Subject: The worms crawl in... From: em10@swt.edu Date: 05 Dec 97 - 10:06 AM Does anybody know all the lyrics to "The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out, the worms play pinochle on your snout? I've got a bunch of cub scouts that DESPERATELY need to know! 8-) Please help! Thanks, Ed em10@swt.edu |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: Jon W. Date: 05 Dec 97 - 11:09 AM This has been mentioned several times in this forum recently. Click on "Forum Search", enter "worms crawl" in the body search box, and see what happens. |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: Jon W. Date: 05 Dec 97 - 11:13 AM Of course you should always check the database first. There's a very thorough version there which I retrieved by entering [worms crawl] (the brackets are necessary) in the search box at the top of the page. |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: dick greenhaus Date: 05 Dec 97 - 01:02 PM Thanx Jon. I couldn't have said it better myself. |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: Joe Offer Date: 05 Dec 97 - 03:00 PM Of course, if you look just under the word "worms" (no need for quotes or brackets), you'll find enough gross songs to keep a pack of Cubs busy for a whole evening. Sometimes, broader searches bring up unexpected treasures. There are lots of great songs to be found here. Try a category search like @kids and see what you find. -Joe Offer, retired Cubmaster- |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: Tim Jaques tjaques@netcom.ca Date: 06 Dec 97 - 04:33 PM I believe that this was discussed on the thread Halloween Songs, where several variations were posted. I've always liked the Pogues version, which ends "Be merry, my friends, be merry!" like it was a drinking song. |
Subject: Lyr Add: HEARSE SONG (...worms crawl in...) From: GUEST,Earth Mother Date: 11 Nov 00 - 08:29 PM What is the name of the tune? (It's the theme from Alfred Hitchcock Presents, but that led to a DEAD end!) A true folk song, I remember the lyrics this way:
Did you ever see a hearse go by, Earth Mother |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: Harold W Date: 11 Nov 00 - 11:09 PM The theme for which you are thinking about is called "Funeral March of a Marionette" written by Charles Gounod. |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: Gary T Date: 12 Nov 00 - 03:11 AM The tune I know to this is similar to, but not the same as, Alfred Hitchcock's theme. Am I correct in believing these are two different melodies? |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: zander (inactive) Date: 12 Nov 00 - 05:03 AM The Pogues do a good recorded version if anyone is interested. Dave |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,Urthmothr Date: 12 Nov 00 - 11:43 PM Harold, that sounds right. I'll try to find a sound bite. |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,Bruce O. Date: 13 Nov 00 - 06:16 PM There are two versions called "The Hearse Song" in Carl Sandburgh's "The American Songbag", 1927, which is now available as a reprint. |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: mousethief Date: 13 Nov 00 - 06:28 PM Good websites for this sort of stuff: Isn't it fun corrupting young minds?!
Alex |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: Tattie Bogle Date: 13 Nov 00 - 07:48 PM I have dim recollections of singing something like this at Guide camp - every line was followed by - Oo-oo-oo-oo Aa-aa-aa-aa- and the song finished with a very loud "Gotcha!" (and probably a few screams from the youngest ones who hadn't heard it before! Sorry I can't remember more. There's also the less gory one "There's a long long worm acrawling along the roof of my tent" Tattie B |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,Earth Mother Date: 14 Nov 00 - 08:22 PM Thanks, folks, this has really been fun...we used to sing some AWFUL songs (My eyes have seen the glory of the burning of the school)that would be forbidden in these time! |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: Gary T Date: 14 Nov 00 - 10:52 PM Awful? That was a GREAT song! Too bad that singing it today would likely result in charges being filed. |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: Amergin Date: 15 Nov 00 - 01:12 AM I seem to remember reading somewhere that this was a World War 1 trench song or something of the like....Anyone have any background on this? |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: Tattie Bogle Date: 15 Nov 00 - 06:04 AM The long long worm one was: I'll post it when I've time! |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: SINSULL Date: 15 Nov 00 - 08:33 AM The version my brothers taught me: The worms crawl in; The worms crawl out In your stomach and out your mouth They even play ping pong on your nose Your stomach turns a pus-y green And makes delicious whipping cream... This seems an appropriate place to add: A few months back on an unknown thread I mentioned a book about Hephaestus beetles - like fireflies except their light starts fires. A few suggested I was hallucinating and suggested I share my stash. To those non-believers: The above book, "The Hephaestus Plague" is for sale on Ebay and highly recommended to addicts of trashy sci-fi, horror, and the like. I stand vindicated. Now back to the worms. |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: Gary T Date: 15 Nov 00 - 12:07 PM Amergin--I seem to recall a version