Lyr Req: Riding in my Car Car (Woody Guthrie)

Subject: LYR REQ: Woody Guthrie's 'Car Car' song
From: Vixen
Date: 25 Jun 99 - 08:40 AM

D' Cats--

Last night Tim and I were jamming with a friend, and he (the friend) brought up a song by Woody Guthrie that sounded like a kids song. All I remember was that it went something like:

I like to ride in the car car...

The car horn goes beep beep...

I did a search on the DT for "car car" and got a bazillion hits, but none of them had the word doubled. I then tried a search for "guthrie and car" and got 8 hits, but none of them were the right one. Any advice??? Anybody know the song???

TIA V

Subject: RE: LYR REQ: Woody Guthrie's 'Car Car' song
From:
Date: 25 Jun 99 - 08:45 AM

I have it on tape in my voluminous, mostly unindexed archives. If no-one has pointed you to the lyrics after a few weeks, email me at [e-mail] and we'll figure something out assuming I can locate the recording. It's a cute little bed-time song for children.

Subject: Lyr Add: RIDING IN MY CAR (Woody Guthrie)
From: campfire
Date: 25 Jun 99 - 10:03 AM

Rise Up Singing has:

RIDING IN MY CAR (Woody Guthrie)

Brrm, brm brm...(car noises to tune)

Take me riding in the car car (2x)
Take you riding in the car car
I'll take you riding in my car

Clack clack open up the door, girls
Clack clack open up the door, boys
Front door back door clickety clack
Take you riding in my car

Climb climb, rattle on the front seat
Spree I spraddle on the back seat
Turn my key, step on the starter/ TAKE....

Engine it goes brrrm, brrrm (2x)
Front seat, back seat, boys and girls....
Trees and the houses walk along (2x)
Truck & a car & a garbage can....
Boom buh buh, buh buh buh buh, Boom buh boom
Boom boom, buh buh buh buh, Boom buh boom (2x)
Boom boom, buh buh buh buh, boom
Ships & the little boats chug along
Brrrm buh buh, boom boom, boom buh boom/ TAKE...
I'm a-gonna send you home again (2x)
Boom boom, buh buh boom, rolling home/TAKE....
I'm gonna let you blow the horn (2x)
A-oora, a-oorah, a-oogah, oogah/ I'll TAKE...

If you know the song better than I do, that may not be as confusing as it seems to me....

I also seem to remember there should be a "horn goes beep beep" line, but that also might be a different song.

campfire

Subject: RE: LYR REQ: Woody Guthrie's 'Car Car' song
From: annamill
Date: 25 Jun 99 - 10:14 AM

I absolutely love that song. My ex-husband used to sing it to my son.(Maybe he wasn't all bad) I don't remember it going like that though. Is it possible that someone heard him do it once and wrote down these lyrics. We definitly sang the "Horn goes beep, beep" line. Maybe it was done differently every time he did it.

We also used to sing it with

You can sit in the front seat, You can sit in the back seat, front seat, back seat, While riding in my car.

Chorus:

Horn goes beep, beep. (3 times) While riding in my car.

Chorus:

Fun song to sing with kids. And you can make up all kinds of words, each taking a turn.

Thanks for reminding me of this. I'll introduce it to my grand kids.

annap

Subject: RE: LYR REQ: Woody Guthrie's 'Car Car' song
From: Roger in Baltimore
Date: 25 Jun 99 - 10:43 AM

Some folks will remember Peter, Paul and Mary doing this on their "In Concert" album.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- CAR-CAR (Woody Guthrie) Folkways Music Pub. Inc. BMI (This song is a combination of spoken segments with vocal sound effects and singing. This will be the basic lyric only as the performance is far more than can be easily written down).

(Chorus)
Take me for a ride in your Car-Car
Take me for a ride in your Car-Car
Take me for a ride, Take me for a ride,
Take me for a ride in your Car-Car

(spoken and sound effects segment)
Take me for a ride in your Mac Truck
Take me for a ride in your truck, mack
Take me for a ride, take me for a ride,
Take me for a ride in your Mac Truck, Mack

(spoken and sound effects segment)

(Chorus)

(Spoken segment, with sound effects, then Mary sings...)
Take me for a ride in your car-car
Take me for a ride in your car-car
Take me for a ride, take me for a ride,
Take me for a ride in your 3.2 liter Ferrari with tortion bar suspension
and those ported venturi carburetors!

