pip! From a lack of community property and a feeling she’s getting too old, A person can develop a bad, bad cold! - - - The sheet music, arranged for voice and piano, with chord names, can be seen in Professional Singers Audition Book, by Paul Honey, Jack Long, and Nick Crispin, which is viewable online here. Recordings are available by Vivian Blaine, Faith Prince, Barbra Streisand, Carol Burnett, and several others. |
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Subject: Lyr Add: FLASH COMPANY / YELLOW HANDKERCHIEF From: GUEST,R J M Date: 18 Apr 23 - 01:17 AM Flash Oh, once I had a colour as red as a rose Now my colour has fade like the lily that do grow Now my colour has fade like the lily that do grow And if it wasn't for flash company I should never been so poor So you take this yellow handkerchief in a remembrance of me And tie it round your neck, my love, in your flash company Flash company has been the ruin of me and the ruin of me quite If it wasn't for flash company I should never been so poor Now it's singing and a dancing sure that is my delight Flash company being the ruin of me and the ruin of me quite Flash company being the ruin of me and a great many more If it wasn't for flash company I should never been so poor Now you take a yellow handkerchief in a remembrance of me And tie it round your neck, my love, in a flash company Flash company has been the ruin of me and a great many more If it wasn't for flash company I should never been so poor Now its all you little flash girls take a warning by me And never build your nest, my love, on the top of a tree For the green leaves they will wither and the roots they will decay And the beauty of a fair young maid that will soon fade away So you take this yellow handkerchief in a remembrance of me And tie that round your neck, my love, in your flash company Flash company's been the ruin of me and the ruin of me quite If it wasn't for flash company I should never been so poor |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Mrrzy Date: 17 Apr 23 - 09:58 PM Ahem! Ahem! Me mother has gone to church! She told me not to play with you because you're in the dirt! And tisn't because you're dirty And tisn't because you're clean It's because you have the whooping cough and eat margeriiiiine! |
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Subject: Lyr Add:DON’T GIVE A DOSE TO THE ONE YOU LOVE MOST From: Jim Dixon Date: 17 Apr 23 - 07:30 PM This was mentioned by BrooklynJay on 07 Dec 13: DON’T GIVE A DOSE TO THE ONE YOU LOVE MOST As recorded by Shel Silverstein on “Freakin’ at the Freakers Ball,” 1972. Don’t give a dose to the one you love most. Give her some marmalade; give her some toast. You can give her the willies or give her the blues, But the dose that you give her will get back to you. I once had a lady as sweet as a song. She was my darlin’, and she was my dear. But she had a dose, and she passed it along. Now she’s gone, but the dose is still here. So, don’t give a dose to the one you love most. Give her some marmalade; give her some toast. You can give her a partiridge up in a pear tree, But the dose that you give her might get back to me. So if you’ve got an itchin’, if you’ve got a drip, Don’t sit there wishin’ for it to go ’way. If there’s a thing on the tip of your thing or your lip, Run down to the clinic today, and say: “I won’t give a dose to the one I love most. I’ll give her some marmalade, give her some toast.” Give her the willies or give her the blues, But the dose that you give her will get back to you. |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: keberoxu Date: 17 Apr 23 - 09:32 AM A couple of irreverent comments: an earlier poster referenced Cat Stevens. I believe the song is called "I'm gonna be a Pop Star" and what he says is The Cold Bank, not "the cold house." Then we have the tomfoolery of Tom Smothers, who does a long intro with straight man Dick Smothers about songs about diseases, eventually leading into the "Measles Song" which amounts merely to: There was a day When the Measles struck OUCH |
