Shoo Fly, Don't Bother Me

''Shoo Fly, Don't Bother Me'' or ''Shew! fly, don't bother me'' is a minstrel show song from the 1860s that has remained popular since that time. It was sung by soldiers during the Spanish–American War of 1898, when flies and the yellow fever mosquito were a serious enemy. Bing Crosby included the song in a medley on his album ''Join Bing and Sing Along'' (1959). Today, it is commonly sung by children, and has been recorded on many children's records, including ''Disney Children's Favorite Songs 3'', performed by Larry Groce and the Disneyland Children's Sing-Along Chorus.

Composition

The song became popular on the minstrel stage in 1869, and several claims have been made for its composition. An anonymously written 1895 New York ''Herald'' article on the history of minstrel show dancing gave this history:

Theater historian Eugene Cropsey also credited Dan Bryant with introducing the song to the public in October, 1869.Cropsey, Eugene H
Crosby's Opera House: symbol of Chicago's cultural awakening
p. 270 (1999) The version sung by Bryant's Minstrels served, in 1869, as the title number in ''Dan Bryant’s Shoo Fly Songster''.

"Shoo Fly" is among the songs ("John Brown's Body" is another) claimed as compositions by T. Brigham Bishop. According to Bishop's account, he wrote "Shoo Fly, Don't Bother Me" during the Civil War while assigned to command a company of black soldiers. One of the soldiers, dismissing some remarks of his fellow soldiers, exclaimed "Shoo fly, don't bother me," which inspired Bishop to write the song, including in the lyrics the unit's designation, "Company G". Bishop claimed that the song was "pirated" from him, and that he made little money from it.(8 November 1905)
The Author of "Shoo Fly"
''Reading Eagle'' (stating that T. Allston Brown, had vouched for this account) Bishop published a sheet music version of the song in 1869 ( White, Smith & Perry). That version includes the caption, "Original Copy and Only Authorized Edition."Shoo Fly
Duke University library collection

Other sources have credited Billy Reeves (lyrics) and Frank Campbell, or Rollin Howard, with the song.The blue book of Tin Pan Alley
p. 9 (1965) An early publication appeared as "Shew! Fly, Don't Bother Me. Comic Song and Dance or Walk Round. Sung by Cool Burgess and Rollin Howard, melody by Frank Campbell, words by Billy Reeves, arr. by Rollin Howard.""Shew! Fly, Don't Bother Me" Words and music: T. Brigham Bishop (?); pub.:White, Smith & Perry, Boston, 1869.Eric Partridge and Paul Beale, ''A Dictionary of Catch Phrases: British and American'', from the Sixteenth Century to the Present Day, pp. 408–409. Published by Routledge, 1986, SBN 041505916X, 9780415059169.

Lyrics

One version of the song, recorded in 1889, runs:

:I feel, I feel, I feel,
:I feel like a morning star.
:I feel, I feel, I feel,
:I feel like a morning star.
::Shoo fly, don't bother me,
::Shoo fly, don't bother me,
::Shoo fly, don't bother me,
::I belong to the Company G.

:There's music in the air,
:My mother said to me;
:There's music in the air,
:My mother said to me.
::Shoo fly, don't bother me,
::Shoo fly, don't bother me,
::Shoo fly, don't bother me,
::I belong to the Company G.

Other versions include verses such as:
:I think I hear the angels sing,
:I think I hear the angels sing,
:I think I hear the angels sing,
:The angels now are on the wing.
:I feel, I feel, I feel,
:That's what my mother said.
:The angels pouring 'lasses down,
:Upon this nigger's head.

Today, it is often only the chorus that is sung.

In popular culture

During a dinner table scene in the 1992 teen comedy ''Encino Man'', Stoney Brown (Pauly Shore) quietly sings "Shoo Fly" while Link (Brendan Fraser) tracks a fly around the room.

It has been used in Tuneland with a flying shoe.

It is featured in the 1935 Betty Boop cartoon '' Swat the Fly''.

It was frequently employed as background music in classic Looney Tunes, as well as modern-day Warner Bros. series such as ''Animaniacs'', ''Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries'', and '' Pinky, Elmyra and The Brain''.

In the 1994 movie "Maverick", starring Mel Gibson and Jodie Foster the song is being played by the brass band on the Lauren Belle riverboat prior to the big card game. (1hr 19mins into the movie).

In the 1998 Disney/Pixar film ''A Bug's Life'', Francis the Ladybug references the song's title.

The Australian children's show '' Play School'' recorded a version for the albums ''There's A Bear In There'', sung by Noni Hazlehurst, and ''In The Car'', sung by John Hamblin.

See also

* John Brown's Body
* When Johnny Comes Marching Home

References

{{reflist

External links

Henry Reed's performance from the Library Of Congress

American children's songs
1869 songs
Blackface minstrel songs
American folk songs
Songs about insects
Fictional flies