Another widespread song that I heard occasionally, with local football teams referenced now and then. No idea where it came from at the moment, though I'm assuming it was written by an adult - it has the vibe of a "music hall" sort of song. If there are kid versions out there, you can bet they're quite a bit dirtier. Quite a few songs use the same melody, such a "I Was Driving Down the Highway".
Here are some versions collected by Kay Shapero:
I woke up sunday morning
I looked upon the wall
The skeeters and the bedballs
They were playing a game of ball
The score was 6 to nothing
The skeeters were ahead
The bedballs hit a home run
And knoked me out of bed.
I sing ini mini and a mini moe
catch a tiger tiger by his toe
and if he .... (rest forgotten)
by Kay Shapero
I woke up Sunday morning
And there upon the wall
The beetles and the bedbugs
Were having a game of ball
The score was six to nothing
The beetles were ahead
The bedbugs hit a home run
And knocked me out of bed, bed bed.
And knocked me out of bed!
From Paul Kyle
I woke up Sunday Morning
I looked up on the wall
The beetles and the bedbugs
were playing a game of ball
The score was 6 to nothing
The beetles were ahead
The bedbugs hit a home run
and knocked me out of bed
I'm singin', Eenie-Meenie and uh, Minie-Moe
Catch a tigger tiger, by his toe
If he hollers hollers, let him go
I'm singin', Eenie-Meenie and uh, Minie-Moe
I went downstairs for breakfast
I ordered ham and eggs
I ate so many eggs
the ham rolled down my legs.
I'm singin', Eenie-Meenie and a, Minie-Moe
Catch a tigger-tiger, by his toe
If he hollers-hollers, let him go
I'm singin', Eenie-Meenie and a, Minie-Moe.
My father is a baker
my mother is a spy
and if you don't believe me
go ask the FBI
From Darlene Du Bois
I woke up Sunday morning
And looked upon the wall
The beetles and the bedbugs
were playing a game of ball
The score was sixth to nothing
The beetles were ahead
The beetles hit a homerun
And knocked me out of bed
I'm singin' eeny meeny and a miney mo mo mo mo
Catch a whipperwhopper by the toe
And if he hollers, hollers, hollers
Let him go
I'm singin' eeny meeny and a miney mo
Well, I have heard this as "the cooties and the bedbugs".
ReplyDeleteI have also heard
"I went downstairs for breakfast
the coffee black as ink
my sausage did a backflip
and landed in the sink"
"I fell into the sewer
and that is how I died
they didn't call it murder
they called it sewercide"
"My uncle was a butcher
he isn't anymore
cause what he thought was hamburger
was sawdust on the floor"
"My uncle was a chemist
he isn't anymore
cause what he thought was H2O
was H2SO4"
"My father is a commie
my mother is a spy
and I'm the little hotdog
that told the FBI".
Midwest during the 1980's but I heard them from my dad who grew up in Iowa in the 50's and 60's.
That's funny!
DeleteI have been singing this song since the early 70's. was taught it at Big Blue Lake near Muskegon, Michigan, Camp Pendalouan.Every child I have spent any time with knows this song.
DeleteI woke up Sunday morning
And looked upon my wall
the Skeeters and the bedbugs
were having a game of ball
the score was 19-20
the Skeeters were ahead
the bedbugs hit a home run
and knocked me out of bed
Singing eenie-meenine
and a miney-moe
catch a riffle raffle
by his toe
and if he hollers hollers
let him go
singing eenie-meenie
and a miney-moe
They called me down
for breakfast
the bread was hard and stale
the coffee was tobacco juice
straight from the county jail
with automatic butter and
automatic cheese
peanut butter celry
and double jointed pea
Singing eenie-meenine
and a miney-moe
catch a riffle raffle
by his toe
and if he hollers hollers
let him go
singing eenie-meenie
and a miney-moe
By Katherine Garrett Garrido
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI love Suzy's version-so funny! A silly song for intelligent kids!
Deleteearly 90's NW Iowa playground :)
ReplyDeleteI woke up Saturday morning
And looked upon my wall
the Skeeters and the bedbugs
were havin a game of ball
the score was 19-20
the Skeeters were ahead
the bedbugs hit a homer
and knocked me out of bed
Singin eenie-meenine
and a miney-moe
catch a whippersnapper
by his toe
and if he hollers hollers
hollers hollers
let him go
while singin eenie-meenie
and a miney-moe
I learned this song in the 50's, my mother sang it, she grew up in the 30's...
ReplyDelete"Oh, I woke up in the mornin' and looked up on the wall, the bedbugs and the cooties were playin' a game of ball. The score was 6 to nothin', the cooties were ahead; the budbugs knocked a homer and knocked me outta bed! Rise and shine, sleepy head!"