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Subject: Lyr Add: MY FAVORITE DISEASES (Mike Agranoff) From: Jim Dixon Date: 17 Apr 23 - 09:16 AM Joe F mentioned this on 06 Dec 13. Copied from Mike Agranoff’s website (with format tweaked by me): MY FAVORITE DISEASES Sung by Mike Agranoff on his albums “Rocking the Boat” (cassette, 1987) and “Ain't Never Been Plugged” (CD, 2007) Words: Mike Agranoff; music (except as noted): “My Favorite Things” by Richard Rodgers. 1. Smallpox and chicken pox, chronic bronchitis, Syphilis and typhus and encephalitis, Sinuses ravaged with coughing and sneezes, These are a few of my favorite diseases. 2. Pains that are minor and pains that are chronic, Hangnails and herpes and plagues most bubonic, Swine flu that renders you weak in the kneeses, These are a few of my favorite diseases. BRIDGE 1: When my bowels run—and it comes from—Montezuma's curse, I simply remember my favorite disease, and that makes me feel—much worse. [Tune: “The Girl from Ipanema”]: Thin and wan and pale and wasted, The girl with emphysema goes walking, And when she passes, each breath she passes goes “Aaauuuuuggghhh!” [Tune: “Yesterday”]: Leprosy, All my skin is falling off of me. I'm not half the man I used to be. 3. Cancer and hemorrhoids, tuberculosis. Yaws and malaria, multiple sclerosis, Chest pains that no simple remedy eases, These are a few of my favorite diseases. 4. Gangrene and jaundice severe dermatitis, Ulcers and gallstones and appendicitis, Polio, whooping cough, colds, mumps, and measles, These are a few of my favorite diseasles. BRIDGE 2: When neuralgia—brings nostalgia—for those pains gone by, I think of diseases I've yet to contract, and that makes me want—to die. |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: GUEST,Dave Hanson Date: 17 Apr 23 - 08:05 AM A few years ago I once ate my lunch in the Cholera Cemetry in Leeds [ West Yorkshire ] city Centre, nothing ontoward there, it is quite open to anyone who wants a look. Dave H |
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Subject: Lyr Add: SOMEDAYS (Paul McCartney) From: Jim Dixon Date: 16 Apr 23 - 07:47 PM This song was mentioned on 06 Dec 13 by Galloping Gwdihw, who says it’s about Alzheimer’s. That’s plausible, but I couldn’t find any confirmation of it. There’s a long description of the song at The Paul McCartney Project website, including the circumstances of when it was written, but no interpretation is offered. SOMEDAYS Words and music by Paul McCartney As recorded by Paul McCartney on “Flaming Pie,” 1997; remastered 2020. 1. Somedays I look; I look at you with eyes that shine. Somedays I don’t; I don’t believe that you are mine. It’s no good asking me what time of day it is, Who won the match or scored the goal. Somedays I look; somedays I look into your soul. 2. Sometimes I laugh; I laugh to think how young we were. Sometimes it’s hard; it's hard to know which way to turn. Don't ask me where I found that picture on the wall, How much it cost or what it's worth. Sometimes I laugh; I laugh to think how young we were. BRIDGE: We don’t need anybody else to tell us what is real. Inside each one of us is love, and we know how it feels. 3. Somedays I cry; I cry for those who live in fear. Somedays I don't; I don't remember why I'm here. No use reminding me—it's just the way it is— Who ran the race or came in first. Somedays I cry; I cry for those who fear the worst. REPEAT BRIDGE; REPEAT VERSE 1. |
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Subject: Lyr Add: GO TO WORK ON MONDAY (Si Kahn) From: Jim Dixon Date: 15 Apr 23 - 09:06 PM This was mentioned by Jacob B on 02 May 00. It’s in the Digital Tradition Database, but the DT doesn’t correctly show its chorus, so I’ll correct it here. I verified the lyrics (and made some small changes) based on the recording at YouTube. It is also on Spotify. GO TO WORK ON MONDAY As recorded by Si Kahn on “Thanksgiving,” 2007. I did my part in World War Two, got wounded for the nation. Now my lungs are all shot down; there ain't no compensation. CHORUS: I'm gonna go to work on Monday one more time. I'm gonna go to work on Monday one more time, one more time. I'm gonna go to work on Monday one more time. Now the doctor says I smoke too much; he says that I'm not tryin’. He says he don't know what I've got, but we both know he's lyin’. CHORUS The last time I went near my job, I thought my lungs were broken. Chest bound down like iron bands, I couldn't breathe for chokin’. CHORUS Now the politicians in this state, they're nothin’ short of rotten. They buy us off with fancy words and sell us out to cotton. CHORUS The doctor says both lungs are gone; there ain't no way to shake it. But I can't live without a job; somehow I've got to take it. CHORUS They tell me I can't work at all; there ain't no need of tryin’. But living like some used-up thing is just this short of dyin’. CHORUS Sittin’ on my front-porch swing, I'm like someone forgotten: Head all filled with angry thoughts and lungs filled up with cotton. CHORUS - - - There are other recordings by: The Blinky Moon Boys on “Moonlite Theatre,” 2004. Johnny Collins on “Pedlar of Songs,” 2009. Paul Downes and Phil Beer on “Live at Nettlebed,” 2009. Paul Downes on “Overdue,” 2010. Roy Bailey on “Sit Down & Sing,” 2013. Elijah Bedel on “Live and Learn,” 2020. Free Pickin’ on “25 Jaar,” 2021. |
