Hippopota-Tunes Lyrics

 

Credits:
Sue Shefman ~ Project Leader
Adelaide Prentice ~ Cover Artwork
Alice Egoyan ~ Artwork Tweaks & Edits
Stuart Feldman ~ CD Cover Compilation

And special thanks to honorary Hippolotofus Drew Shefman for compiling all the songs, and burning the CDs!

 

Due to copyright problems, we are no longer able to provide this CD for our members. Please do not ask.

 

 

The Songs:

1. The Hippo Song - Flanders and Swann 2:39
2. I Am A Hippopotamus - David Polansky 1:09
    check out David's incredible website at www.davidpolansky.com
    you can also order online downloads at CDbaby.com
3. Hippo Hurray - Linda Arnold 3:00
4. Hippopotamus Rock - Rosenshontz 2:28
5. Hippopotamus - PUSH 3:30
6. Hippo and the Canary (Part I) - Ben Sures 3:11
7. I'm Herman the Hippo - Possumtrot Players 0:54
8. H-I-P-P-O-P-O-T-A-M-U-S - Jimmy Osmond 2:49
9. Mon Hippopotame 2:05
10. Hippy Cha Cha - Soupy Sales 2:14
11. Otto the Hippo-Fred Penner 2:38
12. Hippo On My Head - Uncle Eye and The Pirates of Pizza 1:26
13. If You Love a Hippopotamus -Bethie 2:13
14. Hey Daddy (There's a Hippo in the Tub)- Anne Murray 2:00
15. Flight of the Cosmic Hippo - Bela Flek and the Flektones 4:27
16. What if Hippos Danced Ballet 2:48
17. Hula Dancing Hippo - Jill and Michael Gallina 1:35
18. My Baby Hippo - T Knight and E Mcmohan 4:41
19. Hippo and the Canary (Part II)- Ben Sures 5:26
20. I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas - Gayla Peevey 2:35
21. There's a Hippo in my Tub - Caren Glasser 1:51
22. Deepest Africa - Chenille Sisters 3:45
23. The Hippy Hippo - A Stang 2:55
24. Hipposong - Al Stewart 1:48
25. Hippo Hop - Hap Palmer 2:47
26. Electronical Hypno Hippo Dance - SnagLoopDog 2:21 (instrumental)
      check 'em out at  www.snagloopdog.com
27. Look at the Hippo - The Great Glass Elevator 2:26
28. Hippo Encore -Flanders and Swann 1:08


song 1
The Hippo Song

(transcribed by Adelaide Prentice)

This is the very first of the animal songs.
Some people think the title of this song is irrelevant.
But it's not a relevant; it's a hippopopotamus.

A bold hippopotamus was standing one day,
On the banks of the cool Shalimar.
He gazed at the bottom as it peacefully lay,
By the light of the evening star.
A way on the hilltop sat combing her hair
Is fair hippopotami maid.
The hippopotamus was no ignoramus
And sang her this sweet serenade:

Mud, mud, glorious mud
Nothing quite like it for cooling the blood.
So follow me follow,
Down to the hollow,
And there let us wallow in glorious mud.

The fair hippopopotama he aimed to entice,
From a seat on that hilltop above.
As she hadn't got a ma to give her advice,
Came tiptoeing down to her love.
Like thunder the forestry echoed the sound,
Of a song that they sang as they met.
His enamorata adjusted her garter,
And lifted her voice in duet.

In Russian:

* Kranz, kranz schmoodliger kranz,
* Holudshia shretsaca coldliger kranz
* Heckvas lees fer you dawgo
Follow me follow
* Begeelio bedabo
Down to the hollow
* Wenyou taub me aput in some true gulio kranz
That will prove our cultural relations.

The poor hippopotami who danced in Dundee
On the banks of that river so wide.
I wonder now what am I to say of the scene,
That ensued by the Shalimar side.
They dived all at once
With and ear-splitting splosh,
Then rose to the surface again.
A regular army of hippopotami
All singing this haunting reprise
That's you.

