[edit] Career
Henson's career started in his home state of Oklahoma, performing at clubs around Oklahoma City and Tulsa. His family was active in politics and raised buffalo on a ranch outside Oklahoma City. In the mid 1960s, Henson moved to Nashville and became a member of the vocal group The Kimberlys. After leaving the group, Henson started on his solo career, and in 1967, he signed with Monument Records, and he immediately scored in a big way with a song called "Skip a Rope". The song became a huge hit, spending six weeks at Number 1 on the country charts in 1968 and also making the Top 25 on the Pop charts.
[edit] After Skip a Rope and Later Career
After "Skip a Rope", Cargill continued to have Top 20 hits with such songs as "Row Row Row" (1968), "None Of My Business" (his only other Top 10) (1969), and "The Most Uncomplicated Goodbye I Ever Heard" (1970). Later, he had a television show, Country Hayride, and performed for many years in Reno and Las Vegas. Johnny Cash was godfather to his oldest son, Cash.
After leaving Monument Records, Henson moved to Mega Records in 1971, where he scored several minor hits. In 1973, he made a strong comeback to the charts when he signed with Atlantic Records and scored 2 Top 30 hits in 1974 with "Some Old California Memory" and a version of Mac Davis' "Stop And Smell The Roses". In 1980, he formed his own record label Copper Mountain Records and he scored his last Top 30 hit that year with "Silence On The Line". In the late 1980s he retired to Oklahoma City and died on March 24, 2007
Skip a Rope
Henson Cargill Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh, listen to the children while they play
Now ain't it kinda funny What the children say
Skip a rope
Daddy hates mommy, mommy hates dad
Last night you shoulda heard
The fight they had
She woke us all up with a terrible scream
Skip a rope, skip a rope
Oh, listen to the children while they play
Now ain't it kinda funny What the children say?
Skip a rope
Cheat on your taxes, don't be a fool
Now what was that they said about a golden rule?
Never mind the rules just play to win
And hate your neighbor for the shade of his skin
Skip a rope, skip a rope
Oh, listen to the children while they play
Now ain't it kinda funny What the children say?
Skip a rope
Stab 'em in the back that's the name of the game
And mommy and daddy are who's to blame
Skip a rope, skip a rope
Just listen to your children while they play
It's really not very funny what the children say
Skip a rope, skip a rope
Skip a rope, skip a rope
The song "Skip a Rope" by Henson Cargill may have a simple melody, but its lyrics possess a significant depth of meaning. The song's words speak of childhood innocence being replaced by the harsh realities of the world, a world where children begin to internalize the angry, frustrated, and negative messages that they see and hear around them. The first verse of the song illustrates this perfectly: "Daddy hates mommy, mommy hates dad/Last night you shoulda heard/The fight they had/Gave little sister another bad dream/She woke us all up with a terrible scream". The song urges the listener to take a moment and listen to the children around them, who are often repeating the negative messages that they hear from adults.
As the song goes on, it provides an indictment against society's attitudes towards certain behaviors. It tells listeners "Cheat on your taxes, don't be a fool/Now what was that they said about a golden rule?/Never mind the rules just play to win/And hate your neighbor for the shade of his skin". The songwriters are warning against moral relativism and the idea that we must win at any cost, even if it means disregarding a shared moral code or pursuing means that harm others just because they are different.
In the final verse of the song, the songwriter is making it clear that it is the adults who are responsible for the message children receive and that children's perception of the world is shaped by what is happening around them. The lines "Stab 'em in the back that's the name of the game/And mommy and daddy are who's to blame" make it clear that the message that children internalize is formed by what the adults around them do and say, and that it is up to parents and caregivers to ensure that they are setting positive examples.
Line by Line Meaning
Skip a rope, skip a rope
Let's play jump rope
Oh, listen to the children while they play
Observe the conversations of children as they play
Now ain't it kinda funny What the children say
Children say funny things
Daddy hates mommy, mommy hates dad
The parents have dysfunctional relationship
Last night you shoulda heard The fight they had
They had a big argument last night
Gave little sister another bad dream She woke us all up with a terrible scream
Their argument bothered the little sister, causing her to have bad dream and wake everyone up with a scream
Cheat on your taxes, don't be a fool
Don't pay all your taxes, be smart
Now what was that they said about a golden rule?
What's the point of following the moral ethics?
Never mind the rules just play to win
Don't worry about morality, only focus on winning
And hate your neighbor for the shade of his skin
Discriminate and disfavor your neighbour because of the color of their skin
Stab 'em in the back that's the name of the game
Deceive and betray them - this is how it's done
And mommy and daddy are who's to blame
Their bad behavior is learned from the parents
Just listen to your children while they play
Parents need to listen to their children's conversations while they play
It's really not very funny what the children say
What the children say is not really amusing
Skip a rope, skip a rope
Let's play jump rope
Skip a rope, skip a rope
Let's play jump rope
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Jack Moran, Glenn Tubb
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ron Taylor
on So Many Ways of Saying She's Gone
first time ive heard all these songs-wonderful