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Subject: Lyr Add: (JIM) I WORE A TIE TODAY (Eddy Arnold) From: Jim Dixon Date: 15 Apr 23 - 11:32 AM This was also mentioned by Kettel on 27 Apr 00: (JIM) I WORE A TIE TODAY As recorded by Eddy Arnold on “Cattle Call,” 1963. [SPOKEN] Jim, I did ev’rything that I could, but your fever just wouldn’t die down, So I tied your horse to the wagon bed and last night I brought you to town. But when I got there, you were gone, Jim, and there was nothin’ nobody could do. I bought you a suit an’ a tie, Jim, and today I wore one too. [SUNG] Jim, I wore a tie today, the first one that I ever wore, And you’d have said I looked like a dummy out of a dry-goods store. . Jim, they said a lot o’ things but I don’t know a thing they said My mind kept wand’ring off down the trail back to the times that we’ve had. Riding herd through the sun and the rain, panning for gold on the cuff We’ve done ev’rything in the book, I guess, and a lot they never thought up Well, Jim, you’re ridin’ on ahead I guess that’s how it has to be But when you reach those streets paved with gold, Jim, stake a claim out for me - - - Also recorded by: Jimmy Dean, on “Jimmy Dean is Here!” 1967. Johnny Cash, on “Bootleg Vol. 1: Personal File,” 2006. The Highwaymen (Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson), on “Highwayman,” 1985. |
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Subject: Lyr Add: WHY DOES IT HURT WHEN I PEE (Frank Zappa) From: Jim Dixon Date: 15 Apr 23 - 10:48 AM This was mentioned by Kettel on 27 Apr 00. I found it on Spotify. WHY DOES IT HURT WHEN I PEE? As recorded by Frank Zappa on “Joe’s Garage Acts I, II & III,” 1979. Why does it hurt when I pee? Why does it hurt when I pee? I don’t want no doctor to stick no needle in me. Why does it hurt when I pee? I got it from the toilet seat. I got it from the toilet seat. It jumped right up and grabbed my meat. I got it from the toilet seat. My balls feel like a pair of maracas. My balls feel like a pair of maracas. O God, I’ve probably got the gonococcacoccas! My balls feel like a pair of maracas. Why does it, why does it, why does it, why does it hurt when I pee? |
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Subject: Lyr Add: THE CHOLERA CEMETERY (Chris Vallillo) From: Jim Dixon Date: 14 Apr 23 - 05:42 PM This song was mentioned by GUEST,Alex on 26 Apr 00. I found it on Spotify and YouTube: THE CHOLERA CEMETERY As recorded by Chris Vallillo on “Best of All Possible Worlds,” 1997. On an old ... prairie, in the shade of old gnarled oaks, By the rusted iron gatepost with poison ivy choked, Lies a long-forgotten marker that was placed for all to see, To warn those few that come here this is a cholera cemetery. July, 1849, the sun burned hot and cruel. The air hung thick and stagnant for the town of Liverpool. There on the muddy Illinois, packet steamboats moored, Returning from St. Louis, one passenger aboard. Up in that sweltering stateroom, a man lay sick in bed. Throughout the town in whispered tones, the word “cholera” spread. All steered clear of that ship of death as word spread ’round that day, And old women closed their windows and the children did not play. But a man named Robert Summers, for reasons never clear, Went on to see that dying man as the final hour drew near. When Summers left that boat, set his feet on solid shore, He brought with him death’s shadow that soon would dark his door. On July fifth it struck him in writhing agony. Bathed in sweat and vomit, he lay in misery. Five long days he hovered ‘tween the living and the dead. To all who came in contact, the deadly curse was spread. Summers finally perished; his corpse lay in state. A fine carved cherry casket was purchased for the wake. Ah, but that coffin came eight inches short, so the body lay, And spread the curse two more days while a duplicate was made. A neighbor, Jordan Pritchard, helped the family in their strife. He brought home the sickness to his