Shortnin' Bread
Encyclopedia
"Shortnin' Bread" (Roud
4209) is a song by James Whitcomb Riley
.
song. However the first version was written by white poet James Whitcomb Riley
in 1900. His song was named "A Short'nin' Bread Song—Pieced Out", the chorus of which is:
Titled "Shortened Bread", E.C. Perrow published the first folk version of this song in 1915, which he collected from East Tennessee in 1912. The folk version of the song—as with Riley's— does not have any distinct theme, but consists of various floating lyrics, some relating to shortnin' bread, some not. The traditional chorus associated with the folk song goes:
Shortening bread is a fried batter bread, the ingredients of which include corn meal, flour, hot water, eggs, baking powder, milk and shortening
.
Gid Tanner
and the singer Lawrence Tibbett
recorded popular versions of the song, as did Al Jolson
and the Andrews Sisters. Another version was featured in the 1937 film Maytime, as sung by Nelson Eddy
.
Alan Sherman did a parody of the song as "Mammy's Little Baby loves Matzoh Balls", as part of the medley of songs entitled "Schticks and Stones" taken from the album, "My Son The Folksinger" (1962)
A traditional version of lyrics and an MP3 clip are here http://toneway.com/songs/shortening-bread.
Roud Folk Song Index
The Roud Folk Song Index is a database of 300,000 references to over 21,600 songs that have been collected from oral tradition in the English language from all over the world...
4209) is a song by James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley was an American writer, poet, and best selling author. During his lifetime he was known as the Hoosier Poet and Children's Poet for his dialect works and his children's poetry respectively...
.
History
Shortnin' Bread is often thought of as a traditional plantationPlantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
song. However the first version was written by white poet James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley was an American writer, poet, and best selling author. During his lifetime he was known as the Hoosier Poet and Children's Poet for his dialect works and his children's poetry respectively...
in 1900. His song was named "A Short'nin' Bread Song—Pieced Out", the chorus of which is:
- Fotch dat dough fum the kitchin-shed—
- Rake de coals out hot an' red—
- Putt on de oven an' putt on de led,—
- Mammy's gwineter cook som short'nin' bread.
Titled "Shortened Bread", E.C. Perrow published the first folk version of this song in 1915, which he collected from East Tennessee in 1912. The folk version of the song—as with Riley's— does not have any distinct theme, but consists of various floating lyrics, some relating to shortnin' bread, some not. The traditional chorus associated with the folk song goes:
- Mammy's little baby loves short'nin', short'nin',
- Mammy's little baby loves short'nin' bread
Shortening bread is a fried batter bread, the ingredients of which include corn meal, flour, hot water, eggs, baking powder, milk and shortening
Shortening
Shortening is any fat that is solid at room temperature and used to make crumbly pastry. The reason it is called shortening is because it prevents cross-linkage between gluten molecules. Cross linking is what causes doughs to be sticky. Seeing as cake is not meant to be sticky, shortening is used...
.
Gid Tanner
Gid Tanner
James Gideon Tanner was an American old time fiddler and one of the earliest stars of what would come to be known as country music. His band, the Skillet Lickers, was one of the most innovative and influential string bands of the 1920s and 1930s...
and the singer Lawrence Tibbett
Lawrence Tibbett
Lawrence Mervil Tibbett was a great American opera singer and recording artist who also performed as a film actor and radio personality. A baritone, he sang with the New York Metropolitan Opera company more than 600 times from 1923 to 1950...
recorded popular versions of the song, as did Al Jolson
Al Jolson
Al Jolson was an American singer, comedian and actor. In his heyday, he was dubbed "The World's Greatest Entertainer"....
and the Andrews Sisters. Another version was featured in the 1937 film Maytime, as sung by Nelson Eddy
Nelson Eddy
Nelson Ackerman Eddy was an American singer and actor who appeared in 19 musical films during the 1930s and 1940s, as well as in opera and on the concert stage, radio, television, and in nightclubs. A classically trained baritone, he is best remembered for the eight films in which he costarred...
.
