Wait Till the Clouds Roll By

DESCRIPTION: "Jenny, my own true lover, I'm going far away, Out on the bound'ring billows, Out on the deep blue sea." The singer promises to think of Jenny while on the sea, and vows to return, and urges her to "Wait till the clouds roll by."
AUTHOR: Words: J. T. Wood / Music: H. J. Fulmer
EARLIEST DATE: 1881 (sheet music published by T. B. Harms & Co. of New York)
KEYWORDS: love separation sailor
FOUND IN: US(So)
REFERENCES (1 citation):
Browne-AlabamaFolkLyric 7, "Wait Till the Clouds Roll By" (1 text, 1 tune, plus mention of 1 more)
Roud #9088
RECORDINGS:
Uncle Dave Macon, "Wait Till The Clouds Roll By" (Bluebird 8341)
NOTES [132 words]: Browne-AlabamaFolkLyric incorrectly lists the name of the author of the music as "J. J. Fulmer," which he says was a pseudonym for Charles E. Pratt, and seems to think that Fulmer tried to make it appear to be a scarce item (to drive up the price?). He lists many songster editions, mostly from the 1880s (although "Charles Diamond's Milanese Minstrel Songster" he dates to 1877, before the sheet music was published). There was also an answer to this song, plus parodies such as "Wait Till the Cash Runs Dry" and "Wait Till the Keg Runs Dry." Amazing that a song that was so popular in the 1880s did not show up more in traditional collections.
This is not to be confused with the 1917 pop song, "Till the Clouds Roll By," words by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse, music by Jerome Kern. - RBW
Last updated in version 6.5
File: RcWTTCRB

Go to the Ballad Search form
Go to the Ballad Index Song List

Go to the Ballad Index Instructions
Go to the Ballad Index Bibliography or Discography