(another spoken and sound effects segment to the end of the song)

Now, Woody wrote this as a children's song. No deep Freudian meaning here, just some fun. So you've got the idea, now wing it! Make up your own words. Repeat lines you've already used. Enjoy it! Folk pedantry be damned! All hail the folk process. You haven't done this song right unless you've folked it up! PP&M gave Woody the copyright and then let fly. For once they did it right! I think Woody would'a been happy.

'Nuff said.

Big RiB

Subject: RE: LYR REQ: Woody Guthrie's 'Car Car' song
From: Vixen
Date: 25 Jun 99 - 11:08 AM

D' Cats--

You are the BEST!!! VicTim has a 1-hour weekly gig at the local center for the mentally retarded, and we're always on the lookout for songs that the "kids" can do. "If you're happy and you know it" and "old McDonald" "camptown races DOO DAH" are BIG favorites...we've now (after a year and half) got them singing parts of "crawdad" and "she'll be comin' round the mountain" and "I've been workin' on the rr".

The "kids" are a wonderful audience, and we toss in some of our own material or covers that we're rehearsing from time to time for their attendants/family members, and they seem to have a good time too. It's a *fun* gig!

V

Subject: RE: LYR REQ: Woody Guthrie's 'Car Car' song
From: harpgirl
Date: 27 Jun 99 - 10:10 PM

Hi Vixen, On page 325 of Woody Guthrie: A Life, Joe Klein writes that Woody wrote down little rhymes that his beloved Cathy (stackabones) would say and turn them into songs. This was one of those...The car she rode in must have been Totsy-- until she died so sadly in the apartment fire ...harpgirl

Subject: RE: LYR REQ: Woody Guthrie's 'Car Car' song
From: Rick Fielding
Date: 27 Jun 99 - 10:22 PM

Harp Girl. You brought back some memories. (remember, I'm a "Woody" groupie) Years ago Jack Elliot told me wonderful stories about his trips in "Totsy" 1, 2, and 3. Jack used to travel the hiways and biways in an old Bell Telephone van, and then graduated to an actual Camper. I'd have loved to make some of those journeys with him.

Subject: RE: LYR REQ: Woody Guthrie's 'Car Car' song
From: harpgirl
Date: 27 Jun 99 - 10:31 PM

Rick,
You inspired me to read this biography. Marty Schuman lived on the Stetson Kennedy land in Florida. I think Marty's stepdad moved down there under the influence of some of the same political forces which held Woody in sway. Marty slept in a hammock on a wooden platform until his parents homesteaded. I believe he heard Woody when the Kennedy's were still living in the bus. Marty didn't notice that Woody was deteriorating, I don't think. He told me he was only fourteen which means it was 1951. I have to remember to ask his family about this. I didn't realize until I read this book that Jack was a Woody fan and just how much he was influenced by Woody. Thanks for the inspiration to read it. I enjoyed it immensely! harpgirl

Subject: Lyr Req: Car, Car
From: GUEST,Ron
Date: 04 Apr 03 - 06:58 PM

I've heard this done a couple of time. Usually people take turns making up verses, ending each verse with, "going for a ride in my car, car." Looking for any information (tune, verses, etc.)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car
From: GUEST,Ron
Date: 04 Apr 03 - 07:26 PM

Found a little info. Fred Penner on 1992 CD, Ebeneezer Sneezer. It is no longer available.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car
From: Sorcha
Date: 04 Apr 03 - 07:27 PM

See this thread. Might be in the DT, pretty sure it is, but the thread was what came up.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car
From: toadfrog
Date: 04 Apr 03 - 07:59 PM

It's by Woody Guthrie. Try HERE, there are lyrics, and somebody is advertizing tapes of "incredible quality." Whether they mean incredibly good or incredibly bad I'm not sure.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car
From: Sandy Mc Lean
Date: 05 Apr 03 - 12:41 AM

Woody wrote this for Arlo when he was small.
When our oldest daughter was a baby we used to take her for a car ride over the roughest road that we could find (no problem in Cape Breton) so that she would quiet down and go to sleep. I guess I got the idea from Woody.
It works!
       Sandy

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car
From: Dani
Date: 05 Apr 03 - 08:41 PM

There is a beautifully done set of tapes (CD's?) and a book to go with it. My kids grew up with these songs, too. I think the most wonderful part is Woody's illustrations in the book:

http://www.arlo.net/discography/grow.shtml

Dani

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car
From: Sorcha
Date: 05 Apr 03 - 10:30 PM

I wonder what happened to Ron.....

