Hallelujah, I'm a Bum
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- See also Hallelujah, I'm a Bum (film) for the 1933 movie.
"Hallelujah, I'm a Bum" is an American folk song that responds with humorous sarcasm to unhelpful moralizing about the circumstance of being a tramp. The song's authorship is uncertain, although it may have been composed in 1897 by Harry McClintock.
Sung to the tune of "Revive Us Again", the song was printed by the Industrial Workers of the World in 1908, and adopted by its Spokane branch as their anthem later that year. The success of their free speech campaign of 1909 led to its widespread popularity.
The version published in 1908 goes:
- Why don't you work like other folks do?
- How the hell can I work when there's no work to do?
-
- Refrain
- Hallelujah, I'm a bum,
- Hallelujah, bum again,
- Hallelujah, give us a handout
- To revive us again.
- Oh, why don't you save all the money you earn?
- If I didn't eat, I'd have money to burn.
- Whenever I get all the money I earn,
- The boss will be broke, and to work he must turn.
- When springtime it comes, oh, won't we have fun;
- We'll throw off our jobs, and go on the bum.
