"It Ain't Gonna Rain No Mo'" (Wendell Hall, 1923)

Wendell Hall's a quadruple threat here, as lyricist, composer, vocalist and ukelele player.

The nonsense verses are largely of folk origin (Hall provided an additional 48 for the intrepid)...the song was the #1 hit in America for six weeks and sold over 2,000,000 copies.


IT AIN'T GONNA RAIN NO MO'
Wendell Hall, 1923

1. Oh! the night was dark and dreary. The air was full of sleet.
The old man stood out in the storm. His shoes were full of feet.

CHORUS: Oh! it ain't gonna rain no mo', no mo'. It ain't gonna rain no mo',
But how in the world can the old folks tell it ain't a-gonna rain no mo'?

2. Oh! Mosquito he fly high. Mosquito he fly low.
If old man 'Skeeta light on me, he ain't gonna fly no mo'.

IT AIN'T GONNA RAIN NO MO
Extra Verses - Repeat Chorus after Each Verse
By Wendell Hall

1. Oh, the butterfly flits on wings of gold, the June-bug wings of flame.
The bedbug has no wings at all, but he gets there just the same.

2. Oh, a bullfrog sittin' on a lily pad, lookin' up at the skies.
The lily pad broke and the frog fell in, got water all in his eyes.

3. Oh, a black and white animal out in the woods. Says, "Ain't that little cat pretty?"
I went right over to pick it up, but it wasn't that kind of a kitty.

4. Oh, a man lay down by a sewer, and by the sewer he died.
Now, at the coroner's re-quest, they called it sewer-side.

5. Here's a verse 'bout a man and a trombone. The words to it are few.
He blew, he blew, he blew, he blew, he blooey, blooey, blue.

6. Oh, I saw a sign in a hardware store: "Boy wanted, sixteen years."
Now, that's too long to wait for a boy. It brings eyes to my tears.

7. Possum up a 'simmon tree, rabbit on the ground.
Rabbit say: "You old son-of-a-gun, shake them 'simmons down."

8. Got a li'l ol' dog whose name is Jack. I wish they'd bring him back.
He chases the big hogs over the fence and the little ones through the crack.

9. Now, Mary had a little lamb. It had a sooty foot.
In little Mary's bread and jam, his sooty foot he put.

10. A peanut sittin' on a railroad track, its heart was all a-flutter.
The train came roarin' round a curve. Toot, toot! Peanut butter.

11. I know a Swedish waitress. Her maiden name was Schwartz.
Good gosh! the gal was homely like a dishpan full of warts.

12. The fox he has a bushy tail. The possum's tail is bare.
The rabbit has no tail at all, but only a tuft of hair.

13. Now, I sat down in the garden. A bee came buzzin' round,
So I stood up and let the bee sit where I sat down.

14. Oh, I've got a gal with big blue eyes and the sweetest ruby lips,
But she ain't got no more pepper than a garter snake has hips.

15. A bare-headed man, bewildered, says to me, "Where am I at?"
Now, I don't think that's what he meant. He meant, "Where is my hat?"

16. Got a redhead gal in Chicago. Got a letter from her today.
Here's what she said: "My hair was red, but now you've turned it gray."

17. Get away from my front window. Quit knockin' at my front door,
'Cause I've got another sweetie and I can't use you no mo'.

18. Oh, the air was full of raindrops and the street was full of hims.
They stood around like tree trunks a-lookin' at the limbs.

19. She was happy till she met him, then she left him all alone,
'Cause the big ox slipped and his trousers ripped and he broke his collarbone.

20. Oh, they tell me that a graveyard is a dawg-gone lonesome place.
They pull you down into a hole and throw mud in your face.

(Etc.)

Category:

Music

Tags:

• wendell
• hall
• 1923
• ukelele
• nonsense
• boop

[whizkidforte]

Oh. My. Goodness. This brings me back memories of my parents and grandparents singing this song but with different lyrics:

It ain't gonna rain, no more, no more,

It ain't gonna rain no more,

How in the heck do you wash your neck,

It ain't gonna rain, no more, no more.

Now it's a full-blown earworm! LOL!!! XD

[RReady555]

Yes, that's the most popular parlor/campfire version...it IS a darned infectious ditty, Bro! ;)

Best,

-RR

[voglesque89]

Gee, I used to sing a version of this all the time when I was a kid, except the main idea was "how in the heck can you wash your neck if it ain't gonna rain no more"...

[RReady555]

Lots more inventive than that "99 bottles of beer" song for roadtrips...'course we can't share **all** the verses with a family viewership, v. ;)

[kboy11100]

How the heck can can i wash my neck if it ai'nt gunna rain no more

A rich man drives a catalac, a poor man drives a ford, well my girl drives a donkey and she beats it with a board!

[Napalmcat]

охуенная песня

[AndreaMimi1984]

A very cool song.

[GuitarLearning2]

Hey, I like what you're doing. Thumbs Up

[thatotherwhiteguy1]

@JesseBrootal i know haha i live in oneida and im gonna go in front of a cop and sing this and c if they do anything lmao

[JessiBebiii1]

Das ist echte Musik ♥

[JesseBrootal]

its illegal i oneida, TN to sing this song! HAHA!

[tristan9009]

this is illegal to sing this in oneida, tennessee