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Pop Goes De Weasel/Pop Goes the Weasel
English, American, Canadian; Reel or Country Dance Tune (6/8 time). USA; Maine, New Hampshire, New York State, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Alabama, Kentucky, Arizona. England, Shropshire.
ARTIST: from American Memory; 1850s lyrics (4 versions) including the 1853 version.
CATEGORY: Fiddle and Instrumental Tunes
EARLIEST DATE: Some sources date to 1600s; 1850 melody; 1853 lyrics;
RECORDING INFO: Pop Goes The Weasel [Me IV-G14]
Thomas, Jean & Joseph Leeder / Singin' Gatherin', Silver Burdette, Bk (1939), p66
Ford, Ira W. / Traditional Music in America, Folklore Associates, Bk (1965/1940), p 40c
Ford, Ira W. / Traditional Music in America, Folklore Associates, Bk (1965/1940), p411
Cazden, Norman (ed.) / Book of Nonsense Songs, Crown, Sof (1961), p 33
Lovett, Benjamin B. / Good Morning: Music, Calls and Directions for Old-, Henry Ford, fol (1943), p 62
de Ville, Paul (ed.) / Concertina and How To Play It, Carl Fischer, sof (1905), #131
Bowers, Ethel (ed.) / Parties, Musical Mixers and Simple Square Dances, NRA, sof (1937), p29
One Thousand Fiddle Tunes, Cole, Fol (1940), p 24
Burchenal, Elizabeth (ed.) / American Country Dances, Vol. I, Schirmer, Bk (1945/1918), p22
Albert E Brumley's Songs of the Pioneers #2, Brumley, Fol (1973), 57
Fields, Arthur; & Fred Hall (eds.) / 50 Favorite "Get Together" Songs, Piedmont Music, sof (1933), #39
Isaac, Burton / Folk Fiddle, Mel Bay, fol (1964), p10
Glassmacher, W. J. (ed.) / Songs for Children, Amsco, fol (1934), p 85
Bowman, A. S. (ed.) / J. W. Pepper Collection of 500 Reels, Jigs, ..., Pepper, fol (1908), p 28
Sandburg, Helga (ed.) / Sweet Music, Dial, Bk (1963), p127 [1952ca]
Knorr, Frederick (arr.) / Cowboy Dance Tunes, Caxton, Sof (1941/1939), p23
Mursell, James, et.al.(eds.) / Music Now and Long Ago, Silver Burdette, Bk (1956), p122
Jackson, Richard (ed.) / Popular Songs of Nineteenth Century America, Dover, Sof (1976), p176 [1859]
Glazer, Tom / Treasury of Songs for Children, Songs Music, Fol (1964/1981), p192
Williams, Vivian (ed.) / The Peter Beemer Manuscript, Voyager, Sof (2008), p68
Herder, Ronald (ed.) / 500 Best-Loved Song Lyrics, Dover dn500/500, Sof (1998), p281
Baldwin, Stephen. English Village Fiddler, Leader LED 2068, LP (1976), trk# 12 [1954/06/22]
Barbee, Eldia. Skip to My Lou, Pine Breeze 004, LP (1977), trk# B.07 [1975]
Cole, Edson (H.). Linscott, Eloise Hubbard (ed.) / Folk Songs of Old New England, Dover, Bk (1993/1939), p341 [1920-30s]
Collins, Mitzie. Sounds Like Fun, Sampler AAFM 8204, Cas (1982), trk# A.03b
Cunningham, Bill. Cunningham, Bill / Hoedown Fiddle in America (How to Play It), Ryckman-Beck, fol (1977), --
Devlin, Jennie Hess. Newman, Katharine D. / Never Without a Song, U. Illinois, Sof (1995), p206 [1937ca]
Glazer, Tom. Glazer, Tom / Eye Winker, Tom Tinker, Chin Chopper. Fifty Musical Fin..., Doubleday/Zephyr Books, Bk (1973), p64
Hammons, Edden. Edden Hammons Collection. Vol Two, West Virginia Univ SA-2, CD (2000), trk# 2.09 [1947/07]
Hartley, Zeb. Lair, John (ed.) / 100 WLS Barn Dance Favorites, Cole, fol (1935), p92b
Ives, Burl. Burl Ives Sings Little White Duck And Other Favorites, Harmony HS-14507, LP (197?), trk# B.08i
New Columbia Fiddlers. Fiddle Tunes of the Lewis and Clark Era, Voyager VRCD 358, CD (2002), trk# 22
Papala. American Hammered Dulcimer, Vol. 2. 25 Years with the O.D.P.C., L-Three 8x510, LP (1988), trk# 4d
Poston, Mutt; and the Farm Hands. Hoe Down! Vol. 7. Fiddlin' Mutt Poston and the Farm Hands, Rural Rhythm RRFT 157, LP (197?), trk# A.12
Rideout, Bonnie. Scottish Fiddle Collection, Maggie's Music MM 306, CD (2006), trk# 11c
Spradley, Isabel. Randolph, Vance / Ozark Folksongs. Volume III, Humorous & Play-Party ..., Univ. of Missouri, Bk (1980/1946), p369/#556B [1928/12/28]
Ungar, Jay; and Mason, Molly. Folk Songs of the Catskills. A Celebration of Camp Woodland, Cob's Cobble 1005, CD (2001), trk# 16a
Wilbur, Marie. Randolph, Vance / Ozark Folksongs. Volume III, Humorous & Play-Party ..., Univ. of Missouri, Bk (1980/1946), p368/#556A [1926/06/04]
