Lyr/Chords Req: Queen, Queen Caroline

Subject: Queen, Queen Caroline
From: GUEST,Helen
Date: 27 Aug 02 - 06:50 PM

Hi, I grew up in Swinton. Lancashire and as a young girl we had a swimming game that was accompanied by a chant about Queen Caroline dipping her head in the Serpenine. Can anyone help me with this verse. I really don't think there is a tune , more of a child's chant. Thanks, H.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Queen, Queen Caroline
From: Malcolm Douglas
Date: 27 Aug 02 - 07:57 PM

Queenie, Queenie Caroline,
Dipped her head in turpentine,
Turpentine to make it shine,
Queenie, Queenie Caroline.

- Girl, 9, Annesley [Nottinghamshire]  (The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren, Iona and Peter Opie, 1959.)

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Queen, Queen Caroline
From: masato sakurai
Date: 27 Aug 02 - 11:52 PM

A. From: Roger D. Abrahams and Lois Rankin, eds., Counting-Out Rhymes: A Dictionary (University of Texas Press, 1980, p. 195):

465
Queen, queen, Caroline,
Dipped her hair in turpentine,
Turpentine made it shine.
Queen, queen Caroline.

Usually a taunt. Also found as a jump-rope rhyme; see JRR, p. 184 ("Sweet, sweet Caroline").

Bolton (1888), 116 [Edinburgh, Scotland].
Gregor (1891), 11, 24 [Scotland]. Six variants: one begins "Eevil, eevil, eevil-ine"; one, "Eery, ary, areline."
Clinton Johnson (1896), 165. Begins "Engine number nine."
Waugh, JAF, 31 (1918), 46 [Ontario, 1909].
Reid, Misc. of Rymour Club, 1 (1911), 104 [Edinburgh]. Begins "Good Queen Caroline." Ritchie (1965), 40, 47 [Edinburgh]. Two variants.

B. From: Roger D. Abrahams, ed., Jump-Rope Rhymes: A Dictionary (University of Texas Press, 1969, p. 184):

(535)
Sweet, sweet Caroline,
Dipt her face in Terpentine,
Terpentine, made it shine.
Sweet sweet Caroline.

Also a counting-out rhyme.

Douglas (1916), 61 [London].

~Masato

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Queen, Queen Caroline
From: masato sakurai
Date: 28 Aug 02 - 04:14 AM

Other varinats:

(1) From HERE (this seems to be a song).

Queen, Queen Caroline,
Won't you be my valentine?
I'll slay the dragon, hang him from the line,
If you will be my valentine.

(2) From HERE.

Queen, Queen Caroline,
Washed her hair in turpentine,
Turpentine to make it shine
Queen, Queen, Caroline.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Queen, Queen Caroline
From: AllisonA(Animaterra)
Date: 28 Aug 02 - 05:39 AM

Somewhere I heard that the turpentine version of this was a taunt because washing hair with turp. was to get rid of the lice!

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Queen, Queen Caroline
From: GUEST,Pat Darlington
Date: 28 Aug 02 - 10:49 AM

There is a (Scottish?) version which has "Gipsy, gipsy Caroline" washing her hair in turpentine, with a second verse which replaces turpentine with "V.P. wine" (V.P. is one of a family of cheap, potent and generally disgusting fortified wines popular with those in central Scotland who want to get wasted frequently and don't have a lot of dough - see also Buckfast, Lanliq, Four Crown, Eldorado, Melroso...)

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Queen, Queen Caroline
From: masato sakurai
Date: 28 Aug 02 - 11:17 AM

"Gipsy, gipsy Caroline" is collected as a ball bouncing rhyme in NW England (See this page).

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Queen, Queen Caroline
From: GUEST,Helen
Date: 30 Aug 02 - 09:48 PM

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Queen, Queen Caroline
From: masato sakurai
Date: 30 Aug 02 - 11:10 PM

Helen, what's the swimming game like?

~Masato

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Queen, Queen Caroline
From: Layna
Date: 31 Aug 02 - 10:26 PM

Queen, queen Caroline - the swimming game : You join hands in a long line with the end person touching the side of the pool. The person at the other end swims under the arm of the first bringing everyone with him/her. Then they swim between the next people and so on. Each person ends up turned around with their arms crossed in front of them, then the end people join hands and make a circle. Then you chant the Caroline verse and dip your head into the water.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Queen, Queen Caroline
From: masato sakurai
Date: 31 Aug 02 - 10:37 PM

Thanks a lot, Layna.

~Masato