good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night

Subject: Origin: Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: and e
Date: 29 Dec 23 - 04:25 PM

[[Spoken]] We were hard-boiled and swaggering.

Five o'clock in the morning the warden comes around
With bread and cheese and butter that weights a half a pound;
The coffee tastes like tobacco juice, the bread is hard and stale;
And that's the way they feed the boys in the Raymond Street Jail.

Glorious! Glorious! One keg of beer for the four of us,
We were drunk last night, and were drunk the night before,
And we'll be drunk tonight as we never were before.

[[long pause. To a different tune, the following:]]

I was sitting in jail with my face to the wall.
A red-headed woman was the cause of it all.

Glorious! Glorious! ... [[Spoken:]] We used the same chorus.

Double brackets are inserted by me. Transcribed from Band 2 "Games" the LP When I Was a Boy in Brooklyn by Israel Kaplan. 1961. Folkway Records.

Available online here: https://folkways.si.edu/israel-kaplan/when-i-was-a-boy-in-brooklyn/oral-history-biography/album/smithsonian

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: Lighter
Date: 17 Jun 20 - 01:36 PM

Oneonta (N.Y.) Star, Feb. 16, 1918:

Bombed last night,
   Bombed the night before,
Going to get bombed tonight
   If I never get bombed any more
When we're bombed
   We're scared as we can be.
They can bomb the whole darned army
   If they don't bomb me.

They're over us, they're over us,
   One tiny cave for the four of us,
Glory to God that there aren't any more of us,
    For one of us could fill it all alone.

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: and e
Date: 17 Jun 20 - 08:26 AM

COLLEGE BELL.
Air -- "Dutch Company"

Ven I vakes in de morning, I hear de pig pell,
Den I tinks I can shnooze a very little spell.

Chorus-- For de student company be a shleepy company,
And dey are so shleepy as neber vas he.

Den I reach out a ped and sthrike a little light,
And go to shleep again, mit von eye open tight.

I hear de second pell as he sthrike de first ten,
De toder eye come open, and I go to shleep again.

I hear de first alarm and I tinks I mus rishe,
I lean upon my elpos and den I rubs mine eyes.

For de college pell pe a pery pig pore,
And I vish de man vat rings him vouldn't ring him any more.

De next alarm pegins and I shump out de floor,
I stands dere for a minit and den pegins to shnore.

Mine eyes be so shleepy dat I cannot hardly see,
So I puts mine veskit vere mine pants ought to be.

Den I goes up to de shapel for to hear de Prex pray,
But I pe so very shleepy, I don't know vat he say.

I goes to set down, but I shumps up on my feet,
For I gets much vounded mit a pin in my seat.

Den de Prex reads de verses and de choir begin to sing,
I try to go to shleep again but can do no shuch ting.

For de choir ven dey sings dey make such a noise
I tinks dey must pe tomcats mit tails pulled py de poys.

Den I goes to mine grum but cannot keep awake,
And I goes to shleep again mit a mouf full of steak.

So all through te day I shnooze ven I can,
And bimeby I tinks I make vide avake man.

Pg 41 from the 1860 book Songs of Amherst. Google books link here.

Apparently this song and tune was well know enough that it was used for a parody.

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: and e
Date: 17 Jun 20 - 08:04 AM

THE DUTCH COMPANY

O when you hear the roll of the big base-drum.
Then you may know that the Dutch have come.
For the Deitch company is the best company,
That ever came over from Old German.

Chorus.
Hora, hora, hora, la, la, la,
Hora, hora, hora, tra la, la, tra, la, la, la, lae, tra, la, la la lae,
Heis mine oyster au.

Warble.
Tweedleum, tweedleum, trie, trei, tru, trie, trei, tru trie, trei, tru,
Tweedleum, tweedleum, trie, trei, tru, trie, trei, tru, tra, la e-de, de.

When Greek meets Greek then comes the tug of war,
When the Deitch meets Deitch then comes the lager bier,
For the Deitch company is the best company,
That every came over from Old Germany.


Pg 39, of the 1876 book The American College Songster (Google books link here )

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: and e
Date: 16 Jun 20 - 08:21 PM

"Oh, Sarah, come upstairs and lie down. Don't go
out."

"I'm going home. Hands off, hands of me!" she said,
slapping Esther's hands from her arm.

" 'For every one was drunk last night,
And drunk the night before ;
And if we don't get drunk to-night,
We won't get drunk no more.

(Chorus.)

"Now you will have a drink with me,
And I will drink with you ;
For we're the very rowdiest lot
Of the rowdy Irish crew."

"That's what we used to sing in the Lane, yer
know; should 'ave seen the coster gals with their
feathers, dancing and clinking their pewters. Rippin
Day, Bank 'oliday, Epping, under the trees — 'ow they
did romp, them gals!