Woodhull's Old Tyme Masters. Square Dances, RCA (Victor) LPM-1238, LP (1956), trk# B.02 [1941/07/14]
Woodhull's Old Tyme Masters. Square Dances, Camden CAL-220, LP (1956), trk# A.02
Woodward, Willie. Linscott, Eloise Hubbard (ed.) / Folk Songs of Old New England, Dover, Bk (1993/1939), p107 [1920-30s]
OTHER NAMES: Rm - Lavena ; Pop Goes the Weasel ; D & H Canal
Mf - Cornwallis Country Dance
Pb - Missile Song ; Pop Goes the Question ; Ripping Trip ; Pop Does the Laundry
SOURCES: Thede; Ceolas; Folk Index;
NOTES: Quoted from Iona & Peter Opie, The Singing Game (Oxford UP, 1985, p. 218):
The significance of 'weasel', if any, has been a favourite subject for speculation. It has been suggested that a 'weasel' is a tailor's flat-iron, a hatter's tool, a piece of silver plate, or a 'weasel and stoat' (rhyming slang for coat) which must be 'popped' or pawned because of visits to the Eagle; that it is a mishearing of weevil or vaisselle (which leads to further obscurities); that it was James I's nickname ('because of his thin sharp features and red hair) and that, 'rice' and 'treacle' being slang terms for potassium nitrate and charcoal respectively, the rhyme refers to the Gunpowder Plot; that the phrase describes a sixpence expended, a cork being drawn out of a bottle, or the sinuous weasel-like movement of the dancer passing under the arms of his partners. But even when the dance was at the height of its popularity nobody seems to have known what the phrase meant, and W.R. Mandale, in his comic song 'Pop Goes the Weasel', says that after enquiring of everyone he met,
I'm still as wise as e'er I was,
As full's an empty pea-shell,
In as far as the true history goes
Of 'Pop goes the weasel'.
NOTES- KUNTZ: A POP GOES THE WEASEL. G Major (most versions): D Major (Burchenal). Standard tuning. One part (Bronner, Burchenal, Shaw): AB (S. Johnson, Kennedy, Raven, Sweet): ABB (Jarman): AABB (Ashman, Karpeles, Ruth, Sharp). The weasel was a metal tool used by hat makers in England. Originally the term ‘popped’ meant pawned in England, indicating a tradesman who was so down on his luck he would need to pawn his tools (Ful, Randolph). Reginald Nettle, in his book Sing a Song of England (1954) deciphers one verse of the song that goes with the tune in this context:
***
Up and down the City Road,
In and out the Eagle,
That’s the way the money goes;
Pop goes the weasel.
***
“There is no sham in the song,” writes Nettle, “vulgar though it may be. The Eagle in the City Road, London, was a music-hall, a centre for inebriation and popular song. Like so many satirical poems originally intended for adults, it now remains to us as a children’s song. Anyway, it did no harm” (pg. 232).
***
In America, however, the implement meaning of ‘weasel’ was lost, and it was generally thought to refer to an animal. Linscott (1939) maintains the tune was once an accompaniment to a dance or old English singing game and was popular with children as far back as the early 17th century. He claims the origin is unknown, but that it was introduced in New England as a contra dance and "remains a great favorite." In fact, although the melody is assumed to have some antiquity, it was possibly first published under the title "Pop Goes the Weasel" in London in March, 1853 (as an "old English dance"), though American versions have been found also published in 1853 (Fuld, 1971). Bayard (1981) identifies his unusual Pennsylvania collected versions as being derived from the 19th century English popular ditty, though he demurs in printing the standard sets he encountered saying "the printings of it must be innumerable." Burchenal prints the dance of the same name in her New England collection along with the tune. Page and Tolman state in their Country Dance Book that "The Devil hates holy water no less than the Yankees hate the thought of Pop Goes the Weasel done as anything but a contry (sic)" (pg. 94). The melody has wide currency in America as a play‑party song as well as a song and fiddle tune, and was known to the minstrel stage.