Alan Sherman did a parody of the song as "Mammy's Little Baby loves Matzoh Balls", as part of the medley of songs entitled "Schticks and Stones" taken from the album, "My Son The Folksinger" (1962)
More recent versions
- On 14 October 1960, Paul Chaplain and his Emeralds' version became the first #1 record on the WLSWLS (AM)WLS is a Chicago clear-channel AM station on 890 kHz. It uses C-QUAM AM stereo and transmits with 50,000 watts from transmitter and towers on the south edge of Tinley Park, Illinois....
Silver Dollar Survey. - The tune for a significant portion of "The Happy OrganThe Happy Organ"The Happy Organ" is the name of an instrumental composition made famous by Dave "Baby" Cortez in 1959. Cortez co-composed it with Kurt Wood; both were orphans. A significant portion of the tune bears a strong resemblance to the traditional "Shortnin' Bread" tune. The song topped the Billboard Hot...
" bears a strong resemblance to the "Shortnin' Bread" tune (the portion under "put on the skillet, slip on the lid, mammy's gonna make us some shortnin' bread"). - The February 1969 hit "The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana)The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana)"The Tra La La Song " was written by Mark Barkan and Ritchie Adams to be the theme song for the children’s television program The Banana Splits Adventure Hour....
" by The Banana Splits borrowed the same part of the "Shortnin' Bread" tune for the "Tra La La" chorus. - The song was recorded by the AmericanUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
rockRock musicRock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
bandBand (music)In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
The Beach BoysThe Beach BoysThe Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962...
. Their leader Brian Wilson was reportedly obsessed with the song, leading to him recording several versions of it and finally releasing a version on the 1979 album L.A. (Light Album)L.A. (Light Album)L.A. is The Beach Boys' twenty-third studio album, their last released in the 1970's, and their first as part of their contract with CBS Records...
. - The CrampsThe CrampsThe Cramps were an American rock band, formed in 1976 and active until 2009. The band split after the death of lead singer Lux Interior. Their line-up rotated much over their existence, with the husband and wife duo of Interior and lead guitarist Poison Ivy the only permanent members...
have also made a cover of this song in 1990, featured on the Stay SickStay Sick-Personnel:*Lux Interior - vocals*Poison Ivy Rorschach - guitar*Candy Del Mar - bass guitar*Nick Knox - drums...
album. - A later version was recorded by the country rockCountry rockCountry rock is sub-genre of popular music, formed from the fusion of rock with country. The term is generally used to refer to the wave of rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s, beginning with Bob Dylan and The Byrds; reaching its greatest...
band The TractorsThe TractorsThe Tractors is an American country rock band composed of a loosely associated group of musicians, headed by guitarist Steve Ripley. Under the band's original lineup, The Tractors was signed to Arista Records in 1994, releasing their self-titled debut album that year; the album went on to become...
, on their 1998 album Farmers in a Changing World. Their version reached #57 on the Hot Country SongsHot Country SongsHot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...
chart. - The Kelly FamilyThe Kelly FamilyThe Kelly Family is an Irish-American-European music group consisting of a multi-generational family, who play a repertoire of rock, pop and folk music. They have had chart and concert success in Europe and other parts of the world, especially in Germany, the Benelux countries, Scandinavia, Eastern...
recorded the song for their 1981 album Wonderful World. Their live version is included on 1988 album Live. They re-recorded it for 2005 album Hope. - In 1963 Mississippi John HurtMississippi John HurtJohn Smith Hurt, better known as Mississippi John Hurt was an American country blues singer and guitarist.Raised in Avalon, Mississippi, Hurt taught himself how to play the guitar around age nine...
recorded the song for Library of Congress Archive of American Folk Song in Washington D.C.. It is available on the album D.C. Blues: Library of Congress Recordings.
A traditional version of lyrics and an MP3 clip are here http://toneway.com/songs/shortening-bread.
Cultural references
- Nelson EddyNelson EddyNelson Ackerman Eddy was an American singer and actor who appeared in 19 musical films during the 1930s and 1940s, as well as in opera and on the concert stage, radio, television, and in nightclubs. A classically trained baritone, he is best remembered for the eight films in which he costarred...
