"Up in G" This is a possibility, read the entire site - it may mean "paradise": GARDEN -- (church Slavonic) -- paradise, land of the blessed, a marvelous place in the imaginations of various peoples. Notions of a better life have been reflected in the descriptions of G. No one knows for certain where G. is located. The existence of G. is attributed to the Beginning of Time, to the End of Time or in general is removed beyond the bounds of this world; then G. is populated with gods, spirits of the dead and other supernatural beings. People try to enter G., a place where there is no time (cf. below), where everyone is happy and where one and the same wind always blows (in Homer it was Zephyrus). As a rule, time as such is absent in G.: there is either no "yesterday" or "tomorrow" at all, no past or future, there is a never-setting sun, or else the change in the time of day and seasons is extremely prolonged. Therefore, when ordinary people wind up in G., this frequently ends for them lamentably (just like a trip into space for astronauts in science fiction stories): when they return home, if they return at all, then it turns out that one day in G. is equal to a month, year or century in the ordinary world. Still one more variant exists: people who have reached G. forget about everything that happened to them before. For this reason, some researchers believe that Garamantes is one of the G. of ancient civilization. http://www.chronos.msu.ru/EREPORTS/gerasimchuk_dictionary.htm Down in front of Casey's old brown wooden stoop On a summer's evening we formed a merry group Boys and girls together we would sing and waltz While Tony played the organ on the sidewalks of New York East Side, West Side, all around the town The tots sang "ring-around-rosie," "London Bridge is falling down" Boys and girls together, me and Mamie O'Rourke Tripped the light fantastic on the sidewalks of New York That's where Johnny Casey, little Jimmy Crowe Jakey Krause, the baker, who always had the dough Pretty Nellie Shannon with a dude as light as cork She first picked up the waltz step on the sidewalks of New York Things have changed since those times, some are up in "G" Others they are wand'rers but they all feel just like me They'd part with all they've got, could they once more walk With their best girl and have a twirl on the sidewalks of New York http://www.niehs.nih.gov/kids/lyrics/sidewalk.htm http://www.eosdev.com/Illustrations_Quotes/NewYork/sidewalksofny.htm Another use of the term?: "Hurrah!" shrilly screamed Waldo, as he dashed out into the storm, fairly revelling in the sudden change. "Who says this isn't 'way up in G?' Who says--out of the way, Bruno! Shut that trap-door in your face, so another fellow may get at least a share of the good things coming straight down from--ow--wow!" CHAPTER I. Nature in Travail The Lost City by Joseph E. Badger Jr. http://www.worldwideschool.org/library/books/lit/adventure/TheLostCity/Chap1.html Honor >>> [log in to unmask] 2/18/2005 4:28:54 PM >>> The song line you refer to is in "The Sidewalks of New York." The Sidewalks of New York : Music: Charles B. Lawlor, Lyrics: James W. Blake , Publisher: Howley, Haviland & Company Copyright: 1894 (I have seen a sheet music cover with this date; it could even have been published earlier in another version as frequently happened.) This 1894 song is one of New York's most popular. It used as the campaign song for Alfred E. Smith, Democratic nominee for President in the 1924 campaign. It was first introduced at the Old London Theater in the Bowery of New York City by Lottie Gilson, a popular singer of the times. Her use of the song established the publisher as a major player in the music business. (The words to the tune were written by James Blake, a salesman in a hatter's shop at the time, who liked to write verses, so perhaps it is not surprising he used slang terms.) The lyrics, written in the 1890's are nostalgic for an earlier time in New York, perhaps the 1870's. There were no subways in 1894 when the song came out (first one was 1904) so it could not have anything to do with subways, and certainly not the current "G" train which serves Queens and Brooklyn. The existing trains were the Els, but they were generally referred to by their streets, such as the Second Avenue train line because they only ran straight up one avenue of Manhattan. "Things have changed since those times, some are up in "G" Others they are wand'rers but they all feel just like me "... is one version of the context of the up in "G" but another says "Some are up in "G", some are on the hog," which I believe would be a good thing such as "in clover" would be. Therefore they ones who are up in G could have moved on to a better place, such as Gramercy Park as someone else suggested, or conversely they could be worse off, such as in prison? Perhaps the term referred to a jail of the time? An interesting question. Thanks for the thinking exercise. >From: [log in to unmask] >Reply-To: "A LISTSERV list for discussions pertaining to New York State > history." <[log in to unmask]> >To: [log in to unmask] >Subject: "Sidewalks of New York" >Date: Thu, 17 Feb 2005 18:10:54 EST > >I've heard the "G" mentioned in 2 ways. The first was a reference to >Uptown >as in "Gramercy Park" and the other was "Grande's" Was a sophisticated >nite >club uptown.