Mud, mud, glorious mud
Nothing quite like it for cooling the blood.
So follow me follow, Lovely!
Down to the hollow, Beautiful!
And there let us wallow in glorious mud.

(* Phonetic)


song 2
I Am a Hippopotamus
David Polansky
    check out David's incredible website at www.davidpolansky.com
    you can also order online downloads at CDbaby.com

I am a hippopotamus
From my top to my very bottomus,
From my big fat hippo nose
To my three little hippo toes.

I weigh so much, so very, very much,
That I float is quite a miracle.
I'm, oh, so round, so very, very round,
You could almost call me spherical.

No sense in remaining anonymous,
I'm a very, very happy hippopotamus.

(Instrumental)

I weigh so much, so very, very much,
That I float is quite a miracle.
I'm, oh, so round, so very, very round,
You could almost call me spherical.

No sense in remaining anonymous,
I'm a very, very happy hippopotamus.


song 3
Hippo Hurray
(lyrics transcribed by Ramon Valencia)


Hip-hip-hip-hip-hip-hurray!
She's a hip hippopotamus who like to play.

Well, have you heard of sweet Harmony,
The hippest little hippo that there ever could be?
She's got a style, and it's all her own.
She loves to swim around and play the saxophone.

She's a hip, hip hippopotamus,
From the top down to the bottomus.
She's a hip, hip hippopotamus.
Hip-hip-hip-hurray!

It wasn't easy to play while she'd float.
Sometimes she'd just blow bubbles instead of a note.
But every morning she'd practice her scales.
Now everybody listens while Harmony wails.

She's a hip, hip hippopotamus,
From the top down to the bottomus.
She's a hip, hip hippopotamus.
Hip-hip-hip-hurray!

Hip-hip-hip-hip-hip-hurray!
She's a hip hippopotamus who like to play.
Hip-hip-hip-hip-hip-hurray!
She's a hip hippopotamus who like to play.

So, if you're looking for a style of your own,
Remember sweet Harmony's saxophone.
Life is a river, a magical stream,
Where each of us learns to live our own dream.

She's a hip, hip hippopotamus,
From the top down to the bottomus.
She's a hip, hip hippopotamus.
Hip-hip-hip-hurray!

Hip-hip-hip-hip-hip-hurray!
She's a hip hippopotamus who like to play.
Hip-hip-hip-hip-hip-hurray!
She's a hip hippopotamus who like to play.

(Hip, hip)
She's a hip hippopotamus,
(Hip, hip)
From the top to the bottomus.

(Hip, hip)
She's a hip hippopotamus,
(Hip, hip)
From the top to the bottomus.


song 4
Hippopotamus Rock
(lyrics corrected Feb 2007, thanks to Kate for the link to the correct lyrics!)

 

Hippa Hippa Hippa Hippapotamus Rock, well
Take a trip on a Hippopotamus Rock.

Take me on you way, Hippopotamus Rock
Down the Chesapeake Bay, Hippopotamus Rock
We'll go out and play. Have a happy day
With Hippopotamus Rock, take a trip on a Hippopotamus Rock.

See the Sassafras flow, Hippopotamus Rock
To St. Michael's we'll go, Hippopotamus Rock
And the island of Tangiers, I've dreamed about for years
With Hippopotamus Rock, take a trip on a Hippopotamus Rock.
Take a trip on a Hippopotamus

I want you Hippopotamus Rock
You're way too much Hippopotamus Rock
I love the way. I love the way you Hippopotamus Rock.
 



song 5
Hippopotamus by Push

(transcribed by Sue Shefman)

Praised are you, oh King of the Wild,
--------vanities glow at you with envy and hate.
--------------baby
---I'd hate to see you behind the gate.

