Sarah the Whale
Yesterday, suddenly, a phrase popped into my head:
“You can’t leave food within her reach…”
Where it came from, I don’t know, but there it was. It seemed familiar… an old song maybe? I turned it over and around and around in my mind, and pretty soon another bit floated over and joined it:
“Nor nursemaids, nor airedales, nor chocolate ice-cream sodas.”
And then I knew what it was! A Burl Ives song about a whale named Sarah! I think it was on a record we checked out from the library when I was 7 or so (that’s 30 years ago, folks). Haven’t heard it since. I googled those bits of text and found the complete lyrics:
In San Francisco town there lived a whale.
She ate porkchops by the pail;
By the pillbox, by the suitcase, by the bathtub, by the schooner.
Her name was Sarah, and she’s a peach,
But you can’t leave food within her reach;
Nor nursemaids, nor airedales,
Nor chocolate ice cream sodas.
She eats a lot, but when she smiles
You can see her teeth for miles and miles;
And her adenoids, and her spare ribs,
And things too fierce to mention.
So, what can you do in a case like that?
What can you do but sit on your hat;
Or your toothbrush, or your grandmother,
Or anything else that’s helpless.
If you want to know the tune, I will sing it for you. But only if I get a request to do so.
Kathy said,
March 26, 2007 @ 6:02 am
That was always one of my favorites! I was singing it in the shower about a month ago! It was the first time I’d thought of it in YEARS.
Kathy said,
March 26, 2007 @ 6:04 am
Oh, ps–I think there’s another verse:
She knows no games
But when she plays,
she rolls her eyes for days and days,
and she yodels, and she vibrates, and she breaks the ten commandments.
Betsie said,
March 26, 2007 @ 8:47 am
Yay! We sang a version of this song at Girl Scout camp when I was a kid!!!
Mike said,
March 30, 2007 @ 8:37 pm
Mmmmm… I’ve looked on the net, but I can’t find this tune anywhere. The lyrics sound cute…. were you really serious about doing a fast recording? — Mike ;)
kara said,
March 30, 2007 @ 8:57 pm
Yup! Give me a few minutes :)
Jenny said,
November 20, 2007 @ 6:14 pm
THANK YOU! These are the REAL lyrics! I have searched and found “fake” lyrics!
kara said,
November 21, 2007 @ 8:34 am
Heheh you’re welcome, Jenny :) I posted a link to the tune up there, in case you want it.
Jordan said,
January 9, 2008 @ 1:02 pm
I remember Burl Ives singing “Sarah the Whale”. Now we sing it to our grandchildren.
Alice said,
February 17, 2008 @ 5:17 am
My father sang this song to my sister and me when we were little along with lots of others that are hard to find. Our Sarah lived in “Portland Town”. We lived in New York. Go figure. I’m on a mission to find all those songs my father sang. Currently the only MP3 of this I can find of Sarah is Sharon, Lois, and Bram. Ok, but ….. Does any one know of another recording? I don’t seem to find Burl Ives.