Dying Aviator, The

DESCRIPTION: The aviator has crashed and is surrounded by the refuse of the wreck. He advises his comrades to gather the sundry pieces which have pierced him; "there's a lot of good parts in this wreck." He is granted admission to heaven, since the Air Force is Hell
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1917 (Nettleingham-TommysTunes)
KEYWORDS: parody technology pilot flying derivative
FOUND IN: Australia US Canada Britain(England)
REFERENCES (12 citations):
Meredith/Anderson-FolkSongsOfAustralia, pp.142-143, "The Dying Aviator" (1 text, 1 tune)
Fahey-Eureka-SongsThatMadeAustralia, pp. 228-229, "The Dying Aviator" (1 text, 1 tune)
Hopkins-SongsFromTheFrontAndRear, p. 119, "The Bold Aviator" (1 text, 1 tune)
Arthur-WhenThisBloodyWarIsOver, pp. 110-111, "The Dying Aviator" (1 text, tune referenced)
Nettleingham-TommysTunes, #80, "The Dying Aviator" (1 text, tune referenced)
Ward-Jackson/Lucas-AirmansSongBook, pp. 2-5, "The Bold Aviator or The Dying Airman" (3 texts, 1 tune)
Sandburg-TheAmericanSongbag, pp. 436-437, "Wrap Me Up in My Tarpaulin Jacket and The Handsome Young Airman" (2 text, 1 tune, with the "B" text going here and the "A" text being "Wrap Me Up...")
Niles/Moore-SongsMyMotherNeverTaughtMe, pp. 191-193, "A Poor Aviator Lay Dying" (1 text, 1 tune)
Tawney-GreyFunnelLines-RoyalNavy, pp. 135-136, "An AA Gunner Lay Dying" (1 text, tune referenced)
Lomax-FolkSongsOfNorthAmerica 234, "Stand to Your Glasses" (1 text, 1 tune)
Garland-FacesInTheFirelight-NZ, p. 280, "(The Dying Aviator)" (1 excerpt plus excerpts of many other dying-worker songs, all involving the worker's being admitted to heaven because, in their jobs, they've had their share of hell)
DT, TARPJKT2*
Roud #3454
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "Wrap Me Up in My Tarpaulin Jacket" (tune & meter)
cf. "The Dying Lancer" (tune)
NOTES [128 words]: Although clearly a parody of "Wrap Me Up in My Tarpaulin Jacket," Meredith and Anderson claim there is a British version sung to "My Bonnie." Lomax's version was collected among U.S. troops in Korea.
Ward-Jackson/Lucas-AirmansSongBook calls this "the oldest squadron song of all," and thinks it goes back at least to the formation of the Royal Flying Corps (1912), and perhaps even earlier than that. He is likely right, but I would not want to bet more than I could spare on it deriving from the R.F.C. or any British military organization.
Tawney-GreyFunnelLines-RoyalNavy's version makes the dead man an "AA gunner" rather than an aviator, but otherwise most of the words fit, e.g. the line about "there's lots of good parts in this wreck," so I've lumped them. - RBW
Last updated in version 6.8
File: MA142

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