Charlie Mopps

Charlie Mopps or Charlie Mops is the mythical inventor of beer, as described by the drinking song "Beer, Beer, Beer". His name is presumably meant to rhyme with barley and hops, two main ingredients in beer.

History

This song is thought to have originated on Royal Navy ships.^{[citation needed]} From there, it spread to countries such as the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, and the United States. Various versions of the song have been recorded since the 1950s. John Foreman sang a version on the album The Tale of Ale, a compilation of English drinking songs.^{[1][citation needed]} The Clancy Brothers' version of the song is available on the album Irish Pub Songs,^[2] and the Brobdingnagian Bards recorded a version of the song for their album The Holy Grail of Irish Drinking Songs.

Molson used the song (with some changed lyrics) in a series of advertisements for their Molson Canadian 'Bubba' product, in the late 1980s and early 1990s.^[3]

There is a rendition of the song in the 2004 PlayStation 2, Xbox, and PC game The Bard's Tale (2004). It is sung by three inebriated regulars at the pub in the first area visited.

The Missoula Montana defunct ska/oi! band The Skoidats recorded a version of the song in 1997 on their record The Times.

The San Diego roots rock band The Fab Lushes have recorded the song and perform it regularly.

Lyrics

Lyrics below are from the Clancy Brothers recording:

A long time ago, way back in history
When all there was to drink was nothing but cups of tea
Along came a man by the name of Charlie Mops
And he invented a wonderful drink and he made it out of hops

(Chorus)

oh he ought to be an admiral, a sultan, or a king

And to his praises we shall always sing

Look what he has done for us, he's filled us up with cheer

Lord bless Charlie Mops,
The man who invented beer

The Jury's Bar, the Clancy's Pub, the Hole in the Wall as well
One thing you can be sure of, it's Charlie's beer they sell
So come on all me lucky lads at eleven O'clock ye stop
For five short seconds, remember Charlie Mops
One, two, three, four, five

Chorus

A bushel of malt, A barrel of hops, you stir it around with a stick,
The kind of lubrication to make your engine tick.
Forty pints of wallop a day will keep away the quacks.
It's only eight pence ha'penny and one and six in tax
One, two, three, four, five

Chorus

The Lord bless Charlie Mops!

References

1. ^ http://www.freedmus.demon.co.uk/taleofale.htm
2. ^ allmusic ((( Irish Pub Songs [Vanguard] > Overview )))
3. ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBWpvW3KKm0

External links

• Lyrics, chords and video of the Irish version
• The Bard's Tale version
• The Beatnik Turtle version