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Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavour (V1)(WORD)
Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavour (V1)(PDF)
Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavour (V2)(WORD)
Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavour (V2)(PDF)
WE'LL DO VERSION 1 AT THE BUG JAM! I've posted the two Lonnie Donegan versions and when I retire (aiming for Feb 2021!) I'll work up the original 1924 version. The first video is in the same key as the version 1.
Released as a single in 1959, it peaked at number 3 in the UK Singles Chart. It was also Donegan's greatest chart success in the United States, reaching number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1961.
The song is a cover version of "Does the Spearmint Lose Its Flavor on the Bedpost Overnight?" written by Billy Rose, Ernest Breuer, and Marty Bloom and first released in 1924 by The Happiness Boys (Ernie Hare and Billy Jones), and later a hit for Lulu Belle and Scotty and The Two Gilberts. The song is humorous in content, the verses each describing a dramatic or urgent scenario leading up to the asking of the titular question.
The title and lyrics of the Donegan version were changed in the UK because "Spearmint" is a registered trademark there, and the BBC would not play songs that mentioned trademarks. Donegan's version of the song was recorded live at the New Theatre Oxford in December 1958 and was released both as a single as a track on the album King of Skiffle. An extended version with more banter was released on the live album The Last Tour.
****REVISED April 26, 2019 - SR****