In the
armed servicesA military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
, a
military cadence or
cadence call is a traditional call-and-response
work songA work song is a piece of music closely connected to a specific form of work, either sung while conducting a task or a song linked to a task or trade which might be a connected narrative, description, or protest song....
sung by military personnel while running or marching. In the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, these cadences are sometimes called
jody calls or
jodies, after
Jody, a
recurring characterA recurring character is a fictional character, usually in a prime time TV series, who appears from time to time during the series' run. Recurring characters often play major roles in an episode, sometimes being the main focus...
who figures in some traditional cadences.
Requiring no instruments to play, they are counterparts in oral military folklore of the military
marchA march, as a musical genre, is a piece of music with a strong regular rhythm which in origin was expressly written for marching to and most frequently performed by a military band. In mood, marches range from the moving death march in Wagner's Götterdämmerung to the brisk military marches of John...
. As a sort of work song, military cadences take their
rhythmRhythm may be generally defined as a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions." This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time may be applied to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or...
s from the work being done (compare
sea shantyA shanty is a type of work song that was once commonly sung to accompany labor on board large merchant sailing vessels. Shanties became ubiquitous in the 19th century era of the wind-driven packet and clipper ships...
). Many cadences have a
call and responseIn music, a call and response is a succession of two distinct phrases usually played by different musicians, where the second phrase is heard as a direct commentary on or response to the first...
structure of which one soldier initiates a line, and the remaining soldiers complete it, thus instilling teamwork and camaraderie for completion. The cadence calls move to the beat and rhythm of the normal speed (quick time) march or running-in-formation (double time) march. This serves the purpose of keeping soldiers "dressed", moving in step as a unit and in formation, while maintaining the correct beat or cadence.
The word "cadence" was applied to these work songs because of an earlier meaning, in which it meant the number of steps a marcher or runner took per minute. The cadence was set by a drummer or sergeant and discipline was extremely important, as keeping the cadence directly affected the travel speed of infantry. There were other purposes: the
close-order drill was a particular cadence count for the complex sequence of loading and firing a musket. In the Revolutionary War, Baron von Steuben notably imported European battlefield techniques which persist, greatly modified, to this day.
The Duckworth Chant (or Sound Off!)
A
V-DiscV-Disc was a morale-boosting initiative involving the production of several series of recordings during the World War II era by special arrangement between the United States government and various private U.S. record companies. The records were produced for the use of United States military...
issued in 1944 credits the origin of
Sound Off (
The Duckworth Chant) to Private Willie Duckworth.
This original cadence was recorded as "Sound Off:"
- Sound-off; 1 - 2; Sound-off; 3 - 4; Cadence count; 1 - 2 - 3 - 4; 1 - 2 — 3 - 4.
This cadence, known as the "Duckworth Chant," exists with some variations in many different branches of the U.S. military. Duckworth's simple chant soon was elaborated by folk tradition among drill sergeants and the soldiers under their command, and the tradition of creating elaborate marching chants or songs spread to other branches of the military.
A recording of the chant was made by
Vaughn MonroeVaughn Wilton Monroe was an American baritone singer, trumpeter and big band leader and actor, most popular in the 1940s and 1950s. He has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for recording and radio.-Biography:...
and His Orchestra Voc.: Vaughn Monroe & Chorus in
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on March 7, 1951. It was released by RCA Victor Records as catalog number 20-4113A (in USA) and by
EMIThe EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
on the His Master's Voice label as catalog number B 10086.
Collected cadences
Some common cadences collected at the Naval Academy include:
- Old King Cole
"Old King Cole" is an English nursery rhyme. The historical identity of King Cole has been much debated and several candidates have been advanced as possibilities...