" 'We all was roaring drunk last night.
And drunk the night before;
And if we don't get drunk to-night
We won't get drunk no more.'

Girls and boys, you know, all together."

"Sarah, listen to me."

"Listen! Come and have a drink, old gal, just
another drink." She staggered up to the counter.

Pg 408, Esther Waters by George Moore. Printed 1906 in New York with a copyright of 1899. According to Wikipedia, George Moore revised the book several times. This is the earliest I have been able to trace this song in the novel. It may be in the 1894 first edition... I don't know as I can't find a copy of it online.

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: and e
Date: 16 Jun 20 - 07:52 PM

All round them, struggling in the dimness over ant-hill and ant-bear hole,
were other baggage-laden forms, faithfully padding the hoof. The "wooded
bunch," as became warriors were making light of their woes. From
their ranks came an occasional laugh and snatches of ribald songs set
to the opening bars of the "Soldier's March" in Fuast, accompanied
by bang and boom of a tin pannikin and some hollow article (perhaps
a bread box?).

Drunk (bang!) last night,
Drunk the night before (boom!)
Drunk (bang!) last night,
Never get drunk any more! (Boom!)

From the 1914 book Wild Honey: Stories of South Africa by Cynthia Stockley. Pg 308.

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: and e
Date: 16 Jun 20 - 07:18 PM

All at once a peculiar sensation passed over me. I became strangely
dizzy, and began to sing:

"Drunk last night, boys,
Drunk the night before;
Drink tonight, boys,
Never get drunk any more!"

The Educational Weekly, Dec 18, 1879.

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: and e
Date: 16 Jun 20 - 07:11 PM

GLORIOUS SOUSE SONG
Version and Arrangement by Paul B. Klugh
Introducting "The Yale Boola".

Drunk last night,
Drunk the night before
Going to get drunk tonight if I never get drunk any more
When I'm Drunk I'm as happy as can be
For I am a member of the Souse family

Glorious, glorious, one keg of beer for the four of us
Glory be to all, there are no more of us
For one of us could drink it all alone
Boola, boola, boola, boola, boola, boola, boola, boola,
When we're through with those poor fellows, they will holler boola boo.

This is from Glorious Souse Song sheetmusic dated 1916.

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: Lighter
Date: 16 Jun 20 - 06:59 PM

Tulsa World (Feb. 25, 1918), p. 4:

We were bombed last night,
   We were bombed the night before,
We're going to be bombed tonight
   Like we were never bombed before.
When we're bombed
   We're scared as we can be.
They can bomb the whole d----- army
   If they don't bomb me.

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: and e
Date: 16 Jun 20 - 06:56 PM

A 1907 postcard at Emory University website. It is a color cartoon drawing of three men in tuxedos with text at top right:

"Drunk last night
Drunk the night before
I'm going to get drunk again tonight
If I never get drunk any more"

Text at bottom: "Copyright 1907 P. Gordon". On reverse: blank.

Permanent link for this postcard: http://pid.emory.edu/ark:/25593/b39p7

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: and e
Date: 16 Jun 20 - 04:48 PM

THE DRUNKEN BUTCHER OF TIDESWELL.
    BY WILLIAM BENNETT, ESQ.
Author of “The King of the Peak,” etc., etc., etc.

The Ballad I now have the pleasure of presenting to the readers
of the “RELIQUARY” (the subject of which is as well known in
the Peak as that Kinder Scout is the highest hill, and Tideswell
Church the most stately and beautiful Church in it) will perhaps
appear a little modernised to some, who have only heard the
tale from the mouths of unsober topers, accustomed to use
ancient provincial and obsolete words, which not only render
the sense less distinguishable, but also mar the flow of the
rhythm. I confess, therefore, to having taken some liberties
with the grammar, the orthography, and the metre; but, in all
other respects, I have strictly adhered to the original; and
my honesty in this respect will be recognized and admitted by
many persons, to whom these minstrel relics are precious.

The legend is still so strong in the Peak, that numbers of
the inhabitants do not concur in the sensible interpretation
put upon the appearance by the Butcher's wife; but
pertinaciously believe that the drunken man was beset by an
evil spirit, which either ran by his horse's side, or rolled
on the ground before him, faster than his horse could gallop,
from Peak Forest to the sacred inclosure of Tideswell Churchyard,
where it disappeared; and many a bold fellow, on a moonlight
night, looks anxiously round, as he crosses Tideswell Moor,
and gives his nag an additional touch of the spur, as he hears
the bell of Tideswell Church swinging midnight to the winds,
and remembers the tale of the “Drunken Butcher of Tideswell” —

Oh, lift to me, ye yeomen all,
Who live in dale or down!
My song is of a butcher tall,
Who lived in Tiddleswall town.
In bluff King Harry's merry days,
He slew both sheep and kine;
And drank hi fill of nut brown ale,
In lack of good red wine.