that goes "The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out, they do right dress and turn about" or some such--it sounded like it was describing military parade maneuvers. With these lyrics, I could see this being an Army song. I did a very quick search on Google, and came up with a half dozen or more variants, but not the particular one I thought I remembered. Now you've got me curious. Let us know if you find more info on this. |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: Tattie Bogle Date: 16 Nov 00 - 07:02 AM The worms crawl in and the worms crawl out, Oo-oo-oo-oo,ah-ah-ah-ah, They go in thin and they come out stout, Oo-oo-oo-oo, Ah-ah-ah-ah,etc It's coming back to me slowly. Tune: CDED,CDED,CDED,CDED -very original and complicated! Lots of eye-rolling essential to the correct performance of this song, preferably also done at twilight, with torches or candles under the chin! |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,Earth Mother Date: 30 Nov 00 - 05:21 PM Back to the "Funeral March of the Marionette"; that's the Alfred Hitchcock theme, but the version I know of "the worms crawl in" is slightly different. |
Subject: RE: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,guest Date: 11 Aug 03 - 03:40 PM Does anyone know the song, i really need to know who its by whenever you see a funeral go by you must remember you've got to die moo ha ha ha they bury you down six foot deep and then the worms begin to creep moo ha ha ha the worms crawl in the worms crawl out they go in thin they come out stout |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,John Date: 21 Aug 03 - 06:53 AM Further to Tattie Bogle's snippet "there's a long, long worm a-crawlin' along the top of my tent - I can remember a bit more (from some 60-odd years ago. It's a parody of, and sung to to tune of, the First World War song, "There's a long, long trail a-winding into the land of my dreams" It begins, "There'a a long, long worm a-winding up to the top of my tent. I can hear the bugle calling and it's time that I went..." can't remember the middle bit, but it ends, "... and when I return, I'll find that worm - upon my pillow - squish squash." Wonder if anyone can fill in THE ORIGINAL WORDS to the missing bits? |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: Compton Date: 21 Aug 03 - 08:14 PM I know the song as "Where shall we be in a hundred years from now?"! Starts......"Did you ever think, as the years roll by, That some day you will have to die"....Oh, Oh, Oh, Where shall we in a hundred years from now. Mrs Compton remembers singing it along with Ging, gang goolie! |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: Doug Chadwick Date: 22 Aug 03 - 02:31 AM To the tune of "There's a long, long trail a-winding into the land of my dreams" There's a long, long worm a-crawling Across the roof of my tent I can hear the bugles calling So it's time I went There's the cold, cold water waiting For me to have my morning dip When I returned I found that worm Upon my pillow slip That worm it kept on crawling Throughout the heat of the day Round and round the tent pole And it would not go away There's the warm, warm water waiting For me to have my evening wash When I laid my head Down on my pillow That worm it went SQUISH SQUASH I learnt this over 40 years ago at Scout camp Doug C |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,.gargoyle Date: 22 Aug 03 - 11:35 PM WOW!!!!
Great LYRICS - THANX Doug and John
There is something phenominal about the colloberative-gleaning of lyrics at this place.
These are LYRICS that should be picked-up by Dick Greenhouse and Susan for the next edition of the DT!
Well Done.
Sincerely, |
Subject: Lyr Add: HEARSE SONG (...worms crawl in...) From: cobber Date: 22 Aug 03 - 11:36 PM Back when I was a young scout in England in the fifties, I learned this song at a canp from scouts from Colchester. Again, sung to the CDED melody after each line we sang Oo-OO-OO-oo Ah- ha ha ha with the maniacal laughter rising in intensity after each line. It was a very popular part of our early repertoire with Cobbers, before we got too serious (pity!) and we actually recorded it in 1969 but never released the album. The words we used were:
Think you may be the next to die They put you in a wooden box And cover you up with a heap of rocks All goes well for about a week Then your coffin begins to leak The worms go in the worms come out They go in thin and they come out stout Pus oozes out like thick rich cream And your live turns a ghastly green Your eyes fall in and your teeth fall out Your brains come trickling down your snout (loud sniff) The moral of this story needs no explanation It's really much better to have a cremation We used to have a television show in Australia hosted by a fellow called Deadly Earnest. It was all B grade horror stuff etc but was popular late at night and we recorded it because we were going to perform it on his show (we had to mime due to lack of facilities). Unfortunately, Deadly was killed in a car crash and the whole thing folded. My kids love the song however. So do I. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,.gargoyle Date: 23 Aug 03 - 12:49 AM Fascinating Cobber-
You have also added some lyrics that were not in the DT.
Perhaps, Dick and Susan or Joe and Pene can harvest them also
I learned it (the essence - not your exact version) from a Sommerset lad a few years after your recording.
