See also Sing a Song of Sixpence, a Sesame Beginnings book. Sesame Beginnings cast, including Elmo and his dad, Cookie and his mommy, Prairie Dawn and her mommy, and Big Bird and his aunt. ...

Lyrics

Sing a song of sixpence, a pocket full of rye.

Four and twenty blackbirds, baked in a pie.

When the pie was opened, the birds began to sing.

Now, wasn't that a dainty dish to set before the king?

The king was in his counting house, counting out his money.

The queen was in the parlour, eating bread and honey.

The maid was in the garden, hanging out the clothes,

When down came a blackbird and pecked off her nose!

There is an alternate version, made popular by Shari Lewis on her PBS series Lambchop's play Along The scilling or scylling (which possibly comes from the Teutonic root skil meaning to divide) was used in Anglo-Saxon times as money of account, even though no coins of that denomination existed. ... Binomial name Secale cereale M.Bieb. ... For other uses, see 420 (disambiguation). ... This article refers to the animal Blackbird, for other uses see Blackbird (disambiguation) Binomial name Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 // Blackbird The Blackbird or Common Blackbird (Turdus merula) is a European member of the thrush family Turdidae. ... A slice of strawberry-rhubarb pie à la mode A pie is a baked dish, with a baked shell usually made of pastry that covers or completely contains a filling of meat, fish, vegetables, fruit, cheeses, creams, chocolate, custards, nuts, or other sweet or savoury ingredients. ... This article belongs in one or more categories. ... Parlour (or parlor), from the Fr. ... Shari Lewis (born Sonia Hurwitz; January 17, 1933 - August 2, 1998) was a ventriloquist, puppeteer, and childrens television show host, most popular during the 1960s. ...

Sing a song of six pants

With pockets full of rye

Would you put rye bread in all your pants

You wouldn't and neither would I!

Note on the Song

Due to a spoof origin posted on the Lost Legends section of Snopes.com, many people have been fooled into thinking that the song was originally used by Blackbeard's pirates to attract new members. This is incorrect. The Urban Legends Reference Pages (also known as snopes. ... Blackbeards flag, showing a horned skeleton holding an hourglass and threatening a bleeding heart with a spear. ...

In mediaeval times, live birds were placed in previously baked pastry shells to be released as entertainment during grand feasts. This may be the origin of this rhyme. The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ...

This is an example of one of the earliest recorded rhymes that still remains in print. Its written recording dates back to the eighteenth century but it was probably around for much longer.

• Snopes.com's fake article on the origin of the song
• Snope.com's explanation of the hoax
• A site explaining much of the rhyme's history