Strip Polka
1941
Johnny Mercer (w/m)
Navy Blues, 1941
VERSE 1
There's a burlesque theaytre where the gang loves to go,
To see Queenie, the cutie of the burlesque show,
And the thrill of the evening is when out Queenie skips
And the band plays the polka while she strips!
REFRAIN 1
"Take it off, take it off!"
Cries a voice from the rear.
"Take it off, take it off!"
Soon it's all you can hear.
But she's always a lady,
Even in pantomime,
So she stops-
And always just in time!
VERSE 2
She's as fresh and as wholesome as the flowers in May,
And she hopes to retire to the farm someday,
But you can't buy a farm until you're up in the chips,
So the band plays the polka while she strips!
REFRAIN 2
"Take it off, take it off!"
All the customers shout,
"Down in front, down in front!"
While the band beats it out.
But the State Board of Censors
Have declared it a crime,
So she stops-
And always just in time!
VERSE 3
Oh, she hates corny waltzes and she hates the gavotte,
And there's one big advantage if the music's hot-
It's a fast-moving exit just in case something r-r-rips,
So the band plays the polka while she strips!
REFRAIN 3
"Take it off, take it off!"
Cries the bald-headed gent
Down in front-"Atta girl!"-
It's a real compliment.
It's a buck's entertainment
For the price of a dime.
But she stops-
And always just in time!
REFRAIN 4
Drop around, take it in,
It's the best in the west-
"Down in front!" "Take it off!"
You can yell like the rest.
Take her out when it's over;
She's a peach when she's dressed,
But she stops-
And always just in time!
Queenie, queen of them all,
Queenie, someday you'll fall,
Someday church bells will chime
In strip-polka Time!
It's the polka time,
Church bells will chime,
It's the Polka time!