We read the lyrics to this one at my school in Alvin Schwartz's Scary Stories series, which we had no idea was really a collection of stories that had been going around playgrounds for upwards of 200 years. Just one of many versions:
Don’t ever laugh when a hearse goes by,
Or you may be the next to die.
They wrap you up in a bloody sheet,
And bury you under about six feet.
All goes well for a couple of weeks,
But then your coffin begins to leak.
The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out,
The worms play pinochle on your snout.
Your stomach turns a slimy green,
And puss comes out of you like whipped cream.
You lap it up with a piece of bread,
And that’s what you eat when you are dead.
This song goes back a very, very long time, and has spread all over the English speaking world. There are several versions posted over on Mama Lisa's site about childrens songs (which focuses a lot less on the subversive ones than I do).
The "worms crawl in" line was about the only part that was current at my school. We new the song, since it was in "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark," but that didn't teach us the melody!
In Cleveland in the 1980s the line after "the worms crawl in, etc." was
ReplyDeleteThey eat your eyes, they eat your nose
they eat the jelly between your toes.
My mom taught me another version. Apparently, it was used in an old commercial. I like this one best~
ReplyDelete---
If you ever see a hearse go by
and think that soon you're going to die...
They put you in a big black box
and cover you up with dirt and rocks
The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out
The ants play pinochle on your snout
A big black bug with big black eyes
crawls up your nostrils and out your eyes
Your body turns a sick'ning green
and puss comes out like shaving cream....
Molay Shaving Cream! Molay Shaving Cream! Buy a tube today! HEY!
The only part we knew was the worms crawl in/worms crawl out verse.
ReplyDeleteWe had a similar rhyme/poem:
Worms? I hate worms,
they make me crazy
Crazy? I was crazy once,
so they put me in a home
Home? I died there,
they buried me
That's where the worms come in.
(repeat ad nauseum).
This sounds like it should be for two voices in call and response, but we never did it that way.
-ohio, mid 90s.
don't you laugh as the hearse goes by
ReplyDeletefor 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
and then your coffin begins to leak
the worms crawl in the worms crawl out
the worms play pinochle in your snout
a big green worm with rolling eyes
crawls through your stomach and out your eyes puss pours out like whipping cream
put it on a slice of bread
and that's what you eat when you're dead
Don't you ever laugh as the Hearse goes by,
ReplyDeletefor 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 you eyes.
Your stomach turns a slimy green,
and puss comes out like whipping cream
You put it on a slice of bread,
and that's what you eat when you are dead
At least that's how we sing it down here in Alabama
One little worm not so shy,
ReplyDeletecrawled thru the stomach and out the eye.
Washington,D.C. early 1950's
Don't you laugh as the hearse goes by
ReplyDeleteor you may be the next to die.
They wrap you in a bloody sheet
and bury you, six feet deep.
You're all right for about a week,
but then your coffin begins to leak--
The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out
the bugs play Pinochle on your snout.
The big black bug with the blood shot eyes
crawls into your liver and out through your eyes
Your face falls in, your teeth decay,
between your ears the maggots play.
Your stomach turns a mushy green--
and I forgot my spoon!
But I've got a straw...SLURRRRRRRRP!
(S. Oregon, 1970s)
This version my mom taught me in the 1990s. She Is from the San fransisco bay area and grew up in the 50s and 60s. I have never seen this version online before and I have looked.
ReplyDeleteThe worms crawl in the worms crawl out
The worms play pinocle on your snout
They eat your eyes they eat your nose
They eat the jelly between your toes
They eat it with a silver spoon
To make it taste like a macaroon
Made by nabisco!
He last line sounds like a different melody, like a commercial jingle. No idea whether it really was in a commercial or not, but it seems like a pretty gross way to try to sell cookies.