***
“Pop” has often been mentioned in print and frequently recorded in American culture. It was a favorite piece of both armies in the American Civil War, and, for example, appeared in Boston publisher Elias Howe’s United States Regulation Drum and Fife Instructor (1861). It was recorded for the Library of Congress by musicologist/folklorist Vance Randolph, from Ozark Mountain fiddlers in the early 1940's. African-American fiddler Cuje Bertram (Cumberland Plateau region, Kentucky) recorded the tune on a home recording made in 1970 for his family; with interesting melodic variations. “Pop” was cited as having commonly been played for Orange County, New York, country dances in the 1930's (Lettie Osborn, New York Folklore Quarterly) and at Arizona dances at the turn of the century (Shumway, 1990). It was in the repertoire of Buffalo Valley, Pa., region dance fiddler Harry Daddario in the mid-20th century. The tune was listed in the Northwest Alabamian of August 29, 1929, as one of those likely to be played at an upcoming fiddlers' convention, and by the Tuscaloosa News of March 28, 1971 as a specialty of "Monkey" Brown of that city, who competed at fiddlers' contests in the 1920's and 30's (Cauthen, 1990). The melody was listed as one in the repertoire of Maine fiddler Mellie Dunham (The elderly Dunham was Henry Ford's champion fiddler in the late 1920's), and it was in the repertoire of West Virginia fiddler Edden Hammons.
***
Laura Ingalls Wilder, in her popular children’s book Little House in the Big Woods, mentions the tune in a short passage:
***
For a special birthday treat, Pa played "Pop Goes the Weasel" for her.
He sat with Laura and Mary close against his knees while he played.
"Now watch," he said. "Watch, and maybe you can see the weasel pop
out this time". . . Laura and Mary bent close, watching, for they knew
now was the time. "Pop! (said Pa's finger on the string) Goes the weasel!
(sang the fiddle, plain as plain.)" But Laura and Mary hadn't seen Pa's
finger make the string pop. "Oh, please, please, do it again!" they begged him.
***
“Pop Goes the Weasel” was whistled during the practicing of the morris dance All the Winds, although the dance is done to the rattle of the bones (Raven, 1984, pg. 92).
***
“Pop Goes the Weasel” was the vehicle for many virtuoso and comic fiddler’s to display their prowess on the instrument. The famous Norwegian violinist Ole Bull (1810-1880) is said to have performed a very flashy, gymnastic, virtuoso version of the melody as part of his act, which consisted mainly of his own compositions and Norwegian folk songs. He toured the United States in 1843, returning four more times, and became a very influential musician in areas where better musicians were seldom heard (see note for “Ole Bull Hornpipe”). American fiddlers also played the piece as a ‘trick’ fiddle showcase: "The tune was one that fiddlers across the South delighted in playing at contests. It was customary to begin with the violin held in a normal position, then, upon reaching the word 'Pop' in the song to pluck a string and shift the instrument to a radically different position, swiftly and smoothly, without losing a beat of the music. The more contorted the position, and the smoother the transition, the louder the applause" (Cauthen, pg. 137). Sources for notated versions: Willie Woodward (Bristol, N.H.) [Linscott]: Floyd Woodhull, 1976 (New York State) [Bronner]: Joseph Pardee (Indiana County, Pa, 1952), Harry Kessler (Westmoreland County, Pa., 1944) and Edgar Work (Indiana County, Pa., 1949) [Bayard]; caller George Van Kleeck (Woodland Valley, Catskill Mtns, New York) [Cazden]; a c. 1837-1840 MS by Shropshire musician John Moore [Ashman]. Ashman (The Ironbridge Hornpipe), 19 91; No. 37b, pg. 12. Bayard (Dance to the Fiddle), 1981; No. 631A‑C, pg. 553. Bronner (Old Time Music Makers of New York State), 1987; No. 16, pg. 79. Burchenal (American Country Dances, vol. 1), 1918; pg. 22. Cazden (Dances from Woodland), 1945; pg. 5. Cole (1000 Fiddle Tunes), 1940; pg. 24 (in 6/8 time). Ford (Traditional Music in America), 1940; pg. 40. Jarman, 1944; pg. 17. S. Johnson (The Kitchen Musician No. 6: Jig), 1982 (revised 1989, 2001); pg. 1. Karpeles & Schofield (A Selection of 100 English Folk Dance Airs), 1951; pg. 4. Kennedy (Fiddlers Tune Book), vol. 1, 1951; No. 39, pg. 20. Linscott (Folk Songs of Old New England), 1939; pg. 108. Raven (English Country Dance Tunes), 1984; pg. 166. Ruth (Pioneer Western Folk Tunes), 1948; No. 3, pg. 3. Sharp (Country Dance Tunes), 1090/1994; pg. 5. Shaw (Cowboy Dances), 1943; pg. 393. Sweet (Fifer’s Delight), 1965/1981; pg. 17. Thomas & Leeder (The Singin’ Gathering), 1939; pg. 88. Maggie’s Music MMCD222, Bonnie Rideout – “Scottish Fire” (2000). Edden Hammons Collection, Disc 2. PearlMae Muisc 004-2, Jim Taylor – “The Civil War Collection” (1996. Converted into a 4/4 reel).