Beside teh Church this Butcher lived,
Close to its gray old walls;
And envied not, when trade was good,
The Baron in his halls.
No carking cares distrurbed his rest,
When off to bed he slunk;
And oft he snored for ten good hours,
Because he got so drunk.

One only sorry quelled his heart,
As well it might quell mine --
The fear of sprites and grisly ghosts,
Which dance in the moonshine;
Or wander in the cold Churchyard,
Among the dismal tombs;
Where hemlock blossoms in the day,
By night the nightshade blooms.

It chanced upon a summer's day,
When heather-bells were blowing,
Both Robing crossed oe'r Tiddleswall Moor,
And heard the heath-cock crowing:
Well mounted on a forest nag,
He freely rode and fast;
Nor drew a rein, till Sparrow Pit,
And Paislow Moss were past.

Then slowly down the hill he came,
To the Chappelle en le firth;
Where, at the Rose of Lancaster,
He found his friend the Smith:
The Parson, and the Pardoner too,
There took their morning draught;
And when they spied a Brother near,
They all came out and laughed.

"Now draw they rein, thou jolly Butcher;
How far hast thou to ride?"
"To Waylee-Bridge, to Simon the Tanner,
To sell this good cow-hide."
"Thou shalt not go one foot ayont,
'Till thou light and sup with me;
And when thou'st emptied my measure of liquor,
I'll have a measure wi' thee."

"Oh no, oh no, thou drouthy Smith!
I cannot tarry to-day:
The Wife, she gave me a charge to keep;
And I durst not say her nay."
"What likes o' that, said the Parson then,
If thou'st sworn, thou'st ne'er to rue:
Thou may'st keep they pledge, and drink thy stoup,
As an honest man e'en may do."

"Oh no, oh no, thou jolly Parson!
I cannot tarry, I say;
I was drunk last night, and if I tarry,
I'se be drunk again to-day."
"What likes, what likes, cried the Pardoner then,
Why tellest thou that to me?
Thou may'st e'en get thee drunk this blessed night;
And well shrived for both thou shalt be."

Then down got the Butcher from his horse,
I wot full fain was he;
And he drank 'till the summer sun was set,
In that jolly company:
He drank 'till the summer sun wen down,
And the stars began to shine;
And his greasy noddle, was dazed and addle,
With the nut brown ale and wine.

Then up arose those four mad fellow;
And joing hand in hand,
They danced around the hostel floor,
And sung, tho' they scarcel could stand,
"We've aye been drunk on yester night;
And drunk the night before;
And sae we're drunk again to-night,
If we never get drunk any more."

Bold Robing the Butcher was horsed and away;
And a drunken wight was he;
For sometimes his blood-red eyes saw double;
And then he could sca'tly see.
The forest trees, to his wildered sense,
Resang the jovial song.

Then up he sped over Paislow Moss,
And down by the Chamber Knowle:
And there he was scared into mortal fear
By the hooting of a barn owl:
And on he rode, by the Forest Wall,
Where the deer browsed silently;
And up the Slack, 'till, on Tiddeswall Moor,
His horse stood fair and free.

Just then the moon, from behind the rack,
Burst out into open view;
And on the sward and purple heath
Broad light and shadow threw;
And there the Butcher, whose heart beat quick,
With fear of Gramarye,
Fast by his side, as he did ride,
A foul phantom did espy.

Uprose the fell of his head, uprose
The hood which his head did shroud;
And ll his teeth did chatter and girn,
And he cried both long and loud;
And his horse's flank, with his spur he struck,
As he never had struck before;
And away he galloped, with might and main,
Across the barren moor.

But ever as fast as the Butcher rode,
The Ghost did grimly glide:
Now down on the earth before his horse,
Then fast his rein beside:
O'er stock and rock, and stone and pit,
O'er hill and dale and down,
'Till Robin the Butcher gain his door-stone,
In Tiddeswall's good old town.

"Oh, what thee ails, thou drunken Butcher?"
Said his Wife, as he sank down;
"And what thee ails, thou drunken Butcher?"
Cried one-half of the Town.
"I have seen a Ghost, it hath raced my horse,
For three good miles and more;
And it vanished withing the Churchyard wall,
As I sank down at the door."

"Beshrew thy heart, for a drunken beast!"
Cried his Wise, as she held him there;
"Beshrew thy hear, for a drunken beast,
And a coward, with heart of hare.
No Ghost hath raced thy horse to-night;
Nor evened his wit with thine:
The Ghost was thy shadow, thou drunken wretch!
I would the Ghost were mine."

The relevant song is in BOLD. Date is 1861.

Pgs 205-208, The Reliquary: A Depository for Precious Relecs -- Legendary, Biographical, and Historical (1861). Edited by Llewellynn Jewitt.