(Instrumental)

Hippopotamus

(Instrumental)

Wallow in the mud, all day eating plants,
Basking in the sun, catching the rays.
If you rise above, above the water
The alligators hide in the shade.

(Instrumental)

Hippopotamus

(Instrumental)

It's the march of the hippos.

(Instrumental)

Look out, look out ------------
The serendipitous serpent slithers away.
The funky little monkey peels his banana.
The little swishy fishies swim past your leg.

(Instrumental)

Hippopotamus!


song 6
Hippo and the Canary, Part 1
(lyrics transcribed by Ramon Valencia)

One day a hippo was dreaming away.
He pictured himself in the ballet,
And the sweetest music filled his ears.
It was a little canary that brought him to tears.

"Songs are like valleys," he said to the bird.
Her beak in the air, she said, "That's absurd.
Songs are just songs, or didn't you know?
Probably not, you big ugly hippo."

He said, "I thought you came to sing for me."
"No, I needed a perch; there wasn't a tree."
The canary flew off. The hippo was hurt.
He had fallen in love, and he was covered in dirt.

Says a big old beast taken by a bird,
"She sang so pretty." He felt like a nerd.
"I mean, a hippo with a dream about ballets?
What would all the elephants say?"

From a distance she watched him sleeping.
She thought, "How crude, and yet how pleasing,"
And found herself drawn in the oddest of ways
To this dreamer of tutus and ballets.

They fell in love. They had a lot of fun.
She weighed an ounce. He weighed a ton.
The birds and the bees didn't like their dreaming.
They got together and started scheming.

She was a little confused. She went to see her priest.
He said, "This is an outrage. This love must cease.
Say a few Hail Mary's and call me in the morning.
How can you put up with that hippo's snoring?"

"Oh, hippo, hippo, what will we do?
I mean, you love me, and I love you,
But I'm getting this feeling in my heart
The rest of the world is tearing us apart."

Sure enough, that's what the animals did.
They pushed and pushed until the couple split.
And now she sings alone in her tree,
And he don't dream about ballets 'cause he's got a big belly.

They used to talk of a song-and-dance team,
But the people done took away all their dreams.
(Hippo and the canary. Stay tuned for part two.)


song 7
Herman the Hippo

(transcribed by Sandy Davis)


I'm gonna sing
ah yes I am - I'm really gonna do it, I'm really gonna do it.
Hello I'm Herman the hippo and I just go flippo ha ha
every time I take a bath (bath)
Well anyway hun
First I wash my little, great big feet - boy are they big. hun
then I go slippity sliding on my tiny giant seat oho
That was fun
I wash my teeny fat tummy hehe -
That tickled
Gosh the water's getting scummy - but gee I'm pleasing my mummy.
Good boy Herman
Thanks Mom
every time I take a bath.


song 8
H-I-P-P-O-P-O-T-A-M-U-S
By Jimmy Osmond (lyrics transcribed by BeccaPot)

He walks like an elephant
He swims like a whale
His heads like a pail it’s pathetic
Oh plainly his tail’s unaesthetic

Though nature endowed him queerly 
I still love the hippo dearly
My H-I-P-P-O-P-O-T-A-M-U-S

Yes, I love the hippo, H-I-P-P-O
I love the hippo, H-I-P-P-O
H-I-P-P-O-P-O-T-A-M-U-S

Instrumental….

