Wait til the work comes round

AKA

Lyrics

Gus Elen

Music

Charles Cornell

Roud

V13400

Some people knuckle dahn thro' bein' out of work
But I ain't one o' them, not me
If a gaffer starts to nag I soon picks up my bag
And I flops 'im one with this, d'ye see
It don't do to let people fink you're on the rocks
'Cos they're bound to turn their heads the other way
But it makes no odds to me what the future's goin' to be
So long as I've got all I wants today, so,

What's the use of kicking up a row
If there ain't no work about?
If you can't get a job, you can rest in bed
Till the school kids all comes out
If you can't get work you can't get the sack
That's a argyment that's sensible and sound
Lay your head back on yer piller and read yer 'Daily Mirrer'
And wait till the work comes round.

If trade is werry rocky and you 'ave to take the knocky
It's best to face the music like a brick
If your creditors come down on yer for everyfink you owe
You must dot 'em on the napper with a stick
Some people walk about the streets a-looking out for work
Till they 'aven't got a leg to call their own
Instead o' them a-waiting for the work to come to them
With their feet stuck on the mantlepiece at home.

What's the use of kicking up a row
If there ain't no work about?
If you can't get a job, you can rest in bed
Till the school kids all comes out
If you can't get work you can't get the sack
That's a argyment that's sensible and sound
With the twins upon your lap, you can play the wife at nap
And wait till the work comes round.

Now you 'aven't got to worry as to where you're going to dine
And it's a matter of indifference 'ow you're dressed
'Cos if a chap's 'ard up he doesn't want a starchy front
To get a pound of sprats across his chest
And there's one thing, while you're idle you ain't wearing' out yer boots
And yer togs'll last you twice as long as that
Though yer rations may be low, it consoles yer when yer know
You can't peg out through being over fat.

What's the use of kicking up a row
If there ain't no work about?
If you can't get a job, you can rest in bed
Till the school kids all comes out
If you can't get work you can't get the sack
That's a argyment that's sensible and sound
With the swells in Rotten Row you can sit and 'ave a blow
And wait till the work comes round. 

Another working class cockney classic from Gus Elen! The excellent John Foreman sings a snatch in the excellent BBC Radio 4 Programme John’s Songs

Sources:

Lyrics: Monologues.co.uk

Gus Elen sings it:

Last Updated on October 29, 2020 by John Baxter | Published: March 14, 2020