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Alabama Jubilee Lyrics
You ought to see deacon Jones
When he rattles the bones,
Old parson Brown foolin' 'roun like a clown,
Aunt Jemima who is past eighty three,
Shoutin' "I'm full o' pep!
Watch yo' step!, watch yo' step!
One legged Joe danced aroun' on his toe,
Threw away his crutch and hollered, "let 'er go!"
Oh, honey, hail! hail! the gang's all here
For an Alabama jubilee
Mandolins, violins,
Hear the darkies tunin' up, the fun begins,
Come this way, don't delay,
Better hurry, honey dear, or you'll be missin'
Music sweet, rag-time treat,
Goes right to your head and trickles to your feet,
It's a reminder, a memory finder
Of nights down in old Alabam'.
Hear that flute, it's a beaut,
And the tunes it's tootin', tootsie, ain't they cute?
Let's begin, it's a sin,
To be missin' all this syncopated music!
Oh, you Jane, once again
Give your legs some exercise to that refrain,
Boy, that's what makes me so dreamy and takes me
Back home to my old Alabam'.
When he rattles the bones,
Old parson Brown foolin' 'roun like a clown,
Aunt Jemima who is past eighty three,
Shoutin' "I'm full o' pep!
Watch yo' step!, watch yo' step!
One legged Joe danced aroun' on his toe,
Threw away his crutch and hollered, "let 'er go!"
Oh, honey, hail! hail! the gang's all here
For an Alabama jubilee
Hear the darkies tunin' up, the fun begins,
Come this way, don't delay,
Better hurry, honey dear, or you'll be missin'
Music sweet, rag-time treat,
Goes right to your head and trickles to your feet,
It's a reminder, a memory finder
Of nights down in old Alabam'.
And the tunes it's tootin', tootsie, ain't they cute?
Let's begin, it's a sin,
To be missin' all this syncopated music!
Oh, you Jane, once again
Give your legs some exercise to that refrain,
Boy, that's what makes me so dreamy and takes me
Back home to my old Alabam'.
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Minstrel shows had pretty much died out by 1910, replaced by ragtime and vaudeville. The minstrel traditions persisted, though -- big dance numbers, lots of corny jokes, ethnic stereotypes and phony accents. When George L. Cobb (from a small town north of Syracuse NY) and Jack Yellen (born in Poland) met in the New York city music industry, what did they write? Dixie songs! Likewise, Arthur Collins (born in Philadelphia, grew up in New Jersey) and Byron G. Harlan (born in Kansas) made their livings recording popular songs in "negro dialect" (small 'n' intentional) on cylinders and 78s. Collins was considered the "King of the Ragtime Singers", and actually issued a written disclaimer, "Mr. Collins is not a Negro" (though he considered it "complimentary" to be "mistaken for the real article"). There are countless recordings of 'Alabama Jubilee' -- including Roy Clark's instrumental which won a Grammy in 1981.