Though nature endowed him queerly
I still love the hippo dearly
My H-I-P-P-O-P-O-T-A-M-U-S

Yes, I love the hippo, H-I-P-P-O
I love the hippo, H-I-P-P-O
H-I-P-P-O-P-O-T-A-M-U
H-I-P-P-O-P-O-T-A-M-U
H-I-P-P-O-P-O-T-A-M-U-S

 


song 9
"Mon hippopotame" / My hippopotamus
Henri Dès (Henri Dès is famous in France for the songs he writes for kids)
Translated to English by Nicole Marrane


Refrain 1 :
j'ai retrouvé mon hippopotame/ I found my hippopotamus
couché sur le macadam/ lying on the macadam
il avait tout perdu tout perdu/ he'd lost everything and everything
sa robe à tutu/ his tutu costume
et son chapeau pointu/ and his pointed hat
il avait tout perdu tout perdu/ he lost everything...
sa journée était foutue/ his day was awful

(back to refrain1)

il avait tout cassé tout cassé/ he'd broken everything and everything
sa poupée mitée/ his moth-eaten doll
et sa pipe en papier/ and his paper pipe
il avait tout cassé tout cassé/ he 'd broken everything...
sa journée était gâchée/ his day was spoiled

Refrain 2
j'ai consolé mon hippopotame/ I comforted my hippopotamus
imaginez le programme/ imagine the program
il avait tant pleuré tant pleuré/ he cried so much and so much
des larmes salées/ salted tears
tout plein mes souliers/ that filled up my shoes
qu'on aurait pu s'y baigner/ you could have swum in them

Refrain3
si tu cherches ton hippopotame/ if you're looking for your hippo...
pleurant sur le macadam/ crying on the macadam
n'oublie pas ton petit canoë/ don't forget your little canoe
ou bien ta bouée/ or your rubber ring
et tout pour la gonfler/and all necessary to inflate it
n'oublie pas ton petit canoë/ don't forget your little canoe
si tu veux pas te noyer/ if you don't want to be drowned


song 10
Hippy Cha-Cha
(transcribed by Sue Shefman)

Cha-cha-cha Cha-cha-cha Cha-cha-cha Cha-cha-cha

Oh, Hippy has a pair of cha-cha hips. (cha-cha)
A cha-cha starts and Hippy flips. (cha-cha)
A bongo drum begins to play
And Hippy is carried away.

Hippy can’t control his cha-cha hips. (cha-cha)
All cha-chas have him in their grips. (cha-cha)
He simply has to start to sway
When a bongo begins to play.

The room may shake a little, (shake a little)
Quake a little (Quake a little)
When Hippy starts to go, go, go.
People scream and fuss,
But this hippopotamus
Has a built in cha-cha down below.

So if you want to stay all safe and sound, (cha-cha)
Play no cha-cha-cha when he’s around (cha-cha)
This is one of my safety tips:
Hippy has a pair of cha-cha hips.

The room may shake a little, (shake a little)
Quake a little (Quake a little)
When Hippy starts to go, go, go.
People scream and fuss,
But this hippopotamus
Has a built in cha-cha down below.

So if you want to stay all safe and sound, (cha-cha)
Play no cha-cha-cha when he’s around (cha-cha)
This is one of my safety tips:
Oh, Hippy has a pair, (Hippy has a pair)
Hippy has a couple, (Hippy has a couple)
Oh, Hippy has a pair of cha-cha hips. (cha-cha-cha)

Cha-cha-cha Ooh. yes he does. (cha-cha-cha cha-cha-cha)
Cha-cha-cha Oh, cowabonga. (cha-cha-cha cha-cha-cha)
Cha-cha-cha That’s my Hippy. (cha-cha-cha cha-cha-cha)
Cha-cha-cha


song 11
Otto the Hippo
Fred Penner  (lyrics transcribed by Ramon Valencia)

Did you hear about Otto,
The hippo-o-potto?
Did you hear about Otto,
The potto-o-mus?

Well, Otto the hippo,
He ought to just want
To chew and to chomp
In his small muddy swamp.

He ought to munching and lunching and crunching.
He ought to be lazing and grazing around.
But Otto the hippo,
He took a short trip
To the lights of the city and found ... and found ...
(A one, two, three, four!)

Otto likes to rock and roll.
Otto likes to dance about.
Otto plays guitar.
He's a superstar.
Otto likes to twist and shout.
Otto plays guitar.
He's a superstar.
Otto likes to twist and shout.