Sincerely, |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,cadman Date: 07 Jan 04 - 04:11 PM I have been trying all day to remember the movie I heard this song in somewhere between 1965 and 1985. If anybody remembers please email me at cadman@mchsi.com |
Subject: The worms crawl in... super! From: GUEST,Jdecker@woh.rr.com Date: 26 Mar 04 - 07:24 AM This is great! A friend of mine is doing a unit on worms with her 2nd graders (for ART). I told her she needed "the worms crawl in ....the Worms crawl out" song...and I found it here! http://www.mudcat.org/midi/midifiles/wormscrawl.mid Get those kiddes bee-bopping to this one. Scroll down to lyrics http://www.mudcat.org/@displaysong.cfm?SongID=7179 Gosh even more worms songs: http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=3436 You rock! Judy Decker |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST Date: 09 Sep 04 - 12:24 PM The worm song was in the movie "Picture Mommy Dead". |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: The Fooles Troupe Date: 09 Sep 04 - 09:48 PM The song became known to many Aussies - after my generation - because it was used on the ABC TV Playschool. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,arbey Date: 08 Nov 04 - 05:02 PM The tune, as I know it, is a combination of "The Teddy Bears Picnic" and "Funeral March" by Fredrick Chopin, an odd sort of amalgamation. "The worms go in and the worms go out" to ("If you go down in the woods today,") "They goes in thin and comes out stout" to (Dito) "Where shall we be in a hundred years from now" to the first part of the funeral march. This is repeated throughout the whole song. Arbey |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST Date: 08 Mar 05 - 12:11 AM here is a site that actually plays the music. http://home.earthlink.net/~halloween_magenta/hearsesong.html |
Subject: Lyr Add: HEARSE SONG (...worms crawl in...) From: GUEST,Em Date: 23 May 05 - 11:16 AM Don't you ever laugh as the hearse goes by, for you may be the next to die. They wrap you up in a big white sheet From your head down to your feet. They put you in a big black box And cover you up with dirt and rocks. All goes well for about a week, Then your coffin begins to leak. The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out. The worms play pinochle on your snout. They eat your eyes,they eat your nose, They eat the jelly between your toes. A big green worm with rolling eyes Crawly in your stomach and out your eyes. Your stomach turns a slimy green, And pus pours out like whipping cream. You spread it on a slice of bread, And that's what you eat when you are dead. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,Nana Date: 28 Sep 07 - 06:32 PM For kids 9-13 (my 5 year old grandchild doesn't get to hear this from Nana just yet) You better watch out when the ghosts come by, Or you will surely di-i -ie. They'll wrap you in a bloody sheet, And bury ya about 6 ft. deep. And all goes well for 'bout a week, And then your casket begins to leak, The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out, The worms play poker on your scalp Your stomach turns a slimy green And pus pours out like pure whipped cream You soak it up with a piece of bread And that's what you eat when you are dead. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: Jack Campin Date: 28 Sep 07 - 07:45 PM I've heard "The Worms Crawl In" sung to "Off She Goes". |
Subject: Lyr Add: HEARSE SONG (...worms crawl in...) From: GUEST,Bill the sound Date: 28 Sep 07 - 09:09 PM The vertion I heard many years ago- If ever you see a hearse pass by Remember that some day you are bound to die Ho Ho Ha Ha Hee Hee Hee Hee How happy we will be They wrap you up in a wooden shirt Cover you over with lumps of dirt Ho Ho etc The worms crawl in the worms crawl out They crawl in thin and they crawl out stout Ho Ho etc Your eyes fall in your teeth fall out your brains come trickling down you snout Ho Ho etc |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,Jim Carroll Date: 29 Sep 07 - 03:03 AM Same as above with variations: They wrap you up in a lily-white sheet, And tuck in the corners nice and neat. Yo ho, yo ho, yo ho, yo ho, Where will you be in a hundred years from now? Sung to the tune of The Death March (Wagner?) Why are kids such sadistic b*******? Poor little sparra, Poor little fing, No Fevvers on its 'ead, No fevvers on its wing, Can't fly, can't sing, Cut its bleedin' 'ed orf. Jim Carroll |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: Joybell Date: 30 Sep 07 - 03:07 AM Compare this line with: ...The worms they crept in and the worms they crept out And sported his eyes and his temples about While the spectre addressed Imogene.... From "Alonzo the Brave and the fair Imogine" as sung by Sam Cowell in the mid-19th Century. It was a poem written by Matthew Gregory Lewis around 1790. I like to sing it but it's hard to find anyone willing to sit still long enough these days. Cheers, Joy |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: Jim Dixon Date: 01 Oct 07 - 10:50 PM You can read the poem ALONZO THE BRAVE AND FAIR IMOGINE in "Tales of Wonder," by M[atthew] G[regory] Lewis, 1801, which can be viewed with Google Book Search. Looks like a great Halloween recitation! Here's another quote in a similar vein, so to speak: ONE IN A GRAVE. ONE in a grave!