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: GUEST,Chords?
Date: 14 Apr 03 - 12:51 PM

Subject: Chord Req: Woddy Guthrie Riding in My Car Car
From: GUEST,Johnny Bravo
Date: 29 Apr 03 - 09:46 AM

Can someone provide the chords for this song. Lyrics as well but not really as important!

Subject: RE: Chord Req: Woddy Guthrie Riding in My Car Car
From: Mark Clark
Date: 29 Apr 03 - 10:47 AM

The lyrics are over in a thread on the subject. The chords are just I-IV-V (i.e., [C]Take me for a ride in the [F] car car, [C]Take me for a ride in the [G7]car car, [C]Take me for a ride, [F]take me for a ride, [C]Take me for a [G7]ride in a [C]car car.

      - Mark

Subject: RE: Chord Req: Woddy Guthrie Riding in My Car Car
From: GUEST,Zach
Date: 15 Oct 03 - 10:09 PM

In standard tuning, the chords to "Car Song" are:

E    A      B

At least that is how Woody plays it.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: i need riding in mycar(Woody Guthrie)
From: GUEST,me
Date: 19 Nov 03 - 02:48 PM

STAT...i need riding in my car lyrics STAT !!!!!!!!! NOW
PLEASE

Subject: Lyr Add: RIDING IN MY CAR (Woody Guthrie)
From: Lin in Kansas
Date: 20 Nov 03 - 12:16 AM

GUEST, me --

If you post a separate thread with that title, you're much more likely to receive an answer.

You don't mention who the song is done by(?): Here's a link to Amazon, to a record by NRBQ: Click here. Apparently there's a free download from that link, too.

Here are lyrics to an entirely different song, from this link: Click.
A Google search for "Riding in My Car" will get you a number of others.

Hope this is helpful.

Lin

Riding in My Car

When the dog goes riding in my car he goes "Ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff"
  Vroom Vroom, Boom Boom, clickety clackety, 
  chug a lug, chug a lug, chug a lug.
  
  When the cat goes riding in my car she goes "Meow meow meowf"
  Vroom Vroom, Boom Boom, clickety clackety, 
  chug a lug, chug a lug, chug a lug.
  
  And then the Cat meows to the dog who barks to me, 
  "Hey Mr. Kurt, can we get out and have some fun?"
  
  Yes I say ok ok ok ok why not, 
  Every body get up, shake a leg, shake a leg, shake a leg
  
  Bend over and touch your toes, straighten up and grab your nose
  and do a dance, like you have some ants in your pants….. 
  
  When the cow goes riding in my car she goes "Mooo Mooo Mooo"
  Vroom Vroom, Boom Boom, clickety clackety,
  chug a lug, chug a lug, chug a lug.
  
  When the horse goes riding in my car she goes "Neigh Neigh Neigh"
  Vroom Vroom, Boom Boom, clickety clackety, 
  chug a lug, chug a lug, chug a lug.
  
  And then the horse neighs to the cow who moos to me, 
  "Hey Mr. Kurt, can we get out of this car and have some fun?"
  
  Well I say ok ok ok ok why not. 
  Every body get up, shake a leg, shake a leg, shake a leg
  
  Bend over and touch your toes, straighten up and grab your nose 
  and do a dance, like you have some ants in your pants….. 
  
  When I go riding in my very old car, it goes (sputter sputter sputter)
  Vroom Vroom, Boom Boom, clickety clackety, 
  chug a lug, chug a lug, chug a lug.
  
  When I go riding in my car!