children and his wife. To his young bride Artemisia*, the deadly curse he gave. Alive and well at sunrise, but the sun set on her grave. Throughout the town panic spread; the death toll quickly grew. The weak ones died in hours; the strong, a day or two. And the houses of the victims were shuttered up and burned While neighbors fled in terror and nevermore returned. For thirteen days it ravaged through that stricken river town Till thirteen bodies had been laid beneath that fresh-cut ground. Six miles from town they dug the graves of those they held so dear, Wrapped in some old blanket by a family gripped with fear. A mile off the gravel road by the gnarled twisted oaks, A tarnished sign lies fallen by a rotted wooden post. It reads: “God rest those that lie here for all eternity, And guard all those that come here to this cholera cemetery.” - - - * Spelled according to how it sounded to me on the recording, like the plant artemisia. Some sources say her name was Artimissa, some say Artmacy. Here are some articles that give the historical background: Crumbling 'cholera cemetery' marks final resting place for victims of 1849 outbreak – from the [Peoria, Illinois] Journal Star, Oct. 18, 2014. GenealogyTrails.com |
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Subject: Lyr Add: THE MICROORGANISM (Boiled in Lead) From: Jim Dixon Date: 14 Apr 23 - 12:06 PM Art Thieme mentioned this on 24 Apr 00. I listened to it on Spotify, and I believe these words are accurate: THE MICROORGANISM Words and music by Todd Menton As recorded by Boiled in Lead on “Alloy,” 1998. In April, when your barge sailed through, I fell in love with you. Alas, my paramour, alack! A stranger to me till the test comes back. CHORUS: Oh, the microorganism! Oh, the microorganism! Dive in the gene pool; down you swim, Down to where the light grows dim. Flail, little fishies; flail if you can, But avoid the microorganism man. Caffeine, sugar, THC Is all the doctors are gonna find in me When they do the autopsy. The microorganism won't get me. God is good and God is great. God's a big invertebrate. God made the river change its route, But won't pull the microorganism out. The cowslips bloom and the bluebells too. Here's advice I'll give to you: Rattle* your sword before you strike And never kiss anyone you like. - - - * A text that I found online had “Sheath your sword,” which makes more sense in context, but “Rattle” is definitely what I heard on the recording. Except for the modern vocabulary, the song has the feel of a traditional tune (and maybe it is). Boiled in Lead plays it with drums, electric guitars, a fiddle, and what I think is a keyboard simulating bagpipes. Art said it was about HIV, but it seems to me it could be about syphilis or some other STD. |
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Subject: Lyr Add: TOOTHACHE BLUES (Johnson & Spivey) From: Jim Dixon Date: 14 Apr 23 - 11:15 AM This was mentioned by Doctor John on 24 Apr 00. You can hear both parts at the Internet Archive, here and here. In my transcription, I have left out many short patter phrases, like “Oh, doctor!” that are scattered through the recordings. TOOTHACHE BLUES – Part I (Jefferson) As recorded by Lonnie Johnson and Victoria Spivey on Vocalion 03243, 1928. [Spivey:] I’m havin’ so much trouble with those toothache blues. [Johnson:] I’m a real good doctor, to ease your toothache blues. [Spivey:] It’s got me floor-walkin’ an’ wearin’ out both o’ my shoes. [Johnson:] You need a quick-fillin’ dentist; now, don’t be mean an’ cross. (2x) [Spivey:] Last night I was hot with fever; I just rolled an’ tossed. [Johnson:] Don’t get nervous, honey, when I lay you in my chair. (2x) [Spivey:] If you use what’s in your hand, you’ll make me pull my hair. [Spivey:] I feel a funny li’l somethin’ easin’ into my cavity. (2x) [Johnson:] That’s nothin’ but cocaine an’ liquor to ease your pain, you see. TOOTHACHE BLUES – Part II [Johnson:] When I starts to drillin’, mama, don’t scream an’ shout. (2x) [Spivey:] Yes, but the things that you are usin’ are ’bout to knock me out. [Spivey:] You’re a rough ol’ dentist; you make me moan an’ weep. (2x) [Johnson:] Mama, is I’m grinding into your roots too deep? [Spivey:] Yes, your scalpel’s broken until I lost my head. (2x) [Johnson:] Now, you don’t remember the many things you said. [Johnson:] When I laid you back, your senses left you fast. (2x) [Spivey:] Yes, before I knew it, you flooded me with gas. [Spivey:] I’m weak an’ dizzy. [Johnson:] I told you that you were. [Spivey:] You left me weak an’ dizzy. [Johnson:] I told you that you were. [Johnson:] Now, have all the pains left you? [Spivey:] Yes, doctor; you did me good. [Johnson:] Advise your friends, if they have the toothache blues. [Johnson:] Advise all your friends, if they have the toothache, no time to lose. [Spivey:] I’ll bring ’em to you, doctor, ’cause you just cured my toothache blues. |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: GUEST Date: 03 Apr 23 - 08:36 PM ^ Black Lung, Hazel Dickens https://youtu.be/ODg9gW-ZTJI?t=129s her introduction https://youtu.be/ODg9gW-ZTJI?t=57s coal workers’ pneumoconiosis (CWP) or miner’s lung Black lung is still prevalent in coal workers today. Additionally, without treatment, black lung can cause serious complications such as heart failure, tuberculosis, and lung cancer. https://www.healthline.com/health/black-lung#prevention |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: GUEST,henryp Date: 28 Mar 23 - 10:23 AM From: Stilly River Sage Date: 19 Mar 23 - 02:44 PM In the early 1980s, I spent a couple of years living in Kentucky. On the local public radio station, one of the station-produced programs played a song, sung by a woman and from the woman's point of view, talking about the dangers of mining and of black lung. I can't remember anything about it to hunt it down, but it was simply beautiful and heartbreaking. This note is to simply acknowledge that song's existence. :) Could it be Black Lung, sung unaccompanied by Hazel Dickens? She was the eighth child of an eleven-child mining family in West Virginia. "Her music is characterized by not only her "high lonesome" singing style but also by her provocative pro-union, feminist songs." https://www.last.fm/music/Hazel+Dickens/_/Black+Lung |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Howard Kaplan Date: 27 Mar 23 - 08:26 PM And that reminds me of another Kipling/Bellamy song, "Cholera Camp". Here's the first verse: We've got the cholerer in camp—it's worse than forty fights; We're dyin' in the wilderness the same as Isrulites; It's before us, an' be'ind us, an' we cannot get away, An' the doctor's just reported we've ten more to-day! https://mainlynorfolk.info/peter.bellamy/songs/choleracamp.html |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: GUEST Date: 27 Mar 23 - 06:15 PM The Rudyard Kipling \ Peter Bellamy song Our Fathers of Old has a verse about the plague Yet when the sickness was sore in the land, And neither planet nor herb assuaged, They took their lives in their lancet-hand And, oh, what a wonderful war they waged! Yes, when the crosses were chalked on the door— Yes, when the terrible dead-cart rolled, Excellent courage our fathers bore— Excellent heart had our fathers of old. Not too learned, but nobly bold, And into the fight went our fathers of old. https://mainlynorfolk.info/peter.bellamy/songs/ourfathersofold.html |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Steve Shaw Date: 21 Mar 23 - 02:41 PM I remember this one verse from Imperial College rugby club in 1970 (which should be warning enough): A sweaty sock beside an old French letter A dose of syphilis that won't get better And when I piss it stings These little things Remind me of you... (God forgive me...) |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Jack Campin Date: 21 Mar 23 - 02:02 PM The Scottish accordionist Ian Lowthian was diagnosed with bowel cancer early this year and has undergone surgery. He wrote a tune about it. Oma the Stoma (That's a link to the collection, it's on Wix which fucks up any attempt to give a precise link to the file) |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: GUEST,henryp Date: 20 Mar 23 - 01:49 PM "I'll Never Fall in Love Again" by composer Burt Bacharach and lyricist Hal David was written for the 1968 musical Promises, Promises. Bacharach was hospitalized with pneumonia and wasn't able to sit at a piano to write the music until after he was released. By that time "Hal had already come up with the lyrics to 'I'll Never Fall in Love Again,' and my hospital stay had inspired him to write, 'What do you get when you kiss a girl? / You get enough germs to catch pneumonia / After you do, she'll never phone you.'" When he finally sat with the lyrics in front of him, he recalls, "I wrote the melody for 'I'll Never Fall in Love Again' faster than I had ever written any song in my life." |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Georgiansilver