—oh! I would not be Alone in that dwelling of mystery, Where the worms crawl in, and the worms crawl out, And hold on the body their revel rout…. [from Musings in Many Moods by John Bolton Rogerson, 1859.] |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,Strad Date: 02 Oct 07 - 05:36 AM Last verse:- The small boy to the old man said: Will I be like that when I am dead? YESSSSSSS! |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: Joybell Date: 05 Oct 07 - 01:23 AM The tune for "Alonzo the Brave and the Fair Imogene" is the one used for "Young Collins" without the modal change. Just in case anyone should need to know. Cheers, Joy |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,Dawn Date: 13 Mar 08 - 08:20 PM There's a long long worm a crawling across the roof of my tent The Quartermaster's calling and it's time I went There's the cold cold water waiting for me to take my morning dip And when I return I'll find that worm upon my pillow slip. There's a caterpillar crawling around the rim of my plate The Quartermaster's calling 'You'll leave nothing on that plate, So I ate that caterpillar with a heart full of glee I ate him for my dinner, so I can't have him for tea. And that worm he went on crawling all through the heat of the day And he went on crawling, crawling, and he would not stay There's the warm, warm water waiting, for me to take my evening wash And when I return I'll find that worm upon my bed squish squash. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,ex-Guider Date: 28 May 08 - 05:02 PM Bonita Glen Girl Guide camp (Ontario), Summer 1958: There's a long, long worm a-winding upon the roof of my tent, And the morning whistle tells me that it's time I went. There's a cold, cold lake [Lake Simcoe--you bet!] awaiting for me to take my morning dip-- When I return, I'll squash that worm, upon my pillow slip! * * * These lyrics were fun to us, as girls (11-17) because of three contrasts: that between the poignant nostalgia of the tune and subject matter of the parody, especially the resoundingly-sung ending; and that between the sweet, niceness or finickiness (at least, about worms) generally expected of girls (back then) and a Girl Guide's decision to despatch the unwelcome worm (a decision only held up by the whistle's summons to the morning dip, and maybe chores and breakfast); and that between (again) supposed delicacy of girls versus annihilating the offending worm ON ONE'S PILLOW SLIP (where one lays one's head, yuck!). (On the other hand, by the time the Guide got through opening ceremonies, breakfast, chores, and dip--she could probably count on any worm having taken its sunbathing to a more hospitable environment!) |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,JP Date: 18 Oct 08 - 08:38 PM Don't you laugh when we go by or you will be the next to die. We'll wrap you up in a big white sheet and drop you down about 6 feet deep. It will be okay the very first week, but then your coffin starts to leak. The worms crawl in the worms crawl out, the worms play pinocle in your snout. Your belly turns to a slimy green and bubbles up like vanilla ice cream. You put it between two slices of bread AND that's what you eat when you're DEAD. |
Subject: Lyr Add: HEARSE SONG (...worms crawl in...) From: GUEST,audawee Date: 26 Oct 08 - 04:30 PM This is what I learned as a child: You best not laugh when the hearse goes by for you may be the next to die they'll wrap you up in bloody sheets and then they bury you bout 6ft. things go swell for about a week and then your casket begins to leak the worms crawl in the worms crawl out the worms play pinochle on your snout (SPEAKING) YOUR EYES THEY TURN A GHASTLY GREEN AND PUS COMES OUT LIKE WHIPPING CREAM (sing again) and I forgot my spoon but I got a straw |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST Date: 22 Jul 09 - 06:31 AM We sang - Where shall we be in a hundred years from now? Well, first of all you have to die, And ten as stiff as a board you lie, ooooooo Where shall we be in a hundred years from now? They put you in a cardboard box, And bury you six feet under the rocks, oooooo Where shall we be in a hundred years from now? The worms go in, the worms go out, They go in thin, they come out stout! ooooooo Where shall we be in a hundred years from now? Your eyes fall in, your teeth fall out, Your brain comes trick-e-ling through your snout! ooooo That where we'll be in a hundred years from now! |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: autoharper Date: 22 Jul 09 - 06:57 AM My father, born in Brooklyn in 1928, sang: The worms crawl in The worms crawl out They all play pinochle On your snout -Adam Miller |
