The Lloyd Shaw Foundation is dedicated to the preservation, restoration and teaching of the folk dances of America.
DOCEY-DOE AND VISITING COUPLE SQUARE
Nine figures are needed to do this in the progressive fashion. Choose any nine from the following:
I'll swing your girl you swing mine
Oh, by golly, ain't that fine
I'll give you back your girl you gimme back mine
I'll swing my girl any old time
Around that couple and take a little peek
Back to the center and swing your sweet
Around that couple and peek once more (steal a little kiss)
Back to the center and swing all four (swing your miss)
Around that couple and swing at the wall
Now through that couple and swing in the hall
Lady round the lady and the gent follow
Lady round the gent and the gent don't go
Lady 'round the lady and the gent 'round the gent
Lady 'round the gent and the gent 'round the lady
Back to the center and swing with your baby
Lady 'round two and the gent fall through
Now the gent 'round two and the lady fall through
Two gents swing with your right hand
Two gents swing with your right hand
Turn your own with a left hand 'round
Circle left go all the way 'round
Gents reach back with your right hand
Turn the opposite with the right hand 'round
Now your own with the left hand 'round
[Now the opposite with the right hand 'round
And last your own with the left hand 'round]
Circle left just half way round
Now dive for the oyster dive
And dig for the clam now dig
Now dive for the sardine and take a whole can
[You dive right through to the promised land]
Circle left just half way round
Now roll that barrel across the floor
Now roll it back and roll some more
Circle left and around you go
Two gents whirl with a sagebrush whirl
Two ladies whirl, and everybody whirl
Call:
Use some sort of opener.
Begin with cpl 1 leading to 2, use one of the figures above, then do the docey doe.
Send cpl 1 on to 3 and use a different figure, then do the docey doe.
Send cpl 1 on to 4 and say "Second couple follow up" and use a different figure.
Finish up with a docey doe.
Cpl 1 goes home while cpl 2 goes on to 4. Use a different figure and finish with docey doe.
Send cpl 2 on to 1 and say "Third couple follow up." Use a different figure
and finish with docey doe.
Cpl 2 goes home while cpl 3 goes on to cpl 1. Use a different figure and finish with docey doe.
Cpl 3 goes to cpl 2 and say "Fourth couple follow up." Use a different figure
and finish with docey doe.
Cpl 4 goes to cpl 2. Use a different figure and finish with docey doe.
Cpl 4 goes to cpl 3, say "Couple one sneak out to the right." Use your last figure
and finish with docey doe.
End with some closer.
Note: The instructions for the Docey Doe which are found in "Cowboy Dances," by Lloyd Shaw are not quite correct. The Docey Doe is performed from a ring of two couples beginning with the gents letting go of their partners' hand and rolling the left hand lady across in front of them to their right side (without switching hands with that lady), ladies passing between the two gents, and back to back with each other as they pass each other, and turning the women to face their partner with left hands extended to them. This rolling of the left hand lady is like a "roll away with a half sashay" for square dancers but with the "corner" not the partner. Taking left hands with partner, the two gents step straight forward to reach behind the other man's back to take the right hand of the opposite lady as she moves forward around the outside toward her opposite gent. To make this action easier, the man can make a quick left-face spin behind each other to face the opposite with right hands extended. Taking right hands with the opposite do a full turn around (a longer turn than the left hand turn with the partner) to again reach behind the other gent's back to take left hands with partner and do a "courtesy turn" to end facing the other couple.
Callers' Note: The action is begun with the couples circling to the left and as the figure is performed, the circle will naturally turn about another quarter turn to the left so that the dancers must be cued by the call to begin the Docey Doe one quarter turn from where the caller wishes the dancers to end. If the caller wishes the active dancers to end the Docey Doe in the middle of the square ready to move on to the next couple, then the call must be delivered and timed so that the dancers' actions will leave them in the center rather than a quarter turn beyond the center!
[The instructions at the center of p 108 say for "each gentleman break his hold with the opposite and pass his lady from right to left so that she passes between the opposite gentleman and his partner, of course, breaking holds with her partner to be able to do this, and then the gentleman takes her left hand in his left..." This is actually the reverse of what should really happen, see above.]