- Blood Upon the Risers
- I Wish All the Girls Were
- Irene Irene (Air Force cadence)
As soon as 1952, the U.S. Army adopted
The Army Goes Rolling Along"The Army Goes Rolling Along" is the official song of the United States Army and is typically called "The Army Song."-The Caisson Song:The song is based on the "Caisson Song" written by field artillery First Lieutenant Edmund L...
as its service theme song, with the lyric "count off the cadence loud and strong" a reference to Duckworth's cadence. Its melody and lyrics derive from the traditional
When the CaissonA limber is a two-wheeled cart designed to support the trail of an artillery piece, or the stock of a field carriage such as a caisson or traveling forge, allowing it to be towed. A caisson is a two-wheeled cart designed to carry artillery ammunition...
s Go Rolling Along.
"Jody calls"
In the United States, what are now known as cadences were called
jody calls or
jody (also
jodie) from a recurring character, a
civilianA civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces or other militia. Civilians are distinct from combatants. They are afforded a degree of legal protection from the effects of war and military occupation...
named "Jody" whose luxurious lifestyle is contrasted with military deprivations in a number of traditional calls. The mythical Jody refers to a civilian who remains at home instead of joining the military service. Jody is often presumed to be medically unfit for service, a 4F in World War II parlance. Jody also lacks the desirable attributes of military men. He is neither brave nor squared-away. Jody calls often make points with ironic humor. Jody will take advantage of your girlfriend in your absence. Jody stays at home, drives the soldier's car, and gets the soldier's sweetheart (often called "Susie") while the soldier is in
boot campRecruit training, more commonly known as Basic Training and colloquially called Boot Camp, is the initial indoctrination and instruction given to new military personnel, enlisted and officer...
or
in country. (Serendipitously, the name works just as well for female soldiers.)
The name derives from a stock character in African-American
oral traditionOral tradition and oral lore is cultural material and traditions transmitted orally from one generation to another. The messages or testimony are verbally transmitted in speech or song and may take the form, for example, of folktales, sayings, ballads, songs, or chants...
s, "Joe the Grinder," who is also prominent in
Merle HaggardMerle Ronald Haggard is an American country music singer, guitarist, fiddler, instrumentalist, and songwriter. Along with Buck Owens, Haggard and his band The Strangers helped create the Bakersfield sound, which is characterized by the unique twang of Fender Telecaster guitars, vocal harmonies,...
's song "The Old Man of the Mountain." The character's name has been transcribed as "Joady," "Jody," "Jodie," "Joe D.", or even "Joe the ____" (in dialect, "Joe de ____") with Joe then identified by occupation. He was a stock anti-hero who maliciously took advantage of another man's absence. Enlisted African-American soldiers incorporated this character into cadence songs during the
Second World WarWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Lineberry emphasizes conflicting uses of the calls: they are useful to command, in that they serve as instruments to psychologically detach the soldier from home-life, and to inculcate a useful degree of aggression. They are useful to the soldier, who can vent dissatisfaction without taking individual responsibility for the expression. While jodies, strictly speaking, are
folkloreFolklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
(they are not taught institutionally, and do not appear, for example, in FM 3-21.5,
Drill and Ceremonies Field Manual), some are tolerated and even encouraged by leadership, while others are subversive.
Common themes in jodies include:
- Homesickness.
- Everyday complaints about military life.
- Boasts (of one's own unit) and insults (of one's competitor, which may be another unit, another service branch, or the enemy.)
- Humorous and topical references.
Lineberry offers an alternative, psychologically and functionally-oriented taxonomy. There are negative themes (disrespect expressed for deities, women, homosexuals, the enemy and economically deprived comrades; graphic expression of violence perpetrated on women and the enemy, glorification of substance abuse) but also positive (unit pride, encouragement of comrades) and perhaps in-between, expressions of contempt for death and indifference to mortality.
One example used in the U.S. Army:
- My honey heard me comin' on my left right on left
- I saw Jody runnin' on his left right on left
- I chased after Jody and I ran him down
- Poor ol' boy doesn't feel good now
- M.P.s came a runnin on their left right on left
- The medics came a runnin on their left right on left
- He felt a little better with a few I.V.s
- Son I told you not to mess with them ELEVEN Bs (the designation for infantry in the Army)
One from the U.S. Marine Corps:
- Jody, Jody six feet four
- Jody never had his ass kicked before.
