Doin my homework with you

February 24, 2006 12:48 PM

(SongFilter) Dear mother recently lamented that she could die happy if only she could find a song (perhaps from her childhood in the 50s?) that names all the presidents. A key lyric seems to be "Doin my homework with you." An old woman's hyperbole to be sure, but we do try to please our parents.

I managed to find some lyrics buried in a random forum comment (scroll down). Are there more verses? What's the title, how does the tune go, who wrote it? I'd be especially pleased with any audio file, even a midi, as I don't know what it sounds like and I think ma would like to reminisce. Thanks.

Here is what I know so far:

Washington, Adams, Jefferson OH!
James Madison, James Monroe;
John Quincy Adams, ooh ooh,
Doin' homework with you___

Jackson, Van Buren, Harrison WHEW!
Tyler, Polk, Taylor too;
Followed by Fillmore, ooh ooh,
Doin' homework with you.

(We gotta cram, for our exam,
By knowing every name.
Cause if we do__, I'll be with you__
Saturday's game!)

Pierce, Buchanan, Lincoln; Johnson, Grant
Some I can remember, some I can't;
Rutherford Hayes, ooh ooh,
Doin' homework with you!

posted by Hal Mumkin to media & arts (15 comments total)

well no mp3 yet but I did find this link which says that the song's name is "The President Song" and it is sung to the tune of "Yankee Doodle Dandy".

It also says "“The President Song” has the names of all the presidents from George Washington to Calvin Coolidge. "
posted by freudianslipper at 1:57 PM on February 24, 2006

The song was from a musical called Sis Boom Bah! about a bunch of footballers who needed to pass history to play in a game.
posted by DirtyCreature at 2:03 PM on February 24, 2006

This blog's entry for 2/21/05 talks about singing that song in an elementary school musical called "Sis Boom Bah." Worldcat has a juvenile musical by that title by Ruth Roberts and Bill Katz

Oh! - and here's an audio sample. It sounds like maybe your song is in the middle. (I'm at work and have to listen surreptitiously).
posted by bibliowench at 2:07 PM on February 24, 2006

I could be wrong, but I don't think it really is an audio sample. I downloaded the file and it merely is a text file that says:

[ASX VERSIoN="3.0"]
[ENTRY]
[REF HREF="11 Sis Boom Bah.wma" /]
[/ENTRY]
[/ASX]
posted by WCityMike at 2:16 PM on February 24, 2006

That definitely matches the lyrics of the poster's song... WCityMike, here's an mp3 of the same sound sample, which seems to only go up to Fillmore. You could always just order the cassette, though...
posted by cacophony at 2:18 PM on February 24, 2006

No, you're right. I should have been more explicit. The link goes to a page with the a link to the audio. The link for the audio sample is (should be)here.

Web semantics. Bleah.
posted by bibliowench at 2:20 PM on February 24, 2006

Oh my goodness, I sang this song in chorus. This was in the 80s, too, so I imagine they updated it--our version ended with:


Nixon, Ford, Carter, WOW!
Ronald Regan's the President now!

Hm, I think the verse before that was:
John Kennedy
JFK!
Lyndon Johnson
LBJ!

I can't remember the other verses because for the life of me I can't remember the rhyme scheme (or half the presidents, sadly). Some of it was call and response, as I recall.

It's not the same one that freudianslipper's talking about--it has an original score.

I reckon that the sheet music site that bibliowench found might have just the song you're looking for.

Gah, what an earworm. (If I knew how to write music I'd provide you with the tune. Or if you want you can call me right now and I'll sing it to you so we can suffer together.)

[Holy crap, caucophony's got it! It's like midway through the medley.]
posted by veronica sawyer at 2:30 PM on February 24, 2006

veronica, I didn't do the sleuthing, that was bibliowench. She should get the credit.

By the way, do you guys know how many Presidents Songs there are? With this glut I'm amazed we don't all know one.

Presidents Song
43 Presidents Song
The Presidents
The Presidents Song
The Presidents
The Presidents Song
Election Connection
Mediocre Presidents (because I can't possibly leave it out)
posted by cacophony at 2:32 PM on February 24, 2006

there's also at least two different versions of The Nails "88 lines about 44 women", done presidential style. The Brunching Shuttlecocks one was the one I recall, it's brilliant and a bit more faithful to the Nails original.

Brunching Shuttlecocks 88 lines about 42 presidents

88 lines about 44 presidents
posted by dr. fresh at 2:42 PM on February 24, 2006

No, you're right. I should have been more explicit. The link goes to a page with the a link to the audio. The link for the audio sample is (should be)here.

No, what I'm saying is that that file doesn't work. The text I typed out is what 11.wax is. Open it up in Notepad.
posted by WCityMike at 2:51 PM on February 24, 2006

wax files are Windows Media Metafiles... redirects you to the actual media, to keep people from downloading, usually. This time the redirector just points to a wma file here... if you can't play wma files just use the mp3 link I left you (and poster) further up the thread. The wax link works if you have Windows Media Player.
posted by cacophony at 3:13 PM on February 24, 2006

Rats. My Brunching Shuttlecocks link is wrong. Here's a better one:

Brunching Shuttlecocks 88 lines about 42 presidents
posted by dr. fresh at 3:16 PM on February 24, 2006

Does she like to sing about elements, too? I vaguely remembered this from a science video in my childhood, and your question inspired me to find it. </off-topic>
posted by booksandlibretti at 3:39 PM on February 24, 2006

Since the question's been answered already, I'll just add that I had to sing this song in my very first stage performance in 1985.

Twenty-one years and perhaps a couple hundred other performances later, I still can't get the damn song out of my head.
posted by ewagoner at 4:12 PM on February 24, 2006

Wow! Thanks a lot everyone. I've sent the information to my mother and I'm sure she'll be thrilled. I remember her bringing this thing up when I was a kid even, so I know it's been torturing her for decades.

I am, of course, regretting asking for an audio sample as I think it's now going to be stuck in my mind for a week.

I love this green place.
posted by Hal Mumkin at 9:19 PM on February 24, 2006