Subject: Lyr Add: HEARSE SONG (...worms crawl in...) From: GUEST,Richelle Date: 21 Oct 09 - 03:57 PM The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out. The worms play pinochle on your snout. They eat your eyes, they eat your nose, They eat the jelly between your toes. So don't ever laugh when a hearse goes by, for you may be the next to die. They wrap you up in a big white sheet From your head down to your feet. They put you in a big black box And cover you up with dirt and rocks. All goes well for about a week, Then your coffin begins to leak. The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out. The worms play pinochle on your snout. They eat your eyes, they eat your nose, They eat the jelly between your toes. A big green worm with rolling eyes Crawls in your stomach and out your eyes. Your stomach turns a slimy green, And pus pours out like whipping cream. You spread it on a slice of bread, And that's what you eat when you are dead. |
Subject: Lyr Add: HEARSE SONG (...worms crawl in...) From: GUEST,Guest, PJU Date: 04 Nov 10 - 11:16 AM Still haven't seen the exact version I learned... Did you ever stop to think when a hearse goes by that you might be the next to die? They wrap you in a long white sheet and bury in the ground 6 ft. deep. All goes well for about a week, and then your coffin begins to leak. (I think there's a line missing that goes here) The worms crawl in and the worms crawl out, and the worms play ping-pong across your snout. Then your stomach turns to slimy green and pus runs out like slow whipped cream. Then you sop it up with moldy bread 'cause that's what you eat when you are dead! |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The worms crawl in... From: GUEST,Phil Butler Date: 18 Nov 10 - 11:19 AM I think thaty there are lots of versions of this song. The one my dad taught me had "They crawl in thin and they crawl out stout" "Your eyes go in and your teeth fall out, and your brain comes dribbling down your snout" Lots of variations from what I've seen. |
Subject: Origins: The worms crawl in.../Hearse Song From: Joe Offer Date: 19 Oct 22 - 08:07 PM Here's a video of mixed quality about the origins of the Hearse Song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkrpDizu2Sw There's a very nice entry in the Traditional Ballad Index: Worms Crawl In, TheDESCRIPTION: "Did you ever think when the hearse goes by That you might be the next to die?.... The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out, The worms play pinochle on your snout...." A detailed description of how corruption attacks a body in a graveAUTHOR: unknown EARLIEST DATE: 1923 KEYWORDS: death burial humorous nonballad campsong FOUND IN: US(MA,MW,SE,So,SW) REFERENCES (11 citations): Brown/Belden/Hudson-FrankCBrownCollectionNCFolklore3 142, "Old Woman All Skin and Bones" (4 texts plus 2 excerpts and mention of 3 more, all basically "Skin and Bones (The Skin and Bones Lady)," but the "B" text seems to have picked up a "Worms Crawl In" chorus) Sandburg-TheAmericanSongbag, p. 444, "The Hearse Song" (2 texts, 1 tune, containing these lyrics but with particularizations regarding a military burial; the result would probably qualify as a separate song if better known) Lomax/Lomax-AmericanBalladsAndFolkSongs, pp. 556-557, "The Hearse Song" (1 text, 1 tune) Silber/Silber-FolksingersWordbook, p. 242, "The Hearse Song" (1 text) Pankake/Pankake-PrairieHomeCompanionFolkSongBook, p. 124, "Did You Ever Think" (1 text) Fuld-BookOfWorldFamousMusic, pp. 657-658+, "The Worms Crawl In (The Hearse Song)" Baring-Gould-AnnotatedMotherGoose #92, pp. 86-88, "(There was a lady all skin and bone)" (contains this verse) NorthCarolinaFolkloreJournal, Gloria Dickens, "Childhood Songs from North Carolina" Vol. XXI, No. 1 (Apr 1973), p. 5, "Have you stopped to think when the hearse goes by" (1 text) LibraryThingCampSongsThread, post 52, "(Don't ever laugh as a Hearse goes by)" (1 text, from user 2wonderY, posted August 31, 2021) Averill-CampSongsFolkSongs, pp. 103, 110, "The Hearse Song" (notes only) DT, WORMSCRA ST San444 (Partial) Roud #15546 CROSS-REFERENCES: cf. "Alonzo the Brave and Fair Imogene" (lyrics) cf. "The Hearse Song (II)" (lyrics, theme) SAME TUNE: The Scabs Crawl In (Greenway-AmericanFolksongsOfProtest, p. 13; on PeteSeeger30) Rootie-Toot-Toot (Pankake/Pankake-PrairieHomeCompanionFolkSongBook, p. 76) NOTES [186 words]: The Pankakes report that this has been attributed to the Crimean War. They do not cite a source for this information. The key line, "The worms crawl out, the worms crawl in" appears as part of "Skin and Bones (The Skin and Bones Lady)" in the revised 1810 edition of Gammer