NOTES- HENRY REED: "Pop Goes the Weasel" is widely distributed in the English-speaking world and has especially broad popularity in America, probably because it sustains itself as a song for children--often, actually, for adults to sing or play for the entertainment of children. It also has been used for dancing, though not necessarily for jigs, despite its 6/8 meter. Typical sets are Sharp, Country Dance Tunes, vol. 1, pp. 10-11; Linscott, Folk Songs of Old New England, p. 108; Randolph, Ozark Folksongs, vol. 3, p. 368; Ford, Traditional Music of America, p. 40; Winner's Collection of Music for the Violin, p. 79; One Thousand Fiddle Tunes, p. 24 (with dance directions); Ruth, Pioneer Western Folk Tunes, p. 3 (with left-hand picking directions).
On the fiddle, it is a perennial favorite with a special feature: the "pop" is played by picking the E-string with the left hand. Henry Reed's version is in G, which is customary and indeed required to make the "pop" come out on the open E-string; but in his version the "pop" is actually "pop goes"--that is, it is two picked strings, the open E-string followed by the open A-string.
NOTES- BALLAD INDEX:
DESCRIPTION: Words can be anything, as long as they have the phrase "Pop goes the weasel." The 1853 text talks of a weasel in a henhouse, temperance issues, and relations between Uncle Sam and John Bull
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1853
KEYWORDS: animal technology nonballad nonsense humorous political
FOUND IN: US(Ap,MW,NE,SE,So)
REFERENCES (11 citations):
Randolph 556, "Pop Goes the Weasel" (2 texts, 1 tune)
Randolph/Cohen, pp. 408-409, "Pop Goes the Weasel" (1 text, 1 tune -- Randolph's 556A)
BrownIII 93, "Pop Goes the Weasel" (1 fragment)
Linscott, pp. 107-108, "Pop! Goes the Weasel" (1 tune plus dance instructions)
RJackson-19CPop, pp. 176-179, "Pop Goes de Weasel" (1 text, 1 tune)
Baring-Gould-MotherGoose #872, p. 325, "(Up and down the city road)"
Montgomerie-ScottishNR 108, "(Round about the porridge pot)" (1 text)
Arnett, p. 40, "Pop Goes the Weasel" (1 text, 1 tune)
Silber-FSWB, p. 34, "Pop Goes The Weasel" (1 text)
Fuld-WFM, pp. 440-441+, "Pop Goes the Weasel"
DT, WEASLPOP* POPWEAS2*
ST R556 (Full)
Roud #5249
BROADSIDES:
Murray, Mu23-y1:060, "Pop Goes the Weasel," James Lindsay (Glasgow), 19C, possibly a parody on another version of the piece
NLScotland, L.C.178.A.2(032), "Pop Goes the Weael", James Lindsay (Glasgow), 1852-1859
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "A Ripping Trip" (tune)
cf. "The D & H Canal" (tune)
Notes: The history of this piece is obscure. The earliest datable printings (British and American versions from 1853) have the tune; the American version also includes the phrase "Pop goes the weasel," but has little resemblance to the modern texts such as "All around the cobbler's bench The monkey chased the weasel" (this text does not appear until the twentieth century).