Date: 20 Mar 23 - 10:44 AM Great song by Melanie Safka.... will surely bring back a lot of memories for some. Song by Melanie Safka... contains words 'We all had caught, the same disease' |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Stilly River Sage Date: 19 Mar 23 - 02:44 PM In the early 1980s, I spent a couple of years living in Kentucky. On the local public radio station, one of the station-produced programs played a song, sung by a woman and from the woman's point of view, talking about the dangers of mining and of black lung. I can't remember anything about it to hunt it down, but it was simply beautiful and heartbreaking. This note is to simply acknowledge that song's existence. :) [Black Lung?] |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Jack Campin Date: 19 Mar 23 - 01:48 PM Another thread about this https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=168256 Which includes the broadside I found in the NLS which appears to document an otherwise unknown haemorrhagic virus outbreak in Hull in the early 19th century. |
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Subject: Lyr Add: THE LIMEJUICE SHIP From: GUEST,henryp Date: 19 Mar 23 - 01:40 PM The Limejuice Ship Now, if you want a merchant ship to sail the sea at large We'll not have any trouble if ye have a good discharge, Signed by the Board o' Trade an' ev'rything exact, For there's nothin' done on a Limejuice ship contrary to the Act. Now when ye join a merchant ship ye'll hear yer Articles read. They'll tell ye of yer beef an' pork, yer butter an' yer bread, Yer sugar, tea an' coffee, boys, yer peas an' beans exact, Yer limejuice an' vinegar, boys, according to the Act. No watch an' watch the first day out, according to the Act. Ten days out we all lay aft to get our limejuice whack. Fetch out her handy billy, boys, and clap it on the tack, For we gonna set the mains'l, oh, according to the Act. |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Jack Campin Date: 19 Mar 23 - 01:38 PM John Meredith and Hugh Anderson's "Folk Songs of Australia" includes a song from Queensland, "The Gun Canecutter", with a verse We asked the cook, and a good job too, Because we wouldn't have seen the season through; For the first three weeks he fed us half-cooked rice, And now he's got the cheek to feed us Weil-diseased mice... Apparently this led to a strike in northern Queensland. (Weil's disease is a serious problem in mines, which is why miners took their lunch down below in sealed tins to keep the rats and mice out). |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: GUEST,henryp Date: 19 Mar 23 - 01:28 PM Marco Polo by Hughie Jones of The Spinners The Marco Polo's a very fine ship The fastest on the sea On Australia's strand we soon will land Bully Forbes he can look for me. Gonna jump the ship in Melbourne town Go a-digging gold. There's a fortune found beneath the ground Where the eucalyptus grow. Marco Polo, the fastest on the sea. Marco Polo, the fastest on the sea The Blackball owner Mr. Baines, Said to Bully Forbes one day, "It's up to you to keep your crew When the gold calls them away." Said Bully Forbes to Mr. Baines, "I have a plan so fine. Leave it to me and then you will agree I'm the king of the Blackball Line" Now when we reached the Australia shore Bully Forbes he declared, "There is scurvy. Now on this trip you will not leave this ship Until we reach the Mersey." And now we lie in the Salthouse Dock, I'll go to sea no more, sir I've done me time in the Blackball Line, Under Captain Bully Forbes, sir |
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Subject: Lyr Add: WE’VE GOT THE MUMPS (Bugbee/Weaver) From: Jim Dixon Date: 19 Mar 23 - 11:55 AM From the sheet music at Baylor University: WE’VE GOT THE MUMPS Words by Willis N. Bugbee, music by Thomas B. Weaver, ©1920. 1. [1]Oh, howdy, folks; excuse our looks; we’re going to sing for you. [2]We can’t back out; it’s been announced, so we will brave it through. This morning when we [3]all took sick and sent for Doctor Bumps, He [4]took a squint at us and said, “[5]Those kids have got the mumps.” CHORUS: Oh, yes, [6]we’ve got the mumps all right, [7]the worstest kind of mumps, [8]And if you don’t keep shy of us, you certainly are chumps, For if you don’t, you’ll get exposed; that’s what the doctor said, And it’s not any fun, you bet, to have a [9]swelled-up head, To have a swelled-up head. 2. [10]We dasn’t go outdoors to play till we get well again. [11]We dasn’t eat sour pickles ’cause they give us such a pain, And [12]if we laugh or cough or sneeze, it hurts these horrid lumps. It [13]isn’t any funny thing when folks has got the mumps. 