- I'm gonna take a three-day pass
- And really slap a beating on Jody's ass!
At the end of the 1949 movie
Battleground, the cadence sung is as follows, with the call initiated by the drill sergeant and the
response from the rest of the platoon:
You had a good home but you left / You're right
You had a good home but you left / You're right
Jody was there when you left / You're right
Your baby was there when you left / You're right
Sound off! / 1,2
Sound off! / 3,4
Cadence count! / 1,2,3,4,1,2...3,4!
They signed you up for the length of the war /
- I've never had it so good before
The best you'll get in a biv-ou-ac /
- Is a whiff of cologne from a passing WAC
Sound off! / 1,2
Sound off! / 3,4
Cadence count! / 1,2,3,4,1,2...3,4!
There ain't no use in going back /
- Jody's livin' it up in the shack
Jody's got somethin' you ain't got /
- It's been so long I almost forgot
Sound off! / 1,2
Sound off! / 3,4
Cadence count! / 1,2,3,4,1,2...3,4!
Your baby was lonely, as lonely could be /
- Til Jody provided the company
Ain't it great to have a pal /
- Who works so hard just to keep up morale
Sound off! / 1,2
Sound off! / 3,4
Cadence count! / 1,2,3,4,1,2...3,4!
You ain't got nothin' to worry about /
- He'll keep her happy until I get out
An' you won't get home til the end of the war /
- In nineteen hundred and seventy four
Sound off! / 1,2
Sound off! / 3,4
Cadence count! / 1,2,3,4,1,2...3,4!
Reverent
Reverent calls are an effort by personnel in
armed forcesThe armed forces of a country are its government-sponsored defense, fighting forces, and organizations. They exist to further the foreign and domestic policies of their governing body, and to defend that body and the nation it represents from external aggressors. In some countries paramilitary...
to rebuild the tradition of oratory recounting of military history in the convention of cadences. The effect this instills is a greater reverence in the squad performing and for the force whose story is retold in honorable PT (Physical Training). Each branch of an armed force has its stories, and an example of the base used is the 75th Ranger Regiment (Infantry's "Airborne Ranger") in which references to WWII for example are included to complement the story.
- Airborne
- Rangers lead the way
- Lead in
- Airborne
- Rangers lead the way
- Deep in the battlefield covered in blood
- Lies an Airborne Ranger dying in the mud
- Airborne
- Rangers lead the way
- With those silver wings upon his chest
- Tell America that he's one of their best
- Airborne
- Rangers lead the way
- Lead out
- Airborne
- Rangers lead the way
To Hear this Cadence:
"USA Airborne Rangers Cadence",
Youtube.com.
Comedic
Comedic calls are often born of reverent calls but sung for comedic value using clean calls, pop-culture references, and jokes to make PT more fun and entertaining. A popular example from the film
StripesStripes is a 1981 American comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman, starring Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Warren Oates, P. J. Soles, and John Candy. It also featured several actors in their first significant film roles, including John Larroquette, Sean Young, John Diehl, and Judge Reinhold. It was one...
was "Why did the chicken cross the road?" "To get from the left to the right." "Stepped out of rank, got hit by a tank." "He ain't a chicken no more." Prior to women being commonplace in Army ranks, comedic cadences were more prevalent.
Example: See that lady wearing brown? She makes her livin' goin' down... She's a deep-sea diver... a deep sea diver.
See that lady wearing black? She makes her livin' on her back... she's a back-stroke swimmer... a back stroke swimmer.
See that lady from the south? She make her living with her mouth... she's a rock n' roll singer... a rock n' roll singer.
And so on.
Controversial
ObsceneAn obscenity is any statement or act which strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time, is a profanity, or is otherwise taboo, indecent, abhorrent, or disgusting, or is especially inauspicious...
,
scatologicalIn medicine and biology, scatology or coprology is the study of feces.Scatological studies allow one to determine a wide range of biological information about a creature, including its diet , healthiness, and diseases such as tapeworms. The word derives from the Greek σκώρ In medicine and biology,...
