CADENCES

Cadences, also known as "jodies", are designed to keep a group of soldiers in step as well as to provide motivation and inspiration. As a cadet in a leadership position you may occasionally be required to call an appropriate cadence when marching a group of cadets or during a physical fitness run.

MARCHING CADENCES

Ballad of the Green Berets Eighty Second Four Winds Here We Go Again Hi Ho Diddly Bop (Captain Jack) What The Army's Done To Me In The Early Morning Rain I Don't Know Yellow Bird Yellow Ribbon That Say That In The Army

RUNNING CADENCES

Old Lady Granny C-130 When I Get to Heaven Chow Jesse James Blue Chairborne Ranger I Can Run . . . Coon Skin MP - MP Nothing To Do Two Old Ladies

Check out The Cadence Page for more Cadences.

MARCHING CADENCES

BALLAD OF THE GREEN BERETS [TOP]

Fighting soldiers from the sky
Fearless men who jump and die
Men who mean just what they say
The brave men of the Green Berets

Silver wings upon their chests
These are men, America's best
One hundred men will test today
But only three win the Green Beret

Trained to live off nature's land
Trained to combat hand-to-hand
Men who fight by night and day
Courage taken from the Green Beret

Silver wings upon their chests
These are men, America's best
One hundred men will test today
But only three win the Green Beret

Back at home a young wife waits
Her Green Beret has met his fate
He has died for those oppressed
Leaving her this last request

Put Silver Wings on my son's chest
Make him one of America's best
He'll be a man they'll test one day
Have him win the Green Beret

EIGHTY SECOND [TOP]

Eight-second
Patch on my shoulder
Pick up your chutes and jump with me
I am the Infantry

One-oh-one
Patch on my shoulder
Pick up your weapons and follow me
I am the Infantry

First Division
Big Red One
Pick up your weapons and follow me
I am the Infantry
Airborne Ranger
Tabs on my shoulder
Pick up your weapons and follow me
I am the Infantry

Track Commander
Mechanized Soldier
Jump in your Bradley and follow me
I am the Infantry

Special Forces
Green Berets
Pick up your weapons and follow me
I am the Infantry

Chairborne Rangers
Sittin' at a desk
Pick up your pens and write with me
I'm not the Infantry!

FOUR WINDS [TOP]

Let 'em blow, let 'em blow
Let the four winds blow
From the East to the West
Alpha company is the best

Dress it right and cover down
Forty inches all around
From the east to the west
Alpha company is the best

Let 'em fly, let 'em fly
Let the Airforce fly
From the East to the West
U.S. Airforce is the best

Let 'em sail, let 'em sail
Let the Navy sail
From the East to the West
U.S. Navy is the best

Let 'em jump, let 'em jump
Let the Airborne jump
From the East to the West
U.S. Army is the best

HERE WE GO AGAIN [TOP]

Here we go again
Same old stuff again
Marching down the avenue
Six more weeks and we'll be through
I'll be glad and so will you

HI HO DIDDLY BOP or ( CAPTAIN JACK ) [TOP]

Hi Ho Diddly Bop ( Hey, hey, Captain Jack )
I wish I was back on the block ( Meet me down by the railroad track )
With my sixteen in my hand ( ... )
I wanna be a fighting man ( ... )

Hi Ho Diddly Bop
I wish I was back on the block
With my woman in my arms
I wanna show her all my charms
Hi Ho Diddly Bop
I wish I was back on the block
With my bottle in my hand
I wanna be a drinking man

WHAT THE ARMY'S DONE TO ME [TOP]

Chorus:
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa
Whoa, whoa, I gotta go
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa
Whoa, whoa, I gotta go

Momma, momma, can't you see
what the Army's done to me
Momma,momma, can't you see
what the Army's done to me

Chorus

They took away my faded jeans
Now I'm wearing Army greens

Used to drive a Cadillac
Now I hump it on my back

Used to date a beauty queen
Now I hug my M-16

Used to drive a Chevrolet
Now I'm walking all the way

They sat me in a barber's chair Spun me around I had no hair

IN THE EARLY MORNING RAIN [TOP]

Got a letter in the mail
Go to war or go to jail
Got a letter in the mail
In the early morning rain

I packed my bags, I kissed my wife
And headed for the Army life
I packed my bags, I kissed my wife
In the early morning rain

I told my son not to cry
But I had tears in my eyes
I told my son not to cry
In the early morning rain

