> Folk Music > Songs > The Rich Man and the Poor Man

The Rich Man and the Poor Man / Hi Ho Jerum

[ Roud 4571 ; Ballad Index FSWB025 ; DT RICHPOOR ; Mudcat 11460 , 50658 ; trad.]

The Voice Squad sang The Rich Man and the Poor Man on their 2014 CD Concerning of Three Young Men. They noted:

Roud number 4571. Also Roud 477—a version of Dives and Lazarus. Sometimes called Rye-Roger-Um as named by the collector Tom Munnelly from the field recording of John and Martin Lyons, Rahara, Co Roscommon. This version was collected by Gerry Cullen, mostly from the singing of Paddy Moynihan from Co Cavan, whom he heard singing at a Feile na Boinne festival in Drogheda in the 1980’s.

The video shows The Voice Squad singing The Rich Man and the Poor Man with an additional last verse in Glor, Ennis, on 1 May 2014:

Lyrics

The Voice Squad sing The Rich Man and the Poor Man

There was a rich man, his name it was Diviizium,
    Glory alleluia hi rogerum,
He held high dinners for the swanks of Jerusalem,
    Glory alleluia hi rogerum.

Chorus (after each verse):
Hi rogerum, hi rogerum, skidda malink a doodle um,
Skidda malink a doodle um, glory alleluia hi rogerum.

There was a poor man to work he wasn’t ableium,
He begged for the crumbs from the rich man’s tableium.

The poor man died and he went up to heavenium,
He’d supper with the angels at half past elevenium.

The rich man died, he didn’t do so wellium,
Ould Nick came and took him down to Hellium.

The first thing he called for was whiskey and a sodium,
But ould Nick roared out, “This is no hotelium!”

The next thing he called for was jelly in a bowlium,
But ould Nick roared out, “Shovel on the coalium!”

Now me song is ended so the truth to tellium,
And if you don’t believe me you can all go to Hellium.

[ The moral of this story is that money is no jokium,
We’re on our way to heaven ’cause we’re all stony brokium. ]