"Mammy's Little Coal Black Rose" by Richard A. Whiting and by Raymond Egan
This lullaby was sung by James Wrathall (1944). I heard a pickaninny crying Down in Tennessee one night; His little heart was nearly breaking Just because he wasn't white; Then his dear old Mammy kiss'd him And she said "Chile don' you sigh Weep no more, my baby," Then she sang a Dixie Lullaby: And then I saw that dear old Mammy Kiss those baby tears away While in her arms the baby nestled Happy as a child at play; Then she whispered "Mammy loves you, You're as sweet as 'possum pie, Go to sleep, my honey, While your mammy sings a lullaby" You better dry your eyes, my little Coal Black Rose and don't you cry, You better go to sleep and let those eyelids cloes just hush a-by, 'Cause you're dark, don't start apinin' Your're a cloud with a silver lining; Tho' ev'ry old crow thinks his babe am white as snow, Your dear old Mammy knows you're mighty like a rose; And when the angels gave those kinky curls to you so curly que, They put a sunbeam in your disposition too, that's true, The reason you're so black I 'spose They forgot to give your Mammy a talcum powder chamois, So don't you cry, don't you sigh, 'Cause you're mammy's little Coal Black Rose. Richard Armstrong Whiting (November 12, 1891 – February 19, 1938)[1] was an American composer of popular songs including the standards "Hooray for Hollywood", "Ain't We Got Fun?" and "On the Good Ship Lollipop". (He also wrote lyrics occasionally, most notably for the standard "She's Funny That Way", for which he did not write the music.) He was nominated for an Academy Award for best original song in 1936 for "When Did You Leave Heaven" from the movie Sing, Baby Sing (Wikipedia) Raymond Blanning Egan (November 14, 1890, Windsor, Ontario – October 13, 1952, Westport, Connecticut) was a songwriter. He moved to the United States in 1892 and settled in Michigan where he attended the University of Michigan. His first job was a bank clerk, but he soon moved onto be a staff writer for Ginnells Music Co. in Detroit. He wrote songs for Broadway acts such as Robinson Crusoe, Jr., Silks and Satins, Holka Polka and Earl Carroll’s Sketch Book of 1935. He also wrote a number of songs for films such as Paramount on Parade, Red-Headed Woman, and The Prizefighter and the Lady. He later went on to writing songs with Walter Donaldson, Ted Fiorito, Harry Tierney, Richard A. Whiting. and Gus Kahn. Some of his songs are: "They Called it Dixieland" "Mammy’s Little Coal Black Rose" "Where the Morning Glories Grow" "In a Little While" "Tea Leaves" "Sleepy Time Gal" "You’re Still an Old Sweetheart of Mine" "Some Sunday Morning" "Three on a Match" "Somebody’s Wrong" "Tell Me Why You Smile, Mona Lisa" "Dear Old Gal, Who’s Your Pal Tonight?" "There Ain’t No Maybe in My Baby’s Eyes" "I Never Knew I Could Love Anybody" "Downstream Drifter" "Red Headed Woman” (Wikipedia) |
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