The Wheels on the Bus

"Wheels On the Bus"
Single by Mad Donna
Released	4 May 2002
Length	2:25
Label	Star Harbour; All Around The World Disco 0202R;
Songwriter(s)	Verna Hills

"The Wheels on the Bus"
Song
Language	English
Genre	Children's; folk;
Songwriter(s)	Verna Hills

"The Wheels on the Bus" is an American folk song written by Verna Hills (1898–1990)[1] and published in 1939.[2] It is a popular children's song in the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, and Canada, and is often sung by children on bus trips to keep themselves amused. It has a very repetitive rhythm, making the song easy for many people to sing, in a manner similar to the song "99 Bottles of Beer". It is based on the traditional British song "Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush". The song is also sometimes sung to the tune of "Buffalo Gals", as in the version done by Raffi.

The song is now very popular for children in several other languages.

[Verse 1]
The wheels on the bus go round and round
Round and round
Round and round
The wheels on the bus go round and round
All round the town

[Verse 2]
The wipers on the bus go, "Swish, swish, swish"
"Swish, swish, swish"
"Swish, swish, swish"
The wipers on the bus go, "Swish, swish, swish"
All round the town

[Verse 3]
The driver on the bus goes, "Move on back"
"Move on back"
"Move on back"
The driver on the bus goes, "Move on back"
All round the town

[Verse 4]
The people on the bus go up and down
Up and down
Up and down
The people on the bus go up and down
All round the town

[Verse 5]
The horn on the bus goes, "Beep, beep, beep"
"Beep, beep, beep"
"Beep, beep, beep"
The horn on the bus goes, "Beep, beep, beep"
All round the town

[Verse 6]
The baby on the bus goes, "Whaa, whaa, whaa"
"Whaa, whaa, whaa"
"Whaa, whaa, whaa"
The baby on the bus goes, "Whaa, whaa, whaa"
All round the town

[Verse 7]
The parents on the bus go, "Shh, shh, shh"
"Shh, shh, shh"
"Shh, shh, shh"
The parents on the bus go, "Shh, shh, shh"
All round the town

Normally followed by "The wipers on the bus go swish swish swish" (with action), "the horn on the bus goes beep beep beep" and "the people on the bus go up and down" (with action). Some versions substitute "bounce up and down" for "go up and down", and some modern commercial recordings of the song in children's toys simplify the tune by copying notes 7 through 9 onto notes 13 through 15.

Mad Donna's cover version

In 2002, American Madonna impersonator "Mad Donna" (Michelle Chappel) had a single which sampled the nursery rhyme, featuring a version of Madonna's "Ray of Light" over which the classic children's song was sung. The single reached No. 17 in the United Kingdom and also made the charts elsewhere in Europe.[3]

References

"Verna Hills Bayley (1898-1990) - Find A Grave..." www.findagrave.com.
American Childhood, vol. 25, 1939, p. 56
"Mad Donna (3) - The Wheels On The Bus". Discogs.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[1] "Verna Hills Bayley (1898-1990) - Find A Grave..." www.findagrave.com.

[2] American Childhood, vol. 25, 1939, p. 56

[3] "Mad Donna (3) - The Wheels On The Bus". Discogs.