Dinky Die

DESCRIPTION: A bloody soldier returned from France is berated by a lance corporal from headquarters for appearing in public in a disheveled uniform. The soldier is awarded a medal for kicking the corporal in the ass.
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1965 (Lahey, "Australian Favorite Ballads," according to Cleveland-NZ-GreatNewZealandSongbook)
KEYWORDS: army soldier abuse
FOUND IN: Australia Britain(England) US New Zealand
REFERENCES (6 citations):
Cray-EroticMuse, pp. 403-404, "Dinky Die" (1 text, 1 tune)
Cleveland-NZ-GreatNewZealandSongbook, pp. 112-113, "The Lousy Lance Corporal" (1 text, 1 tune)
Ward-PenguinBookOfAustralianBallads, pp. 240-241, "The Digger's London Leave" (1 text)
Arthur-WhenThisBloodyWarIsOver, pp. 107-108, "The Digger's Song" (1 text, tune [incorrectly] referenced)
Page-KissMeGoodnightSergeantMajor, p. 136, "Horseferry Road" (1 text, tune referenced)
Palmer-WhatALovelyWar, pp. 146-147, "The Digger's Song" (1 text, tune referenced)
Roud #10189
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "Vilikens and his Dinah (William and Dinah) [Laws M31A/B]" (tune & meter) and references there
ALTERNATE TITLES:
Dinki-Di
NOTES [146 words]: Davey/Seal, p. 88, say this song originated in World War I, and derived from another song, "Horseferry Road." In World War II, it acquired a chorus, "Dinki-di, Dinky-di, I am a digger and I won't tell a lie." How much of this history applies to the whole song, and how much is specific to the Australian version, is not clear to me.
NewZealandDictionary, p. 75, offers this for "dinky-di":
1. adverb. Also dinky-die, and elaborated to dinky die do. Truly, certainly. 1987 Norgrove Shoestring Sailors 'This is straight up, Blue?' 'Absolutely dinky-die!'
2. noun. The diamond in the game of 'Crown and Anchor'.
Most versions of this seem to list the tune as "Villikens"; Page-KissMeGoodnightSergeantMajor lists "The Mountains of Mourne." Either can fit the verse, although "Villikens" feels a little smoother to me; if it has the chorus, it almost has to use "Villikens." - RBW
Bibliography

Davey/Seal: Gwenda Beed Davey and Graham Seal, A Guide to Australian Folklore, Kangaroo Press, 2003
NewZealandDictionary: Elizabeth and Harry Orsman, The New Zealand Dictionary, 1994; second edition 1995 (I use the 2003 New House Publishers paperback)

Last updated in version 7.2
File: EM403

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