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: and e
Date: 16 Jun 20 - 04:09 PM

...I hear some one singing; it was evidently some young
woman, nursing her little one to sleep. What are the words
by which these little ones are nurse to sleep? Do they
learn to lisp the Saviour's praise as they suck their
mother's milk? Let me listen:--

"Oh, I got drunk last night,
And I was drunk the night before,
And I'll be ---- if I don't get drunk to-night,
If I never get drunk any more."

Impious song! Mad reveire! Better never said or heard! ...

Pg 193 of The Asiatic in England (1873) by Joseph Salter

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: GUEST,anonymous
Date: 15 May 11 - 09:44 PM

First heard it in marine corps ww2. Didn't care for the lyrics so came up with my own.
Drunk last night
drunk the night before,
Gonna get drunk tonight like I never got drunk before,
When I'm drunk I'm as happy as can be,
For I am a member of the Souse family,
Now the Souse family is the best family,
That ever came over from Dutch country,
There's the highland dutch, the lowland dutch,
the amsterdam dutch and the rotterdam dutch,
God made the dutch, he made them such,
That they make the beer that we drink much,
chorus
Glorius, Glorius, one keg of beer for the four of us,
It sure is great, there are no more of us,
For one of us could drink it all alone.

The above version shouldn't offend anybody

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: GUEST
Date: 20 Sep 10 - 07:39 AM

"Drunk Last Night, Drunk the Night Before" chorus can be found in this 1861 book:

http://books.google.com/books?id=7fI9AAAAcAAJ&pg=PA207&dq=night-before+%22drunk+last+night%22&hl=en&ei=GEeXTO_sEpKenQeA4fGeCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CEYQ6AEwBQ

The above is an "antiquarian" journal sharing older folklore & traditions.

Also see this 1873 book for the chorus:

http://books.google.com/books?id=X3wMAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA193&dq=night-before+%22drunk+last+night%22&hl=en&ei=H8mWTN6TNMLAnAeC983MBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CC8Q6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=night-before%20%22drunk%20last%20night%22&f=false

Subject: RE: good old Dutch & goddam Dutch/Drunk Last Night
From: Joe Offer
Date: 28 Aug 09 - 04:19 AM

Now, the earliest version of "Drunk Last Night" that I could find was in the 1927 edition of Immortalia, by "A Gentleman About Town" (page 98, no tune).


DRUNK LAST NIGHT
Anonymous

Drunk last night,
Drunk the night before,
Going to get drunk tonight
If I never get drunk no more.
I am as happy as can be
For I am a member of the souse familie.

Glorious! Glorious!
One keg of beer for the four of us,
Glory be to God there are no more of us,
For the four of us can drink it all alone.



Oh, and there's a Wikipedia Page on "The Goddamned Dutch."

And there's a recording at this mirror of the former Immortalia Website

Subject: ADD: Drunk Last Night/Dutch Company/Had to Carry H
From: Joe Offer
Date: 28 Aug 09 - 03:40 AM

Frank Lynn's Songs for Swinging Housemothers [Oak Publications, 1966; James Leisy Music, 1961] (page 82-83) has it as "Drinking Medley," with "Drunk Last Night" and "The Dutch Company." Here's this version:

DRUNK LAST NIGHT

Drunk last night, drunk the night before,
Gonna get drunk tonight, like I've never been drunk before,
For when I'm drunk, I'm as happy as can be,
For I am a member of the Souse family.

CHORUS:
Singin' glorious, glorious,
One keg of beer for the four of us;
Sing glory be to God that there are no more of us,
For one of us could drink it all alone.
All alone! Damn near!
All alone! Damn near!
Glory be to God that there are no more of us,
For one of us could drink it all alone.

THE DUTCH COMPANY

Oh, when you hear the roll of the big bass drum,
Then you'll know that the Dutch have come.

The Dutch Company is the best company
That ever came over from the old country.

There's the Amsterdam Dutch and the Rotterdam Dutch,
The Potsdam Dutch and the God Damn Dutch.

And there's the Irish, but they're not much,
But a damn sight better than the God Damn Dutch.

Oh, why do we go with the girls so much
When we could drink beer with the God Damn Dutch?

CHORUS:
Singin' glorious, glorious,
One keg of beer for the four of us;
Sing glory be to God that there are no more of us,
For one of us could drink it all alone.
All alone! Damn near!
All alone! Damn near!
Glory be to God that there are no more of us,
For one of us could drink it all alone.


THEY HAD TO CARRY HARRY TO THE FERRY

Oh, they had to carry Harry to the ferry,
And the ferry carried Harry to the shore.
And the reason that they had to carry Harry,
Was that Harry couldn't carry anymore.

---

The exact same version of "Drunk Last Night" (without the other two songs) can be found on page 235 of Folksinger's Wordbook, by Fred & Irwin Silber (1973)

Subject: ADD: The Dutch Company
From: Joe Offer
Date: 28 Aug 09 - 03:17 AM

THE DUTCH COMPANY.

