“The Bobbed Hair”
Description
Singer is horrified that "my Biddy darling ... had bobbed her hair." She says "'Tis all the fashion now.'" She says it was started by Black and Tans. He leaves her: "your neck is bare, like Paddy McGinty's drake." The asses, goats and swallows protest.
Notes
The reference to the Black and Tans is curious. The Black and Tans were, of course, the soldiers the English imported to Ireland as an auxiliary police force after the First World War (see, e.g., "The Bold Black and Tan"). I recall reading, somewhere, of an Irish girl having her head shaved for being too close to the English. I can't recall hearing of one cutting her hair to imitate them. - RBW
Cross references
- cf. "Why Do You Bob Your Hair, Girls?" (theme)
References
- Munnelly/Deasy-Lenihan 23, "The Bobbed Hair" (1 text, 1 tune)
- Roud #3077
- BI, RcTBobHa