More work for the undertaker

AKASolomon
Sammy had an uncle
Sambo had an auntie
Sambo pegged out
First Published1895

Writer/composerFW LeighRoudRN13201

Music Hall PerformersCharles Bignell
Folk performancesCollected from the singing of:
Andrews, Dave; England : Suffolk; c1964
Eldon, Jim; England : Yorkshire; 1972
Eldon, Lynette; England : Yorkshire ; 1972
Stevenson, Kate; England : Yorkshire; 1972
Listen to the song I'm going to sing you
You'll laugh till you haven't any breath
People as a rule now seem to think it funny
When they hear of a violent death
Poor little Solomon Snoozer behaved like an ass
He searched round the house with a candle t'other night
To find a big escape of gas.

More work for the Undertaker
Another little job for the tombstone maker
At the local cemetery they've been very very busy
On a brand new grave - Snoozer's snuffed it.

Billy Buck by nature was a moucher
Hard work didn't suit him it appears
He had never done one single bit of 'graft'f for nine and thirty years
Lately he had a bad nightmare, Bill at once got the 'knock'
He dreamt he'd been out looking for a job
He couldn't stand the terrible shock.

More work for the Undertaker
Another little job for the tombstone maker
At the local cemetery they've been very very busy
On a brand new grave - Billiam's 'blewed it.'

Sammy Shuter laboured on the railway, his work he was very clever at
Sam, the other day, was polishing the metals with a lump of mouldy fat
Up came a runaway engine. Sam stood upon the track
He held up his hands for he thoroughly believed
He could push the locomotive back.

More work for the Undertaker
Another little job for the tombstone maker
At the local cemetery they've been very very busy
On a brand new grave - Shuters 'shunted'

Peter Piper visited a circus, he saw what he could never forget – 
One of the performers jumped from the ceiling, of the house into a net. 
Peter, a day or two after, tried a similar drop – 
He lept from housetop 57 feet, and fell upon a big fat "slop" - 

More work for the undertaker
Another little job for the tombstone maker 
At the local cemetery they've been very very busy 
On a brand-new grave – for Peter and the P'liceman!

Little Freddie Figgleton, the fat boy last week called upon his Uncle Brown
Just before he left, young Freddie was presented with a bright new half-a-crown
Then as he felt a bit thirsty he went into a shop
Drank ten lemonades, a dozen ginger beers and there was a big loud Pop.

More work for the Undertaker
Another little job for the tombstone maker
At the local cemetery they've been very very busy
On a brand new grave - for Frederick's fragments.
 

A huge hit for Charles Bignell (1866-1935) in the mid-1890s that quickly transferred across the Atlantic . It’s another example of a song designed to be varied to suit the tastes of different audiences. No two versions are exactly alike, but I would suggest that they are all the same song.

The song seems to have been sung by students at Yale the early 20th century and around campfires by Girl Guides and Boy Scouts later in the same century . Many variations feature racial stereotypes, in particular many versions draw humour from a racist depiction of a character ” Sambo”. The variations in the song are reflected in the fact that within traditional singing it is more often known one of the alternative titles. Some versions also seem to draw on anti-Semitic stereotypes with characters in the verses like Solomon Levi and Reuben …

The version attributed to FW Leigh and Charles Bignell may have been cleaned up for publication and does not necessarily represent exactly what he sang, but there is no reason to suspect that he or his publishers would have been embarrassed about publishing songs using language we would find unacceptable today. So for example Leigh wrote and published a song called (with apologies for the racist language) Go ‘way Massa Bee with its first line Sambo, he’s a lazy coon.

A US version from 1902 :

Sources:

Last Updated on August 7, 2022 by John Baxter | Published: May 8, 2021

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