1. Oh, when you hear the roll of the big bass drum,
Then you may know that the Deitch have come;
For the Deitch company is the best company
That ever came over from old Germany.         

2. When Greek meets Greek, then comes the tug of war,
When Deitch meets Deitch, then comes the lager beer;
For the Deitch company is the best company
That ever came over from old Germany.

CHORUS
Ho-ra, ho-ra, ho-ra la la la la,
Ho-ra, ho-ra, ho-ra la la la la,
Tra la la la la,
Tra la la la la,
Heis mine oys-ter raw.


Source: Carminia Princetonia, 1898 edition (Google Books)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: Joe Offer
Date: 28 Aug 09 - 02:33 AM

It may be true that there are lyrics for this song all over the Internet, Peace.

But we like to have people post lyrics here if they have a version of the song that they learned in childhood or from older family members. It helps to know where the song came from and where and when and how your source learned it (e.g., your grandmother in Grand Junction learned it from her father, who learned it in the Army in 1876). The more you can tell us about the history and background of the lyrics you post, the better. If you'd like to post a MIDI so we can hear what it sounds like, e-mail it fo me for posting.

The earliest version of this song that I can find is "The Dutch Company." as mentioned above, it is in the 1898 edition of Carmina Princetonia, which can be viewed at Google Books here (click). It's also in the 1906 Yale Song Book. But that's only part of the entire song, and doesn't include the "Drunk Last Night" part. I'd say this song evolved from a medley of at least two songs.

-Joe Offer-
[e-mail]

---

Here's the Traditional Ballad Index entry on this song:

Drunk Last Night

DESCRIPTION: "Drunk last night, drunk the night before, Gonna get drunk tonight like I've never been drunk before. For when I'm drunk I'm as happy as can be, For I am a member of the Souse family." The singer calls for beer and is glad that there are few to drink it
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1973
KEYWORDS: drink nonballad
FOUND IN:
REFERENCES (1 citation):
Silber-FSWB, p. 235, "Drunk Last Night" (1 text)
Roud #10191
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "I Was Drunk Last Night" (initial line)
File: FSWB235

---

Go to the Ballad Search form
Go to the Ballad Index Instructions
Go to the Bibiography
Go to the Discography


The Ballad Index Copyright 2007 by Robert B. Waltz and David G. Engle.

---

Oh, and here's that Mitch Miller Recording that Allan C. was talking about.

-Joe-

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: GUEST,Peace
Date: 28 Aug 09 - 01:41 AM

There are many versions on the www, GUEST. Simply google

"Gonna get drunk tonight like I've never been drunk before"

WITH the quotation marks.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: GUEST,Akuro-chan
Date: 28 Aug 09 - 01:38 AM

This is a version of Drunk Last Night. It's a drinking song my dad taught me...

Drink Drink Drink Drink Drunk Drunk Drunk Drunk
Drunk last night, Drunk the night before,
Gonna get drunk tonight like I've never been drunk before.
Cause when I'm drunk, I'm as happy as can be,
For I am a member of the Souse Family!
Oh the Souse family, is the best family,
That ever came over from Old Germany.
Singing glorious, glorious!
One keg of beer for the four of us.
May Glory be God that there are no more of us,
Cause one of us could drink it all alone, Damn near.
Oh the Irish play the bagpipe, and the Spanish play Guitar,
But the Goddamn Dutch like the music in the bars!
Singing Glorious, Glorious!
One keg of beer for the four of us!
May Glory be to God that there are no more of us
Cause one of us could drink it all alone, Damn near!

That's all I've got. He didn't really know anymore.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: GUEST,TJ in San Diego
Date: 11 Feb 09 - 12:56 PM

This is the version familiar to University of California students of the late 1950's and taught to me by an old friend who was a member of their last Rose Bowl football team:

California, California!
We're out to do or die,
Or know the reason why.
California, California!
We'll win the game or know the reason why.
And when the game is over,
We will buy a keg of booze,
And we'll drink to California till we wobble in our shoes!
So drink, tra la la, drink, tra la la,
Drink, drank, drunk last night,
Drunk the night before,
We're gonna get drunk tonight
Like we never got drunk before.
For when we're drunk,
We're as happy as can be,
For we are members of the Souse family.
Now the Souse family is the best family,
That ever came over from old Germany.
There's the highland Dutch and the Lowland Dutch (Platdeutsch?)
The Rotterdam Dutch and the Irish!
Sing glorious! Victorious!
One keg of beer for the four of us.
Sing glory be to God that there are no more of us,
Cause one of us could drink it all alone - damn near!
Here's to the Irish, dead drunk....the lucky stiffs!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dut
From: GUEST,Mariana
Date: 11 Feb 09 - 12:43 PM

oops -- forgot this verse:

Glorious, glorious!
One keg of beer for the four of us!
Glory be to God that there are no more of us
for one of us could drink it all alone! (damn near)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dut
From: GUEST,Mariana
Date: 11 Feb 09 - 12:35 PM

Hi -- I believe my grandfather brought this back to our family from WWI, although he may have known it before that. It was a great song to sing on car trips, and we kids felt very daring singing about being drunk, and all those sneaky "-dam"s. Here's how we learned it:

Drunk last night, drunk the night before,
Gonna get drunk tonight like I've never been drunk before!
For when I'm drunk I'm as happy as can be
For I am a member of the souse family.

