Lyrics

Come and sit beside me, Daddy Tell me the tale once more I often asked you to tell me, Daddy What you did in the great Great War? What did you do in the War, Bertie? 'I' said the young man from the grocery store 'Took no coupons from the woman next door Whose husband was on the Tribunal All single girls got butter fresh and lumps of sugar large For married ones I gave them all a half a pound of marge And that's what I did in the Great War, Daddy.' What did you do in the Great War, Maria? 'I' said the maiden aunt with zeal 'Tried to knit a pair of socks but couldn't turn the heel So I changed it into a hearth rug I knitted chest protectors and warm body-belts galore Embroidering them in coloured silks with 'roses round the door' And that's what I did in the Great War, Daddy.' What did you do in the Great War, Frederick? 'I' said the special, 'From ten to four Guarded the local reservoir and saw that no one drank it When small boys got impertinent I soon applied the stopper And frightened them by threatening to whistle for a copper And that's what I did in the Great War, Daddy.' What did you do in the Great War, Muriel? 'I' said the land-girl, 'Rose at six I fed the cows and milked the chicks. I was a farmer's boy I said good-bye to crepe de chines and pretty low necked blouses And wore an old thick flannel shirt and an ugly pair of, er, braces And that's what I did in the Great War, Daddy.' What did you do in the Great War, Bill? 'I' said the man who made munitions [?] chips and fishions Pass me the asparagus Me and my missis went in shops And bought each thing they showed us Changed my shirt each week and bought two pianos with my bonus And that's what I did in the Great War, Daddy.' What did you do in the Great War, Jane? 'I' said the lady with voice pathetic 'Sang songs without giving an anaesthetic I sang to soldiers I sang to wounded Tommies with their beds all in a row We do not want to lose you but we think you ought to go And that's what I did in the Great War, Daddy.' And all the profiteers who had been so long in clover Fell a-sighing and a-sobbing when they heard the war was over For they'd all made their 'bit' in the Great War, Daddy