The English printing (the NLScotland broadside cited) is a dance tune with no text; it hints that the music is traditional. Interestingly, printer Lindsay has another version (the Murray broadside) which does have a text -- but it appears rewritten, since it refers to "Albert and the Queen" dancing to the tune, and girls being ruined by its melody.
It is generally agreed that, in the earliest versions, the "weasel" is the tool used by hatmakers, and to "pop" it is to pawn it. - RBW
NOTES- WIKI: "Pop Goes the Weasel" is an English language nursery rhyme and singing game. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 5249.
Lyrics
There are many different versions of the lyrics to the song. Most share the basic verse:
Half a pound of tuppenny rice,
Half a pound of treacle.
That’s the way the money goes,
Pop goes the weasel.[1]
Often a second verse is added:
Every night when I get home
The monkey's on the table,
Take a stick and knock it off,
Pop goes the weasel.[1]
Origins
Despite some assumptions this song can only be traced back to the mid-nineteenth century, when a music sheet acquired by the British Library in 1853 described a dance, 'Pop Goes the Weasel', which was, according to the music sheet, 'An Old English Dance, as performed at Her Majesty's & The Nobilities Balls, with the Original Music'. It had a tune very similar to that used today and only the words "Pop Goes the Weasle".[1] There is evidence that several people tried to add lyrics to the popular tune. The following verse had been written by 1855 when it quoted in a performance at the Theatre Royal:
Up and down the city road
In and out the Eagle
That's the way the money goes
Pop goes the weasel.
American versions
The song seems to have crossed the Atlantic in the 1850s when the lyrics were still unstable in Britain and was printed in Boston in 1858 with the lyric:
All around the cobbler's house,
The monkey chased the people.
And after them in double haste,
Pop goes the weasel.[2]
In 1901 in New York the opening lyric was:
All around the chicken coop,
The possum chased the weasel.[2]
The most common recent version was not recorded until 1914. In addition to the three verses above, American versions often include some of the following:
Standard American Lyrics:
All around the Mulberry Bush,
The monkey chased the weasel.
The monkey stopped to pull up his sock, (or The monkey stopped to scratch his nose)
Pop! goes the weasel.
All around the Mulberry Bush.
The warthog chased the weasel.
The warthog pulled out his elephant gun.
Pop goes the Weasel.
Half a pound of tuppenny rice,
Half a pound of treacle.
Mix it up and make it nice,
Pop! goes the weasel.
Up and down the City Road, (also seen as Up and down the King's Highway)
In and out the Eagle,
That’s the way the money goes,
Pop! goes the weasel.
For you may try to sew and sew,
But you'll never make anything regal,
That’s the way the money goes,
Pop! goes the weasel.
The monkey and the weasel fought,
The weasel's really feeble,
The monkey punched him in the face,
Pop! goes the weasel.
Every time when I come home
The monkey's on the table,
Cracking nuts and eating spice
Pop! goes the weasel.
Every time when I come home
The monkey's on the table,
Take a stick and knock it off
Pop! goes the weasel.
Contemporary verses in the United States include these:
All around the mulberry bush (or cobbler's bench)
The monkey chased the weasel;
The monkey thought 'twas all in fun, (or "'twas all in good sport") (or "that it was a joke")
Pop! goes the weasel.
A penny for a spool of thread,
A penny for a needle—
That's the way the money goes,
Pop! goes the weasel.
Jimmy's got the whooping cough
And Timmy's got the measles
That's the way the story goes
Pop! goes the weasel.
All around the vinegar jug
The monkey chased the weasel;
The monkey pulled the stopper out,
Pop! goes the weasel.
I've got no time to wait aside,
No time to sit and bide my time,
I'm off for now. Hello, Goodbye!
Pop! goes the weasel.
Mixer Masker Doodley Doo
This is what the turtles doo!
Mixer Masker Doofey Fong
This is the good old Turtley song!
The following five versions B-F are from the Ballad index:
--- B ---
As printed in Alice B. Gomme, The Traditional Games of England,
Scotland, and Ireland, pp. 63-64. The first verse is from Earls
Heaton, the second from "A. Nutt."
Half a pound of tup'ny rice,
Half a pound of treacle;
Mix it up and make it nice,
Pop goes the weasel.
Up and down the City Road,
In and out the Eagle,
That's the way the money goes,
Pop goes the weasel.
--- C ---
As printed in Vance Randolph, Ozark Folksongs, Volume III,
pp. 368-369. Randolph's #556, the A text. Collected 1926 from
Mrs. Marie Wilbur of Pineville, Missouri.
All around the countin' house
The monkey chased the weasel,
The merchant kissed the farmer's wife,
Pop goes the weasel!
