Here’s a cool song from the South with a video and lyrics… My old hen’s a good old hen She lay eggs for railroad men Sometimes eight, sometimes ten She lay eggs for railroad men. Cluck old hen, cluck and squall Ain’t laid an egg since late last fall. Cluck old hen, cluck and sing Ain’t laid an egg since late last spring. My...

The US government did a series of interviews with former slaves in the 1930’s. Project Gutenberg, has posted some of the interviews from Virginia. They’re called “Slave Narratives – A Folk History of Slavery in the United States – From Interviews with Former Slaves”. I found some songs in one of the the...

I’ve talked in the past about how all the kids in my neighborhood loved The Hearse Song when I was growing up. (We called the song The Worms Crawl In the Worms Crawl Out.) Evidently, we weren’t the only ones who loved this song. I’ve gotten many people writing in about...

Heather was nice enough to send me a few recordings of some American children’s songs that she did. She sent me mp3’s of the following songs: I’m Popeye the Sailor Man (Spoof) Don’t Put Your Trash in My Backyard/Fish and Chips and Vinegar Animal Fair Home on the Range/Oh Give Me a Home (the regular song and a...

One goal of the Mama Lisa’s World sites is to help preserve traditional songs around the world. Sometimes songs have been remembered by a group through unexpected means. This seems to be the case with Spider’s Web. Margaret B. was taught this song by her mother, who learnt it from her mother,...

I received this email just the other day: I am new to looking into the internet but saw your site. I did not find the song I am looking for. It goes something like this, and I would love to have the words to the whole song. Do you know the latest song, latest song,...

I’ve been discussing the origin of the phrase “The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out”. Yesterday, I posted the old nursery rhyme “There Was a Woman All Skin and Bone”, which contains the phrase. Here’s another version of There Was a Woman All Skin and Bone, this one a song, (sung by me!). ...

Swing Low, Sweet Chariot was created by Sarah Hannah Sheppard around 1847. Sarah Hannah Sheppard, a slave in the south, sang this lullaby to her daughter Ella. Around 1855, the woman who was Sarah’s slaveholder tricked 3 year old Ella into spying on Sarah. When Sarah found out, she was so distraught, that she...

Turkey in the Straw is a traditional song for Thanksgiving. You’ll find the lyrics below followed by the tune in a YouTube video… Turkey in the Straw As I was a-goin’ On down the road With a tired team And a heavy load I cracked my whip And the leader sprung I says day-day To the wagon tongue Turkey in the straw (Whistle) Turkey in the...

Thanksgiving Poem, which later became the song Over the River and Through the Woods, plus how the writer of the poem was a real-life heroine When November comes, life becomes a whirlwind of activity. In the middle of it all, we start thinking about what we have to be thankful for. I’m thankful we...

Patsi wrote me, I used to sing this a long time ago but I only remember the chorus. We sang this at Girl Scout Camp… Down in the Valley Down in the valley, There is a mission Down by the old oak tree Down by the mission, There is a fountain Where my love told me: There’s a web like a spider’s...