Cultural References and Antiquated Slang Terms
By D. L. Bullock
Warning: the following post is intended for mature audiences!
I have a friend who has collected thousands of rare 78 rpm records.
He is constantly telling me of obscure cultural references found in
lyrics on those records.
Most of the most outlandishly funny ones are on the race labels or
records that were made for the early black audience. Many white folk
would hear these records and think what a charming song. But when the
black folks heard them they knew exactly what the references were and
rolled in the floor with laughter.
There are many double entendre lyrics that no one knows about today.
If you have any particular questions, I can ask him about it. The
examples of song titles and key words are below. There are
multitudinous references to everyday things besides off-color or sexual
terms. They made these records because they sold very well.
jelly roll -- refers to the male parts. Yes, the nick name of
Jelly Roll Morton was referring to his size.
key hole --refers to the female parts.
Titles:
I ain't gonna give nobody none o' this jelly-roll
Whip it to a jelly
You've got the right key, but the wrong keyhole
Mr. Jelly Lord
Hot nuts, get 'em from the peanut man
If I can't sell it I'll keep sittin' on it, before I'll give it away
(an old chair)
D.L. Bullock St. Louis
http://www.thepianoworld.com/
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(Message sent Thu 27 Feb 2003, 18:58:39 GMT, from time zone GMT-0800.) |
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