Gee, Mom, I Want to Go Home

"Army Life"
Song by Lead Belly
Released	1944 (1944)
Genre	Novelty song
Length	1:48
Songwriter(s)	Traditional, Gitz Rice credited

"Gee, Mom, I Want to Go Home" (also known as "I Don't Want No More of Army Life") is a traditional, humorous song satirizing life in the Armed Forces. Each verse has two lines relating what recruits are told, followed by an exaggerated description of the fact. For example:

The biscuits in the Army

They say are mighty fine,

One rolled off the table

And killed a pal of mine.

The original song was sung by Canadian soldiers during World War II. With original chorus

"Oh, I don't want no more of army life

Gee ma, I wanna go

back to Ontario

Gee ma, I wanna go ho_o_ome!"

The song occurs in several variations, the lyrics being adapted for the different branches of the Armed Forces, and it has been transformed into a camp song as well. ^[1]

Appearances in popular culture

• The song appeared in the 1943 play Winged Victory by Moss Hart. ^[2]
• The song, presumably sung by British Commonwealth soldiers, can be heard during "The Desert: North Africa", the eighth episode of the documentary series The World at War .
• Folk singer Lead Belly performed the song (as "Gee, But I Want to Go Home" or "Army Life" ^[3] ) on several 1940s recordings.
• The song was released as a single, titled "I Don't Want No More of Army Life", in 1950 by Texas Jim Robertson ^[4]
• The song was performed in the 1977 M*A*S*H episode "Movie Tonight" (season 5 episode 22), with lyrics adapted to the characters and situations in the show. ^[5] Father Mulcahy, Hawkeye and B.J., Colonel Potter, Klinger, Hot Lips, Radar and four of the nurses all sing a verse each. Frank Burns tries to sing a rather hostile verse after everyone has finished the song, but is glared down.
• Manny Singer (Ray Liotta) sings a verse to his despondent daughter shortly after the death of her mother at the beginning of the 1994 film Corrina, Corrina .
• A variant of the song is sung in the 2020 film Monster Hunter .

References

1. Bronner, Simon J. (30 May 1988). American Children's Folklore. August House. ISBN   9780874830682 . Retrieved 30 May 2021– via Google Books.
2. Hart, Moss (30 June 2005). Winged Victory. Kessinger Publishing. ISBN   9781419169847 . Retrieved 30 May 2021– via Google Books.
3. "Images for Leadbelly - Easy Rider: Leadbelly Legacy Volume Four". Discogs.com. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
4. "This week's new releases on RCA Victor". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 4 November 1950. p. 27. Retrieved 30 May 2021– via Google Books.
5. "M*A*S*H FAQ". Faqs.org. Retrieved 30 May 2021.

External links

• M*A*S*H Version
• Straight and Level: Growing Up in the 40s by Jack C. Botts