Il apparaît en effet sans conteste qu’Irving Mills et Cab Calloway se sont très largement inspirés d’une chanson plus ancienne, intitulée « Willie the Weeper » – écrite par Melrose, Rymal et Bloom – et enregistrée pour la première fois en 1925.
En voici les paroles, à comparer avec celles de « Minnie The Moocher » :
Willie the Weeper
Did you ever hear the story of Willie the Weeper?
He had a job as a chimney sweeper,
He had the habit, and he had it bad.
Listen, while I tell you 'bout the dream had.
Refrain :
Teet tee dee dee x2
Toot too do do do x2
Yah da da de da x2
Yah yah yah x2
He went to a hop-house the other night
Where the lights were always shining bright.
Guess he smoked a dozen pills or more;
When he woke, 'twas on a foreign shore.
The Queen of Sheba was the first he met,
She called him her darlin' and her lovin' pet.
She gave him a fancy automobile
With a diamond headlight and a golden wheel.
He landed with a splash, in the river Nile
A'ridin' a sea-goin' crocodile.
He winked at Cleopatra, she said "Aint he a sight!
How about a date for next Saturday night?"
He went to Monte Carlo, where he played roulette
He couldn't lose a penny, and he won every bet.
He played and he played 'till the bank went broke
Then he turned around, and took another smoke.
He went off to Turkey, by special request,
He stayed 7 years, as the sultan's guest
But when he got in with that harem crew
What was a poor fellah like Willie to do?
He had a million cattle and a million sheep.
He had a million vessels on the ocean deep.
He had a million dollars, all in nickles and dimes...
Well he knew it 'cause he'd counted them a million times.
He landed in New York, one evening late
He asked his sugar to make a late date.
He started to kiss her, then he made her pout
When...bing,bang,bing...the dope gave out.
Now this is the story of Willie the Weeper
He's got a job as a chimney sweeper.
Some day a pill too many he'll take
And dreaming he's dead, he'll forget to wake.
Did you ever hear the story of Willie the Weeper?
He had a job as a chimney sweeper,
He had the habit, and he had it bad.
Listen, while I tell you 'bout the dream had.
Refrain :
Teet tee dee dee x2
Toot too do do do x2
Yah da da de da x2
Yah yah yah x2
He went to a hop-house the other night
Where the lights were always shining bright.
Guess he smoked a dozen pills or more;
When he woke, 'twas on a foreign shore.
The Queen of Sheba was the first he met,
She called him her darlin' and her lovin' pet.
She gave him a fancy automobile
With a diamond headlight and a golden wheel.
He landed with a splash, in the river Nile
A'ridin' a sea-goin' crocodile.
He winked at Cleopatra, she said "Aint he a sight!
How about a date for next Saturday night?"
He went to Monte Carlo, where he played roulette
He couldn't lose a penny, and he won every bet.
He played and he played 'till the bank went broke
Then he turned around, and took another smoke.
He went off to Turkey, by special request,
He stayed 7 years, as the sultan's guest
But when he got in with that harem crew
What was a poor fellah like Willie to do?
He had a million cattle and a million sheep.
He had a million vessels on the ocean deep.
He had a million dollars, all in nickles and dimes...
Well he knew it 'cause he'd counted them a million times.
He landed in New York, one evening late
He asked his sugar to make a late date.
He started to kiss her, then he made her pout
When...bing,bang,bing...the dope gave out.
Now this is the story of Willie the Weeper
He's got a job as a chimney sweeper.
Some day a pill too many he'll take
And dreaming he's dead, he'll forget to wake.
On savait Irving Mills agent d’artistes et parolier de talent (on lui doit notamment « Lovesick Blues »), mais avouez qu’il était également un parfait copiste ! Relisez donc les paroles « originales » de « Minnie The Moocher » :
Folks here's a story 'bout Minnie the Moocher
She was a red hot hoochie coocher.
She was the roughest toughest frail
But Minnie had a heart as big as a whale.
Refrain :
Hi de hi de hi de hi
Ho de ho de ho de ho
Hee de hee de hee de hee
Ho oo waooo waoooo
She messed around with a bloke named Smokey
She loved him though he was cokey
He took her down to Chinatown
and showed her how to kick the gong around
Refrain
She had a dream about the king of Sweden
He gave her things, that she was needin'.
He gave her a home built of gold and steel
A diamond car, with the puh-latinum wheels.
Refrain
He gave her his town house and his racing horses
Each meal she ate was a dozen courses.
She had a million dollars in nickels and dimes
She sat around and counted it all, a million times.
Poor Min! Poor Min! Poo-oor Min
She was a red hot hoochie coocher.
She was the roughest toughest frail
But Minnie had a heart as big as a whale.
Refrain :
Hi de hi de hi de hi
Ho de ho de ho de ho
Hee de hee de hee de hee
Ho oo waooo waoooo
She messed around with a bloke named Smokey
She loved him though he was cokey
He took her down to Chinatown
and showed her how to kick the gong around
Refrain
She had a dream about the king of Sweden
He gave her things, that she was needin'.
He gave her a home built of gold and steel
A diamond car, with the puh-latinum wheels.
Refrain
He gave her his town house and his racing horses
Each meal she ate was a dozen courses.
She had a million dollars in nickels and dimes
She sat around and counted it all, a million times.
Poor Min! Poor Min! Poo-oor Min
Allez, que celui qui n’a jamais plagié jette la première note ! C’était chose courante à cette époque (sic) et dans ce pays où les droits d’auteurs ont toujours été moins respectés que les copyrights !
Les curieux et monomaniaques de passage écouteront pour comparer la version la plus ancienne enregistrée du morceau en 1925 par Ernest Rodgers (alors journaliste à Atlanta). « Willie The Weeper » fut également enregistré en 1927 par Frankie "Half Pint" Jaxon connu pour ses interprétations innuendo et surtout ses imitations de femmes. Louis Armstrong, parmi d’autres, lui fit aussi un sort en 1927.
Certains considèrent ce titre comme l’un des plus anciens « reefer tunes » (morceaux sur la drogue) avec « La Cucaracha ». Les « smoking pills » dont on parle ici et là sont – fallait-il le rappeler – des boules d’opium. « Kicking the gong around » signifie prendre son pied grâce à l’opium, etc, etc. Une ou plusieurs notes seront d'ailleurs spécialement dédiées au sujet qui donna l'occasion à Cab et son orchestre de s'exprimer à de multiples reprises.
Mais vous n'êtes pas au bout de vos surprises avec "Minnie the Moocher"...