Gurton's Garland, but it may have been an editorial insertion. A similar lyric is found in the ballad of "Alonzo the Brave and Fair Imogene," but I don't know if that's a case of cross-dependence (let alone which way the dependence goes) or an independent evolution. Charles Clay Doyle published a study of this, "'As the Hearse Goes By': The Modern Child's Memento Mori,' in Francis Edward Abernathy, ed., What's Going On? (In Modern Texas Folklore) (1976; the Doyle essay begins on p. 175). This documents the widespread nature of the song (without giving really detailed statistics about its distribution). It also compares it with a Middle English tradition of songs about bodily decay -- a comparison I find rather a stretch. I once saw a claim this was written by Joseph Whiteford, Gregg Manfredi, Wes Planten. I doubt it. - RBW Last updated in version 6.3 File: San444
Hearse Song (II), TheDESCRIPTION: "Did you ever think as the hearse roll by That the next trip they take they'll lay you by, With your boots a-swinging from the back of a roan...." The soldier will inevitably end in the hands of the grave-diggers; the soldier's body will rot in the groundAUTHOR: unknown EARLIEST DATE: 1929 (Niles/Moore-SongsMyMotherNeverTaughtMe) KEYWORDS: war death soldier burial FOUND IN: REFERENCES (1 citation): Niles/Moore-SongsMyMotherNeverTaughtMe, pp. 188-190, "The Hearse Song" (1 text, 1 tune) Roud #15546 NOTES [29 words]: Roud lumps this with "The Worms Crawl In," with which of course it shares its initial words. But I would consider this a separate song though derived from the same original. - RBW Last updated in version 5.0 File: NiMo188 Go to the Ballad Search form Go to the Ballad Index Instructions The Ballad Index Copyright 2022 by Robert B. Waltz and David G. Engle.
THE WORMS CRAWL IN (Digital Tradition Lyrics) If you should see a hearse go by You'll know that you are the next to die They wrap you up in a big white sheet And bury you down about six feet deep It all goes well for about a week And then the coffin begins to leak The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out The mice* play pinochle on your snout One little worm that isn't so shy Craws in your ear and out your eye Your eyes they turn a gushy green Your stomach turns to whipped ice-cream You spread it all on a piece of bread And that's what you eat when you're dead. ----------------------------------------------------------------- From the singing of Judy Cook, who remembers it from childhood. Variations remembered by others: *mice - worms Dennis Cook filename[ WORMSCRA DC |
Subject: RE: Lyr ADD: The worms crawl in.../Hearse Song From: Joe Offer Date: 20 Oct 22 - 01:03 AM I never thought of this as a military song, but Sandburg did. To me, it was a kids' camp song. THE HEARSE SONG Casualty records of the world war indicated in round numbers ten million dead and twenty million crippled. The Hearse Song was popular in all branches of service, though in the aviation corps it had more variants. The version (A) is from James Stevens, Irma H. Thrane and W. W. Woodbridge of Washington, while (B) is from Jake Zeitlin of Los Angeles and Fort Worth. THE HEARSE SONG (Sandburg - A) 1. The old Grey Hearse goes rolling by, You don’t know whether to laugh or cry; For you know some day it’ll get you too, And the hearse’s next load may consist of—you. 2. They’ll take you out and they’ll lower you down, While men with shovels stand all a-round; They’ll throw in dirt and they’ll throw in rocks, And they won’t give a dam-m-m if they break the box. 3. The worms crawl in and the worms crawl out, They crawl all over your chin and mouth, They invite their friends and their friends’ friends too, And you look like hell when they’re—through—with you. THE HEARSE SONG (Sandburg - B) Did you ever think as the hearse rolls by That some of these days you must surely die? They’ll take you away in a big black hack, They’ll take you away but won’t bring you back. The men with shovels stand all around. They shovel you into that cold, wet ground. They shovel in dirt and they throw in rocks. They don’t give a dam if they break the box. And your eyes drop out and your teeth fall in And the worms crawl over your mouth and chin; And the worms crawl out and the worms crawl in And your limbs drop off of you limb by limb. Source: Carl Sandburg's American Songbag, page 444 (Harcourt, Brace, & World, 1928) |
