{"id":8280,"date":"2021-01-13T16:48:29","date_gmt":"2021-01-13T16:48:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/folksongandmusichall.com\/?page_id=8280"},"modified":"2025-12-17T10:08:56","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T10:08:56","slug":"little-willies-woodbines","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/folksongandmusichall.com\/index.php\/little-willies-woodbines\/","title":{"rendered":"Little Willie’s Woodbines"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
AKA<\/strong><\/td>Little Billy’s Woodbines
Willie’s Wild Woodbines<\/td><\/tr>
First Published<\/td>1908<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Writer\/composer<\/td>Fred Barnes and RP Weston<\/td>Roud<\/strong><\/td>RN17695<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Music Hall Performers<\/strong><\/td>Billy Williams<\/td><\/tr>
Folk performances<\/strong><\/td>Source Singers<\/strong>
Gent, George; England : Sussex 1971
Hannis, Reg; England : Gloucestershire 1975
Ellaway, Arthur; England : Gloucestershire
Cornelius, Edward ‘Soldier’ England : Somerset 1977

Modern performances<\/strong>
Cosmotheka<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Little Billy Williams found a penny in a garden\nOne fine summer's day,\nAnd as little Billy never had more than a 'farden',\nHe said, 'Hip-hoo-ray!'\nThen passing a tobacconist's where cigarettes were sold,\nThere he beheld some little packets, coloured green and gold.\nThen Billy said, 'Although I'm only six, I'll be a sport.'\nHe toddled in that bacca shop and this is what he bought:\n\nFive little fags in a dainty little packet,\nFive cigarettes that cost one D.\nFive little pains underneath his jacket,\nFive wobbles in his little Mary,\nFive little whiffs and in five little jiffs\nHe was rolling in the tramway lines,\nWishing he could touch the cable,\nLooking greener than the label\nOf little Billy's wild Woodbines.<\/em>\n\nWhen he puffed the first one he said, 'This don't seem a good'un!\nThe next might be all right.'\nWhen he lit the second he said, 'Wish I'd bought plum-pudden,\nElse a paper kite.'\nI never thought the world went round,' he murmered at the third,\n'But now I've seen it dancing I can take my teacher's word.'\nThen at the fourth he felt so bad, he hic-cup'd with a frown,\n'Grub ain't so nice a-coming up as when it's going down.'\n\nFive little fags in a dainty little packet,\nFive cigarettes that cost one D.\nFive little pains underneath his jacket,\nFive wobbles in his little Mary,\nFive little whiffs and in five little jiffs\nHe was rolling in the tramway lines,\nSadly saying, 'Close the shutter,\nBilly's dead but do not utter\nA word of Billy's wild Woodbines.<\/em>\n\nLittle Billy Williams he lay flatter than a flounder,\nFull of miseree.\nSuddenly along the road came P.C. Binns, the bounder,\n'What's up here?' said he.\nThen lighting up his bulls-eye, it disclosed the shocking fact,\nThat Billy had been smoking right against the latest act.\nHe picked up all the evidence, those half-smoked woodbines four,\nAnd scowled as little Billy said, 'Please sir, I've got one more.'\n\nOne little fag in a dainty little packet,\nOne cigarette that cost one D.\nOne little pain underneath his jacket,\nOne wobble in his little Mary,\nOne little whiff and in one little jiff\nWhile he lay upon the tramway line,\nPoor little Billy felt like dying,\nAnd that policeman, he was crying,\nBut that copper pinched his last Woodbine.<\/em><\/pre>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
A Music Hall song popular in the early 20th century remembered by traditional singers in the 1970s. It was written by the prolific RP Weston<\/a>, who in addition to writing many songs and sketches with his partner Bert Lee, wrote many songs with  Fred Barnes<\/a> . The song was popularised by the extremely successful performer and recording artist Billy Williams<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
A comic song featuring underage smoking and a corrupt policeman, which says something about the times … One of a number of examples of “product placement” in early 20th century Music Hall.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
As sung by Billy Williams:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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