Subject: Lyr Add: RIDING IN MY CAR (Woody Guthrie)
From:
Date: 25 Oct 04 - 04:23 PM

Here you go...

RIDING IN MY CAR
Words & Music: Woody Guthrie         (1954)

Intro:
C                                    |G7
Brrrm   brm brm brm brm brm brm brrrm b'brrrm
G7                                    |C                                                
Brrrm   brrm       brm brm brm brm brrrm b'brrrm
C                                    |F
Brrrm   brm brm brm brm brm brm brrrm b'brrrm
G7                                         |C
Brrrm   brm brm brm brm brm brm b'brrrm
(get those lips flapping)

Verse 1:
C                    |G7
Take me riding in the car car,
G7                    |C
Take me riding in the car car,
C                    |F
Take you riding in the car car, I'll
G7                    |C
take you riding in the car.

2.   
Click , clack, open up the door, girls,
Click , clack, open up the door, boys,
Front door, back door, clickety clack,
Take you riding in the car.        

3.   
Climb, climb, rattle on the front seat,
Spree I spraddle on the back seat,
Turn on my key, step on my starter,
Take you riding in the car.

4.   
Engine it goes brrrm, brrrm,
Engine it goes brrrm, brrrm,
Front seat, back seat, boys and girls,
Take you riding in the car.

5.
Trees and houses walk along,
Trees and houses walk along,
Truck and a car and a garbage can,
Take you riding in the car.

6.   
As intro

7.
Ships and little boats chug along,
Ships and little boats chug along,
Brrrm   brm brm brm brm brm brm brrrm b'brrrm,
Take you riding in the car.

8.
I'm gonna send you home again,
I'm gonna send you home again,
Brrrm   brm brm brm brm brm brm rolling home,
Take you riding in the car.

9.
I'm gonna let you blow the horn,
I'm gonna let you blow the horn,
A-oorah, a-oorah, a-oorah, oorah,
Take you riding in the car.

10.
first verse sped up!

Have fun
Paul

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: GUEST,Louise
Date: 25 Oct 04 - 07:29 PM

My husband was watching "Alice's Restaurant" a few nights ago on TV. In one scene Arlo and Pete Seeger do this song as a duet, singing to Woodie as he lies in his hospital bed. In the movie it makes Woodie smile. Sweet scene.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: Big Jim from Jackson
Date: 25 Oct 04 - 10:26 PM

Odetta does a nice but abreviated version on one of her earlier albums for Vanguard, and I think I remember Ramblin' Jack Elliott doing a version of the song on one of his albums(maybe on "Young Brigham"?)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: GUEST,Hootenanny
Date: 26 Oct 04 - 06:14 AM

I have in my hand a 6 track 45rpm disc by Rambling Jack Elliott "Kid's Stuff" children's songs by Woody Guthrie, recorded in London in November 1959 and issued in 1960 on the EMI label SEG 8046 for any collectors out there. One of the songs is 'Riding in my Car'.
Jack was the guy who introduced many in the UK to the work of Woody, one of his best albums which appeared on the Topic label was reading extracts from Woody's book 'Bound for Glory' and illustrating it with songs.
If you are a Jack Elliott collector these discs are definitely worth trying to get ahold of.

The Topic label is still in existence putting out excellent folk material and they do have a web site.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: Flash Company
Date: 26 Oct 04 - 09:18 AM

I had that 'Bound for Glory' LP and lent it to someone,(often a fatal mistake!). Never saw it again.
Don't think it was Jack doing the reading, and the songs were recordings of Woody himself. 'Rueben James' and 'They laid Jesus Christ in his grave' are two that were in, along with 'This Land' and others.

FC

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: pavane
Date: 26 Oct 04 - 10:12 AM

I am pretty sure it was recorded in the 1960's by Donovan

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: GUEST,Hootenanny
Date: 26 Oct 04 - 04:05 PM

To Flash Company et al.

My apologies, you are absolutely right, just pulled it off the shelf. Woody singing and Will Geer doing the narrative.
It was however on the Topic label 12T31, and when it was released Jack who was in London at the time did an evening at The Horseshoes pub in Tottenham Court Road where he read the sleeve notes (which were the spoken selections done on the album by Geer)and then sang the songs. My memory confused things.