Now the souse family is the best family
That ever came over from old Germany!
There's the Amsterdam Dutch and the Rotterdam Dutch
The Pottsdam Dutch and the other damn Dutch.

Hooray for the Irish, they don't amount to mutch
But they're a damn sight better than the low-down Dutch.
Drink to the Irish, they're drunk.

My grandfather's family was English, and during WWI both the Germans and the Irish posed a danger, so maybe that's the source of the last verse.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: LadyJean
Date: 03 Sep 05 - 12:35 AM

My mother's family came from Cincinnatti, a city with a very large German American population. Before 1915 students applying to the University of Cinncinatti had to pass a German exam. (Grandma was fluent in German. Grandaddy read all the ands and thes, while the proctor read the rest of the exam. He was an engineer.) Mom's family being Irish Protestant, didn't have the best opinion of Germans. They sang: Oh the Dutch Comapany is the best company
                     That ever come over from old Germany
                     There's the Amsterdam Dutch
                     And the Rotterdam Dutch
                     And the Pottsdam Dutch
                     And the Goddamn Dutch
                God Save the Irish!
                God Save the Irish!
                God Save the Irish!
                They're a Damn Fine Race!
I have a nice collection of German jokes, some of which may be approaching their centennial by now. Many was the unfortunate who came to my grandmother's girlhood home, and was asked by the younger Caldwells if they'd like to learn "How they drink tea in Germany."
The instructor then dipped a spoon in a cup, filled same with tea, put the end of the spoon between their teeth and shot the hot tea at their unfortunate victim. My grandmother and her brothers were not nice children. They grew up to be fine adults. But they were evil kids.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: John M.
Date: 02 Sep 05 - 11:45 AM

Wilfried, The spelling for the book is Carmina Princetonia (see cover of 1900 edition). There is a copy of the Centennial Edition of Carmina Princetonia on ebay (see here).

Lighter, This book contains some of the earliest examples of authentic college folksongs and is reference by Reuss in his master's thesis "An Analytical Survey of Songs from the College Oral Tradition."   

Everyone, The chorus "Glorious, one key of beer for the four of us" is shared by several independent songs.

Eat A Rock, The lines you give don't scan very well for me. Would you mind singing them over the phone to me?   My number in the afternoon is 314.647.3883 and evenings 314.381.0492. You can email me at [e-mail] and I can set something up with you. Thanks!

The irish are the fighters and the french are the lovers
But the god damned dutch go to bed with their mothers

The dutch girls breasts are the dutch boys pride
Because instead of milk they have beer inside

Yours,

John Mehlberg
[e-mail]
~
My website: www.immortalia.com

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: GUEST,Lighter at work
Date: 02 Sep 05 - 10:17 AM

Yes, John, thanks !

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dut
From: Wilfried Schaum
Date: 02 Sep 05 - 09:05 AM

John - sp: Carmina Princetoniana (Princeton Songs)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: John M.
Date: 02 Sep 05 - 07:44 AM

Dear GUEST,Eat A Rock,

Would you mind telling us when & where you learned the two extra verses? I am interested for folklore purposes.

Thank!

John Mehlberg
~
The song "Drunk Last Night" is derived from "The Dutch Company Song" and dates to at least 1900. It is found in _Carmenia Princetonian(sp?)_ the glee club songbook of Princeton. Lighter I haven't scanned it yet but will pass it on when it is if you are interested.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: GUEST,Eat A Rock
Date: 01 Sep 05 - 11:47 AM

There are other lines that have developed over the years.

The irish are the fighters and the french are the lovers
But the god damned dutch go to bed with their mothers

The dutch girls breasts are the dutch boys pride
Because instead of milk they have beer inside


Another one exists but it is not being shared to protect the innocent...

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 10 Sep 04 - 07:46 AM

The 1963 musical play (and 1969 film) "Oh What a Lovely War" included a song called "Gassed Last Night."

The text was posted by Metchosin in its own thread Lyr Add: Gassed Last Night and again in the thread Trench Songs of World War I.

Although an author is credited (Charles Chilton), I think he was merely the author of the "book" of the play and that the song was actually "collected" from soldiers.