, as Willie the Operatic Whale, sings in the 1946 Disney animated feature Make Mine MusicMake Mine MusicMake Mine Music is an animated feature produced by Walt Disney and released to theatres by RKO Radio Pictures on August 15, 1946. It is the eighth animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series....
. - Donald DuckDonald DuckDonald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created in 1934 at Walt Disney Productions and licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor suit with a cap and a black or red bow tie. Donald is most...
sings the song while making pancakes in the 1948 animated short Three for Breakfast. - In the Ren & Stimpy episode, "I Love Chicken", Ren Hoek sings the song whilst preparing a meal.
- In the film Police Academy 4, the character Captain Harris is seen singing the song into his cane.
- In the Season 4 I Love LucyI Love LucyI Love Lucy is an American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley. The black-and-white series originally ran from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, on the Columbia Broadcasting System...
episode "Ethel's Home Town", Ethel Mertz (Vivian VanceVivian VanceVivian Roberta Jones was an American television and theater actress and singer. Often referred to as “TV’s most beloved second banana,” she is best known for her role as Ethel Mertz, sidekick to Lucille Ball on the American television sitcom I Love Lucy, and as Vivian Bagley on The Lucy...
) performs the song onstage. - At the end of a The Fresh Prince of Bel Air episode, Will is seen singing the song while scrubbing the floor with his cousin as the end credits roll.
- At the end of a trailer titled "Bad World" for the game Battlefield: Bad CompanyBattlefield: Bad CompanyBattlefield: Bad Company is a first-person shooter developed by EA DICE for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It was released in North America on June 23 2008, followed by a European release on June 26. The game was hinted at just before the release of Battlefield 2, and then announced sixteen months later...
two characters sing the song. - In the Elvis Presley song "Clambake", "Shortnin' Bread" is paraphrased as "Mama's little baby loves clambake clambake, mama's little baby loves clambake too".
- In a Drawn togetherDrawn TogetherDrawn Together is an American animated television series, which ran on Comedy Central from October 27, 2004 to November 14, 2007. The series was created by Dave Jeser and Matt Silverstein, and uses a sitcom format with a TV reality show setting...
episode, "Terms of Endearment," Foxxy Love sings the song while cooking, after a tumor has put pressure on "the part of her brain that controls negative stereotypical behavior." - The chorus to the song is used as a medley in the song "Pachuco Cadaver" on Trout Mask ReplicaTrout Mask ReplicaTrout Mask Replica is the third album by Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band, released in June 1969. Produced by Beefheart's friend and former schoolmate Frank Zappa, it was originally released as a double album on Zappa's Straight Records label...
by Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band - At the end of the credits in the movie Secret WindowSecret WindowSecret Window is a 2004 psychological horror film starring Johnny Depp and John Turturro. It was written and directed by David Koepp, based on the novella Secret Window, Secret Garden by Stephen King, featuring a musical score by Philip Glass and Geoff Zanelli. The story appeared in King's...
, Johnny Depp is heard singing the song. - In the 1985 KidsongsKidsongsKidsongs is an American award-winning children's media franchise which 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...
video A Day at Old MacDonald's Farm, Shortenin Bread is sang in a different way pertaining to eating breakfast. - In the movie TrainspottingTrainspotting (film)Trainspotting is a 1996 British satirical/drama film directed by Danny Boyle based on the novel of the same name by Irvine Welsh. The movie follows a group of heroin addicts in a late 1980s economically depressed area of Edinburgh and their passage through life...
, Renton's friends and family sing the song in a celebration after he avoids being jailed. - In 1984, the children's music trio Sharon, Lois & BramSharon, Lois & BramSharon, Lois & Bram is the name of a Canadian children's musical trio composed of Sharon Hampson , Lois Ada Lilienstein , and Bramwell "Bram" Morrison .-Group formation:Sharon Hampson, Lois Lillenstein, and Bram Morrison began their singing...
performed this song in Season 1 of their hit TV Show Sharon, Lois & Bram's Elephant Show. - A version of this song referring to rhubarbRhubarbRhubarb is a group of plants that belong to the genus Rheum in the family Polygonaceae. They are herbaceous perennial plants growing from short, thick rhizomes. They have large leaves that are somewhat triangular-shaped with long fleshy petioles...
piePieA pie is a baked dish which is usually made of a pastry dough casing that covers or completely contains a filling of various sweet or savoury ingredients....
is used as the jingle of a fictional bakery in A Prairie Home CompanionA Prairie Home CompanionA Prairie Home Companion is a live radio variety show created and hosted by Garrison Keillor. The show runs on Saturdays from 5 to 7 p.m. Central Time, and usually originates from the Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul, Minnesota, although it is frequently taken on the road...