It's the new Otto, the rock-and-roll hippo.
He's absolutely fabulous.
The new Otto, the rock-and-roll hippo.
He put the hip in hippopotamus.

(Instrumental)

Well, Otto lets his hair grow long.
Otto wears a shirt that's bright.
He moved into the park.
He plays until it's dark
And everybody says, "Good night."
He moved into the park.
He plays until it's dark
And everybody says, "Good night."

To the new Otto, the rock-and-roll hippo.
He's absolutely fabulous.
The new Otto, the rock-and-roll hippo.
He put the hip in hippopotamus.

The new Otto, the rock-and-roll hippo.
He's absolutely fabulous. (That's right!)
The new Otto, the rock-and-roll hippo.
He put the hip ...
He put the hip ...
He put the hip in hip-po-pot-a-mus!
(Yeah, yeah, yeah!)


song 12
Hippo On My Head
(transcribed by Ramon Valencia)

There's a hippo on my head.
There's a hippo on my head.
And I know it sounds crazy,
'Cause I should be dead.
But it's been that kind of morning,
There's a circus on the lawn.
There's a hippo on my head.
Something funny's going on.

"Get out of bed!
Get out of bed!
You're late for school,"
My momma said.

"But there's a hippo on my head.
There's a hippo on my head."

"Of all the silly excuses!
I have never heard such a tale.
The next thing you'll be telling me
Is that the bathtub's filled with whales."

There's a hippo on my head.
There's a hippo on my head.
I know it sounds crazy,
'Cause I should be dead.
But it's been that kind of morning,
There's a circus on the lawn.
There's a hippo on my head.
Something funny's going on.

Mom came in to get me.
I was trapped inside my bed.
Doing a handspring and drinkin' some tea
Was a hippo on my head.
Mom just couldn't believe it.
She fainted dead away.
So he put her in the bathtub
So all the whales could play.

There's a hippo on my head.
There's a hippo on my head.
I know it sounds crazy,
'Cause I should be dead.
But it's been that kind of morning,
There's a circus on the lawn.
There's a hippo on my head.
Something funny's going on.

Mom thought that I was fooling,
Telling stories again,
But she'll wake up on a whale
That just went down the drain.
(bye)


song 13
If You Love A Hippopotamus
By Bethie (lyrics transcribed by BeccaPot)

[Chorus]
If you love a Hippopotamus
And you love her a-lotamus
She will be your friend
And that can be mighty handy now and then
If you’re stuck outside 
And the door to the house won’t budge 
Your friend the Hippo will lean on it 
And give it that extra nudge 
(ahhhh)

[Chorus]

If you really want a cookie 
(I wanna cookie) 
But it’s too high on the shelf 
(too high) 
You can climb on the back of a Hippopotamus 
And get one for yourself 
(and one for her too)

[Chorus]

Instrumental….

If you’re put to bed 
And you find that you just can’t sleep 
Your friend the Hippopotamus into your room will creep
She’ll sing you a lullaby
Till you begin to snore
Then she’ll tiptoe out hippopotamusly and shut the door

[Chorus]


song 14
Hey Daddy (There's a Hippo in the Tub)

transcribed by Raul Trejo (Rulopotamo) & Sue Shefman


Hey, Daddy, there's a dragon in the driveway.
Momma, there's a grizzly on the lawn.
You better come quick-there's a hippo in the bathtub,
And it's going down the drain. Oh, no! it's gone.

Well, the minds of little children,
They go round and round and round,
Hearing giant's footsteps,
When I never hear a sound.

I just hear:
Hey, Daddy, there's a dragon in the driveway.
Momma, there's a grizzly on the lawn.
You better come quick-there's a hippo in the bathtub,
And it's going down the drain. Oh, no! it's gone.

Well, you never know if they really saw
All the things they have you believe.
But if there's dragons in this neighborhood
Then we're going to leave.

