{"id":7775,"date":"2020-12-21T15:22:32","date_gmt":"2020-12-21T15:22:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/folksongandmusichall.com\/?page_id=7775"},"modified":"2021-05-05T15:36:41","modified_gmt":"2021-05-05T15:36:41","slug":"whole-hog-or-none-the","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/folksongandmusichall.com\/index.php\/whole-hog-or-none-the\/","title":{"rendered":"Whole Hog or None, The"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
AKA<\/strong><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
First Published<\/td>1855<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Writer\/composer<\/td>Mackney \/ George Ware<\/td>Roud<\/strong><\/td>RN7596<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Music Hall Performers<\/strong><\/td>EW Mackney<\/td><\/tr>
Folk performances<\/strong><\/td>Source Singers<\/strong>
Gould, J.F. 1919 USA : Kansas
Gilliam, Marvin 1929-35 USA : Virginia
Fish, Lena Bourne 1942 USA : New Hampshire<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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The Chilly Man Songster (no date)<\/strong>\nSung by EW Mackney at Weston's Music Hall\n\nI've just arrived across the sea,\nAll the way from Canada, \nYou Britishers I've come to see. \nNot long escap'd from slavery. \nUp and down, I know a dodge or two, \nI'm pretty full of fun; \nIn and out, and round about, \nI'll go the whole hog or none. \n\nUp and down, I know a dodge or two, \nI'm pretty full of fun; \nIn and out, and round about, \nI'll go the whole hog or none. <\/em>\n\nJust arrived at Liverpool, \nA chap comes up and spoke to me; \nSays he, \"I know you are no fool! \nThese things I've smuggled here, you see- \nCigars they are, some fine Havana, \nAnd India shawls, as sure as a gun; \nI brought 'em in the ship Cabana- \nI went the whole hog or none.\" \n\nStraight up to London then I came, \nDetermined all to see; \nI went to concerts, masquerades, \nAnd all the sights with glee. \nBy Fechter, the Shakesperian, \nI saw the great Othello done; \nAt Sydenham Palace, Mr. Blondin \nWent the whole hog or none.\n\nIn Rotten Row the ladies all, \nOn every afternoon, \nTheir figures fine are showing off \nTo gain a husband soon. \nMammas desire to make a match, \nBy which they won't be done- \nTo catch a fine young chap like me, \nThey'll go the whole hog or none. \n\nThe married men of London \nNever stop out late at night, \nThough they like a bit of fun, \nAnd dearly love a sight! \nThey love their children dearly. \nTheir boys and girls surpass'd by none; \nThey love their homes and wives, and \nLike to go the whole hog or none.\n\nYour humble servant now before ye, \nWill ever strive his part to play \n\"In the Strand, \" or \"Dixey's Land,\" \nAs ' Uncle Sam, \" or \"Peter Gray.\" \nThe welcome given shows that you \nAppreciate what he has done; \nTo gain your smiles he'll be prepar'd \nTo go the whole hog or none. \n\n<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
An early British Music Hall song from the 1850s which evolved into a traditional song in the USA. The version collected by Helen Hartness Flanders from the singing of Lena Bourne Fish <\/a>is almost certainly derived from the singing of Tony Pastor (see below), focussing like Pastor’s variant, on humorous verses about the polygamy of Brigham Young.  As yet, I’ve not seen or heard the version collected by Vance Randolph from the singing of JF Gould, so I won’t speculate where that one comes from.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
The Whole Hog or None<\/em> is a difficult song to pin down, and the information provided here is my best interpretation of the evidence I can access. The confusion arises in part because there are several unrelated songs of the same title, and that the original song was designed to be varied by adding and modifying verses to reflect the events of the day. The original version is most associated with the singing of  EW Mackney<\/a>, it was written by George Ware<\/a> in the late 1840s – he and probably others added new topical verses over the years. According to George Belmont:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If all 250 or so verses were ever printed, they would provide a valuable retrospective of events that stirred party strife and agitated the public mind during a long period.<\/p>George Belmont, quoted in Richard Baker: British Music Hall, p234<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
The version given above “Sung EW Mackney at Weston’s Music Hall”<\/em> is likely to be from the early or mid 1860s when we know that Mackney was also singing songs like In the Strand<\/em>. Around that time, he also often sang this verse in response to the American Civil War:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The northern and the southern states\nAre picking of a bone\nBut who should get that bone at last\nShortly will be shown.\nThey had a bit of fighting\nAt a place they call Bull Run\nBut John Bull would make them go\nThe whole hog or none\n\n(Richard Baker: British Music Hall, p234<\/em>)<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
In the late 19th century there was a dispute in the pages of The Era <\/em>about the authorship of the song, which ended with this letter from George Ware, making clear that he started singing the song in 1849, that he sang it to a tune written by Thomas Moore, and that he sold the rights to the song to Mackney in 1856 or 57 :<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Era Jan 27 1894<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
So far so good… But the great collator of Music Hall song, Michael Kilgarriff, suggests two songs of this title were performed in the halls, the second being written by and performed by Charles Sloman<\/a>, set to music from Thomas Moore’s Love’s Young Dream<\/em>. From Ware’s letter above you can see that the original was written to the same tune. However, the words of the version credited to Sloman  usually take the form the song published by Glasgow’s Poet’s Box in 1862, which can be found in the Vaughan Williams Memorial library (RNV35800) <\/a>. It usually starts with this verse and chorus:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The world is a funny kind of place with funny people there,\nIt\u2019s just the kind of steeplechase in which we all must share;\nTo high and low, to rich and poor it all turns out the same,\nFor if the king be not secure the knave must win the game.\nOh law! gals, sure Dublin is a pretty city,<\/em>\nWere you ever there? If not you ought to go,<\/em>\nFor the girls are also pretty, likewise so full of fun,<\/em>\nThere\u2019s no mistake about them, tis the whole hog or none<\/em>.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Sloman’s song continues for several verses, none of which are in common with the versions published as sung by Mackney. Some authors have suggested that Sloman  wrote these verses for Mackney to sing, but I can find no evidence to support this, so it’s best treated as one of a number of variants that circulated in the second half of the 19th century.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A third version was sung in America by the early vaudeville performer and entrepreneur Tony Pastor, sometimes called The Whole Hog None No.2<\/em>. It usually starts with a verse and chorus along the lines of:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Come , give me your attention and I'll sing a little ditty\nOf many sights that I have seen (you must not think me witty) \nOf fashions that have met my eye, 'twill cause a little fun; \nI'll show you how the people go, the whole hog or none\nLaw! Bless your soul!<\/em>\nIt is the truth I tell you, honey;\nThe people act so strangely and so very funny! \nEverybody's bound to go the whole hog or none<\/em>\nTaken From Broadside available at Bodleian Library<\/a>\n<\/strong><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
 To complicate things still further, there is another 19th-century song called Brown and his Donkey or The Whole Hog None<\/em> [First line:  Oh I’m a free good-hearted cove] (RNV8609<\/a>). I have not attempted to discuss the 20th century American songs of the same title.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Sources:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n