As I listen to my two new Thomas Fersen CDs I am struck again by the amount of times it appears that he is inspired by food, in fact by the amount of times a lot of modern French singer songwriters write songs about food, people like Benabar and Tryo ;- to mention but two more in my very limited knowledge of modern French chanson.
This got me thinking on songs, pop songs particularly, which had been written with food as their theme.
Strangely enough to start with I could think of very few.
I know that we have had groups which called themselves by definitely culinary names such as: Jam, Marmalade, Hot Chocolate, even dance crazes called after food like the Mashed Potato.
Now there wasn’t a shortage of nursery rhymes themed about for foods, take Little Jack Horner and his roaming thumb, Pat a Cake, Pat a Cake,- even Christmas is Coming is all about the foodie treats ahead.
In fact Children’s songs are more likely to be about food, Animal Crackers, Lollipop Tree , I Scream for Icecream,and Big Rock Candy Mountain are some that come to mind.
But then , the more I thought the more foodie songs crept in, some folkie ones from the sixties, Judy Collins singing I always cook with Honey, Joni Mitchell’s breakfast in Chelsea Morning must be a classic with the appetising lines:
There was milk and toast and honey and a bowl of oranges, too
And the sun poured in like butterscotch and stuck to all my senses
But Arlo Guthrie did write the long and rambling (and endearing) Alice’s Restaurant without mentioning food at all.
A lot of times it was like that, a so called foodie title turned out to be something else altogether. The Mamas and Papas Sing for your Supper (and you’ll get breakfast) was about sex, Donovan’s Candy Man was about drug dealing.
The Beatles are a bit of a disappointment, all I could think of to start off was I am The Walrus, but lines like I am the Eggman could hardly be mistaken for praise for the same food.
Then I remembered Savoy Truffle, An anthem of praise for desserts:
Cream tangerine and montelimar,
A ginger sling with a pineapple heart,
A coffee dessert, yes you know it’s good news,
But you’ll have to have them all pulled out after the Savoy truffle.
But I will leave you with one of my favourite songs about food which, funnily enough, has no words; Brooker T and the MGs, Green Onions.
(btw there are 10 links in this piece, a new world record for me!)
Can anybody think of any more?
Comments
Peter Denman
on January 15, 2009Some challenges just have to be taken up . . . .
Performers:
Cream
The Electric Prunes
Meatloaf
Hot Chocolate
Albums:
The Rolling Stones’ “Beggar’s Banquet”
“Tea for the Tillerman” by Cat Stevens
“Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme”, Simon and garfunkel
Generic:
Rock and Roll – the former with the letters all the way through, and the latter (as the puerile old joke would have it) to be taken in bed with honey.
Songs:
“Sugar, Sugar” by the Archies (!)
All right then, “Sugar” sung by Billie Holliday
“Chocolate Jesus” by Tom Waits
“Country Pie” by Bob Dylan (like “Green Onions”, an instrumental)
And as for the Beatles – what about the White Album (source of Marmalade’s “Ob-La-Di”) which has tracks “Honey Pie”, “Wild Honey Pie”, and “Savoy Truffle”. It also has “Blackbird”, but as it’s not baked in a pie you probably wouldn’t allow that (I remember being offered “pate de merle” once in France, at Chartres). Elsewhere in the Beatles albums there are “Sergeant Pepper” and “Mean Mr Mustard” .
Actually, you’re right Martin. Not that many songs, and one’s soon scraping the bottom of the pot.
Martin
on January 15, 2009Good additions Peter, I let Sergeant Pepper slip right past!
Any more anyone?
padraic
on January 15, 2009It’s not a pop song and it’s not all about the food value of the fish, but it is a song and it does extol it as a food as well as its monetary value:
Is maith an breac an liamhán ag iascairí na Gaillimhe,
Ach is fearr go mór an faoitín mar is air a gheofa an t-airgead;
Is an faoitín turaná is an faoitín turanárum,
Is an faoitín turaná, is é an faoitín breac an airgid.
The faoitín is the whiting;
There’s also the children’s song, sung beautifully on a CD by Róisín Elsfaty -Tá Pota Mór Fataí tigh Phadraic Con Rí (prátaí to ye munster people)
Martin
on January 16, 2009I forgot about Irish songs Padraic!
We were much better here at praising food in song:
“Did you ever bring potato cake
in a basket to the school,
Tucked underneath your oxter
with your book, your slate and rule,
And when teacher wasn’t looking
sure a great big bite you’d take,
Of the flowery flavoured buttered
soft and sweet potato cake.”
and how could I forget
Amhrain an Sampai !:
Is raitheanach, a bhean bheag, a bhean bheag, a bhean bheag
raitheanach, a bhean bheag, is deinimís an chiste
raitheanach, a bhean bheag, a bhean bheag, a bhean bheag
raitheanach, a bhean bheag is deinimis arís é
padraic
on January 16, 2009Did you ever eat colcannon made from lovely thickened cream…………….
O I did, now I did and so did you and so did I,
And the more I think about it sure the nearer I’m to cry……..
olivia flynn
on February 2, 2009“You throw me in a pan
You cook me in a can
You stretch me with your hands
You love to watch me bake
You serve me up with cake
And that’s your big mistake
Your guest comes in dressed smart
You offer a la carte
You didn’t have the heart
And I want a TV embrace
And I, I’m getting off your boiling plate
They swore you’d steal my steam to feed your dream
And then be gone
I wish I could say that everyone was wrong
You left me burned and seared
You left me ripped and teared
And older than my years
I should have know at first
That you would leave me hurt
You had to try dessert
No way to let off steam
Don’t bother milk or cream
No way to let off steam
And I want a TV embrace
And I, I’m getting off this boiling plate
They swore you’d steal my steam to feed your dream
And then be gone”
– ben lee, “cigarettes will kill you”
Martin
on February 2, 2009And thank you Olivia for that.
At last, the food talks back.
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