A nickel for a hank of thread,
A penny for a needle,
The peddlar kissed the merchant's wife,
Pop goes the weasel!
Fifteen cents for calico,
An' ten cents more for needles,
That's where all my money goes,
Pop goes the weasel!
--- D ---
Fragment from Laura Ingalls Wilder, Little House in the Big
Woods, chapter 5. The setting is not historical; the Ingalls
family did not in fact live in Wisconsin when Laura was the
age described in the book. The piece must therefore be regarded
as undated, though a date of 1871/2 is claimed.
A penny for a spool of thread,
Another for a needle,
That's the way the money goes --
Pop! Goes the weasel!
All around the cobbler's bench,
The monkey chased the weasel,
The preacher kissed the cobbler's wife --
Pop! goes the weasel!
--- E ---
Civil War version printed in [H. M. Wharton], War Songs and
Poems of the Southern Confederacy, p. 387.
King Abraham is very sick,
Old Scott has got the measles,
Manassas we have now at last --
Pop goes the weasel!
All around the cobbler's house
The monkey chased the people,
And after them in double haste
Pop goes the weasel!
When the night walks in as black as a sheep,
And the hen on her eggs was fast asleep,
When into her nest with a serpent's creep
Pop goes the weasel!
Of all the dance that ever was planned
To galvanize the heel and the hand,
There's none that moves so gay and grand
As pop goes the weasel!
--- F ---
Version learned from my father, Frederick M. Waltz, circa
1965. Loosely remembered. I'm quite sure the second line of
the final verse was his own invention.
All around the cobbler's bench
The monkey chased the weasel.
The monkey thought 'twas all in fun;
Pop! goes the weasel.
A penny for a spool of thread,
A nickel for a needle,
That's where all the money goes;
Pop! goes the weasel.
A penny for a loaf of bread,
A nickel for a beagle,
That's where all the money goes;
Pop! goes the weasel.
British versions tend to be a combination of American and British lyrics.[3]
As a singing game
In Britain the rhyme has been played as a children's game since at least the late nineteenth century. The game is played to the "first" verse quoted above. Several rings are formed and they dance around as the verse is sung. One more players than the number of rings are designated as "weasels", all but one standing in the rings. When the "Pop goes the weasel" line is reached they have to rush to a new ring before anyone else can. The one that fails is eliminated and the number of circles is reduced by one until there is only one weasel left.[1]
Meaning and interpretations
The Eagle pub in City Road, with the rhyme on the wallPerhaps because of the obscure nature of the lyrics there have been many suggestions for their significance, particularly over the meaning of the phrase 'Pop goes the weasel', including: that it is a tailor's flat iron, a hatter's tool, a clock reel used for measuring in spinning,[4] a piece of silver plate, or that 'weasel and stoat' is rhyming slang for 'coat', which is 'popped or pawned' to visit the Eagle pub, that it is a mishearing of weevil or vaisselle, that it was a nickname of James I, and that 'rice' and 'treacle' are slang terms for potassium nitrate and charcoal and that therefore the rhyme refers to the gunpowder plot. Other than correspondences none of these theories has any additional evidence to support it, and some can be discounted because of the known history of the song.[1] Iona and Pete Opie observed that, even at the height of the dance craze in the 1850s no-one seemed to know what the phrase meant.[1]
It is possible that the "eagle" mentioned in the song's third verse refers to The Eagle freehold pub along Shepherdess Walk in London, which was established as a music hall in 1825 and was rebuilt as a public house in 1901. This public house bears a plaque with this interpretation of the nursery rhyme and the pub's history. Shepherdess Walk is just off the City Road mentioned in the same verse.[5]
In popular culture
In literature:
In The Railway Series by the Revd W. Awdry Duck and the Diesel Engine (vol 13 of the series, 1958), the visiting engine Diesel hauls a rake of condemned vans from a siding by mistake, and lurches forward ('pops') when a rusty coupling breaks. While Diesel clears up the mess he hears the trucks making fun of him with this song.[6]
In Steven King's Insomnia (1994) the antagonists frequently sing a verse from this song.
In every book of Enid Blyton's Adventure Series (1944-55) Kiki the parrot utters among other sayings "pop goes the weasel."
In film:
In the Three Stooges short subject Punch Drunks (1934), Curly Howard is a mild mannered simpleton who goes into a fighting frenzy when he hears the song. The tune was played in the title credits of their Pop Goes the Easel. The gag was reused in the feature film The Three Stooges Go Around the World in a Daze with Curly-Joe DeRita becoming combative when he hears the song.
