Every little movement

AKA Every little movement has a meaning all its own
First Published 1910
Writer/composer Charles Moore and Fred E Cliffe Roud RN10948

Music Hall Performers Marie Lloyd
Folk performances Collected from the singing of troops in WW1 


Up to the West End, right in the Best End,
Straight from the country came Miss Maudie Brown.
Father's a curate, but couldn't endure it,
That's why the Lady is residing in town.
Twelve months ago her modest self felt quite sublime
To sit on a fellow's knee who's been all in the grime!
And if you should want a kiss,
She'd drop her eyes like this,
But now she drops them just one at a time.

And every little movement has a meaning of its own,
Every little movement tells a tale.
When she walks in dainty hobbles,
At the back round here, there's a kind of wibble-wobble;
And she glides like this,
Then the Johnnies follow in her trail,
'Cos when she turns her head like so,
Something's going, don't you know,
Every little movement tells a tale.

Down by the blue sea, cute as she could be,
Maudie would go for her dip every day.
Maudie has an eye for the boys, Oh my!
And it happens that Reggie was passing that way.
When Reggie saw her he fell into a trance,
He too is going bathing for her now, here's a chance.
She didn't smile or frown,
Just threw her signal down!
Then slyly shrugged her shoulders with a glance.

And every little movement has a meaning of its own,
Every little movement tells a tale.
When she dashed into the ocean,
Reggie kept close by for to know her
Maudie tried to swim:
"Oh I'm here," said Reggie, "if you fail,"
And in less than half a wink,
Maudie dear commenced to sink,
Every little movement tells a tale.

Congratulations, such celebrations,
Bertie and Gertie have just tied the knot.
Both at the party, all gay and hearty,
And noticed the bridegroom looks anxious, eh what?
When friends and relatives depart their different ways,
Alone with the girlie of his heart.
And once again he turned the lights down low,
She looked at him like so,
Then shyly with her wedding ring she played..

And every little movement has a meaning of its own,
Every little movement tells a tale.
When alone no words they utter,
But when midnight chimed, then their hearts begin to flutter.
And she yawned like this,
And stretches out her arm so frail,
And her hubby full of love,
Looks at her and points above,
Every little movement tells a tale.

Loosely based on a song featured in the American stage musical Madame Sherry (1910). The American publishers refused permission for the original to be performed in the British Halls, so Marie Lloyd commissioned Charles Moore and Fred E Cliffe to produce a substantially different song with the same title. As Peter Davison points out, comic songs exploring the fate of simple country folk in the big city were common in the Halls (and in traditional circles we might add) – no doubt this one would have been performed in such a way as to emphasise the significance of “every little movement.”

The song was widely adapted/ parodied by troops in World War 1, for example this Canadian variant:

Every little Movement has a meaning of its own;
Every blessed order comes by wire or telephone.
Sometimes, it’s just a mere rag-chewing;
Sometimes, it’s just a damn’d stand-to-ing;
Sometimes, there’s really something doing;
Sometimes—you’ve got to go!

Sources:

  • Entries in the Roud Indexes at the Vaughn Williams Memorial Library: https://archives.vwml.org/search/all:single[folksong-broadside-books]/0_50/all/score_desc/extended-roudNo_tr%3A10948
  • Peter Davison (1971) Songs of the British Musical Hall
  • Kilgarrif Sing Us
  • Lyrics and Sheet Music: Peter Davison (1971) Songs of the British Musical Hall
  • DOROTHEA YORK (1931); MUD AND STARS AN ANTOLOGY OF WORLD WAR SONGS AND POETRY at archive.com