Charley, My Boy!

Adjusted from the exhibit, Setting the Story Straight:

This was a popular song for dance band orchestras, which at the time mainly featured male vocalists. With the word ‘boy’ in the title, there is no ambiguity about the object of affection, who the narrator seems to be positively giddy for.

Recordings such as this one that leave the intro verse intact, reveal that the song, despite the use of the gender-neutral “I” pronouns in the chorus, was written from the perspective of Charley’s girlfriend with Cliff Edwards, playing the part of ‘Flo’. Just a few lines give context to the song that would otherwise not be clear, setting up the vocalist as relaying the story of a female character in a heterosexual relationship.

Cliff Edwards (or "Ukulele Ike") emphatically sings the name of the love interest in this song, Charley, over 26 times. Starting his career in vaudeville, both his famous yodeling and ukulele playing can be heard in this recording. An open question is: are his vocal affectations perhaps imitative of a woman's voice?

Note: The warning label is to point out the final stanza in this recording, which clearly communicate a lack of consent in the storyline: "My lips refuse, But your eyes insist"