“Peep Squirrel”
Description
Singing game: "Peep squirrel, yang-dan-diddle-um (or other nonsense, e.g. Hop squirrel, eedle-dum-dum)" (x2 or x4). Similarly, "Run, squirrel...." "Catch the old squirrel...." "I give you fifty cents...."
Supplemental text
Peep Squirrel
Partial text(s)
*** A ***
Hop, Old Squirrel
From Dorothy Scarborough, On the Trail of Negro Folk-Songs,
pp. 133-134. Supplied by John Stone, apparently from Virginia.
Hop, old squirrel, eidle-dum, eidle-dum,
Hop, old squirrel, eidle-dum-dum,
Hop, old squirrel, eidle-dum, eidle-dum,
Hop, old squirrel, eidle-dum-dee.
Catch the old squirrel, eidle-dum, eidle-dum,
Catch the old squirrel, eidle-dum-dum,
Catch the old squirrel, eidle-dum, eidle-dum,
Catch the old squirrel, eidle-dum-dee.
(1 additional stanza plus some related lyrics)
Notes
Roud lumps this with "Hunt the Squirrel" and similar items -- superficially reasonable, since they're both singing games about squirrels. But they don't have any lyrics in common.
Even I decided ot merge "Hop, Old Squirrel" with "Peep, Squirrel"; the forms are very different, but it appears that lyrics cross so much; my guess is that it's one song with two differen games. - RBW
References
- Chappell-FSRA 119, "Peep Squirrel" (1 fragment, 1 tune)
- Scarborough-NegroFS, pp. 134-136, "Hop, Old Squirrel" (2 texts, the second with interspersed game instructions, 1 tune)
- ST ChFRA119 (Partial)
- Roud #7645
- BI, ChFRA119