Name: Signalman Jack
Duration: P00H02M42S
Description: A little song I wrote on the Optigan the other day about Signalman Jack, who was a baboon who worked on the Cape Town to Port Elizabeth railroads in the 1880's. His boss had lost his legs in an earlier accident & taught Jack to push his wheelchair and change the train signals. Jack was paid half a bottle of beer and 20 cents a day : ) - artwork by my son Frank

Signalman Jack

by Ed Harcourt

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A little song I wrote on the Optigan the other day about Signalman Jack, who was a baboon who worked on the Cape Town to Port Elizabeth railroads in the 1880's. His boss had lost his legs in an earlier accident & taught Jack to push his wheelchair and change the train signals. Jack was paid half a bottle of beer and 20 cents a day : ) - artwork by my son Frank

lyrics

I can shimmy to the top of the flag
& perch in the midday sun
I can drink a bottle of beer
& load an empty gun
20 cents a day is fine
when you’re the simian kind
People stare as if they’ve lost their minds
My bossman oh he lost his legs
so I came on the scene
From Cape Town to Port Elizabeth
I guide these steam machines

Oh
Signalman Jack signalman Jack
I’m not the monkey climbing on your back
The people they know me as signal man Jack
You’ll never catch me on the slack

Signalman Jack signalman Jack
I’m not the monkey climbing on your back
The people they know me as signal man Jack
I work hard on the railroad track

CHOO CHOO

My boss and I play dominoes on the evening shift
Even though I can’t talk, the night is never stiff
He tells me tales of yesteryear & doesn’t miss a beat
I clap my claws & chatter my shiny teeth

Life’s not hard for an old baboon
The passengers they wave
As long as I get that bottle of brew
I’ll never misbehave

Chorus

Signalman Jack signalman Jack
I’m not the monkey climbing on your back
The people they know me as signal man Jack
I’m better than your average macaque

Signalman Jack signalman Jack
I’m not the monkey climbing on your back
The people they know me as signal man Jack
I work hard on the railroad track

CHOO CHOO

credits

released June 6, 2023

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Ed Harcourt England, UK

edharcourtmusic.com

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