"Found a Peanut" is a traditional

song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetiti ...

, often considered a

children's song A children's song may be a nursery rhyme set to music, a song that children invent and share among themselves or a modern creation intended for entertainment, use in the home or education. Although children's songs have been recorded and studied ...

, in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

, Australia,

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

, and

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

. In Israel it is titled "I Swallowed a Peanut" (Balati Boten; בלעתי בוטן). It is popular to sing when travelling, as it has a very repetitive format that is easy to memorize, and can take a long time to sing. It is sung to the tune of "

Oh My Darling, Clementine "Oh My Darling, Clementine" is a traditional American western folk ballad in trochaic meter usually credited to Percy Montross (or Montrose) (1884), although it is sometimes credited to Barker Bradford. Members of the Western Writers of Americ ...

". It may often be sung around a camp fire.

Basic lyrics

A basic version of the variable lyrics is: :''Found a

peanut The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible Seed, seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small ...

, found a peanut, found a peanut just now.'' :''Just now I found a peanut, found a peanut just now.'' :''Cracked it open, cracked it open, cracked it open just now'' :''Just now I cracked it open, cracked it open just now.'' :''It was rotten, it was rotten, it was rotten just now,'' :''Just now it was rotten, it was rotten just now .'' Then it continues with the same rhythm: :''Ate it anyway'' :''Got a stomachache'' :''Called the doctor'' :''Said I wouldn't Die'' :''Died anyway'' :''Went to Heaven'' :''Found the gates locked'' :''Got hotter'' :''Woke up'' :''Found it was a dream''

The Israeli/Hebrew Version

:''I swallowed a peanut yesterday night'' :''It was rotten'' :''My tummy ached'' :''I underwent surgery'' :''It was unsuccessful'' :''I ascended to heaven'' :''Heaven was closed'' :''I knocked at the door'' :''Gabriel answered'' :''He asked me: 'What happened? :'' 'I swallowed a peanut' ...'' :''Balati boten etmol balayla'' :''Hoo haya raqoov '' :''Ka'ava li habeten'' :''Assoo li nitoo'akh'' :''Hoo lo hitsli'akh'' :''Aliti l'gan eden'' :''Hoo haya sagoor '' :''Dafaqti badelet'' :''Gavri'el patakh li'' :''Sha'al ma kara li'' :'' 'Balati boten' '' :''בלעתי בוטן אתמול בלילה'' :''הוא היה רקוב'' :''כאבה לי הבטן'' :''עשו לי ניתוח'' :''הוא לא הצליח'' :''עליתי ל'גן-עדן'' :''הוא היה סגור'' :''דפקתי בדלת'' :''גבריאל פתח לי'' :''שאל מה קרה לי'' :'' 'בלעתי בוטן' ''

Many variations

The simple repetitive structure of the song lends itself to near infinite variations. Sometimes "Just now" or "yesterday" is substituted for "last night". Sometimes the verse will not reference the preceding verse as in the first example above. Versions current in Baltimore in 1955 weren't quite as heavenly focused, and ended in: "Shoveling coal, shoveling coal, shoveling coal just now ..." Another common variation on "last night" is "yesterday". This is used by "

This Morning With Richard Not Judy ''This Morning With Richard Not Judy'' or ''TMWRNJ'' Richard Herring would routinely pronounce the acronym as if the 'M' and 'W' had changed places (TWMRNJ) rather than pronouncing it as is a BBC comedy television programme, written by and starr ...

" by Stewart Lee and Richard Herring. Other substitutions include: *Other foods can also be used, such as an apple, for which the second line can be "it was wormy". *"It was rotten" by "Found it rotten", "It was mouldy", or "Green and mouldy". *"Ate it anyway" by "Still I ate it" or "Ate it anyhow". *"Got a stomachache" by "Got sick" or "Appendicitis". *"Wouldn't take me" by "Kicked an angel", "Punched St. Peter", or "Said a naughty word". *"Penicillin" by "Didn't Work". *"Operation" by "Cut me open", "Took the peanut out", "Sewed me up again", "Left the scissors in", "Cut me open again", "Took some medicine" or "Had surgery" *"Wouldn't take me" by "Wouldn't take me", "Went the other way", "Didn't want me". *"It was a dream" by "Shoveling coal". *"Couldn't save me" by "Died anyway" *Sometimes, after "Woke up" it's "Found a peanut" again. The Hebrew version sometimes introduces the verse: "Now I'm dead" (Akhshav ani met, עכשיו אני מת) before "I ascended to heaven". Sometimes "God" (Elohim, אלוהים), rather than "Gabriel" is used. Finally, sometimes before the recap either the verse: "So I answered him" (Az aniti lo, אז עניתי לו) or a single line: "So I answered him thus:" (Az aniti lo she-, -אז עניתי לו ש) is added.

Origins

Some attribute the song to Jack Schafer of

Detroit, MI Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

in 1958, although the song appears in the 1949 film ''

A Letter to Three Wives ''A Letter to Three Wives'' is a 1949 American romantic comedy-drama which tells the story of a woman who mails a letter to three women, telling them she has left town with the husband of one of them, but not saying which one. It stars Jeanne Cr ...