With my weapon in my hand
And a pocket full of sand
With my weapon in my hand
In the early morning rain

Got the enemy to my front
And the ocean to my rear
Wounded dying's all I hear
In the early morning rain

As I'm laying here to rest
Caught a bullet in the chest
Even though I've done my best
In the early morning rain

Tell my darling not to cry
Cause I'll never say good-bye
Tell my darling not to cry
In the early morning rain

Many a soldier will die today
Guess there's nothing left to say
So our children, they can play
In the early morning rain

Yes, now Sergeant I can see
Why this training's good for me
Forever more we will be free
In the early morning rain

I DON'T KNOW [TOP]

I don't know why I left
But I know I done wrong
And it won't be long
'Til I get on back home

Got a letter in the mail
Go to or go to jail
And it won't be long
'Til I get on back home

They put me in a barber chair
Wheeled me 'round, I had no hair
And it won't be long
'Til I get on back home

YELLOW BIRD [TOP]

A yellow bird
with a yellow bill
Was sitting on
my window sill
I lured him in
with a piece of bread
And then I smashed
his little head

The doctor came
to check his head
"Indeed" he said
"this bird is dead"

A little mouse
with little feet
Was perched upon
my toilet seat
I pushed him in
I flushed him down
I watched him spin
'round and 'round

YELLOW RIBBON [TOP]

Around her hair she wore a yellow ribbon
She wore it in the spring time, in the early month of May
And if you asked her why the heck she wore it
She'd say she wore it for her soldier who was far, far away

Far away
Far away
She wore it for her soldier who was far, far away

. . .Around the block she pushed a baby carriage

. . .Around his grave she laid the pretty flowers

. . .Around the town she flew the B-1 bomber
She'd get your grid co-ordinates and blow your house away.

THEY SAY THAT IN THE ARMY [TOP]

They say that in the Army the coffee's mighty fine
It looks like muddy water and tastes like turpentine

Chorus:
Oh Lord, I wanna go
But they won't let me go
Oh Lord, I wanna go hoo-hoo-hoooome EH!

They say that in the Army. . .

. . .the chow is mighty fine
a chicken jumped off the table and started marking time

. . .the biscuits are mighty fine
one rolled off the table
and killed a friend of mine

. . .the training's might fine
last night there were ten of us,
now there's only nine

. . The pay is mighty fine
they give you a hundred dollars
and take back ninety-nine

For more marching cadences, check out The Cadence Page.

RUNNING CADENCES

OLD LADY [TOP]

Saw an old lady walking down the street
She had a pack on her back and boots on her feet
I said "Hey lady where you going to?"
She said "U.S. Army Ranger School"
I said "Hey lady, haven't you been told?
Ranger School's for the young and the bold!"
She said "Hey sonny don't be a fool
I'm and instructor at the Ranger School"

Saw the same lady walking down the street
She had a chute on her back, jump boots on her feet
I said "Hey lady where you going to?"
She said "US Army Airborne School"
I said "Hey lady, you're too darn old
You oughta leave the jumpin' to the young and the bold"
She said "Hey sonny can't you see?
I've got master jump wings on my CIB"

Same old lady walking down the street
She had a tank on her back and fins on her feet
I said "Hey lady, where you going to?"
She said "US Army Scuba School"
I said "Hey lady, haven't you been told?
You better leave Scuba School to the young and the bold"
She said "Hey sonny can't you see?
I taught recon, UDT"

 

GRANNY [TOP]

When my granny was ninety-one
She did PT just for fun

two - she could PT better than you
three - she got up before dawn to do PT
four - she ran 3 miles, then she ran 3 more
five - she could beat any Ranger alive
six - she did PT just for kicks
seven - she up and died and she went to heaven

She met St. Peter at the pearly gates
She said "St. Peter, I hope I'm not late"
St. Peter said with a big, wide grin
"Get down Granny, and knock out ten"

 

C-130 [TOP]

C-130 rolling down the strip
Airborne daddy on a one way trip
Mission uncertain, destination unknown
We don't know if we're ever coming home
Stand up, hook up, shuffle to the door
Jump right out and count to four
If my main don't open wide
I got another one by my side
If that one should fail me too
Look out ground I'm coming through
Slip to the right and slip to the left
Slip on down, do a PLF
Hit the drop zone with my feet apart
Legs in my stomach and feet in my heart
If I die on the old drop zone
Box me up and ship me home
Pin my wings upon my chest
Bury me in the leaning rest
If I die in the Spanish Moors
Bury me deep with a case of Coors
If I die in Korean mud
Bury me deep with a case of Bud
If I die in a firefight
Bury me deep with a case of Lite
If I die in a German blitz
Bury me deep with a case of Schlitz
If I die, don't bring me back
Just bury me with a case of Jack

