Songs from Around the World About Food
January 27, 2021 11:03 PM   Subscribe

I'm looking for songs from around the world about food.

All genres welcome, but I'd be especially happy to hear some songs with good vocal harmonies. Thanks!
posted by aws17576 to Media & Arts (28 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
I'm not sure I should even post this but here's a list that sort of matches what you want but clearly wasn't researched very thoroughly. But it's a starting point! There are food songs on it!

100 Best Songs About Food

It's really just a long list of songs with food words in the title. Case in point on why this list has problems: There's a section at the bottom of the page for "other notable songs about food" that includes Billie Holiday's Strange Fruit.

But you might wish to skim the list as see what intrigues you.
posted by NotTheRedBaron at 12:08 AM on January 28, 2021




These two songs are literally about food, as opposed to food as a metaphor:

Fred Penner - Sandwiches
Y.N.RichKids - Hot Cheetos & Takis
posted by LSK at 12:59 AM on January 28, 2021 [1 favorite]




10CC's Life Is a Minestrone ... there are also the Vegemite sandwiches in Men at Work's Down Under. And for dessert, the Presidents of the USA with Peaches. Bin appetit !
posted by bwonder2 at 1:32 AM on January 28, 2021 [2 favorites]


Best answer: I love Ginga Tea by Jahdas and also their really wacky music video.
posted by Fallbala at 2:00 AM on January 28, 2021


Best answer: Amadou & Mariam feat. Manu Chao - Sénégal Fast Food - song in French/Barmbara only obliquely about food - but interesting harmonies.
Burma Road - Ronnie and the Ramblers - this song contains several specific Bahamian recipes - Boom peas soup and doe boy ginnie corn hornmy and lard ya gat to get some of it !!
Cake - The B52s - it is quite hard tricky to find food-related songs are REALLY about food. This is, I suspect another which fails the test. Incredible harmonies here.
posted by rongorongo at 2:11 AM on January 28, 2021


Here is the song Blackstrap Molasses and Wheat Germ Bread, which really IS about blackstrap molasses and wheat germ bread.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 4:52 AM on January 28, 2021


Johnny Flynn's Leftovers is a favorite of mine.
posted by jabes at 6:35 AM on January 28, 2021


Best answer: From Scotland, Tatties an Herrin, Caller Herrin, Brochan Lom and the Jeely Piece Song.

From Ireland, Colcannon.
posted by offog at 6:43 AM on January 28, 2021 [2 favorites]


Children's song, but very catchy: Buono Appetito by Red Grammer
posted by hepta at 7:22 AM on January 28, 2021




One more from Scotland: The Cholesterol Song (it’s a major food group here)
posted by rongorongo at 9:45 AM on January 28, 2021 [1 favorite]


Response by poster: Hi and thanks for the answers so far!

A couple of clarifications:
  • Songs with food in the title that aren't really about food are OK.
  • I should have put more emphasis on "from around the world" -- I am specifically looking for songs from a variety of places.
Here are a few examples I have already: But those are all from relatively (OK, very relatively) the same part of the world, and I'd like to broaden my horizons. Stuff like this isn't easy to search for, and I appreciate whatever y'all come up with!
posted by aws17576 at 9:45 AM on January 28, 2021


Best answer: Beautiful harmonies from Spain, 1972: Vainica Doble - Caramelo de limón
From Puerto Rico: Bobby Capó - Piel Canela
posted by Orange Dinosaur Slide at 10:12 AM on January 28, 2021


Where is the cake? (Eifoh haugah?) is a popular kids' birthday song in Israel. The lyrics in their entirety: "There is no celebration without cake. Where is the cake?"
posted by Viola Swamp at 11:07 AM on January 28, 2021 [1 favorite]


Mouse Loves Rice is a chinese pop love song with a food name in the title. (But really has almost nothing to do about food, except for the lyric in the hook that roughly translate to "I love you, loving you/Like mice love rice.")
posted by tinymegalo at 11:16 AM on January 28, 2021


Israeli kid's song Ooga ooga ooga which means "Cake cake cake."

Also, did I miss it or was Kelis' Milkshake not on that top 100 list?
posted by fingersandtoes at 11:56 AM on January 28, 2021


Rosemary Clooney's "Come On-a My House" may be really about more carnal delights, but the lyrics make it sound like she's inviting someone over for a banquet:

"Come on-a my house my house, I'm gonna give you candy
Come on-a my house, my house, I'm gonna give a you
Apple a plum and apricot too aand...
Come on-a my house, my house-a come on
Come on-a my house, my house-a come on
Come on-a my house, my house I'm gonna give a you
Figs and dates and grapes and cakes...."

***

There is a Mexican kids' song, "Bate Chocolate", which is just about mixing up hot chocolate in your cup to froth it up.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 12:25 PM on January 28, 2021




Ice Cream--Sarah McLachlan
Peel Me A Grape--Anita O'Day
Black Coffee--Sarah Vaughan
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 1:34 PM on January 28, 2021


Ahh, sorry, I just saw your clarification about "around the world" (Sarah McLachlan is Canadian but I feel like you might be looking a little further afield than that).
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 1:36 PM on January 28, 2021




Australia: Can of Lemonade and a Pastie
posted by pompomtom at 3:29 PM on January 28, 2021




Oh, of course, also Australia: How to Make Gravy which provokes twitter wars each christmas and is an abomination of a gravy recipe.
posted by pompomtom at 3:09 AM on January 29, 2021


What, no "Jambalaya" by Hank Williams (or any of the innumerable covers out there, including Fats Domino)?

Also, "Johnny Saucep'n" by Moxy Früvous. There's a cover by a band called Marcoux Corner I don't know a lot about if unambiguously garbage person Jian Ghomeshi has ruined MF for you.

Rosemary Clooney already got mentioned once, but it's worth mentioning another excellent song in the same vein, "Mangos".

Getting out of the Anglosphere, Hungarian pop band Metró had a hit "Citromízű banán" (Lemony banana). And also, because I have to get it out of my head and into someone else's, even if it has nothing to do with food, around the same time they recorded this utterly insane performace of "Ol' Man River".
posted by jackbishop at 6:35 AM on January 29, 2021


Fish and Poi - Sean Na'auao is about all kinds of yummy Hawaiian foods...
posted by somanyamys at 3:17 PM on January 29, 2021


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