Forum - Banjo Ben Clark

"My leg is turning green..."

#1

I’ve been working on various versions of Soldier’s Joy for a while and I’ve got a pretty bad ear worm going. “Da, da, da, da, da, da, da, da, da, da, da, da.” If you know the tune, you know that is what it sounds like. This morning I wondered if I could replace some of the “da, das” with actual lyrics so I looked them up on-line. I realized the actual lyrics are going to make the ear worm even worse. I’m doomed. :banjo:

—Edit—
Looks like the link was broken somehow. Anyway, here are the lyrics that I referred to.

Gimme some of that Soldier’s Joy, you know what I mean’
I don’t want to hurt no more my leg is turnin’ green

Twenty-five cents for whiskey, twenty-five cents for beer
Twenty-five cents for morphine, get me out of here

Chorus:
I’m my momma’s pride and joy (3×)
Sing you a song called the soldier’s joy

2 Likes
#2

Yep. The lyrics are much darker & more ironic than many realize.

If you’re looking for someone to play it with, these guys know the song, even if they don’t know the entire history of it.

3 Likes
#3

Yep. I remember looking up the origin of “Soldier’s Joy” and I believe it had something to do with war, men dying in the field, and a medicinal concoction which included various hard drugs, alcohol and anything else that could be thrown in to help dull the pain for the maimed and dying. They called the concoction “Soldier’s Joy”.

#4

Actually the tune dates back to at least 1700’s Robert Burns The Jolly Beggars