Hope that's clarified it, thanks for the correction.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: Reiver 2
Date: 27 Oct 04 - 11:45 AM

I can't find the reference but I remember from somewhere that, as posted earlier, Woody made up this song for Arlo when he (Arlo) was a small child. The Woody Guthrie Songbook, Harold Leventhal and Marjorie Guthrie, Eds., 1976, has the song under the title "Riding in My Car" with the words and chords as posted earlier in this thread by Paul. I used to sing it to my kids when they were quite young and they loved it.

Reiver 2

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: muppitz
Date: 28 Oct 04 - 03:48 AM

A former primary school teacher of mine plays guitar and he used to do regular singing time with us, and he did something similar to that song. It went something along the lines of:

Chorus
Take for a ride in my car, car
Take for a ride in my car, car
Take for a ride in my car, car
When you're riding in my car

I want to sit in the front seat
I don't want to sit in the back seat
Front seat, back seat
When you're riding in my car

There were other verses, but it's about 15 years since I've sung it!

muppitz x

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: GUEST
Date: 16 Jan 07 - 09:57 AM

Car, Car
(original Woody Guthrie version)
Woody Guthrie
New words by Peter, Paul & Mary
E7 A
Take me for a ride in the car, car.
A D
Take me for a ride, take me for a ride,
A E7 A
Take me for a ride in the car, car.
Click, clack open up the front door.
Click, clack open up the back door.
Take me for a ride, take me for a ride,
Take me for a ride in the car, car.
Climb, climb, rattle in the front seat.
Spree I spraddle on the back seat.
Take me for a ride, take me for a ride,
Take me for a ride in the car, car.
Engine, it goes "Brrrm! Brrrm!"
Engine, it goes "Brrrm! Brrrm!"
Take me for a ride, take me for a ride,
Take me for a ride in the car, car.
I'm a-gonna let you blow the horn.
I'm a-gonna let you blow the horn.
Take me for a ride, take me for a ride,
Take me for a ride in the car, car.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: Mrrzy
Date: 16 Jan 07 - 11:16 AM

I had this on a children's album by Pete Seeger (with Abiyoyo etc.)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: Darowyn
Date: 16 Jan 07 - 02:48 PM

People in the UK will probably have heard Donovan's version, from his Album "What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid"
The lyrics are from memory, but I have sung this a lot when I was teaching young children- so I may have folk-processed it a little over the years.

I'll take you riding in my Car, car
I'll take you riding in my Car, car
I'll take you riding in my Car, car
Riding in my Car

Engine goes Brum Brum
Engine goes Brum Brum
Engine goes Brum Brum
Riding in my Car

Horn Goes beep beep
Horn Goes beep beep
Horn Goes beep beep
Riding in my Car

I wanna sit in the front seat
I wanna sit in the back seat
Front seat ,back seat
Riding in my Car

Boys and girls gonna sing a little song
Boys and girls gonna sing a little song
Boys and girls gonna sing a little song
Riding in my Car

Cheers
Dave

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 17 Jan 07 - 06:22 AM

You can blend this almost seamlessly into

"The Wheels on the Bus go Round and Round"...

:-)

and then start an intermixed medley...

don't do this while the adult audience is still sober though....

:-)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: GUEST
Date: 24 May 10 - 02:06 PM

Anyone ever noticed the tune is Irene Goodnight only speeded up? Just something I observed playing it once..

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: Bettynh
Date: 24 May 10 - 02:48 PM

The liner notes (red PDF button) here indicate that this song was written before Arlo was born. The note was written before Cathy Guthrie died in a fire at age 4. All the words are there, as sung on the album "Nursery Days", too.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car, Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: Dave Hanson
Date: 24 May 10 - 03:25 PM

No not the same at all.

Dave H

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Car Car (Woody Guthrie)
From: Tannywheeler
Date: 25 May 10 - 11:00 AM

Why are there 2--count them--2 threads with the same name??? This one with dates in 1999, 2007, & 2010 + another 1 with dates in '03 & other yrs. to '10.

Also, anyone interested in Woody's songs for kids should go to the Guthrie Foundation & look for something called "Grow Big"--a book & cd.