The tune is a recurring part of the underscore of the Warner Bros. cartoon, A Pest in the House (1947).
In The Godfather II (1974), when Frankie Pentangeli tries to get the band to play a tarantella, they play Pop Goes the Weasel instead.
In Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991), when Robin is crossing a river, Will Scarlet trips him with a rope and sings to this tune.
In music:
A version recorded by Anthony Newley achieved number 12 in the UK charts in 1961.
"Pop Goes The Weasel" is a diss song about Vanilla Ice by the American rap group 3rd Bass. Released in 1991, it is taken from their album Derelicts Of Dialect.
In comedy:
Andy Kaufman (1949-84) used "Pop Goes the Weasel" as a karaoke 'stage prop'.
In T.V.:
"Pop Goes the Weasel" is prominently featured in the 1960s television series The Prisoner. An instrumental version is part of the soundtrack of several episodes (most notably the premiere episode "Arrival"), and in "Once Upon a Time" the lead character Number Six, whose mind has been reverted to childhood, begins singing the song, but is goaded by his nemesis, Number Two, who turns the word "Pop" into an acronym for "Protect Other People", leading the two to yell "Why POP?" at each other.
In the Star Trek: The Next Generation pilot "Encounter at Farpoint" (1987), Lt. Commander Data is whistling the song when first encountered by Commander Riker, who supplies the last notes. The event is referenced again in the film Star Trek: Nemesis (2002).
The theme song "You Don't Need Pants for the Victory Dance" from the American animated cartoon television series I Am Weasel is based on "Pop Goes the Weasel" lyrics and song.
In Alias, Episode 14 in Season 2. A CIA Agent is singing the song shortly before she is being killed by an explosion (2003).
In The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson The episode name for the skit "Murder, She Wrote" 2008 is "Pop Goes The Weasel... OF DEATH!".
In the Disney Channel Original Series Sonny with a Chance, the a jingly version of the song is played on a stereo during a game of Musical Chairs that was set up so that the cast of "So Random!" could win back their belongings.
In children's toys
The song was used for the popular series of Jack-in-the-boxes manufactured by Mattel. When a crank on the side of the box was turned, the tune would be heard instrumentally, and when the music arrived at the word Pop the lid would fly open and a clown figure would pop out. This Jack-in-the-box, together with the tune, was featured in the opening credits of the popular Romper Room TV series.
References
1) ^ a b c d e f I. Opie and P. Opie, The Singing Game (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1985), pp. 216-18.
2) ^ a b W. E. Studwell, The Americana Song Reader (Haworth Press, 1997), pp. 135-6.
3) ^ James J. Fuld, The Book of World-Famous Music: Classical, Popular, and Folk (1966, 5th edn., Dover, 2000), pp. 440-1.
4) ^ D. D. Volo, Family Life in Seventeenth- and Eighteenth-century America (Greenwood, 2006), p. 264.
5) ^ P. Zwart, Islington; a History and Guide (London: Taylor & Francis, 1973), p. 42.
6) Awdry, Rev. W. (1958). Duck and the Diesel Engine. Edmund Ward. pp. 32. ISBN 0 7182 1050 6.
"Pop Goes The Weasel" from American memory 1853/1859 lyrics:
Pop Goes de Weasel- 1853 by Stepehn T. Gordon
From sheet music published 1853 by Stepehn T. Gordon. The above is the spelling on the interior page; the title page is inscribed:
Pop goes the weazel SONG
Arranged by Chas. Twiggs Esq.
When de night walks in, as black as a sheep,
And de hen and her eggs am fast asleep,
Den into her nest with a sarpent's creep,
CHORUS: "Pop goes de Weasel."
Oh all de dance dat evver was plann'd
To galvanize de heel and de hand,
Dar's none dat moves so gay and grand As
CHORUS: "Pop goes de Weasel."
De lover, when he pants t'rough fear,
to pop de question to his dear,
He joins dis dance, den in her ear,
CHORUS: "Pop goes de Weasel."
2
John Bull tells, in de ole cow's hum,
How Uncle Sam used Uncle Tom,
While he makes some white folks slaves at home,
By "Pop goes de Weasel!"
He talks about a friendly trip
To Cuba in a steam war-ship,
But Uncle Sam may make him skip
By "Pop goes de Weasel!"
He's sending forth his iron hounds
To bark us off de fishin'-grounds --
He'd best beware of Freedom's sounds
Ob "Pop goes de Weasel!"
