THE OLD WOMAN AND THE PIG
(Jean Ritchie version)

There was an old woman and she had a little pig. mm-mm-mm
There was an old woman and she had a little pig. mm-mm-mm
There was an old woman and she had a little pig,
Didn't cost much 'cause it wasn't very big. mm-mm-mm

Now this old woman kept the pig in the barn, mm-mm-mm, etc.
Prettiest little thing she had on the farm, mm-mm-mm

Now this old woman fed the pig on clover,
It laid down and died all over.

The little piggy died cause it couldn't get its breath,
Wasn't that an awful death?

The little old woman she died of grief;
Wasn't that that a sad relief?

The little old man he sobbed and sighed;
Then he too laid down and died.

Well, that was the end of the one, two, three,
Man and the woman and the little pig-ee.

The good old book lies on the shelf,
If you want any more you can sing it yourself.

With musical score.

""There was an old woman and she had a little Pig" to give it's full title, is one of the first songs I learned to sing, sinc it is a wonderful baby-rocking song. It was such a family favorite that two of my sisters, after having been asked to sing at our oldest sister's wedding, stood prettily under the snowball bush in our yard and shouted out the whole tragic tale, to the embarassment of the rest of the family and the great entertainment of the wedding guests."
Jean Ritchie, 1965, Folk Songs of the Southern Appalachians as sung by Jean Ritchie. Oak Publications.