Rock About My Saro Jane

DESCRIPTION: The singer, despite "a wife and five little children," decides to "take a trip on the big Macmillan." The troublesome operations of the boat are described. Chorus: "Oh, there's nothing to do but sit down and sing And rock about my Saro Jane."
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1927 (recording, Uncle Dave Macon)
KEYWORDS: ship river love work
FOUND IN: US(Ap)
REFERENCES (6 citations):
Wolfe/Boswell-FolkSongsOfMiddleTennessee 63, pp. 103-105, "Captain Tom Ryman (Rockabout My Saro Jane)" (1 text, 1 tune, reported to be the full Uncle Dave Macon which Macon never recorded)
Lomax/Lomax-FolkSongUSA 47, "Rock About My Saro Jane" (1 text, 1 tune)
Lomax- FSNA 277, "Rock About, My Saro Jane" (1 text, 1 tune)
Botkin-TreasuryOfSouthernFolklore, p. 747, "Rock About, My Saro Jane" (1 text, 1 tune)
Silber/Silber-FolksingersWordbook, p. 92, "Rock About My Saro Jane" (1 text)
DT, SAROJANE
Roud #10052
RECORDINGS:
Uncle Dave Macon, "Rock About My Saro Jane" (Vocalion 5151, 1927; also probably issued as Brunswick B-1024, 1929, Brunswick 80091, Brunswick BL-59001, Coral MH-174, n.d.; on TimesAint03)
New Lost City Ramblers, "Rock About My Saro Jane" (on NLCR14)
NOTES [64 words]: Lyle Lofgren once searched for the "big Macmillan" mentioned in this song, with little luck. But Les Caraher eventually sent him data for a likely identification: "It turns out there was a boat that plied the Mississippi all during the Civil War as a supply boat. It was called the 'MOSES McLELLAN'. It is not hard to imagine that name changing to 'the big MacMillan' is it? - [RBW]
Last updated in version 2.8
File: LxU047

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