''. Those lyrics end at "Ate it anyway." Other evidence, however, suggests that the song was widely known in the United States as early as the 1940s. A 1945 issue of the ''

Florida Flambeau The ''FSView & Florida Flambeau'' is a for-profit newspaper owned by the Gannett Company that covers the on-campus events, happenings, and trends of the Florida State University as well as concerts, museum and art exhibits, movies, literature and ...

'' describes "Found a Peanut" as an "old song" from "high school days." Likewise, the ''

Norwalk Hour ''The Norwalk Hour'' is a daily newspaper published in Norwalk, Connecticut, by Hearst Media Services, Connecticut. It primarily covers and serves the city of Norwalk. History The newspaper was founded in 1871. It was published under the title ' ...

'' described a performance of the song in a school talent show in 1942.''

''
"PT Talent Night Is Big Success"
June 6, 1942, p. 9. Retrieved on August 1, 2013.

Appearance in popular culture

"Found a Peanut" is mentioned as a "famous

Guide A guide is a person who leads travelers, sportspeople, or tourists through unknown or unfamiliar locations. The term can also be applied to a person who leads others to more abstract goals such as knowledge or wisdom. Travel and recreation Exp ...

chant" in

Dorothea Moore Dorothea Rhodes Lummis Moore (, Rhodes; after first marriage, Lummis; after second marriage, Moore; November 9, 1857March 4, 1942) was an American physician, writer, newspaper editor, and activist. Although a successful student of music in the N ...

's 1934 book '' Judy, Patrol Leader''. The song appears in the 1949 film ''

''. The song appears in the film ''

Tromeo and Juliet ''Tromeo and Juliet'' is a 1997 American independent transgressive romantic black comedy film and a loose adaptation of William Shakespeare's '' Romeo & Juliet'' from Troma Entertainment. The film was directed by Lloyd Kaufman from a screenplay b ...

'' in a scene in which a family in a car sings a song before getting into an accident. In the following scene, the character Detective Scalus says, "They found a peanut, all right, a peanut of death!" The song also appears at the opening of the

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libre ...

The Abduction of Figaro ''The Abduction of Figaro'' is a comic opera in three acts, described as "A Simply Grand Opera by P. D. Q. Bach", by Peter Schickele. It is a parody of opera in general, and the title is a play on two operas by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: ''The Abduc ...

'' by

Peter Schickele "Professor" Peter Schickele (; born July 17, 1935) is an American composer, musical educator, and parodist, best known for comedy albums featuring his music, but which he presents as being composed by the fictional P. D. Q. Bach. He also hosted ...

( P.D.Q. Bach). The song is the title of the play "Found a Peanut" by

Donald Margulies Donald Margulies (born September 2, 1954) is an American playwright and academic. In 2000, he won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play ''Dinner with Friends''. Background and education Margulies attended John Dewey High School in Brook ...

. The character Jeffery Smolowitz sings the song. The song appeared on ''

This Morning with Richard Not Judy ''This Morning With Richard Not Judy'' or ''TMWRNJ'' Richard Herring would routinely pronounce the acronym as if the 'M' and 'W' had changed places (TWMRNJ) rather than pronouncing it as is a BBC comedy television programme, written by and starr ...

'' with Stewart Lee and Richard Herring. In the 1994 American satirical comedy ''

Serial Mom Serial may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media The presentation of works in sequential segments * Serial (literature), serialised literature in print * Serial (publishing), periodical publications and newspapers * Serial (radio and televis ...

'', Beverly Sutphin (played by

Kathleen Turner Mary Kathleen Turner (born June 19, 1954) is an American actress. She has received various accolades, including two Golden Globe Awards, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, and two Tony Awards. Turner became widely k ...

) sings the song with her fellow prisoners as they ride on a bus en route to court.

Macabre In works of art, the adjective macabre ( or ; ) means "having the quality of having a grim or ghastly atmosphere". The macabre works to emphasize the details and symbols of death. The term also refers to works particularly gruesome in natur ...

, the self-proclaimed Murder-Metal band from Chicago, released a version on their 2002 '' Morbid Campfire Songs'' album. A version appears on the 2009 album '' Dracula Boots'' by

Kid Congo Brian Tristan (born March 27, 1959), better known by his stage name Kid Congo Powers,Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, , p. 25, 41, 359 is an American rock guitarist, singer, and actor best known as a member of ...

and the Pink Monkey Birds. A version with somewhat different lyrics was released by

Thee Midniters Thee Midniters were an American rock group, among the first Chicano rock bands to have a major hit in the United States. They were one of the best known acts to come out of East Los Angeles in the 1960s, with a cover of "Land of a Thousand Danc ...

in 1966. The

Kidsongs ''Kidsongs'' is an American children's media franchise that includes Kidsongs Music Video Stories on DVD and video, The Kidsongs TV Show, CDs of favorite children's songs, song books, sheet music, toys and an ecommerce website. It was created by ...

Kids and their camp counselors Eddie and Monica sing this song on ''A Day at Camp'' (1989) during their campfire medley. Mentioned in Marc Maron's 2015 comedy special ''More Later''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Found A Peanut Children's songs American folk songs Drinking songs