Skip to My Lou
Traditional
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- [Traditional]
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- English
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aka "Skip to the Lou", "Fly in the Buttermilk", "Shoo Fly Shoo". Dates back to the early 1800's. Lyrics can very but often start out either - "Fly in the buttermilk, Shoo fly shoo, Skip to my lou, my darling!..." or can start out "Skip, skip, skip to my lou...."
"Skip to My (The) Lou" is a popular American partner-stealing square dance from the 1840s. It begins with any number of couples skipping hand in hand around in a ring. A lone boy in the center of the moving circle of couples sings, "Lost my partner, what'll I do?" as the girls whirl past him. The young man in the center hesitates while he decides which girl to choose, singing, “I'll get another one just like you.” When he grasps the hand of his chosen one, the latter's partner moves to the center of the ring the game.
The "lou" in the title comes from the word "loo", a Scottish word for "love".
It is known today for being sung by Judy Garland in the 1944 film Meet Me in St. Louis.
Completely unrelated to a modern song also called Skip to My Lou - Licensing
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