3. [14]Last year we had the whooping cough and my! how we did whoop! [15]The year before, ’twas measles and another time, ’twas croup; And [16]once we had the chickenpox; oh, [17]we were in the dumps! We’ve had most all complaints, you see, and now we’ve got the mumps. Motions: 1 Enter children with heads and necks bandaged and padded. March in circle, once around, then form in line at front of stage. 2 Shake heads right and left. 3 Eyes half closed, heads limp, hands to necks. 4 Hold imaginary eye glasses. 5 Shake forefingers. 6 Nodding heads to emphasize statement. 7 Hands to necks. 8 Shake forefingers warningly to audience. 9 Hold heads. 10 Right hands held forward palms up. Wave toward right. 11 Make very wry faces. 12 Part of children cough and sneeze, with painful expression. 13 Nodding emphatically. 14,15,16 Counting on fingers. 17 Heads and bodies limp. |
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Subject: Lyr Add: I’VE GOT THE MUMPS (Irene Franklin) From: Jim Dixon Date: 19 Mar 23 - 11:52 AM This song was recorded by Irene Franklin on an Edison Blue Amberol cylinder, #950, in 1911, which you can hear at YouTube. Lyrics below copied from the sheet music at Baylor University: Public performing rights positively restricted and reserved exclusively for Miss Irene Franklin. I’VE GOT THE MUMPS Words and music by Irene Franklin and Burt Green, writers of “REDHEAD.” ©1909. 1. I ain’t been to school now for most a week. I’ve got a big lump on my left-hand cheek. Teacher said not to come back again till the Doctor made it better. Ma said, “Oh! what ails my child? His face is full of lumps.” Pa look’d at me and said, “Be Jinks! our angel has the mumps!” CHORUS 1: I’ve got the mumps; I’ve got the mumps. Ma gives me a quarter, says, “Don’t tell Pa.” Pa gives me a dime, an’ says, “Don’t tell Ma.” I never knew I was so popular Till I got the mumps. 2. I got a big sister ’ats nice to me. Las’ week, when we had lots of company, She never told mother why she couldn’t find the pie Ma baked for dinner. [Spoken:] It was awful good pie. I try hard to be nice to her; she nurses all my bumps. Last year I gave her the measles and this year she’ll get the mumps! CHORUS 2: I’ve got the mumps; I’ve got the mumps. No spankings or school till I’m well again. Don’t get up for breakfast till nearly ten. For a nickle I’ll rub up agin you, an’ then, You’ll have the mumps. 3. Say, all of the kids has been up to see The nasty brown stuff Mama rubs on me. I charge ’em four pins for to look at it, and five pins for to smell it. Johnnie Jones he is so mad, I took him down a peg. He’s been putting on so much style because he broke his leg. But— CHORUS 3: I’ve got the mumps; I’ve got the mumps. I wish I could have ’em for years and years. The cook feeds me jam till I get all smears, And mother don’t scrub me behind the ears, Since I’ve got the mumps. |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Mrrzy Date: 13 Dec 13 - 06:07 PM ...she had the measles, she'll never, never die... ...measles said the doctor, mumps said the nurse, chickenpox said the lady with the alligator purse... ...she came down with sickness venereal, the more vulgar-minded say Pox...[The More Vulgar-Minded, from Oscar Brand] I can't think of the others but I'm sure I know more than one where someone gets the pox. And somehow I think I know a song about Balto and diphtheria, but it's not coming to me at all. Then there's Christopher Robin had sneezles and wheezles they bundled him into his bed, which I think has been put to music. [SNEEZLES by A. A. Milne, from "Now We Are Six"] There was also a Tag game when I was a child that was called Yellow Fever... if you tagged somebody they were It too, and those who hadn't seen them get tagged wouldn't know it. Does mental illness count? "19th Nervous Breakdown" by the Rolling Stones? Anything with Crazy? |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Uncle_DaveO Date: 13 Dec 13 - 03:55 PM A couple of posters above have talked about "Arthritis Blues". Is that the same as "All Kinds of Trouble", sung by Ramblin' Jack? That's about arthritis (too?). First few verses: "Well, I went to the doctor, Doctor looked sad. Well, he looked at his book And he told me what I had, And it's