Harold Arlen
Lydia, the Tattooed Lady
[J. CHEEVER LOOPHOLE]
Lydia, oh Lydia
Say, have you met Lydia?
Lydia, the tattooed lady
She has eyes that folks adore so
And a torso
Even more so
Lydia, oh Lydia
That encyclopedia
Oh Lydia, the queen of tattoo
On her back is the Battle of Waterloo
Beside it the Wreck of the Hesperus too
And proudly above waves
The red, white, and blue
You can learn a lot from Lydia

[CIRCUS PERFORMERS]
La la la
La la la
La la la
La la la

[J. CHEEVER LOOPHOLE]
When her robe is unfurled
She will show you the world
If you step up and tell her where
For a dime you can see
Kankakee or Paree
Or Washington crossing the Delaware

[CIRCUS PERFORMERS]
La la la
La la la
La la la
La la la

[J. CHEEVER LOOPHOLE]
Lydia, oh Lydia
Say, have you met Lydia?
Lydia, the tattooed lady
When her muscles start relaxin'
Up the hill comes Andrew Jackson
Lydia, oh Lydia
That encyclopedia
Oh Lydia, the queen of them all
For two bits she will do a mazurka in jazz
With a view of Niag'ra that nobody has
And on a clear day you can see Alcatraz
You can learn a lot from Lydia

[CIRCUS PERFORMERS]
La la la
La la la
La la la
La la la

[J. CHEEVER LOOPHOLE]
Come along and see Buff'lo Bill with his lasso
Just a little classic by Mendel Picasso
Here is Captain Spaulding exploring the Amazon
And Godiva, but with her pajamas on

[CIRCUS PERFORMERS]
La la la
La la la
La la la
La la la

[J. CHEEVER LOOPHOLE]
Here is Grover Whalen unveilin' the Trylon
Over on the west coast we have Treasure Islan'
Here's Nijinsky a-doin' the rumba
Here's her Social Security Numba

(whistling refrain)

[J. CHEEVER LOOPHOLE]
Lydia, oh Lydia
That encyclopedia
Lydia, the champ of them all
She once swept an admiral clear off his feet
The ships on her hips made his heart skip a beat
And now the old boy's in command of the fleet
For he went and married Lydia
I said Lydia

[CIRCUS PERFORMERS]
He said Lydia

[J. CHEEVER LOOPHOLE]
I said Lydia

[CIRCUS PERFORMERS]
We said Lydia

[ALL]
La la!