well we spend a lot of time learning cockney rhyming slang.. American english, like english english, has several varients. and knowing a few words in a specific dialect can help you understand a good deal.
a good deal of black slang, (a slang as detailed and interesting as cockney)is used in the blues--especially old blues. if you like the blues, you hear it, and if you are interested in language, you end up learning it.
Yes, the song can be seen as innocent,(Mama little baby's like shortnin, shortnin, mama's little baby likes shortnin bread) or it can be seen in a different light.
(all of which is very appropriate for a word board!)
and besides, i realized after i posted, the topic is still about things getting lifed up.. sort of!
(running and ducking for cover icon --jackie is gonna whup my hide!)
