# Back door man... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 18, 2005, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-door-man/317509 "2005-08-18T00:48:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Labdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/439d5e/32.png) [@Labdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labdad)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-door-man/317509/21 "2005-08-18T18:49:33Z")
> [@AskNott](#): > > Chicken is a popular subject in old blues songs. Not really blues, but consider, for example, the old Merle Travis classic, “I Like My Chicken Fryin’ Size:” _I like my chicken fryin’ size Hangin’ ‘round my pen Young and tender and not too wise Like some old stewing hen Who has seen the lot Of every rooster that you’ve got That’s why I like my chicken fryin’ size When I get my skillet hot!"_ ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-door-man/317509/22 "2005-08-18T19:05:39Z")
> [@Louis Jordan](#): > > Everyone’s talking ‘bout chicken > “Chicken” is a popular word > But anywhere you go you’re bound to find, > A chicken ain’t nothin’ but a bird. > > Some folks call it fowl, > That’s the story I heard, > But let 'em call it this and let ‘em call it that, > A chicken ain’t nothin’ but a bird. > > It was a dish for old Caesar, > Also King Henry the Third, > But Columbus was smart, said “You can’t fool me, > A chicken ain’t nothin’ but a bird.” Of course, the slang sense of “chicken” _is_ synonymous with the slang sense of “bird.” It’s also worth noting that some folks still talk about “chicks” without causing any confusion. ---
**Author:** ![5que](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/3bc359/32.png) [@5que](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5que)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-door-man/317509/23 "2005-08-18T19:24:04Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > I still it’s about **BUTT SEX!** > Eh, I think every song is about butt sex. “I Love You, You Love Me?” Yeah, with butt sex! “I don’t know how to love him?” Well, I got an idea! I’m with ya, pal. I remember Steve Dahl and Garry Meier doing a radio bit called “Foreign Bodies in Rectum,” where they read medical accounts of, well, stuff stuffed up people’s asses. Guess what was playing as the background music? ---
**Author:** ![phungi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phungi/32/395_2.png) [@phungi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phungi)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-door-man/317509/24 "2005-08-18T19:32:38Z")
> [@5que](#): > > I’m with ya, pal. I remember Steve Dahl and Garry Meier doing a radio bit called “Foreign Bodies in Rectum,” where they read medical accounts of, well, stuff stuffed up people’s asses. Guess what was playing as the background music? I know we are waaay of topic, but you gotta love the [Rectal Foreign Bodies](http://www.well.com/user/cynsa/newbutt.html) web site… ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-door-man/317509/25 "2005-08-18T19:42:41Z")
Speaking of Louis Jordan… > [@AskNott](#): > > The other path is **the bird itself.** […] Dozens of songs and stories have been written about **stealing** chickens. (Such as _Nobody Here but Us Chickens_) I think you may have missed a joke on that one, **AskNott**. > [@Louis Jordan](#): > > One night farmer Brown, > Was takin’ the airs, > Locked up the barnyard > With the greatest of care > Down in the henhouse > Somethin’ stirred > When he shouted “Who’s there?” > This is what he heard: > > There ain’t nobody here but us chickens > There ain’t nobody here at all > So calm yourself, > And stop your fuss > There ain’t nobody here but us > We chickens are tryin’ to sleep, > And you butt in > And hobble, hobble hobble hobble > With your chin The “chickens” then complain about being kept awake, since they need their energy for the next day: “We’ve got ground to dig, and worms to scratch – It takes a lot of settin’, gettin’ chicks to hatch.” After the farmer is placated and goes to bed, the punchline: “It’s easy pickin’s – ain’t nobody here but us chickens.” Do you think that song the is literally about poultry-theft? I know it is often taken as the chicken-thieves putting one over on the farmer by answering as though they are the chickens – but given that the writer, performers, and audience of the song was as urban as they come, and “chicken” has another, established sense for jive-talkers, can you see the non-literal implications of the song? The joke that a chicken’s work is “scratchin’ worms” and “hatchin’ chicks?” In this context, it’s natural for the chickens to complain about the possessive farmer “jawing” and bothering them. This is another “Back Door Man” song. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/back-door-man/317509.md?page=1)