Subject: ADD Version: The Hearse Song (from Lomax) From: Joe Offer Date: 20 Oct 22 - 01:24 AM The Traditional Ballad Index (above) says the second Hearse Songs comes from (Niles/Moore/Wallgren-SongsMyMotherNeverTaughtMe, 1929), and that the song in Lomax & Lomas is Hearse Song (I). But Lomax and Lomax got their version from Niles/Moore/Wallgren, so go figure. THE HEARSE SONG Did you ever think as the hearse rolls by That the next trip they take they’ll be layin’ you by, With your boots a-swingin’ from the back of a roan And the undertaker inscribin’ your stone’? When the old motor hearse goes rollin’ by, You don’t know whether to laugh or cry. For the grave diggers may get you too, Then the hearse’s next load may consist of you. They’ll take you over to Field Thirteen,* Where the sun is shinin’ and the grass is green, And they’ll throw in dirt and they’ll throw in rocks, And they don’t give a damn if they break your pine box. Oh, the bugs crawl in and the bugs crawl out, They do right dress and they turn about, Then each one takes a bite or two, Out of what the war office used to call you. Oh, your eyes drop out and your teeth fall in, And the worms crawl over your mouth and chin, They invite their friends and their friends’ friends too, And you’re chewed all to hell when they’re through with you. *The Cemetery of the Aviation Corps Source: American Ballads and Folk Songs, pp 556-557 (by John A. Lomas and Alan Lomax, Macmillan, 1934) |
Subject: ADD Version: Hearse Song (from Fowke) From: Joe Offer Date: 20 Oct 22 - 01:41 AM But I think of this as a children's camp song, not a military song. This version from Fowke is more like what I remember from childhood, as is the Judy Cook version from the Digital Tradition. THE HEARSE SONG Did you ever think when you see a hearse That some day you'll be as bad or worse? They'll take you away in a big black hack; They'll take you away, but they won't bring you back. A-woo—oo! A-woo-oo! They'll take you out and they'll lower you down; They'll shovel you into that cold, cold ground. They'll throw in dirt, and they'll throw in rocks, And they won't give a damn if they break the box The worms crawl out and the worms crawl in; They crawl all over your mouth and chin. Your eyes drop out and your teeth fall in, And your limbs drop off of you, limb by limb ... The worms crawl in and the worms crawl out; They crawl in thin and they crawl out stout. They invite their friends and their friends' friends too, And you look like hell when they're through with you Collected from Saskatchewan Summer Camps in the 1930s. Source: Page 109, Ring Around the Moon, by Edith Fowke (NC Press Limited, Toronto 1987) |
Subject: ADD Version Hearse Song (from Silber) From: Joe Offer Date: 20 Oct 22 - 01:59 AM THE HEARSE SONG (from Silber) Did you ever think as a hearse rolls by, That sooner or later you’re going to die, With your boots a-swingin’ from the back of a roan, And the undertaker inscribin’ your stone? They’ll take you out and lower you down, And men with shovels will stand around; They’ll shovel in dirt and they’ll throw in rocks, And they won't give a damn if they break the box. Oh, the worms crawl in, the worms crawl out, They do right dress and they turn about; Then each one takes a bite or two Of what Washington used to call you. Oh, your eyes drop out, and your teeth fall in, And the worms crawl over your mouth and chin; They bring all their friends, and their friends’ friends, too, And you’re chewed all to hell When they’re through with you.
Source: page 242, The Folksinger's wordbook Compiled and edited by Fred & Irwin Silber (Oak Publications, 1973) |
Subject: Lyr Add: HEARSE SONG (...worms crawl in...) From: Senoufou Date: 20 Oct 22 - 02:36 AM Believe it or not, we sang something very similar to this in the Girl Guides!
Remember that you are going to die. Ha ha ha, hee hee hee, how happy we shall be! They put you in a deep dark hole, Then go away and pray for your soul. Ha ha ha (Chorus) The worms crawl in and the worms crawl out They crawl in thin and they crawl out stout. (Chorus) Your eyes fall in and your teeth fall out. Your brain comes trickling down your snout. (Chorus) (First line repeated, end of song) |
Subject: RE: Lyr ADD: The worms crawl in.../Hearse Song From: Joe Offer Date: 20 Oct 22 - 02:46 AM As a longtime camp counselor, it is my belief that children were born to sing disgusting songs, and that it is very healthy for them. Great green gobs of.... -Joe Offer, who STILL sings disgusting songs- (banned from Vacation Bible School....and proud of it) |
Subject: RE: Lyr ADD: The worms crawl in.../Hearse Song From: MaJoC the Filk Date: 20 Oct 22 - 09:32 AM Ach, Joe, you're just young for your age. |
Subject: Lyr Add: HEARSE SONG (...worms crawl in...) From: and e Date: 04 Mar 23 - 03:34 PM Did you ever stop to think, as the hearse rolls by, Dated 4-11-1921. Ed Magee, reporter. From The Coopers International Journal. See google books here: https://www.google.com/books/edition/Coopers_International_Journal/IxVyPuVn3DQC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq="worms+crawl+in"+"worms+crawl+out"&pg=RA1-PA217&printsec=frontcover |