 

WHEN I GET TO HEAVEN [TOP]

When I get to heaven
St. Peter's gonna say
"How'd you make your living"
"How'd you earn your pay"
And I'll reply with a little bit of anger
I earned my living as an Airborne Ranger
Lived a life of guts and danger
Nothin's too tough for an Airborne Ranger

CHOW [TOP]

Up in the morning, before day
I don't like it, no way
Eat my breakfast too darn soon
Hungry as a bear by noon
Went to the mess sergeant on my knees
Said "mess SGT., mess SGT. feed me please"
Mess SGT. said with a big wide grin
"If you wanna be Airborne, you gotta be thin"

 

JESSE JAMES [TOP]

Jesse James said before he died
There's five things that he wanted to ride
Bicycle, tricycle, automobile
An M-1 tank and a ferris wheel

Jesse James said in his final will
He had five things that he wanted to kill
A lion, a tiger, a kangaroo
A long haired hippie, and instructor too
And if he could kill just one
He'd kill the instructor, let the hippie run

 

BLUE [TOP]

Had an old dog whose name was Blue
Blue wants to go to Scuba School
Bought him a tank and four little fins
And took him down where he got the bends

Same old dog whose name was Blue
Blue wants to go to Ranger School
Took him to the field, took away his chow
Put a little motivation in his bow-wow

Still got the dog whos name was Blue
Blue wants to go to Airborne School
Got him a chute, strapped it to his back
Now old Blue stands tall, looks strac

That Airborne dog whose name was Blue
Got his orders for Jungle School
Took him on down to Panama
And that's the last of Blue I ever saw

 

CHAIRBORNE RANGER [TOP]

It's one thirty now on the strip
Chairborne daddy gonna take a little trip
Stand up, lock up, shuffle to the door
The club for lunch and home by four
If there's something to decide
Close your door and try to hide
Every time you get a call
You're out playing racquetball
First revise the SOP
Make a change in policy
Ours is not to wonder why
It's written down in the LOI
God forbid we should go to war
All that paperwork would be a bore
Let me stay behind my desk
Anything is better than the leaning rest
Chairborne Ranger, that's what I am
One of a kind, I'm and AG man

 

I CAN RUN . . . [TOP]

I can run to FT. BENNING just like this
All the to AIRBORNE and never quit

Ft. Campbell . .Air Assault
Ft. Bragg . . . Eighty-second
Ft. Riley . . . Kansas
Ft. Wood . . . .Missouri
etc.

 

COON SKIN [TOP]

Coon skin and alligator hide
Make a pair of jump boots just the right size
Shine 'em up, lace 'em up, put 'em on your feet
A good pair of jump boots can't be beat

Birdie, birdie in the sky
Dropped some whitewash in my eye
Ain't no sissy, I won't cry
I'm just glad that cows don't fly

 

MP - MP [TOP]

Sitting on a mountain top, beating on a drum
Beat so hard that the MPs come
MP, MP, don't arrest me
Arrest that leg behind the tree
He stole the whiskey, I stole the wine
Now all I do is double time

 

NOTHING TO DO [TOP]

AG, AG, who are you?
TDA with nothing to do
Go to PT at nine a.m.
Then to the pool to have a swim
Racquetball from nine to ten
Recover with a tonic and gin
Lunch from eleven to noon,
Your day will be over soon
Volleyball from noon to three
Keep really busy, can't you see
Now it's four, your day is through
I wish I was AG too

 

TWO OLD LADIES [TOP]

Two old ladies were lying in bed
One rolled over to the other and said
"I wanna be an Airborne Ranger
Live the life of guts and danger"
Guts and danger
Airborne Ranger

Same two ladies were lying in bed
One rolled over to the other and said
"I wanna be a scuba diver
Dive right into murky water"
Scuba diver, murky water
Guts and danger, Airborne Ranger

Same two old ladies lying in bed
One rolled over to the other and said
"I wanna be a mountain climber
Climb that mountain, higher and higher"
Mountain climber, higher and higher
Scuba diver, murky water
Guts and danger, Airborne Ranger

[TOP]

For more running cadences check out The Cadence Page