Jody calls are military cadences based on the exploits of Jody, an imaginary character blamed for all the things that might go wrong back home while a soldier is deployed, such as losing one’s girlfriend or car. In a master’s thesis, University of Massachusetts graduate student Travis Salley argues that such call-and-response marching songs are largely rooted in the African-American musical tradition. The origin of the Jody character himself is unclear although slang expert David Maurer posited a connection with a character in California prison slang. This is part of a complete episode.
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