I woke up late this morning, and looked up on the wall, the cooties and the bedbugs were playin' a game of ball. The score was 6 to nothin', the cooties were ahead, then the bedbugs hit a homerun, and knocked me out of bed 'sayin, eenie meenie meenie miny moe, catch a Russian (Russian) by the toe, if he hollars, (hollars), make him say, I surrender to the USofA.
ReplyDeleteMy mom told it to me like that...:)
I woke up Sunday morning
ReplyDeleteAnd looked up on the wall
The spiders and the bedbugs were having a game of ball
The score was 10 to nothing
The bedbugs were ahead
I got so darned excited that I fell right out of bed.
I went down stairs to breakfast
The coffee was so stale
It tasted like tobacco juice right out of the county jail.
My grandpa and I couldn't remember the rest! Thank you for giving us the rest! This is a song that he and I sing every Sunday morning. Have been since the day I was born. I'm 18 right now and don't intend to quit any time soon!
I got a kick out of this! Thank you!
Sorry, didn't give locations:
DeleteMy grandpa was raised in far northern Idaho, right near the Canadian Border. I would assume that's where he got it.
He taught this to me in Northern California.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletei think that every kid alive in the 80's and 90's learned this song... my dad's was a bit different
ReplyDeleteWell I woke up Monday morning
and I looked up on the wall
and the skeeters and the bedbugs
were playing a game of ball
aaaaannnnd the score was two to nothing
and the skeeters were ahead
then the bedbugs hit a homerun
and they knocked me outta bed
I'm singing eenie mee,
ne miny mo
hey hey hey
catch a wiffer waffer
yeah you catch him by the toe
and if he hollers hollers hollers hollers
don't let him go
singing eenie meenie meenie
and a... miny mo..
hey hey hey
mister Wiffer Waffer
you have screamed your last
hey hey hey
Mister Wiffer waffer
you had better pay me fast
singing eenie me, ne miny mo
hey hey hey
catch a wiffer waffer
yeah you catch him by the toe
then i went downstairs for breakfast
and i ordered ham and eggs
i ate so many pickles
that the juice ran down my legs
wellllll my mother is a doctor
and my father is a nurse
and if you dont believe me
you can steal my fathers purse
singing eenie me..nee miny mo
yeah you catch a wiffer waffer
yeah you catch him by the toe
I was thinking about this song today, wondering where it came from. When I was a kid in SW Pa. In the 70's and 80's, I heard it like this:
ReplyDeleteI woke up in the morning and looked up on the wall,
The skeeters and the bedbugs were playing a game of ball.
The score was 6 to nothing, the skeeters were ahead,
They hit so many homeruns, it knocked me off the bed!
Chorus:
I'm singing eeny meeny and a miney mo, I'm singing,
Catch a wiffle-waffler by the toe,
And if he hollers, hollers, hollers, let him go,
I'm singing eeny meeny and a miney mo.
I went downstairs to breakfast and had some ham and eggs, I ate so many pickles, the juice ran down my legs.
Was walking ' round the corner, not doing any harm,
A policeman came up beside me and grabbed me by the arm.
(That's where it ended, but it didn't make sense to me, so I added:
"He took me to his office and threw me in the jail,
And fined me a hundred dollars for drinking ginger ale."
I always learned it as " I woke up in the morning and looked up at the wall, the beetles and the bedbugs were playing a game of balls, the score as 6 to nothing the beetles were ahead, the bedbugs hit a homerun and knocked me out of bed! Singing ee nee mee ni mee ni miney moe catch a bedbug bedbug by his toe and if he holler hollers let em go singing ee nee mee ni mee ni miney mo!
ReplyDeleteI can't remember all the verses but I know one was
"My mommy is a Russian
My daddy is a spy
And I'm the little snitch
Who told the FUN!"
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ReplyDelete"I woke up Sunday morning
ReplyDeleteAnd looked upon the wall.
The bedbugs and the cooties
Were having a game of ball.
The score was six to nothing
The cooties were ahead.
The bedbugs made a home run
And knocked me out of bed.
The chambermaid came in and said
'Get up you lazy sinner!
I need the sheets for tablecloth
It's almost time for dinner.'
I went downstairs to breakfast
The bread was hard and stale
The coffee tasted like tobacco juice
Spit out at the county jail.
India-rubber beefsteak
Disconnected cheese
My weenie turned a flip-flop
And landed in my peas."
taught to us by my mother in the mid-60s, south-central Ohio
I woke up in the morning
ReplyDelete& looked up on the wall
The bed bugs & the roaches
Were having a game of ball
The score was 4 to 20
The bedbugs were ahead
The roaches hit a home run
& knocked me out of bed
Hand bone hand bone hand bone
I ain't gonna work no more
I worked last night
The night before
Ain't gonna work no more
The poor man takes the trolley
The rich man takes the train
The hobo goes by the rail road tracks
But they get there just the same
I went downstairs that morning
My bread was hard & stale
My coffee takes like tobacco juice
& I thought I was in jail .