Lyrics of other songs in the play are given at International Lyrics Playground.

The Original London Cast album is available: Must Close Saturday (label), CD #3008, 2004. allmusic has sound samples.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: Lighter
Date: 08 Sep 04 - 07:22 PM

Hopkins may be right about "bombing," which in WWI could even refer to the tossing of grenades. However, the version I learned long ago goes,

             Bombed last night! Bombed the night before!
             We're gonna get bombed tonight
             If we never get bombed any more!
             When we're bombed, we're scared as we can be!
             Oh, God damn the bombing planes from Ger-man-ee!   

             They're over us! They're over us!
             One shellhole for the four of us!
             Glory be to God that three of us can run,
             So one of can use it all alone!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 08 Sep 04 - 01:36 PM

Under the title "Drunk Last Night" the song appears in the Canadian "Songs From the Front and Rear," Anthony Hopkins, 1979, p. 18, Hurtig Pub. It contains the 'glorious, glorious' verse.
Hopkins says that WW1 versions tell of being 'bombed', "likely referring to firing from large mortars, quite devastating when lobbed into trenches.

A Canadian verse is added to this version:

Now onward to England, and then to France,
Oh, we'll make ol' Hitler and his bloody Nazis dance,
Oh, we'll pave the way for the gallant infantry,
For we are the boys of the Field Artillery.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: GUEST,Lighter
Date: 08 Sep 04 - 12:22 PM

The parody beginning "Bombed last night, bombed the night before..." mentioned by Gareth is in several books of World War I soldier songs (for example, "Songs My Mother never Taught Me," by John Jacob Niles et al.) It was sung by British, Americans, and Australians- and presumably by Canadians and New Zealnaders as well.

Since the parody mentions "phosgene and mustard gas," it must have come later in the war than I first thought. But the original "Glorious, Glorious, one keg of beer for the four of us," must have been familiar at that time.

Subject: RE: Origins: Origin Request - 'Drunk Last Night'
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 06 Sep 04 - 02:14 PM

The Traditional Ballad Index has references from the 1920s. Similar lines have been found from 1915 (Randolph, vol. 3, # 407). Otherwise no data.

Subject: Origins: 'Drunk Last Night'
From: GUEST,RJT
Date: 06 Sep 04 - 01:50 PM

Does anyone have any solid info regarding the song "Drunk Last Night"?

I've searched other threads and found info on lyrics, but not much on origins. This song was recorded in the 50's by Mitch Miller as a sing-a-long, and a version of it (Bombed Last Night) was used in the musical 'Oh, What a Lovely War' (1969) which was about World War I. I'm not sure when the musical was written or if it borrowed from Drunk Last Night, or vice versa.

Any info, including a reference in Fuld's or elsewhere would be appreciated.
Thank's.

Lyrics (to the best of my understanding) go like this:

Drunk last night,
Drunk the night before,
Gonna get drunk tonight
Like I never got drunk before,
For when I'm drunk
I'm as happy as can be,
For I am a member of the Dutch Company.

Oh, the Dutch company
Is the best company
That ever came over from old Germany.
There's the Amsterdam Dutch,
And the Rotterdam Dutch,
The Pottsdam Dutch
And the rotten damn Dutch.

Singing glorious, glorious!
One keg of beer for the four of us.
Glory be that there are no more of us,
For one of us could drink it all alone.
All alone, all alone.
One of us could drink it all alone.
Glory be that there are no more of us,
For one of us could drink it all alone.

__________
Second verse is the same as the first except replace 'Dutch Company' with 'Souse Family'.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: GUEST,RJT
Date: 06 Sep 04 - 01:24 PM

Regarding 'Drunk Last Night':
GUEST,Lighter - How do you know it predates 1915?
Do you have any first-hand knowledge or references?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: PoppaGator
Date: 01 Sep 04 - 06:48 PM

I heard this song from family members, from an early age. My naughty youngest aunt made sure to teach me to sing "the god-damn Dutch" rather than the "other damn Dutch." Also, we always sang that "the four of us could drink it all alone."

My father would explain to me from my earliest years how "Dutch" could refer either to Holland/the Netherlands OR to to Germany -- the Deutsch. All this as a prelude to one of his favorite expressions:

"The Irish and the Dutch
Never amount to much."

By way of explanation: Dad was full-blooded Irish, both parents having immigrated from Co Mayo; Mom was half Irish (on her father's side) and half German-speaking Alsatian. Hence she, along with us kids, might well "never amount to much."

All spoken jokingly, all in good fun, etc.

