{"id":10351,"date":"2021-05-22T06:35:16","date_gmt":"2021-05-22T06:35:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/folksongandmusichall.com\/?page_id=10351"},"modified":"2021-10-26T08:53:10","modified_gmt":"2021-10-26T08:53:10","slug":"heres-to-private-tommy-atkins","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/folksongandmusichall.com\/index.php\/heres-to-private-tommy-atkins\/","title":{"rendered":"Here’s to Private Tommy Atkins"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
AKA<\/td>Private Tommy Atkins<\/td><\/tr>
First Published<\/td>c1895<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Writer\/composer<\/td>FV St Clair<\/td>Roud<\/strong><\/td>RNV4790 and 13695<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
Music Hall Performers<\/strong><\/td>FV St Clair<\/td><\/tr>
Folk performances<\/strong><\/td>Collected from the singing of:<\/strong>
Dowdy, Douglas ; England : Hampshire; 1982<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
From song sheet held in Bodleian Library<\/a>\n\nHERE'S TO PRIVATE TOMMY ATKINS<\/strong>\nParody written by FV St Clair\n\nYou can fetch him from the \"Grapes\" or \"Barley Mow\" \nYou can fill him with condensed milk and tea, \nYou can swear his whiskers never more will grow, \nTill he goes to fight across the angry sea. \nHe may have been a bold Militia man, \nHe may have fought with Sullivan and Mace, \nBut before he'll cross the ocean, he will fill himself with lotion. \nAnd then a \"barrel\" organ he would face.\n\nOh Tommy, Tommy Atkins <\/em>\nYou are a Demon for the fray, <\/em>\nWhen the Duke of Cambridge with his umbrella's far away. <\/em>\nWhen the bugle sounds for dinner <\/em>\nYou are to the front I'm sure; <\/em>\nHere's good luck to Tommy Atkins, <\/em>\nHow he loves the cookhouse door<\/em>\n\nI once met Tommy Atkins far away, \nO'er the plains of Egypt, marching to the strains \nOf a Jews harp and a whistle all the day, \nAnd the tune they played was \"Do please close the drains\" \nI have met him at the \"Bug and Glue Pot Inn\" \nWith a pot of \"four 'alt\" and a long clay pipe; \nI have seen in push a bottle down his very thirsty throttle, \nWhen he's made supper off a piece of tripe \n\nOh Tommy, Tommy Atkins <\/em>\nYou're as hot as hot can be, <\/em>\nBut I'm sure you're only failings <\/em>\nBeer or rum instead of tea. <\/em>\nMay your nose be never redder <\/em>\nWhen your pay each week you \"blue\" <\/em>\n\"May you never die for England <\/em>\nTill your countries dead to you\"<\/em>\n\nI have seen him when he's out upon the mash, \nThen Tommy Atkins face is full of smiles, \nAnd he loves to cut a regular perfect dash, \nHe's as bad as any Tom Cat on the tiles. \nBut when England is in danger you can bet, \nIn the van your find our Tommy brave and bold, \nAll danger he is sharing, but when Scotch kilts he's wearing, \nThe girls say \"Tommy Atkin's legs are cold\"\n\nOh Tommy, Tommy Atkins, <\/em>\nYou go rambling round the town, <\/em>\nWinking slyly at the ladies, <\/em>\nWhile the chappies at you frown. <\/em>\nTho' your chest is often padded, <\/em>\nAnd your moustache thick with glue, <\/em>\n\"Still you'll do more for your country, <\/em>\nThan she'll ever do for you<\/em>.\"\n<\/pre>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
When Kipling published his poem “Tommy” in 1890  it sparked a wave of imitations. This song seems to be a parody of one of those imitations: the very successful and rather pompous  Private Tommy Atkins<\/a><\/em> made famous by Charles Arnold and Hayden Coffin. The lyrics of the two songs have a very similar structure and this one could be sung to the tune of the other. (If you follow the link for Private Tommy Atkins a number of songs of this type are listed). Its somewhat ironic that FV St Clair should sing such a parody, as he sang some pretty pompous nationalistic songs himself! He wrote and performed  a great many martial numbers, here’s a sample of some titles: Kitchener! Gone but not forgotten <\/em>(1916) Follow the Drum <\/em>(1914) and earlier Gladstone is Captain of the Ship John Bull <\/em>(1881).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The song has been found in one source, R. March’s Song Book<\/em> No 117<\/em> held in the Bodleian Library<\/a>. The song book contains a number of Music Hall songs, and from these its likely that it was published in the late 1890s, not between 1877 and 1884 as suggested by the Bodleian. In 1982 Steve Roud collected a song from George Dowdy with first line “Tommy Atkins is a Demon for the fray” <\/em> – as this is very close the first line of the chorus of this song, I would tentatively suggest it’s most likely to be this one rather than any of the other songs about Tommy Atkins .<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sources:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n