, or controversial jody calls exist, and were typical, especially during and before the Vietnam War. The use of such calls is now discouraged by the U.S. military, which instead emphasizes "clean" versions of traditional jodies. The flexibility of jodies is nearly unlimited, and old jodies have always been revived or rewritten as times and
warWar is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...
s change.
- Your left
- Your left
- Your left right left
- My back aches
- My belts too tight
- My balls shake
- From left to right
- I don't know but I've been told
- Eskimo Pussy is mighty cold
- Sound off 1, 2
- Sound off 3, 4
Airborne Ranger:
- Two old ladies lying in bed
- One rolled over to the other and said,
- "I wanna be an Airborne Ranger
- Live a life of sex and danger
- Blood, guts, sex, and danger
- That's the life of an Airborne Ranger!"
- I wanna be an airborne ranger
- I wanna live the life of danger
- Airborne Ranger
- Life of Danger
- I wanna be a scuba diver
- Swimmin' those oceans wider and wider
- Scuba Diver, wider and wider
- Airborne Ranger, life of danger
- Paramedic, shoot that funky anesthetic
- Paramedic, anesthetic
- Mountain climber, climb those mountains higher and higher
- Mountain climber, higher and higher
- Navy Pilot, if it's got wings then I can fly it
- Navy pilot, I can fly it
- I wanna be an airborne ranger,
- Live the life of guts and danger.
- Airborne ranger,
- Life of danger.
- I wanna be a scuba diver,
- Swim around in the muddy water.
- Scuba diver, muddy water.
- Airborne ranger, life of danger.
- I wanna be an S.F. medic,
- Shoot some funky anesthetic.
- S.F.medic, anesthetic.
- Scuba diver, muddy water.
- Airborne ranger, guts and danger.
- And when I retire.
- I'm gonna be a Texas ranger,
- Drive around in skin-tight wranglers!
- Texas ranger, skin-tight wranglers.
- I'm gonna be a UPS man,
- Drive around in a ugly brown van.
- Ups man, ugly brown van
- Texas ranger, skin-tight wranglers.
- I'm gonna be a forest ranger.
- Chipmunks are my greatest danger.
- Forest ranger, chipmunk danger.
- UPS man, ugly brown van.
- Forest ranger, chipmunk danger.
My Drill Instructor
- The Army calls 'em drill sergeants,
- The Navy calls 'em RDC's,
- The Air Force calls 'em their TI's;
- But mine is strictly a DI:
- "Drill Instructor," then his rank
- Unless you want to play games,
- Never "sir" or something more
- Or my face is on the floor.
- If I called him "Drill Sergeant,"
- He'd take me out to the pit.
- If I called him a TI,
- He'd make me feel like I would die.
- If I called him RDC,
- He'd make an example out of me.
- So make sure you get it right,
- Or you'll end up in his sights.
An example of one such call is the first stanza of
Yellow Bird:
- A yellow bird with a yellow bill
- Was sittin' on my window sill
- I lured him in with a piece of bread
- And then I smashed his little head
In the last line, the word 'little' is frequently used to replace profanity. This is an example of the minor tweaks that frequently occur in cadences depending on the particular military unit or installation they are used at. A particular cadence, when used by an infantry or other combat arms unit may include explicit profanity, while the same cadence, when used by a training or medical unit, or especially if officers are present, may be censored to a degree, as above.
