Barnacle Bill (song)
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"Barnacle Bill the Sailor" (Roud 4704) is an American drinking song adapted from "Bollocky Bill the Sailor", a traditional folk song originally titled "Abraham Brown".[1]
There are several versions of the bawdy song in the Gordon "Inferno" Collection at the Library of Congress folklife archive. The first printed version of the song is in the public domain book Immortalia (1927). Later versions feature the eponymous "Barnacle Bill," a fictional character very loosely based on a 19th-century San Francisco sailor and Gold Rush miner named William Bernard.[2] Versions are also known in England and Scotland from the early twentieth century.
The earliest known recording is a bowdlerized adaptation written by Frank Luther & Carson Robison, performed and recorded by Bix Beiderbecke and Hoagy Carmichael and released in December 1928. In 1996 it was released on CD on the album "Bix Beiderbecke 1927 - 1930" [3]. In the second chorus of this recording violinist Joe Venuti can be heard singing "Barnacle Bill the Shitter."[citation needed] John Valby (aka "Dr. Dirty") also recorded the song. The tune has inspired a Fleischer Studios Betty Boop cartoon and two films, as well as the name of a rock on Mars. Louis Jordan (The Elks Rendezvous Band) recorded it in 1938 [4]. In the very first Fleischer Popeye cartoon, it was used as the "leitmotif" for the Bluto character. A later Popeye cartoon by the same studio was titled "Beware of Barnacle Bill."
[edit] Example of lyrics
One version of "Barnacle Bill" refers to an exchange between Bill and a "fair young maiden." Each verse opens with inquiries by the maiden, sung by one or more men in falsetto, and continues with Bill's profane responses sung by all.
"Who's that knocking on my door? Who's that knocking on my door?
Who's that knocking on my door?" said the fair Young Maiden....
"It's only me from over the sea" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"It's only me from over the sea" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
Alternate Responses:
- "Fuck, open the door, you pox-ridden whore!" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
- "Fuck, open the door, you pox-ridden whore!" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
- "It's, me and my crew and we've come for a screw!" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
- "It's, me and my crew and we've come for a screw!" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
- "Open the door, you fucking whore" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
- "Open the door, you fucking whore" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"Are you young and handsome, Sir? Are you young and handsome, Sir?"
Are you young and handsome, Sir?" said the fair Young Maiden.
"I'm old and rough and dirty and tough" said Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"I'm old and rough and dirty and tough" said Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"What is your intention, sir? What is your intention, sir?
What is your intention, sir?" said the fair Young Maiden.
"Oh, off with your shirt, so you doesn't get hurt!" said Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"Oh, off with your shirt, so you doesn't get hurt!" said Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"Will you take me to the dance? Will you take me to the dance?
Will you take me to the dance?" said the fair Young Maiden....
"To Hell with the dance! Now, off with your pants!" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"To Hell with the dance! Now, off with your pants!" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"Will you vow to marry me? Will you vow to marry me?
Will you vow to marry me?" said the fair Young Maiden....
"Hell no, we won't wed. Getcher ass in yon bed!" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"Hell no, we won't wed. Getcher ass in yon bed!" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"What's that thing between your legs?" What's that thing between your legs?
"What's that thing between your legs?" said the fair young maiden.
"It is me pole to stick in your hole," says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"It is me pole to stick in your hole," says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"What if I should have a child? What if I should have a child?
What if I should have a child?" said the fair Young Maiden.
"I'll open your crack, and shove it right back!" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"I'll open your crack, and shove it right back!" says Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
Alternate Response:
"I'll kill the bugger and fuck for another!" says Barnicle Bill the Sailor.
"I'll kill the bugger and fuck for another!" says Barnicle Bill the Sailor.
"What if you should go to jail? What if you should go to jail?
What if you should go to jail?" said the fair young maiden.
"I'll swing me big balls, and knock down the walls!" said Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
"I'll swing me big balls, and knock down the walls!" said Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
[edit] References
- ^ Cray, Ed. (1992) The Erotic Muse: American Bawdy Songs. University of Illinois.
- ^ Boyes, Marcia Edwards (1936). The Legend of Yerba Buena Island. Berkeley, California:The Professional Press.
- ^ Bix Beiderbecke
- ^ Louis Jordan
[edit] Further reading
- Reuss, Richard A. (1965). "An Annotated Field Collection of Songs From the American College Student Oral Tradition". master's thesis. . Indiana University
