| The Popular Wobbly | |
| Published: | 1920 |
| Composer: | Fred Fisher |
| Lyricist: | T-Bone Slim |
"The Popular Wobbly" is a labor song written by the Finnish-American songwriter T-Bone Slim. It is a parody of the 1917 hit "They Go Wild Simply Wild Over Me" by Joseph McCarthy and Fred Fisher.[1] [2]
"The Popular Wobbly" first appeared in the 1920 edition of the Little Red Songbook published by the Industrial Workers of the World.[1] Its title referred to the "Wobbly" nickname that was often given to IWW members.[3]
The song was revived during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Candie Carawan wrote new lyrics that told about her 1960 arrest while taking part in desegregation sit-ins in Nashville, Tennessee.[4] The Guy and Candie Carawan version is known as They Go Wild Over Me.[5] An adaptation of "The Popular Wobbly" was also included in a 1931 songbook published by radio personality Ernest Iverson.[6]
Pete Seeger,[7] Utah Phillips[1] and Joe Glazer[8] are among the well-known singers who have performed the song.
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