"Willie the Weeper" is a song about

drug addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to engage in certain behaviors, one of which is the usage of a drug, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use of ...

. It is based on a standard vaudeville song, likely written in 1904. It is credited to

Walter Melrose Walter Melrose (October 26, 1889– May 30, 1973) was a music publisher and lyricist in the 1920s and 1930s. Background He was born in Sumner, Illinois, and was the brother of Lester Melrose, with whom he established a music store in Chicago. Th ...

, Grant Rymal, Marty Bloom, who published it with Morris Edwin H & Co Inc in 1908. The first recording was likely by

Freddie Keppard Freddie Keppard (sometimes rendered as Freddy Keppard; February 27, 1890 – July 15, 1933) was an American jazz cornetist who once held the title of "King" in the New Orleans jazz scene. This title was previously held by Buddy Bolden and suc ...

between 1923 and 1926. Many artists recorded it in 1927, including Frankie "Half-Pint" Jaxon, Louis Armstrong and His Hot Seven, and

King Oliver Joseph Nathan "King" Oliver (December 19, 1881 – April 8/10, 1938) was an American jazz cornet player and bandleader. He was particularly recognized for his playing style and his pioneering use of Mute (music), mutes in jazz. Also a notable c ...

. Ernest Rodgers recorded a version, also in 1927, which shares several lines with

Cab Calloway Cabell Calloway III (December 25, 1907 – November 18, 1994) was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, conductor and dancer. He was associated with the Cotton Club in Harlem, where he was a regular performer and became a popular vocalist ...

's "

Minnie the Moocher "Minnie the Moocher" is a jazz- scat song first recorded in 1931 by Cab Calloway and His Orchestra, selling over a million copies. "Minnie the Moocher" is most famous for its nonsensical ad libbed (" scat") lyrics (for example, "Hi De Hi De Hi ...

". The song has many different versions, but all share a common theme: Willie, a

chimney sweeper A chimney sweep is a person who clears soot and creosote from chimneys. The chimney uses the pressure difference caused by a hot column of gas to create a draught and draw air over the hot coals or wood enabling continued combustion. Chimneys ...

with a dope habit, is introduced. The rest of the song is a description of his drug-induced dream. As

Carl Sandburg Carl August Sandburg (January 6, 1878 – July 22, 1967) was an American poet, biographer, journalist, and editor. He won three Pulitzer Prizes: two for his poetry and one for his biography of Abraham Lincoln. During his lifetime, Sandburg ...

wrote in his book ''The American Songbag:''

R. W. Gordon in his editorship of the Adventure magazine department "Old Songs That Men Have Sung" received thirty versions of Willy the Weeper, about one hundred verses different. Willy shoots craps with kings, plays poker with presidents, eats nightingale tongues a queen cooks for him; his Monte Carlo winnings come to a million, he lights his pipe with a hundred dollar bill, he has heart affairs with Cleopatra, the Queen of Sheba, and movie actresses.Carl Sandburg, The American Songbag, p. 242

In later years, various artists covered the song.

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has

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this song.

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her pe ...

sings this song in the film ''

The Cabin in the Cotton ''The Cabin in the Cotton'' is a 1932 American pre-Code drama film directed by Michael Curtiz. The screenplay by Paul Green is based on the novel of the same title by Harry Harrison Kroll. The film perhaps is best known for a line of dialogue ...

''. The song should not be confused with Billy Walker's 1962 song "Willie the Weeper," which reached #5 on the country charts. Despite having the same title, the songs are unrelated.

Lyrics

Have you ever heard about Willie the Weeper?
Had a job as a chimney sweeper,
He had the dope habit and he had it bad,
Listen while I tell you about a dream he had,
He went down to the dope shop one Saturday night,
He knew the lights would all be burning bright,
Well I guess he smoked a dozen pills or more,
When he woke up he was on a foreign shore,
The Queen of Sheba was the first he met,
She called him lovey-dovey and honey pet,
She gave him a great big automobile,
With a diamond headlight and a golden wheel,
Down in Honolulu Willie fell in a trance,
Seein' the dusky beauties do the Hula dance,
His sweetie got in jail and Willie sure did shout,
When he got the news that she had wiggled out,
He landed with a splash in the river Nile,
Ridin' on a seagoin' crocodile,
He winked at Cleopatra, she said "Ain't he a sight"
'n' he said, "How 'bout a date for next Saturday night?"
He had a million cattle and he had a million sheep,
Had a million vessels on the ocean deep,
Had a million dollars all in nickels and dimes,
Well he knew because he counted it a thousand times,
He landed in New York one evenin’ late,
He asked his sugar for an after-date,
Started to kiss her and she started to pout,
When bang-blang!
And the dope gave out!

Derivative works

* ''Willie the Weeper'' (1948), a one-act musical by

Jerome Moross Jerome Moross (August 1, 1913July 25, 1983) was an American composer best known for his music for film and television. He also composed works for symphony orchestras, chamber ensembles, soloists and musical theater, as well as orchestrating score ...

References

1908 songs American songs Songs about occupations Songs about drugs Fictional chimney sweepers Fictional cannabis users Songwriter unknown {{1900s-song-stub