I should also note that intermarriage/interbreeding between Irish and Germans (Catholic Germans, anyway) was *very* common among second-generation immigrants in our New Jersey community, in my adopted hometown of New Orleans, and undoubtedly elsewhere in the US.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: Joe_F
Date: 01 Sep 04 - 06:43 PM

Why go necking with your best girlfriend
When you can drink beer with the three Dutchmen?
Singing glorious, victorious, etc.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: GUEST,Lighter
Date: 01 Sep 04 - 06:29 PM

Pre-1915. That's all I know for sure.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: GUEST,RJT
Date: 01 Sep 04 - 10:20 AM

This is a fine discussion.
Does anyone out there have any solid info on the origins of this song?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dut
From: Jacqk
Date: 08 Apr 04 - 01:17 PM

Wilfried:

The tune at Mudcat to go with the words is at
Drunk Last Night.

A good recorded version is at StoneRing version: "Goddam Dutch" on the album "A Toast to the Company. There used to be a free version online, but it is gone now.

Cheers!
Jack

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: Rasener
Date: 08 Apr 04 - 12:45 PM

Nigel
I take your point, but in asking my wife about this, who is Dutch and born and bred in Amsterdam, she doesn't agree with your comment. The people from North and South Holland do not react like people in Britain (who want to be known as Scottish, Welsh, Irish and English)do. It doesn't mean the same, their is no self rule situation and they do not hate each other..
I take it that you will accept that from a dutch person? Or do you know better than her?
My wife gets very upset if people think she is German (dont mention the war - and I mean that. They had a tough time over there).
Incidentally her English is so good, you woudn't know she was Dutch. Thats why she is a translator.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: Nigel Parsons
Date: 08 Apr 04 - 11:36 AM

Villan:

And of course, saying the people of the Netherlands are from "Holland" is like calling the British all "English". Holland (N & S) are just two of the states which make up The Netherlands.

As the map Here will clarify. Hover your cursor over individual states to see their names. Noord Holland & Zuid Holland are the two larger states on the North Sea coast


CHEERS

Nigel

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: Charley Noble
Date: 08 Apr 04 - 09:40 AM

Wilfried-

Thanks for clarifying "Zuiderzee."

Here's a mug to you as well!

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dut
From: Wilfried Schaum
Date: 08 Apr 04 - 03:15 AM

Dutch, Deutsch from *thiudisk = "belonging to the people". Originally it had nothing to do with a special ethnic group, but in the realms of the Eastern Francs it took its modern meaning of Deutsch and Dutch for groups of speakers of these languages. It has nothing to do with teutonic, albeit its latinized form may sond similar.
Due to certain difficulties of pronunciation in America Dutch was preferred not only to denote the Netherlanders but the Germans (Deutsche), too. Try to pronounce it doytch, oy as in boy.

Zider Zee (?) = Zuiderzee (~21.100 hits in Google) or Zuijderzee (30 hits) = Southern Sea. The latter seems to be the older orthography.

Jolly good song. Where can I find the tune?

Wilfried

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch..
From: Rasener
Date: 07 Apr 04 - 08:30 AM

Beware, the Dutch are watching you :-)

Subject: RE: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch...
From: Rasener
Date: 06 Apr 04 - 11:53 AM

Dutch is used by English-speaking people to refer to the language and people from Holland. It stems from the term which Dutch people traditionally used for their language, i.e. "Diets."

The German people people still call their language "Deutsch"

Both languages belong to the same language group i.e. Germanic (english belongs to this group as well).

The Netherlands (meaning the lowlands) is associated with Holland and Belgium; until the 19th century they were one country. Dutch is the language of Holland and one of the languages of Belgium (i.e. Flemish, which is a variety of Dutch).

Calling a Dutch person German is an insult equivalent to calling a Scottish person English.

Groeten

Subject: RE: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch...
From: Nigel Parsons
Date: 06 Apr 04 - 06:01 AM

Open Mike:

Nether= lower. In this case The Netherlands is The Low Countries.
This explains the hill in Amersfoort known as "De Berg" (The Mountain). This can be cycled up in a minute, but for them, that is a mountain.

"nether regions" is often used for the "below the belt" areas of the body in polite company.

"The netherworld" is used for Hell in the same way that "Underworld" would be used


Cheers

Nigel

Subject: RE: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch...
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 05 Apr 04 - 10:34 PM

To The people of the Rhine region, it was the nether lands, where navagable rivers debouched into the sea. One of these was the Nederrijn (lower Rhine). The shape of the Netherlands now is much different from what it was in the 16th century and earlier; much land having been added by dikes and river changes. The Rhine, the Maas and the Ijssel Rivers meet the sea there.

Subject: RE: the good old Dutch and the goddam Dutch...
From: open mike
Date: 05 Apr 04 - 10:13 PM

we had a discussion earlier about the word Deutsch--the German word for German (Germany=Deutschland) and Dutch---which means from Nederland or the Netherlands...of Holland. What would be the meaning for "Nether" is
it something like those other lands, or "far away" if so that seems like a funny name for your home land....such as the nether regions....