“Polly Wolly Doodle”

Description

"Oh, I went down south for to see my Sal, Sing polly wolly doodle all day...." Sal is described in nonsense terms ("curly eyes and laughing hair"). Floating verses may describe the difficult journey

Same tune

• The Big Fat Boss and the Workers (Greenway-AFP, pp. 250-251)
• The Fiddler's Bitch (File: RL346)
• The Thousand-Legged Worm (Pankake-PHCFSB, pp. 51-52)

Cross references

• cf. "The Fiddler's Bitch" (tune)

Recordings

• Vernon Dalhart, "Polly Wolly Doodle" (Edison N-20001, 1929)
• Louise Massey & the Westerners, "Polly Wolly Doodle" (Vocalion 05296, 1939)
• Pete Seeger, "Polly Wolly Doodle All Day" (on LonesomeValley)
• Gid Tanner & his Skillet Lickers, "Polly Woddle Doo" (Columbia 15200-D, 1927; rec. 1926)

References

1. BrownIII 462, "Sing Polly Wolly Doodle" (1 text)
2. Hugill, p. 42, "Polly Wolly Doodle" (1 verse of a shanty version)
3. Spaeth-ReadWeep, pp. 82-83, "Polly-Wolly-Doodle" (1 text, 1 tune)
4. Pankake-PHCFSB, p. 274, "Polly Wolly Doodle" (1 text)
5. Silber-FSWB, p. 240, "Polly Wolly Doodle" (1 text)
6. Fuld-WFM, pp. 434-435, "Polly-Wolly-Doodle"
7. DT, POLYWOLY
8. Roud #11799
9. BI, SRW082