Hey, Daddy, there's a dragon in the driveway.
Momma, there's a grizzly on the lawn.
You better come quick-there's a hippo in the bathtub,
And it's going down the drain. Oh, no! it's gone.

And it's going down the drain. Oh, no! it's gone.


song 15
Flight of the Cosmic Hippo

Bela Flek and the Flektones
Guitar Tablature by Rulopotamo

Explanation:
The lines 4|--------| represent the guitar strings (in this example, this is the 4th string. A number in the line means to pluck that string while pressing the corresponding fret, so 4|---3----| means pluck the 4th string while pressing the 3rd fret. A 0 means to pluck a free string.

Additional instructions:
h - hammer finger
r - release finger
> - slide finger

You can tell time by the separation of the numbers (OK, this is not exact science).

6|----------------------------|--------------------------------|
5|----------------------------|--------------------------------|
4|----------------------------|--------------------------------|
3|----------------------------|--------------------------------|
2|----------------2-h-5-2>4---|------------2>5-----------------|
1|----4-r-0----2--------------|----4-r-0-2-------4-r-0-2-------|

6|------------------------------------------------------------|
5|------------------------------------------------------------|
4|------------------------------------------------------------|
3|------------------------------------------------------------|
2|------------------------------------------------------------|
1|----7>9-r-7----4>5-r-4---2>3-r-2----------------------------|


song 16

What if Hippos Danced Ballet?

(transcribed by Sue Shefman)

What if hippos danced ballet?
In a tutu big and pink?
Would they like to spin and twirl again,
Maybe skate upon a rink?

Would they have their friends for tea?
Like they do down in the South?
But then when they grin
You might fall in-
It’s such a big old mouth.

If I were that big
I know what I would do -
I’d find a place out of the heat.
I’d find some cool water, a river or stream,
And float all day long and just dream...

Dream of hippos dancing ballet.
In a two ton pas de deux.
A real romance, a river dance
Of hippos two by two.

What if hippos danced ballet?
Oh, to move with such beauty and grace.
Do a pirouette up on my toes and show
I’m not just a pretty face.

If I were that big
I know what I would do -
I’d find a place out of the heat.
I’d find some cool water, a river or stream,
And float all day long and just dream...

Dream of hippos dancing ballet.
Oh, to move with such beauty and grace.
Do a pirouette up on my toes and show
I’m not just a pretty face.
I’m not just a pretty face.


song 17
Hula Dancing Hippo

(transcribed by Sue Shefman)

Oh, I’m a hula dancing hippo from Hawaii.
How I love to do the hula, it’s true
A hula, hula,
A hula, hula.
Yes, I’d love to do the hula for you.

Yes, I’m a happy little hippo from Hawaii,
And H is my letter, you see.
A hula, hula,
A hula, hula.
Won’t you come and do the hula with me.

Just sway your hips, let them glide
Now from side to side.
A hula, hula,
A hula, hula.

Move your fingers and hands
Over golden sands.
A hula, hula,
A hula, hula.

Now move your hips, let them sway,
In a gentle way.
A hula, hula,
A hula, hula.

And now your hands, let them talk
As they gently walk.
A hula, hula,
A hula, hula.

Oh, I’m a happy little hippo from Hawaii,
And H is my letter, you see.
A hula, hula,
A hula, hula.

How I’d love to do the hula -
Nothing could be “coola”
Than to have you do the hula with me.
Aloha.


song 18
My Baby Hippo
by Elizabeth McMahon (lyrics transcribed by Ruth Davis)

Oh Mom - did you hear that noise?
Why yes! It came from my bedroom
Oh well, it's just my baby hippo snoring
From underneath my bed - cuz that's where she sleeps

Oh yes! She came all the way from Africa
I met her at a coloring contest
Oh yes! She wants to be an actress in the movies
So be quiet, she needs her rest!