3
De Temperance folks from Souf to Main,
Against all liquor spout and strain,
But when dey feels an ugly pain
Den "Pop goes de Weasel!"
All New York in rush now whirls
While de World's Fair its flag unfurls,
But de best World's Fair am when our girls
Dance "Pop goes de Weasel!"
Den form two lines straight as a string,
Dance in and out, den three in a ring --
Dive under like de duck, and sing
"Pop goes de Weasel!"
"POP GOES DE WEASEL" 1859 arranged by Charley Twiggs, published by S. T. Gordon; (A reprint of the 1853 lyrics with minor differences)
When de night walks in as black as a sheep
and de hen and her eggs am fast asleep
Den into her nest with a sarpent's creep
Pop! goes de weasel
Oh all de dance dat ebber was plann'd
To galvanize de heel and hand
Dar's none dat moves so gay and grand as
Pop goes the weasel
De lover, when he pants t'rough fear,
To pop de question to his dear
He joins dis dance, den in her ear
Pop goes de weasel.
John Bull tells, in de ole cow's hum
How Uncle Sam used "Uncle Tom"
While he makes some white folks "slaves" at home,
By Pop goes de Weasel
He talks about a friendly trip
To Cuba in a steam war-ship
But Uncle Sam may make him skip
By Pop goes de weasel
He's sending forth his iron hounds
To bark us off de fishin'-grounds
He'd best beware of Freedom's sounds
Ob Pop goes de Weasel
De temperance folks from Souf to Main
Against all liquor spout and strain
But when dey feels and ugly pain
Den Pop goes de Weasel
All New York in rush now whirls
Whar de "World's Fair" its flag unfurls
But de best World's Fair and when our girls
Dance Pop goes de Weasel
Den form two lines as straight as a string
Dance in and out, den three in a ring
Dive under like de duck, and sing
Pop goes de Weasel
POP GOES DE WEASEL American Memory (circa 1850s)
When de night walks in, as black as a sheep,
And de hen and her eggs am fast asleep,
Den into her nest with a sarpent's creep,
"Pop goes de Weasel!"
CHORUS: Den form two lines as straight as a string,
Dance in and out, den three in a ring--
Dive under like de duck, and sing,
"Pop goes de Weasel!"
Ob all de dance dat ebber was planned
To galvanize de heel and hand,
Dar's none dat moves so gay and grand
As "Pop goes de Weasel!"
Den form two lines, &c.
De lover, when he pants t'rough fear,
To pop de question to his dear,
He joins dis dance, den in her ear,
"Pop goes de Weasel!"
Den form two lines, &c.
John Bull tells, in de ole cow's hum,
How Uncle Sam used Uncle Tom,
While he makes some white folks slaves at home,
By "Pop goes de Weasel!"
Den form two lines, &c.
He talks about a friendly trip
To Cuba, in a steam war-ship,
But Uncle Sam may make him skip
"By "Pop goes de Weasel!"
Den form two lines, &c.
He's sending forth his iron hounds
To bark us off de fishin'-grounds--
He'd best beware of Freedom's sounds
Ob "Pop goes de Weasel!"
Den form two lines, &c.
De Temperance folks from Souf to Maine,
Against all liquor spout and strain,
But when dey feels an ugly pain,
Den "Pop goes de Weasel!"
Den form two lines, &c.
All New York in rush now whirls
Whar de World's Fair its flag unfurls,
But de best World's Fair am when our girls
Dance "Pop goes de Weasel!"
Den form two lines, &c.
POP GOES THE WEAZLE (sic) NO. 3.
H. De Marsan, Publisher, 38 Chatham Street, N. Y. [no date]
[The line "Sebastopol's not taken yet" would seem to date this version to 1854-55.]
Queen Victoria is very sick,
Napoleon's got the measles,
Sebastopol's not taken yet;
Pop goes the weazle,
CHORUS: All round the cobbler's bench,
The monkey chased the weazle,
The priest, he kissed the cobbler's wife,
Pop went the weazle.
A penny for a ball of thread,
A penny for a needle,
That's the way the money goes;
Pop goes the weazle. CHORUS
My wife, she is awful sick,
The baby's got the measles,
Sally's got the whooping cough;
Pop goes the weazle. CHORUS
Johnny Bull, he makes his brag,
He can whip the whole creation,
Why don't he take Sebastopol,
By Pop goes the weazle. CHORUS
Mayor Wood has put the rumsellers through,
The Maine Law's a sad evil,
We cannot get our toddy now;
Pop goes the weazle. CHORUS
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