all kinds of trouble Gonna find you somehow. "Arthritis is the thing to miss It'll leave you walkin' with a double twist And it's all kinds of trouble Gonna find you somehow." Dave Oesterreich |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: GUEST,Ken Brock Date: 12 Dec 13 - 03:54 PM From the 1971 musical The Grass Harp - "Dropsy Cure Weather" (dropsy is an archaic term for edema). Also from the same show there is a song "Babylove Miracle Show" that may list some diseases - I don't have my copy handy. The recording is one of the standouts from the long career of soprano Barbara Cook. |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: GUEST,.gargoyle Date: 09 Dec 13 - 03:22 AM Nice thread on Leprosy mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=19559#2864497 Sincerely, Gargoyle search under the term "drip, drip," for another fine thread. |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: GUEST,Ken Brock Date: 08 Dec 13 - 06:40 PM Van Morrison recorded a "TB Sheets" while on the Bang label - I don't know if it is related to TB Blues. The Bernstein-Latouche song intended for Candide is Ringaroundarosie, and is on the CD of the 2000 Latouche revue, which I saw. |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Fred Maslan Date: 08 Dec 13 - 04:41 PM Tom Lehrer's I Got It from Agnes. This reminds me of a variation on Geography that we used to play called "Medicare" name a disease and the next one has to take the last letter and name another disease i.e. leprosy-yaws-syphilis etc. |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: GUEST,Ken Brock Date: 08 Dec 13 - 03:28 PM Form the Broadway and London stage corner: "Adelaide's Lament", from Frank Loesser's Guys and Dolls is about a cold, grippe and various respiratory tract symptoms. "That is the End of the News" by Noel Coward, from Sigh No More manages to mention varicose veins, boils, kidney stones, shingles and blisters. Apparently Coward never recorded it (Joyce Grenfell did) and a slightly abridged performance by Tom Lehrer is on youtube. "Freud and Jung and Adler", from the Gershwin brothers' Pardon My English (1933), mentions mumps, cirrhosis of the liver, appendicitis, laryngitis and mental issues. Leonard Bernstein's CANDIDE in various versions has had two different syphilis songs. "Dear Boy" is on the 1988 version on DGG, and "Ringaroundaroise" (possibly not used) is included in the 2000 John Latouche revue Taking a Chance on Love |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: BrooklynJay Date: 07 Dec 13 - 07:43 AM Let's not forget the VD song, Don't Give a Dose to the One You Love Most by Shel Silverstein. Jay |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Jeri Date: 06 Dec 13 - 09:20 PM They don't sing loudly enough for us to hear them, Jack. I suppose they'd need a wicked sensitive sound system. |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Jack Campin Date: 06 Dec 13 - 08:53 PM Let's hear it for the neglected majority. Aren't there any songs from the viewpoint of a bacterium left as the lone survivor after all its people have been wiped out by tetracycline? |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Jeri Date: 06 Dec 13 - 08:04 PM Art Garfunkel's song "Bright Eyes" was written by Mike Batt for the animated film version of Watership Down. Myxomatosis is referred to as "the white blindess" in that film. (So thanks; I managed to learn something while checking this out.) |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: GUEST Date: 06 Dec 13 - 07:10 PM Bloody Cookie escaped again! Rog |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: GUEST Date: 06 Dec 13 - 06:52 PM Dogs at Midnight by Tom Paxton She Moved through the Fair Rog |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: Joe_F Date: 06 Dec 13 - 06:37 PM "My Favorite Diseases" by Mike Agranoff probably mentions the largest number to be found in any one song. |
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Subject: RE: Songs About Disease From: mg Date: 06 Dec 13 - 03:11 PM One version of Bound Down for Newfoundland the captain dies of smallpox. A couple of songs about the famine plagues on the ships are on our Songs for our Ancestors CD. Seems there are remarkably few that come to mind for such a huge problem. Come to think of it I have one on some fever spreading through an Indian Residential school in Canada (First Nations). Near Cowichan, B.C. |
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