The second verse to the preceding cadence:
- The moral of
- The story is,
- To get some head
- You need some bread
{REPEAT}
One from the U.S. Navy:
- I wanna be a Navy pilot
- I wanna fly an F-14
- I wanna fly with the cockpit open
- I wanna hear those commies scream
An excerpt from the popular "When I Go to Heaven", also known as "How'd Ya Earn Your Living" or "When I Get to Heaven"
- When I go to bars
- The girls they will say
- How did you earn your living
- How did you earn your pay
- And my reply was with a cold kind of nod
- I earn my living killing commies for my God
- When I go home
- The hippies they will say
- How did you earn your living
- How did you earn your pay
- And I replied as I pulled out my knife
- Get out of my way before I take yo' life
Another, more modern example of a Controversial cadence popular through the US Navy:
- I don't know, but it's been said
- Air force wings are made of lead
- I don't know, but I've been told
- Navy wings are made of gold
- He-ey Ar-rmy
- Ba-ack packing Ar-my
- Put on your packs and follow me
- I'm in the U.S. Navy
- He-ey Air Force
- Lo-ow flying Air Force
- Get in your planes and follow me
- I'm in the U.S. Navy
- He-ey Coast Guard
- Pud-dle pirate Coast Guard
- Get in your boats and follow me
- I'm in the U.S. Navy
- He-ey Marines
- bullet-sponge marine corps
- Pick up your rifles and follow me
- I'm in the U.S. Navy
The following verses are from "
Napalm Sticks to Kids"Napalm Sticks to Kids" is a call and response running cadence occasionally used in the U.S. military. The earliest recorded example is from 1972. A version containing a third verse is found in final draft the movie An Officer and a Gentleman, but only two verses made it into the film...
." One of the most well known cadences of Vietnam, its use by the U.S. military has created controversy about the theme.
- Bomb the village
- Kill the people
- Throw some napalm in the square
- Do it on a Sunday morning
- Kill them on their way to prayer
- Ring the bell inside the schoolhouse
- Watch the kiddies gather round
- Lock and load with your 240
- Mow them little motherfuckers down
The messages chanted by recruits may promote brutal treatment of civilians and the themes even suggest that troops should aspire to kill civilians gathered in public areas. A number of Iraq War veterans now speak publicly that they have felt uncomfortable reciting cadences with such violent themes.
Police
PoliceThe police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
personnel who train in para-military fashion also have acquired the tradition for its recruits in the
police academyA police academy is a training school for new police recruits, also known as a law enforcement academy.-Australia:Larger police departments usually run their own academies. States often run a centralised academy for training of personnel of law enforcement agencies within the state.Police...
.
However, the "lyrics" are changed for law enforcement, for example:
- A six gun, a tin star, a horse named Blue.
- In 1890 a cop held these true.
- In 1930 the tommy gun
Tommy Gun may refer to:*Thompson submachine gun or Tommy gun, a submachine gun*"Tommy Gun" , a song by The Clash...
.
- It made police work a lot more fun.
- A big block Dodge Polara
The Dodge Polara was an automobile introduced in the United States for the 1960 model year as Dodge's top-of-the-line full-size car; after the introduction of the Dodge Custom 880 in 1962, the Polara nameplate designated a step below the full sized best trimmed Dodge model; the Polara that year had...
Pursuit.
- In sixty six it came out of the chute.
- We got night vision on our MP5's.
- Theses are the tools to keep us alive.
- In 20 years, who knows what it will be.
- Phaser guns mounted on my HumVee.
- From a horse named Blue to a big HumVee
- We'll still PT in the Academy!
- (Last line yelled)
Fire academy
Fire academies in the U.S. often train in a para-military style. The following is a common cadence heard in the Fire Academy (Originally by the Marines)
- When my grand mama was 91
- She did PT just for fun
- When my grand mama was 92
- She did PT better than you
- When my grand mama was 93
- She did PT better than me
- Hoo-rah grand mama
- Whatcha doin grand mama
- She loves to double time
- She does it all the time
- Left Left Lefty right-o left right
- Left Left keep it in step now
- When my grand mama was 94
- She did PT more and more
- When my grand mama was 95
- She did PT to stay alive
- When my grand mama was 96
- She did PT just for kicks
- Hoo-rah grand mama
- Whatcha doin grand mama
- She loves to double time
- She does it all the time
- Left Left Lefty right-o left right
- Left Left keep it in step now
- When my grand mama was 97
- She up, she died, she went to heaven
- When my grand mama was 98
- She meet St. Peter at the Pearly Gate
- She said "St. Peter, sorry I'm late"
- She went side-straddle hoppin' through the Pearly Gate
- When my grand mama was 99
- She did PT mighty-fine
- She had Ol' J.C. Doublin' Time
External links