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Sweet Violets   
(As sung by Dinah Shore)

sweet violets, sweeter than all the roses,
covered all over from head to toe,
covered all over with
sweet violets.

There once was a farmer who took a young miss
in back of the barn where he gave her a
lecture on horses and chickens and eggs,
he told her that she had such beautiful
manners which suited a girl of her charms,
a girl that he wanted to take in his
washing and ironing and then if she did,
they could get married and raise lots of

sweet violets, sweeter than all the roses,
covered all over from head to toe,
covered all over with
sweet violets.

The girl told the farmer that he'd better stop,
and she called her father and he called a
taxi, which got there before very long,
'Cause someone was doing his little girl
right for a change, and that's why he said,
"if you marry her, son, you're better off
single, because it's been my firm belief,
marriage will bring a man nothing but

sweet violets, sweeter than all the roses,
covered all over from head to toe,
covered all over with
sweet violets."

The farmer decided he'd wed anyway,
and started in planning for his wedding
suit which he purchased for only one buck,
and then he found out he was just out of
money, and so he got left in the lurch,
standing there waiting in front of the
end of the story, which just goes to show,
all a girl wants from a man is his

sweet violets, sweeter than all the roses,
covered all over from head to toe,
covered all over with
sweet violets.

Here are a few non-bawdy "Sweet Violet" versions.  The Larry Vincent version on Pearl Records is from ca 1949 and has a different tune than the other three versions which use "Susan Was A Lady" as their tune.

You can hear the influence on the Dinah Shore "Sweet Violets" version on the Naughty Butt Nice "Sweet Violets" which is semi-bawdy.  Below is my current collection of "Sweet Violets".  In this list you will find "Shaving Cream" by Benny Bell because this is just "Sweet Violets" with a rewritten chorus.
 


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