I'll swing your girl you swing mine
Oh, by golly, ain't that fine
I'll give you back your girl you gimme back mine
I'll swing my girl any old time
Around that couple and take a little peek
Back to the center and swing your sweet
Around that couple and peek once more (steal a little kiss)
Back to the center and swing all four (swing your miss)
Around that couple and swing at the wall
Now through that couple and swing in the hall
Lady round the lady and the gent follow
Lady round the gent and the gent don't go
Lady 'round the lady and the gent 'round the gent
Lady 'round the gent and the gent 'round the lady
Back to the center and swing with your baby
Lady 'round two and the gent fall through
Now the gent 'round two and the lady fall through
Two gents swing with your right hand
Two gents swing with your right hand
Turn your own with a left hand 'round
Circle left go all the way 'round
Gents reach back with your right hand
Turn the opposite with the right hand 'round
Now your own with the left hand 'round
[Now the opposite with the right hand 'round
And last your own with the left hand 'round]
Circle left just half way round
Now dive for the oyster dive
And dig for the clam now dig
Now dive for the sardine and take a whole can
[You dive right through to the promised land]
Circle left just half way round
Now roll that barrel across the floor
Now roll it back and roll some more
Circle left and around you go
Two gents whirl with a sagebrush whirl
Two ladies whirl, and everybody whirl
Call:
Use some sort of opener.
Begin with cpl 1 leading to 2, use one of the figures above, then do the docey doe.
Send cpl 1 on to 3 and use a different figure, then do the docey doe.
Send cpl 1 on to 4 and say "Second couple follow up" and use a different figure.
Finish up with a docey doe.
Cpl 1 goes home while cpl 2 goes on to 4. Use a different figure and finish with docey doe.
Send cpl 2 on to 1 and say "Third couple follow up." Use a different figure
and finish with docey doe.
Cpl 2 goes home while cpl 3 goes on to cpl 1. Use a different figure and finish with docey doe.
Cpl 3 goes to cpl 2 and say "Fourth couple follow up." Use a different figure
and finish with docey doe.
Cpl 4 goes to cpl 2. Use a different figure and finish with docey doe.
Cpl 4 goes to cpl 3, say "Couple one sneak out to the right." Use your last figure
and finish with docey doe.
End with some closer.
Note: The instructions for the Docey Doe which are found in "Cowboy Dances," by Lloyd Shaw are not quite correct. The Docey Doe is performed from a ring of two couples beginning with the gents letting go of their partners' hand and rolling the left hand lady across in front of them to their right side (without switching hands with that lady), ladies passing between the two gents, and back to back with each other as they pass each other, and turning the women to face their partner with left hands extended to them. This rolling of the left hand lady is like a "roll away with a half sashay" for square dancers but with the "corner" not the partner. Taking left hands with partner, the two gents step straight forward to reach behind the other man's back to take the right hand of the opposite lady as she moves forward around the outside toward her opposite gent. To make this action easier, the man can make a quick left-face spin behind each other to face the opposite with right hands extended. Taking right hands with the opposite do a full turn around (a longer turn than the left hand turn with the partner) to again reach behind the other gent's back to take left hands with partner and do a "courtesy turn" to end facing the other couple.
Callers' Note: The action is begun with the couples circling to the left and as the figure is performed, the circle will naturally turn about another quarter turn to the left so that the dancers must be cued by the call to begin the Docey Doe one quarter turn from where the caller wishes the dancers to end. If the caller wishes the active dancers to end the Docey Doe in the middle of the square ready to move on to the next couple, then the call must be delivered and timed so that the dancers' actions will leave them in the center rather than a quarter turn beyond the center!
[The instructions at the center of p 108 say for "each gentleman break his hold with the opposite and pass his lady from right to left so that she passes between the opposite gentleman and his partner, of course, breaking holds with her partner to be able to do this, and then the gentleman takes her left hand in his left..." This is actually the reverse of what should really happen, see above.]
