A novelty song from 1919.
words by Achie Gottler
music by Abe Frankl & Archie Gottler
The sheet music:
Accompaniment by James Pitt-Payne:
Lyrics
You’ve heard “chopsticks,” plain old “chopsticks”
Play’d by ev’ry kid,
It may sound strange,
But they have chang’d
Here’s something I did.
I took a “chop” and took a “stick”
And shook ’em in a bag,
And when I finished with the trick,
I found I had a “rag.”
First you play this strain,
Try it once again,
And you’ll find you have a sweet refrain;
Then it goes like this, and it goes like that,
If you follow me you won’t go flat.
Now comes “chop-sticks,” rag-time “chop sticks,”
With two fingers just like fiddle sticks,
Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick,
Like a clock-tick,
It’s an easy trick.
And now there’s eena, meena, mina, mo,
Catch him by the toe,
If he hollers let him go,
The rest of the words I don’t know.
Back to “chop-sticks,” ragtime “chopsticks”
With two fingers just like fiddle sticks,
Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick,
Like a clock-tick,
It’s an easy trick.
“Ragging the chopsticks,”
It’s got the kick!
Sung here by Fred Feild, video by Vancha March: