There Was an Old Woman

So there’s this old lady, see, and she starts inexplicably swallowing a series of larger and larger animals…

Rose Bonne penned this absurd ode to consumption in 1951; Canadian folk singer
Alan Mills wrote the music. A memory game for young ones, the song is cumulative
and employs funky rhyme schemes to hold its pieces together. Burl Ives, then one
of the most popular singer-songwriters in the world, recorded the song in 1963,
launching an instant hit on the folk circuit among young and old alike.

This poor woman and her ill-fated attempts to remove her imbibed insect do deserve some sympathy. The average person accidentally swallows about 430 bugs per year.

Play a sample of the tune below. If you like what you hear, add it to your cart or pick up the whole album at the store.

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Artist: Ana Soltys

Why I chose this song

Growing up in France, I did not get a chance to get acquainted with American children's music until well into my teens. And it was not until my mid twenties that I read the lyrics to There was an old woman that swallowed a fly. This song quickly climbed to the top of my list purely for it’s honest communication. This old woman in the song is dealing with some kind of addiction, and with each verse we are reminded of the potential consequences of this addiction, death. There seems to be no good reason for her to keep stuffing her face with these creatures, yet the problem gets bigger and more surreal with each verse. Addiction is a complex, and mature subject typically discussed by adults in a serious manner, however this song allows the listener to dissect addiction in a pure and honest way. It's just silly to do things that will end up hurting you, or in this case, killing you.