"Oh By Jingo!" (also "Oh By Jingo! Oh By Gee You're The Only Girl For Me)", is a 1919 novelty song by Albert Von Tilzer with lyrics by Lew Brown. The song was featured in the Broadway show "Linger Longer Letty", and became one of the biggest Tin Pan Alley hits of the post-World War I era.
While the song lyrics say it is set in "the land of San Domingo", no geographic nor anthropological accuracy is found nor intended in the silly lyrics, set in a generic "exotic" and "primitive" location. The song was much imitated over the next decade.
In the era of its initial popularity, phonograph records of the number were recorded by such popular artists of the era as The All Star Trio, The American Quartet, Nora Bayes, Frank Crumit, Billy Murray, The Premier Quartette, Esther Walker, and Margaret Young.
Later recorded revivals of the number include those by Chet Atkins, Bo Grumpus (the San Francisco band of the 1990s), Eddie Condon, Stéphane Grappelli, Clancy Hayes, Keith Ingham, Spike Jones, Danny Kaye, Jeannie Carson, Lu Watters, and The Reverend Horton Heat.
The song was performed by Betty Hutton in the film Incendiary Blonde (1945); sung in the I Love Lucy TV show (episode #102, Season 4, ep. 2, "Mertz and Kurtz", October 11, 1954); and sung by Hugh Laurie in P. G. Wodehouse's Jeeves and Wooster.
In the land of San Domingo,Lived a girl called Oh! by Jingo,Ja da Ja da da da da da, ump-a, ump-a, ump-a, ump-a,From the fields and from the marshes,Came the old and young by Goshes,Ja da Ja da da da da da da, ump-a, ump-a, ump-a, ump-a,They all spoke with a diff’rent lingo,But they all loved Oh by Jingo,And ev’ry night they sang in the pale moonlight.Oh! by Gee! by Gosh, by Gum, by JoveOh by Jingo, won’t you hear our loveWe will build for you a hutYou will be our fav’rite nutWe’ll have a lot of little Oh by Gollies,Then we’ll put them in the FolliesBy Jingo said, By Gosh, By GeeBy Jiminy please don’t bother meSo they all went away singingOh by Gee, by Gosh by Gum, by Jove by Jingo,by Gee, you’re the only girl for me.Oh by Jingo had a lover,He was always undercover,Ta da da da da da da da, ump-a, ump-a, ump-a, ump-a,Ev’ry night she used to meet him,Oh how nice she used to treat him,Ta da da da da da da da, ump-a, ump-a, ump-a, ump-a,They eloped but they both were collared,And the gang stood there and hollered,Don’t raise a fuss, you’ve got to take one of us.Oh! by Gee! by Gosh, by Gum, by JoveOh by Jingo, won't you hear our loveWe will live out in a tentCheat the landlord of his rentWe'll have a lot of little Jiminy Crickets,We can use them for meal ticketsBy Jingo said, Now boys don't raveI have put four husbands in the graveSo they all went away singingOh by Gee, by Gosh by Gum, by Jove, by Jingo,By Gee, you're the only girl for me. Home they went with spirits wiltedOn account of they were jilted(All the By-Goshes, with hearts down to their galoshes!)All winter long they brooded—that is, all but very few did(They left to join a fan club for Lana Toyn-a.)The rest wrote to Beatrice FairfaxGot the how-to-make-him-care factsSo came the springThey sailed once more to sing:Oh by Gee, by Gosh, by Gum, by JoveOh by Jiminy you're the one we loveWe will build for you a hutYou will be our favorite nutThen we'll have a bunch of Oh-By-GolliesAnd we'll put them all in the Follies(Oh) By Gee, by Gosh, by . . . [improv segment]By Jiminy you're the one for me!
Oh By Jingo! Wikipedia (Text) CC BY-SA
