Traditional rhymes (part two of two)

The House of the Rising Sun

• Traditional C16th 

recorded by The Animals (Columbia Records, 1964)

There is an ancient small holding

They call Certainman Farm

The son near ruined the agrarian

And nearly came to harm.

‘Now Father, give me money!’

He was a wayward son;

He lived his life - a gamblin’ man;

Ate, drank and had such fun.

But living wild is costly,

And soon the cash was gone

And famine came to strike the land;

‘Friends’ to oblivion.

The porkers that he envied

Ate rotting aubergine…

But then he came to senses:

Dad’s workers’ fine cuisine.

 ‘Now Father, tell your hired men

Not to do what I have done

Selfish greed like this makes me

Unworthy to be a son.’

But while he’s still a long way off

His dad comes running, glad;

‘Bring gold and coat and shoes and kill

     The fat calf! For my lad

Was lost and dead; hope faded…

     I thought him in the ground;

Yet he’s alive and standing here

     Thank God that he’s been found!’

Molly Malone

• James Yorkston 1884

He took cash (no pity); Dissipation City

And there clamped his eyes on sweet Molly Malone;

Went straight to a bar-o; to drink, imbibe, boire-o,

Crying ‘Gamble quite wildly and feel alive-o!’

     Alive, alive-o, alive, alive-o

     Spend money like water, recklessly skive-o.

Their cash quickly ran out and famine struck, no doubt

And soon he discovered that he was alone;

Found piglet and harrow, fed slops from a barrow

Felt hungry and envy, eat to survive-o?

     Survive, survive-o, survive, survive-o

     Or go home, be no son; to work connive-o

He made his way stumbly to greet his dad humbly

But while a long way off (the distance unknown)

Ran Dad like an arrow! ‘Kill calf; roast the marrow –

Not lost but found; nor dead: alive, alive-o!’

     ‘Alive, alive-o, alive, alive-o!’

     Singing ‘Glory, my son has revived, let’s jive-o!’

Gilly, Gilly, Ossenfeffer, Katzenellen Bogen by the Sea 

• Hoffman/Manning 1954

There’s a tiny farm      (Such a tiny farm!)

By a tiny stream      (Tiny gurgling stream)

Where a greedy lad      (Yes, he was quite bad)

Hatched a nasty scheme;      (Cat that got the cream)

And he spent his cash      (He made quite a splash)

Uneconomically

In Dissipation-City-where-the-

     girls-are-not-so-moral-as-can-be.

He ran out one day      (He’d been making hay)

Lacking a cashflow;      (Wasteful so-and-so!)

So his food and friends      (Loser, so-called ‘friends’)

Couldn’t help but go.      (Just said ‘cheerio.’)

And a famine struck     (Oh it was bad lack…)

Quite malnourishmently

So troubled-lad was-tending-pigs-and-

     envying-their-pods-and-feeling-low.

Then he had a thought:      (Should do what I ought)

‘The hired men at home      (Over land and foam)

Eat a lovely lunch      (Meat & spuds, munch, crunch)

I’ve been mad to roam.’      (I’ve even lost my comb)

So he went right back     (Left that pig-sty-shack)

Precipitatively

To ask-if-he-could-work-as-he-knows-

     he’s-no-longer-worthy-to-be-son.

Now the bad boy’s dad      (Was sad, now he’s glad)

Saw him; ran to greet!      (Family complete!)

Gave a ring of gold      (Kiss and coat, tender hold)

And shoes for his feet.      (Fam’ly heirloom: sweet)

And he killed the calf     (Don’t do things by half)

Quite hot spitroastingly

And said-‘My-son-was-lost-but-found;

     -we-thought-him-dead-but-lives-so-let’s-party!’

Waltzing Matilda

• Banjo Paterson 1887

Once a jolly swagman took his inheritance

Off to Dissipation City with glee

And he sang as he walked and gambled lots of cash away

‘Who’ll come a-waltzing and dining with me?’

     Waltzing and dining, betting and drinking

     Mary, Matilda, Letitia and me…

     And he spent and lived wildly, 

     wasting funds like he was spoiled

     ‘Who’ll come a-waltzing and dining with me?’

Down came his balance and suddenly he was quite broke

Just at the time that a famine struck;

He saw he was deep in the trouble that he’d caused himself

And sought out a job with some porkers in muck.

     Gloucestershire Old Spot; pods that will soon rot

     Mysteriously envious of piggy;

     So I sit and I think and I lick my lips in hungriness

     Oh what has become of this fellow, of me?

Flash! went his soul as he had a revelation

‘My dad’s hired men eat their dinner for free…

So I’ll get up and go home and ask to work for Farmer Pa

No more a son, since I’m just not worthy.’

     Waltzing on homeward, walking and thinking

     I’ll ask to work on the farm if I may

     But his dad saw the boy and came 

     Running out to greet him warm

     While he was still quite a long way away.

(Repeat chorus)

     ‘Bring coat and sandals! Fetch my big gold ring!

     Kill fatted calf! Forget skulduggery...

     For my son was lost but is now

     Found although we thought him dead.’

     Repent; restore; Christian allegory.