Subject: Lyr Add: HEARSE SONG (...worms crawl in...) From: and e Date: 04 Mar 23 - 03:50 PM Did you think as the hearse rolls by From the "Recollections of the War in Europe, From June 1917 to February 1919" by Captain Louis Julian Genella. p.510, New Orleans Medical and Surgical Journal. Volume LXXI, June, 1919. No. 12. See google books here: https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_New_Orleans_Medical_and_Surgical_Jou/qt1DAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22as+the+hearse+rolls+by%22&pg=PA510&printsec=frontcover |
Subject: RE: Lyr ADD: The worms crawl in.../Hearse Song From: and e Date: 04 Mar 23 - 04:07 PM Did you ever think as the hearse rolls by May, 1915. From The Reporter, Devoted to the Granite and Marble Moumental Trade. https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Reporter/chZbAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22+as+the+hearse+rolls+by%22&pg=RA4-PA10&printsec=frontcover |
Subject: Lyr Add: HEARSE SONG (...worms crawl in...) From: and e Date: 04 Mar 23 - 04:30 PM Did you ever think as the hearse passes by The Typographical Journal, Volume XXVII. November, 1905. Number Five. Pg 538. "Correspondence" from Walter O'Day. Google books here: https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/Nm0WAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=RA2-PP40&dq=%22Hack%22+%22remember+of+coming+back%22. |
Subject: RE: Lyr ADD: The worms crawl in.../Hearse Song From: and e Date: 04 Mar 23 - 04:37 PM Page 2 of June 7th, 1900 issue of Hazel Green Herald in Hazel-Green, Kentucky seems to have this poem. I don't have a subscription to Newspapers.com. See here for the OCR: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwituP3JnMP9AhVBk4kEHQ-lAq4QFnoECCEQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fnewspaperarchive.com%2Fhazel-green-herald-jun-07-1900-p-2%2F&usg=AOvVaw2n0VMRvBvefDR78uEt-_GY |
Subject: RE: Lyr ADD: The worms crawl in.../Hearse Song From: and e Date: 04 Mar 23 - 07:38 PM Do you ever think as the Black Hearse passes by From "Homeric Verse of the Mendicant". in Charities: A Weekly Review of Local and General Philanthropy. Vol. IX. November 15, 1902. No. 20. Page 493. Note ephemeral cards would be passed out with verse on them by "Mendicants" -- aka homeless or "bums" -- as a way to raise money from people. This article includes numerous verses that were being passed out on cards ca 1900. The "Hearse Song" is listed as one of those verses. See google books here: https://www.google.com/books/edition/Charities/d2IsAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22+hearse+passes+by%22+%22before+you+and+i%22&pg=PA493&printsec=frontcover |
Subject: RE: Lyr ADD: The worms crawl in.../Hearse Song From: and e Date: 04 Mar 23 - 07:58 PM An obituary: Uniontown, Pa. -- William H. Farwell, for more than twenty-five years at the head of a successful job-printing business and a well-known and popular business man. He was noted for his generous and gentle nature, typified in the verses which he had printed on the back of his business cards, as follow: Pg 414, The Inland Printer. Vol. XLVII. June, 1911. No. 3. Google books here: https://www.google.com/books/edition/Inland_Printer_American_Lithographer/-AohAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22remember+of+coming+back%22&pg=PA414&printsec=frontcover |
Subject: RE: Lyr ADD: The worms crawl in.../Hearse Song From: and e Date: 04 Mar 23 - 08:22 PM DO YOU EVER THINK ? Pg 11. The L.A.W. Bulletin and Good Roads. December 20, 1895. Note: L.A.W. = "League of American Wheelmen". See google books here: https://www.google.com/books/edition/Good_Roads/O91KAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22Big+Plumed+Hack%22&pg=RA24-PA11&printsec=frontcover |
Subject: RE: Lyr ADD: The worms crawl in.../Hearse Song From: Bill D Date: 05 Mar 23 - 07:02 PM What is clear is that any children's song/chant will have many variations as kids add and subtract lines. I heard it in Kansas about 1950, and many lines were different..including what happened 'on your snout'...it was lice for us. Also there was an odd 'chorus' after each verse...something like "barumpf-coocoo,barumpf-coocoo,barumpf barumpf, barumpf-coocoo". Maybe that was to allow forgotten lines to surface... My brother was 3 years younger, and his friends inflicted this on me. I don't think I ever actually 'sang' it. |
Subject: RE: Lyr ADD: The worms crawl in.../Hearse Song From: and e Date: 06 Mar 23 - 07:13 AM One last pre-1925 text: ...a popular song with lububrious music that many of my young friends persist in singing and humming as if haunted by it. Pg 451. Senescence: The Last half of Life by G. Stanley Hall. 1922. Google books: https://www.google.com/books/edition/Senescence_the_Last_Half_of_Life/rAQ9AAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22think+as+the+hearse%22&pg=PA451&printsec=frontcover |
Subject: RE: Lyr ADD: The worms crawl in.../Hearse Song From: Tug the Cox Date: 06 Mar 23 - 05:11 PM The earwig comes and the earwig goes They lay their eggs between your toes |
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