On Wednesday, September 25, 2013 at 12:55:05 PM UTC-4, Joel Polowin wrote:

I've enjoyed listening to Arlo Guthrie's "Ring-Around-A-Rosy
Rag" for a long time; it's upbeat and catchy. But I've never
been able to figure out what it's really *about*. (Not the
nursery rhyme, which according to incorrect folklore refers
to the Black Death; Guthrie's unrelated song. "Ring around,
ring around Rose / Touch your nose and blow your toes /
And mind after doin' the Ring-Around-A-Rosy-Rag.") Can
anyone here help?

Thanks!

Back around 1965 or 1966 some friends and I were walking to a gig around the corner from Rittenhouse Square. The square has a circular fountain in it, and my friends got lost circling the fountain, and ended up holding hands and chanting Ring-A-Round-A-
Rosy, for which they were promptly arrested - charged with "disorderly ring-a-round-a-rosy playing." I was not among the arrested, but went to the gig at The 2nd Fret, got onstage and wrote the song then and there. For decades I've introduced the song
with a preamble that helps the song make sense. But, on the original recording preambles were not allowed, so it ended up just being silly. Arlo Guthrie

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On Wednesday, September 25, 2013 at 12:55:05 PM UTC-4, Joel Polowin wrote:

I've enjoyed listening to Arlo Guthrie's "Ring-Around-A-Rosy
Rag" for a long time; it's upbeat and catchy. But I've never
been able to figure out what it's really *about*. (Not the
nursery rhyme, which according to incorrect folklore refers
to the Black Death; Guthrie's unrelated song. "Ring around,
ring around Rose / Touch your nose and blow your toes /
And mind after doin' the Ring-Around-A-Rosy-Rag.") Can
anyone here help?

Thanks!

There's whole tale which I've recorded numerous times about the incident at Rittenhouse Square, in Philadelphia. Short version is that a few of my friends (about 6) were arrested for playing Ring-A-Round-A-Rosy in the square. I wasn't arrested as I was
straggling behind. I had a gig to do at The 2nd Fret, a folk club around the corner, and wrote the song onstage that night about the incident that had just taken place. The song doesn't go into the details, but I've always had a preamble that proceeds
the song, so that the song makes sense. On the original recording they didn't allow any preambles, so it ends up being kind of silly. Arlo Guthrie

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On Monday, March 30, 2015 at 3:03:37 PM UTC-4, ptba...@gmail.com wrote:

On Wednesday, September 25, 2013 at 12:55:05 PM UTC-4, Joel Polowin wrote:

I've enjoyed listening to Arlo Guthrie's "Ring-Around-A-Rosy
Rag" for a long time; it's upbeat and catchy. But I've never
been able to figure out what it's really *about*. (Not the
nursery rhyme, which according to incorrect folklore refers
to the Black Death; Guthrie's unrelated song. "Ring around,
ring around Rose / Touch your nose and blow your toes /
And mind after doin' the Ring-Around-A-Rosy-Rag.") Can
anyone here help?

Thanks!

I had a friend there the night that song was wrote. Arlo was in Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia PA, a bunch of people were hanging out. Somebody got the ideal to play Ring arounf the Rosie. The cops didn't like it, so they arreted over 80 people.

Arlo sat there in the holding cell and wrote the song.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)

On Monday, March 30, 2015 at 3:03:37 PM UTC-4, ptba...@gmail.com wrote:

On Wednesday, September 25, 2013 at 12:55:05 PM UTC-4, Joel Polowin wrote:

I've enjoyed listening to Arlo Guthrie's "Ring-Around-A-Rosy
Rag" for a long time; it's upbeat and catchy. But I've never
been able to figure out what it's really *about*. (Not the
nursery rhyme, which according to incorrect folklore refers
to the Black Death; Guthrie's unrelated song. "Ring around,
ring around Rose / Touch your nose and blow your toes /
And mind after doin' the Ring-Around-A-Rosy-Rag.") Can
anyone here help?

Thanks!

I had a friend there the night that song was wrote. Arlo was in Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia PA, a bunch of people were hanging out. Somebody got the ideal to play Ring arounf the Rosie. The cops didn't like it, so they arreted over 80 people.

Arlo sat there in the holding cell and wrote the song.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)