Runnin’ Wild–1923 Charleston

Here it is, another Monday, and it is time to visit another all-black musical that opened on Broadway on October 29, 1923. It is called Runnin’ Wild, and it ran for 228 performances. The same librettists who put together the plot for Sissle and Blake’s Shuffle Along worked on Runnin’ Wild–Flournoy Miller and Aubrey Lyles. The music was written by one of the great pianists, James P. Johnson, who started in ragtime but created stride piano playing. The lyricist was Cecil Mack. One song stands out, because, like Blake’s “I’m Just Wild About Harry,” the hit song from Runnin’ Wild is also a standard that we all know–“The Charleston.”

Although the song is usually performed as an instrumental number, here are Cecil Mack’s lyrics:

Caroline, Caroline, At last they’ve got you on the map.
With a new tune, a funny blue tune, with a peculiar snap!
You many not be able to buck and wing, fox-trot, two-step, or even swing,
If you ain’t got religion in your feet, you can do this prance and do it neat.
Charleston! Charleston! Made in Carolina.
Some dance, some prance, I’ll say, there’s nothing finer
Than the Charleston, Charleston. Lord, how you can shuffle.
Ev’ry step you do leads to something new, man, I’m telling you it’s a lapazoo.
Buck dance, wing dance, will be a back number,
But the Charleston, the new Charleston, that dance is surely a comer.
Sometime you’ll dance it one time, the dance called the Charleston,
Made in South Caroline.
Charleston! Charleston! Made in Carolina.
Some dance, some prance, I’ll say, there’s nothing finer
Than the Charleston, Charleston. Lord, how you can shuffle.
Ev’ry step you do leads to something new, man, I’m telling you it’s a lapazoo.
Buck dance, wing dance, will be a back number,
But the Charleston, the new Charleston, that dance is surely a comer.
Sometime you’ll dance it one time, the dance called the Charleston,
Made in South Caroline!

Here is a recording of Arthur Gibbs and his Gang.