The Singing man

The Singing man generally put in towards the last and sung us to bed. He was generally a diminutive man, with a sweet voice and a sweetheart at home. His songs had in them rosy lips, blue eyes, golden hair, pearly teeth, and all that sort of thing. Of course he would sing some good rollicking songs in order to give all a chance. And so, with hearty chorus, ‘Three times around went she,’ ‘Virginia, Virginia, the Land of the Free,’ ‘No Surrender,’ ‘Lula, Lula, Lula is Gone,’ ‘John Brown’s Body,’ with many variations, ‘Dixie,’ ‘The Bonnie Blue Flag,’ ‘Farewell to the Star Spangled Banner,’ ‘Hail Columbia,’ with immense variations, and ‘Maryland, My Maryland,’ till about the third year of the war, when we began to think Maryland had ‘breathed and burned’ long enough and ought to ‘come.’ What part of her did come was first class. How the woods did ring with song. There were patriotic songs, romantic and love songs, sarcastic, comic and war songs, pirates’ glees, plantation melodies, lullabies, good old hymn tunes, anthems, Sunday school songs, and everything but vulgar and obscene songs these were scarcely ever heard, and were nowhere in the army well received or encouraged.
Southern Historical Society Papers.
Vol. I. Richmond, Virginia., February, 1876. No. 2
Camp Fires Of The Boys In Gray.