. - The 1994 song Deuces Are WildDeuces Are Wild"Deuces Are Wild" is a song performed by American hard rock band Aerosmith. It was written by lead singer Steven Tyler and professional songwriter Jim Vallance...
by AerosmithAerosmithAerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...
features the line "Mammy's little baby loves short'nin' bread" in the lyrics. - There was a scene in Here's LucyHere's LucyHere's Lucy is Lucille Ball's third network television sitcom. It ran on CBS from 1968 to 1974.-Background:Though The Lucy Show was still hugely popular during the previous season, finishing in the top five of the Nielsen Ratings , Ball opted to end that series at the end of that season and create...
where Uncle Harry Gale GordonGale GordonGale Gordon was an American character actor perhaps best remembered as Lucille Ball's longtime television foil—and particularly as cantankerously combustible, tightfisted bank executive Theodore J. Mooney, on Ball's second television situation comedy, The Lucy Show...
puts a tape recorder in front of Lucy's desk and she types his dications when ever he's not at work. But after Lucy Lucille BallLucille BallLucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
leaves Uncle Harry goes over to her desk and sings the two verse of Shortnin'Bread. - In the Warner Bros.Warner Bros.Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
cartoon, Hare TonicHare TonicHare Tonic is a 1945 Warner Bros. cartoon in the Looney Tunes series, directed by Chuck Jones and written by Tedd Pierce. It stars Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd making this the second cartoon directed by Jones to co-star the two . Voice characterizations are by Mel Blanc and Arthur Q...
, Elmer and Bugs take turns singing the song, replacing "shortnin' bread" with "wabbit stew". - Allan ShermanAllan ShermanAllan Sherman was an American comedy writer and television producer who became famous as a song parodist in the early 1960s. His first album, My Son, the Folk Singer , became the fastest-selling record album up to that time...
sang a Jewish-oriented satire, substituting "matzo balls" and "Pesach bread" for "shortnin' bread". - Chris RockChris RockChristopher Julius "Chris" Rock III is an American comedian, actor, screenwriter, television producer, film producer and director. He was voted in the US as the 5th greatest stand-up comedian of all time by Comedy Central...
sings this at a funeral in the 2010 comedy Death at a FuneralDeath at a Funeral (2010 film)Death at a Funeral is a 2010 American comedy film directed by Neil LaBute and starring an ensemble cast. The film is a remake of the 2007 British film of the same name.-Plot:...
. - In 2002, Laurie BerknerLaurie BerknerLaurie Berkner is an American musician best known for her work as a children's musical artist. Berkner plays guitar and sings in the Laurie Berkner Band, along with pianist Susie Lampert, bassist Adam Bernstein, and drummer Bobby Golden...
released this song in her album, Under a Shady TreeUnder a Shady TreeUnder a Shady Tree is the Two Tomatoes Records and Capitol Records album by children's musician Laurie Berkner. It was released in November 2002, and distributed by Universal Records.-Track listing:#Under a Shady Tree#Rhubarb Pie ...
.
External links
- http://books.google.com/books?id=QYhfG49yVB4C&pg=PA1957&lpg=PA1957&dq=James+Whitcomb+Riley+shortnin&source=web&ots=u4hepE4bs9&sig=B9uroneKzm_MKlbR8TBw1o9nWJc&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=5&ct=result - complete text of James Whitcomb RileyJames Whitcomb RileyJames Whitcomb Riley was an American writer, poet, and best selling author. During his lifetime he was known as the Hoosier Poet and Children's Poet for his dialect works and his children's poetry respectively...
's "A Short'nin' Bread Song—Pieced Out".