Shurr-up! 1918 sung by George Robey - 'The Bing Boys On Broadway'

by James Pitt-Payne, London UK - 02 Feb 2006
2006

Our Debating Society last Thursday week
was discussing the evils of drink;
an eloquent speaker, one Marmaduke Brown,
said: "They ought to curtail it, I think.
Now if anyone here had the ghost of a chance
I am certain he'd stop it for good!"
He looked round the room
and he chanced to see me,
and he said: "Well, I'm sure that you would!"

Suppose there were five thousand barrels of beer
in some secret cave stored away;
a lot of liqueurs and a heap of champagne
and only you knew where it lay!
Suppose now, by chance, you got hold of the key,
along with a massive gold cup.
Would you on the spot
destroy the whole lot?
Shurrup!

Some friends of mine
married just twelve months ago
and lately a rumour I heard,
so I called in to see them
and found as I thought
the happy event had occurred!
They brought in the infant
for me to inspect
and it yelled in an earsplitting way.
I felt a bit nervous,
but took a quick look and then
I proceeded to say:

Who knows what's in store
for this dear little chap?
He may make a glorious name!
He may be a soldier, or sailor perhaps,
or a poet of wonderful fame!
He may be a statesman,
a painter, who knows?
with the King and the Queen he may sup!
Then the nurse sort of smiled
as she held up the child.
Shurrup!

I chatted a while
with a maiden one day!
Ye Gods! She was comely, I swear!
The topic was chivalry
and she remarked:
"It isn't all dead, I declare!
Some men are as noble and trusty and true
as they were in the days of Queen Bess!
Now, I really believe
that if you were a knight,
I could trust you
with all I possess!

Suppose on your steed
all alone thro' a wood,
you were riding and came upon me.
Some villains had seized me a short while before
and had bound me with ropes to a tree;
With no one about to pay heed to my cries
as I tasted of fate's bitter cup!
All helpless, it's true!
Well, what would you do?
Shurrup!

Last night I had a peculiar dream,
I thought that to Stockholm I went;
they were holding a conference there,
by the way,
and talked about Peace and Content.
The Kaiser got up,
and beamed all around,
and he said: "Ve vass all frients today!"
Then Hindenbergh murmured:
"Ya, ya, dot vass goot!"
and Kaiser Bill went on to say:

"Ve rood all be like brudders
togedder runce more,
and no one must think about gain.
But ve'll closest stick to Antwerp and Brussells,
of course, and ve won't give up AlsaceLorraine.
You'll give us our colonies back
mit our ships,
und you von't harm der problem of Krupp!
Dat's vat we probose!"
Then Lloyd George arose
Shurrup!

I once studied Art
with a capital A,
it's rather a talent of mine:
I did a rough sketch of Lord Rhondda at tea,
which they say was remarkably fine.
A lovely girl asked me
to paint her one day,
I promised that I'd do my best,
"I must pose as something quite striking," she cried:
I murmured: "What do you suggest?"

She said: "Why not Venus
from out of the sea,
just dressed in some seashells and foam?
Or else as a Siren, and sit on a rock,
arranging my hair with a comb?
Or how about Eve
in the garden of Love,
or a fair Spanish maid with a cup?
Or should I look best
with a veil fully dressed?"
"Shurrup!"

Soft karaoke
Words
piano 1
piano 2
piano 3
piano 4
lyric
pizz str bass
*
Shurr-up! 1918 George Robey
Music by Nat D. Ayers
Lyrics by Clifford Grey
from the Alhambra Production
"The Bing Boys On Broadway"
staged by Gus Sohlke
© 1918 by B. Feldman & Co. London, England
*
sequence and karaoke by James Pitt-Payne, London UK
on Thursday 02 February 2006 at 13.14
in association with Doug Grierson
*