Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie

Subject: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: Charley Noble
Date: 31 Dec 09 - 02:52 PM

I was baking a pie this morning and ran across this old song transcribed by my mother in the cookbook.

A version of this song is already in the DT as Judy Cook learned it from her parents, sung to the tune of "In The Shade of the Old Apple Tree" but there isn't any older source or printed reference:

'NEATH THE CRUST OF THE OLD APPLE PIE

'Neath the crust of the old apple pie,
There is something for you and for I
It may be a pin that the cook has left in
Or it may be a wee little fly
(a package of black diamond dye)

Oh, it may be an old rusty nail
Or a piece of the pussycat's tail
(puppy dog's)
But whate'er it may be
It's for you and for me,
'Neath the crust of the old apple pie.

My mother, Dahlov Ipcar, also learned this one in the 1920's and remembers the lines as:

'NEATH THE CRUST OF THE OLD APPLE PIE

'Neath the crust of the old apple pie,
There is something for you and for I;
It may be a pin that Mom has dropped in,
It may be a nice juicy fly;
It may be an old rusty nail
Or a piece of a pussycat's tail,
But whatever it be
It's for you and for me,
'Neath the crust of the old apple pie.

Anyone else got a clue where this came from, or alternative lines?

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: GUEST,999
Date: 31 Dec 09 - 10:48 PM

"neath the crust of an old apple pie"

Google the line above just as is; that is, leave quotations marks on. Go to the three sites below. Note, I left the apostrophe off the quoted line.

FOLK COLLECTION 4: No. 1: Series II: Vols. 10-18: The Fife Mormon ...



[PDF] SANOIAN SPECIAL COLLECTIONS LIBRARY or UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES (choose ...



Both sides of the border: a scattering of Texas folklore - Google Books Result

************************************

Well, we know it was written 1905 or later because that's when "SotOAT" was first written.

Subject: RE: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: GUEST
Date: 31 Dec 09 - 10:52 PM

"'Neath The Crust of an Old Apple Pie," from Verona Stocks
Folksong Album. It was released in 1953.

Subject: RE: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: GUEST,999
Date: 31 Dec 09 - 10:53 PM

The 31 Dec 09 - 10:52 PM post is from here.

FOLK COLLECTION 4

The Austin and Alta Fife Fieldwork Collection
No. 1: The Fife Mormon Collection
Series II: Manuscript Sources (Vols. 10-18)

Subject: RE: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: Charley Noble
Date: 01 Jan 10 - 11:56 AM

999-

Thanks for the suggestions.

Well, we know it was written 1905 or later because that's when "SotOAT" was first written.

It took me some time to puzzle out what "SotOAT" meant until I thought of posting the same information that "In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree" was composed in 1905. Dah!

Evidently the Campfire Girls also got hold of this ditty.

Charley Noble

Subject: RE: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: GUEST,999
Date: 01 Jan 10 - 02:53 PM

I was not able to locate any lyrics, but I'll be looking more today.

Subject: RE: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: GUEST,ChukLitl
Date: 02 Aug 10 - 07:08 PM

Thanx for the Campfire Girl comment. I thought Uncle Joe got the song in a field hospital in Normandy. Mom probably learned it at camp.

Subject: RE: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: Genie
Date: 02 Aug 10 - 09:13 PM

I don't know where this parody came from, but here's another one (also of unknown origin -to me at least - except for the first four lines of the second verse, which my imaginary playmate, Sonja, wrote, because I couldn't remember the ones I had heard):

In the shade of the old apple tree,
Where my mother came looking for me,
With a handful of switches,
She took down my britches
And, oh, how she gave it to me!

Well, I don't quite remember my sin,
But I'm sure that I did it again -
The outcome of which is
Mama cut lots of switches
In the shade of that old apple tree.


Genie

Subject: RE: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: GUEST,butter
Date: 19 Oct 13 - 11:26 PM

My grandmother sings this song for me. I thought she made it up

She says "a dear little fly"
Either way its a pretty cool tune

Subject: RE: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: GUEST,debracorazzelli
Date: 12 Feb 20 - 03:43 PM

My mother sang this to me when I was little, in the late 50s/early 60s. She had a slight change:rather than a pin from the cook, she sang "It may be a hair, the cook has left there, or it may be a big juicy fly." The rest is the same. If the original song was written in 1905, this parody must have been mainstream by the time my mother was born, in 1915. Thanks for the memories!

Subject: RE: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: GUEST,Jeff
Date: 19 Nov 20 - 09:45 AM

Had a teacher in 4th grade in Atlanta - Mrs Gurr x who claimed to have written this song. That was 1969 and she was ancient so conceivably could have been tru....

Subject: RE: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: GUEST
Date: 21 Nov 20 - 03:09 PM

Gi'e 'er a listen:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LfwjioBGso

Subject: RE: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: and e
Date: 08 Jun 23 - 05:35 PM

THE OLD APPLE PIE
(Learned from Lester Bush at Pocatello in 1927)

In the crust of the old apple pie
There is a something for both you and I:
It may be a hair
That the cook has left there,
In the crust of the old Apple pie!

In the crust of the old Apple pie
There is someting for both you and I:
It may be a nail
Or a pussycat's tail,
In the crust of the old Apple pie!

In the crust of the old Apple pie
There is something for both you and I:
It may be a fly
That has come there to die,
In the crust of the old Apple pie!

In the crust of the old Apple pie
There is something for both your and I:
It may be a tear
Or a puppy dogs' ear,
In the crust of the old Apple Pie!

In the crust of the old Apple pie
There is somethign for both you and I:
It may be a worm
That has made it's last turn,
In the crust of the old apple pie!

In the crust of the old Apple pie
There is something for both you and I:
It may be a mouse
Or a little brown mouse,
In the crust of the old Apple pie!

From Songs and Ballads: Folk Material and Old Favorites, Collected by [James] Kenneth Larson in McCammon, Idaho. Undated [c1933], typescript. Tune not indicated.

Available online here:
https://archive.org/details/1933-1972jameskennethlarson/page/n24/mode/1up

Subject: RE: Origins: Neath the Crust of the Old Apple Pie
From: GUEST,jim bainbridge
Date: 10 Jun 23 - 01:56 PM

Pete Elliott of Birtley, Co Dutham used to sing
            (as far as I can recall)

'When Hasselbach wrestled with me
He had arms the trunk of a tree
And he gave me a punch where aa'd just had me lunch
and I brought upme dinner and tea

In the clinch now he said unto me
Lad ye can't play the monkey with me
And he made such a wreck of the back of me neck
And he punctured me old apple tree