Nonsense rhymes are songs with words, or actions that make little sense. You may want to take a look at our FAQ and website rules. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. While the initial stanzas were fairly stable by the late 20th century, the folklorist Josepha Sherman noted that two unrelated children in 1990s New York took the change from "Miss Lucy" to "Ms. Lucy" for granted. Miss Susie had a steamboat (or Lucy, Mary and other names) is an old jump-rope song. And that is all I know It proves that Tiny Tim is just another name fixed into the song with no historical bearings. Thats because it mentions a lady with an alligator purse having the final say over what ails the baby in the song. Interviewer: Do you mind if we go back to that song we were talking about earlier?, Informant: Sure.. Its unclear if that steamboat inspired the famous song, though. The steamboat had a bell - ding ding (action of tugging bell cord) Miss Susie went to heaven. the steamboat went to It shares its tune with another popular jump rope song called Miss Lucy had a baby, thats why they are very often confused with each other. Miss Suzy had a steamboat, The steamboat had a bell (ding, ding) Miss Suzy went to heaven, The steamboat went to --Hello operator, Please give me number nine, And if you disconnect me, I'll chop off your --Behind the refrigerator, There lay a piece of glass. very very good). I hope you find the information I have gathered and created as useful as my family and I do! (third person jumps in or 1st person jumps out) Behind the old piano. Hush-A-Bye, Don't You Cry is a hauntingly beautiful American folk Lullaby. Ask me no more questions I'll tell > The playground song, "Miss Susie Had a Steamboat," sung by young children has a cheeky meaning behind its lyrics. 26 Feb Feb please give me number nine in the park. It was a common tune that kids liked to sing during recess. The steamboat went to. However, this inspiration for the latter song has little direct correlation to Miss Lucy Had a Baby. Therefore, you can use it in your work. Hello Operator, Please dial Number 9, And if you disconnect me, I'll kick you from. Thus the lyrics were subjected to many improvisations and different versions appeared over time. Measles is also a viral disease with rash-like developments on the body and flu-like symptoms. dark is like a movie When I did have friends that were girls I often played the boy characters in most of our made up games because they were strong and could go on cool adventures, and werent always needing to be saved. They are only words strung together to make up a childrens song. I thought all girly activities were stupid and didnt make any sense, but looking back I could have just thought that because I didnt know how to fit in at all. Im more inclined to go with the last theory of the lady with the alligator purse not being a reference to a particular historical figure. I'll chop off your. Animals and Pets Anime Art Cars and Motor Vehicles Crafts and DIY Culture, Race, and Ethnicity Ethics and Philosophy Fashion Food and Drink History Hobbies Law Learning and Education Military Movies Music Place Podcasts and Streamers Politics Programming Reading, Writing, and Literature Religion and Spirituality Science Tabletop Games . Paper 546.https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/student_folklore_all/546, Home i know i know my ma piece of glass. | But are the songs the same? Behind the Burnt Cork Mask: Early Blackface Minstrelsy and Antebellum American Popular Culture. The nursery rhyme talks of a young woman whose strange baby gobbles up all the water and soap in a bathtub. the boys are in the girls' room The nickname 'Tiny Tim' has been used in the context of art and literature; Several versions exist, varying across time and regionally:[8]. "Miss Lucy" probably developed from verses of much older (and cruder) songs, although the opposite may also be true,[15] most commonly known as "Bang Bang Rosie" in Britain, "Bang Away Lulu" in Appalachia,[14] and "My Lula Gal" in the West. I would like to be able to understand all of this song. > About I remember learning it from my best friend, who had learned it from other girls in her class. I will do my best to remember all the lyrics, but I dont know the name of the song if there is one., Interviewer: Cool, go ahead when you are ready., Informant: Miss Susie had a steamboat, the steamboat had a bell / Miss Susie went to heaven, the steamboat went to / hello operator, please give me number nine / and if you disconnect me, Ill cut off your / behind the fridgerator, there was a shard of glass / Miss Susie sat upon it, and cut her big fat / ask me no more questions, Ill tell you no more lies / the boys are in the bathroom, zipping up their / flies are in the field, the bees are in the park / Miss Susie and her boyfriend are kissing in the / dark, dark, dark, dark / dark is like a movie, a movies like a show / a show is like a video and thats not all I know / I know your ma, I know your pa, and your sister with a forty acre bra!. Thanks! the steamboat had a bell | Flies are in the meadow the bees are The two songs also have vastly different origin theories, proving they arent the same. This is a classic example of childrens folklore being used to toy with the idea of authority. In those songs, the baby, that was dropped in the chamber pot bathtub, was referencing an enormously popular mascot of Force cereal named Sunny Jim, introduced in the United States in 1902 and in Britain a few years later. More clapping games? Are kissing in the D-A-R-K A famous steamboat disaster tied to the name Lucy occurred in 1844, when the Lucy Walker steamboat, a ship named after a race-horse owned by a Cherokee native American and run by a team of his African American slaves, blew up. Miss Lucy had a babyShe named him Tiny TimShe put him in the bathtubTo see if he could swim.He drank up all the waterHe ate up all the soap.He tried to eat the bathtubBut it wouldnt go down his throatMiss Lucy called the doctorMiss Lucy called the nurseMiss Lucy called the ladyWith the alligator purseMumps! said the doctorMeasles! said the nurseNothing! said the ladyWith the alligator purse. The purpose of this song is clear: kids use it as an excuse to utilize taboo words without technically saying anything wrong (e.g. We couldnt find a YouTube Video to insert here so you could follow along however, we did find a video uploaded by Sounds for Change Music Therapy on Facebook which you can view here! This song has been used in a number of movies and TV shows such as in Rocko's Modern Life and The Simpson's. For further information about the song "Miss Lucy Had a Steam Boat", check Wikipedia . It was a way of passing time when we were bored. My elementary school was a public school that was occupied by mostly middle class American kids, and some lower social income families. 'Miss Luce Negro' - was the nickname of a brothel owner hypothesized to be the, Tiny Tim is the nickname of a fictional character, This page was last edited on 10 February 2021, at 19:42. Though the song is about Miss Lucy and a baby called Tiny Tim, you can play with the lyrics and include different names as you see fit. )Miss Lucy went to heaven,And the steam boat went toHello operator, give me #9 and,If you disconnect me, I will chop off yourBehind the refrigerator, there was a piece of glass,Miss Lucy sat upon it, and broke her big fatAsk me no more questions, tell me no more liesThe boys are in the bathroom, pulling down theirFlies are in the country, bees are in their hivesMiss Lucy and her boy friendAre kissing in the D-A-R-K(spell out)D-A-R-KD-A-R-KDark! About Advertising Contact Sign In Become a Member. | However, you cant use someones songs adaptation without permission. the steamboat went to 23 Share 10K views 9 years ago Hey Guys so, I know I have always Well, Not always But, I wanted to know the WHOLE song of Miss Susie had a steam boat and, Well today that's what I am going to be. Therefore, its challenging to decipher if any of them have a deeper meaning beyond the plain meaning we get. 'Miss Susie had a steamboat', also known as 'Hello Operator', 'Miss Suzy', and many other names, is the name of an American schoolyard rhyme in which each verse leads up to a rude word or profanity which is revealed in the next verse as part of an innocuous word or phrase. "The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down" is a song written in 1937 by Cliff Friend and Dave Franklin and published by Harms Inc., New York. Dark! 3.7K views 1 year ago Miss Suzie had a steamboat the steamboat had a bell (ding ding) miss Suzie went to heaven The steamboat went to hello operator please give me number nine if. If you want a translation click on "add new request" instead of asking for it beneath the song. Behind the refrigerator USU Student Folklore Fieldwork. All growing up Ive had primarily guy friends with the exception of a few girlfriends here and there. See all hand clapping games! Miss Susie had a steamboat, The steamboat had a bell, Miss Susie went to heaven, The steamboat went to Hello Operator, Please dial Number 9, And if you disconnect me, I'll cut off your Behind the 'frigerator, There was a piece of glass, Miss Susie sat upon it, And cut her little Ask me no more questions, Tell me no more lies, Accessibility Statement Not only did it help ease my boredom, but it also provided me with fun. All growing up Ive had primarily guy friends with the exception of a few girlfriends here and there. i know i know my sister with the 80 acre alligator bra, (anyone who could jump all the way through this rhyme was considered Use this YouTube resource to try. Miss Susie fell upon it and cut her Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. Remembering the chant reminds me of how much fun I had as a kid. Tic Tac Toe So I was very much a tomboy. So do the events in Miss Lucy Had a Baby. Student Folklore Fieldwork We would shout it at the top of our lungs and we would often times look for opportunities to sing it in front of grown-ups. this song again! The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. The only kids in the neighborhood were boys, and the only cousins I had around my age were also boys. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. $MMT = window.$MMT || {}; $MMT.cmd = $MMT.cmd || [];$MMT.cmd.push(function(){ $MMT.display.slots.push(["6e36601e-44cf-4f78-b804-bfbdde6ee2e3"]); }). Following his declining popularity, the baby is now usually encountered as Tiny Tim, once famous as a Depression-era comic strip and still well known as a character in Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol. and that is all I know Did anyone else play this game in grade school?SUBSCRIBE FOR WEEKLY LAUGHS https://bit.ly/3pu5gfnSupport Me:Patreon https://www.patreon.com/mattshaverVen. | turkey club sandwich nutrition Uncovering hot babes since 1919.. miss sue from alabama she came from. nine, behind the refrigerator there was a Miss Lucy had a baby,His name was Tiny Tim Tim TimShe put him in the bathtub,To see if he could swim swim swim He drank up all the water,He ate a bar of soap soap soapHe tried to eat the bathtub,But it wouldn't go down his Throat Throat Throat I was a primary school teacher and now I am a stay-at-home mom to my four kids. I know I know my sister with the FORTY ACRE BRA! I look at that and more in the article, so join me. It shares much of the same melody as the 1937 "The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down" used by Warner Bros. as the theme to their Looney Tunes cartoons.[14]. The rhyme approaches taboo words, only to cut them off and modify them with an enjambment. Some versions use different names, including female characters. She was tall, blonde, good at basketball, and all the other boys in the class took turns having a crush on her and asking her out and stuff. Mackelprang, Sierra, "Miss Susie Song" (2018). Behind the frigerator There was a piece of glass. "Hitchcockian Haberdashery" in. My brother is the stupid one who taught me this DUMB SONG! Hand signs sometimes . The events and actions in the song dont make sense, which brings similarity to a class of rhymes called nonsense rhymes. Samantha created Nursery Rhyme Central as the go to place for parents, teachers and carers about all things to do with Nursery Rhymes. Hello operator Please give me number nine And if you disconnect me I will chop off your. of glass. When I learned this one, I remember it was in the morning when we were waiting for the bell to ring and for school to start. I know for a fact I learned this song from a girl in my class who was very, very popular. Just click the play icons. [19] An adaptation"Miss Lucy had some leeches"has been recorded by Emilie Autumn[20] and another"Mrs. Landers was a health nut"featured in the South Park episode "Something You Can Do with Your Finger".[21][22]. Read about that here. Another theory is that the lady was a social worker. Education is a passion of mine and Nursery Rhymes are such an important building block in those first steps towards learning language that I wanted to create a website where I could have all the information a parent, teacher or carer could ever need about them in one place. Miss Lucy Had a Baby is sometimes called The Lady With the Aligator Purse. D-A-R-K D-A-R-K dark dark dark The song is quite ancient, which could have something to do with the writer being unknown to most people. ask me no more questions Miss Susie had a steamboat, The steamboat had a bell, DING DING! Miss Mary went to heaven, the steamboat went to Hello operator, please give me number nine In Miss Susie had a steamboat each verse insinuates an inappropriate word or situation that will be revealed in the next sentence, but which will be replaced by an innocent expression. Numerous versions exist, varying across time and regionally. The informant sung me the song during a phone conversation about childhood songs and stories. I thought all girly activities were stupid and didnt make any sense, but looking back I could have just thought that because I didnt know how to fit in at all. The song shares much of the same melody as the 1937 "The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down" used by Warner Bros. as the theme to their Looney Tunes cartoons. 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With Nursery rhymes Blackface Minstrelsy and Antebellum American Popular Culture and Antebellum American Popular.... My best friend, who had learned it from my best friend who! Songs with words, only to cut them off and modify them with an enjambment of tugging bell cord Miss. 26 Feb Feb Please give me number nine and if you want a translation click on add! This song that Tiny Tim is just another name fixed into the song dont make sense, which brings to...