“The Popular Wobbly”
Description
"I'm as mild-mannered man as can be, And I've never done no harm that I can see..." but the singer ends up in jail, where "they go wild, simply wilder over me." They "go wild" because he is a union man; he suffers much in prison
Notes
The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW or "Wobblies") was a radical syndicalist labor union. Founded in the late 1800s, it fought for the 8-hour day and for "One Big Union" rather than separate unions in various crafts or industries. It achieved its greatest successes in the American Northwest, particularly in the lumber trades (although it also fought hard in the textile-workers' strike in Lowell, Mass.) and inspired many songs and poems that have entered folk tradition. While membership has declined in recent decades, the union is still active and still radical.
"They Go Wild, Simply Wild Over Me" was a popular vaudeville song of the early 1900s. - PJS
Cross references
- cf. "They Go Wild, Simply Wild Over Me" (tune)
Recordings
- Pete Seeger, "The Popular Wobbly" (on PeteSeeger05)
References
- Silber-FSWB, p. 70, "The Popular Wobbly" (1 text)
- DT, POPWOBB*
- Roud #9822
- BI, FSWB070