Oh yes, she has good manners
With a "thank-you" and "you're welcome" at the right times
What's that? It's just my baby hippo vacuuming
From in between her toes - She's funny that way

(chorus)

Oh yes, she'll ride the school bus with me
She knows how to add and subtract
What's that? It's just my baby hippo dancing
In her pink toe shoes - she likes to twirl

(chorus)

Oh yes, She likes to run and play tag
She's good at basketball and tennis too
What's that? It's just my baby hippo yodeling
From her bubble bath - She thinks she's a mermaid

(chorus)

Oh Mom, please get some pizza for us
With lots of little fishies on the top
What's that? It's just my baby hippo jumping
On her trampoline - She's workin' on a back flip

(chorus)

Uh oh, she's in the hammock!
She's not supposed to be in there
Oh no, she's swinging in the hammock!...
So be quiet, she needs her rest


song 19
Hippo And The Canary, Part 2

(lyrics transcribed by Ramon Valencia)

The canary always loved to sing.
She flew off to do her thing.
She joined the circus and became a star.
She went to parties, rode the rails,
Wined and dined and drank cocktails,
And did what famous canaries do.

Well, the hippo mostly spent his days
In hippos ways:
Sleeping, lying in the mud,
Hangin' around, and lots of dreamin'
'Til one day the news came in:
The circus was coming to town.

He didn't see her there.
He was finally on his toes.
There was a time that she loved him.
Time's the thing that always goes.

Well, he got himself all fancily dressed
And then fought his way through the press
'Til he found his little yellow ex-lover.
"Hello, Canary. How do you do?"
"Oh, I'm fine, Hippo. How are you?"
"Fine," he said. "Um, can I ask you a favor?"

Now, everybody knows the hippo loved to dance,
So he said to his ex-romance,
"Do you think that you could get me an audition?"
And she said, "Uh, hippo, yes, I could."
She decided she would.
She had a little apprehension.

He didn't see her there.
He was finally on his toes.
There was a time that she loved him.
Time's the thing that always goes.

Well, the day came. The ringmaster stared:
A full-grown hippo standing there
Wearing a tutu and ballet slippers.
The hippo began his dance.
The tent shook, and so did the stands.
Backstage, the canary hit the bottle.

Well, she had a few and stumbled out
To watch the hippo dance about,
But then she tripped. She fell down in the ring.
She was drunk beyond cognition.
The hippo, engaged in his audition,
Didn't notice her there.

He didn't see her there.
He was finally on his toes.
There was a time that she loved him.
Time's the thing that always goes.

Well, his foot came down,
Flattened that canary to the ground.
Nobody even heard a tweet.
First it made the hippo sad,
Then it made the hippo mad.
He tore those ballet slippers off his feet.

Yes, he ... he tore that circus from limb to limb,
Used all the anger buried in him,
And then he just lay down in vain.
The ringmaster had lost his star.
They buried her in a cookie jar,
And the hippo never loved again.

He didn't see her there.
He was finally on his toes.
There was a time that she loved him.
Time's the thing that always goes.

Having had some trouble with the Mob,
The ringmaster gave the hippo a job
As a bodyguard.
(Folks, that's the end. Stay tuned for Part 3.)


song 20
I Want a Hippopotamus For Christmas
-- writing credits go to John Rox, copyright 1950.

"I want a hippopotamus for Christmas
Only a hippopotamus will do
I don't want a doll, no dinkey tinker toys
I want a hippopotamus to play with and enjoy

I want a hippopotamus for Christmas
I don't think Santa Claus will mind, do you?
He won't have to use a dirty chimney flue
Just bring him through the front door
That's the easy thing to do

I can see me now on Christmas morning
Creeping down the stairs
Oh what joy, what surprise
When I open up my eyes
To see a hippo hero standing there

I want a hippopotamus for Christmas
Only a hippopotamus will do
No crocodiles, no rhinosaurus
I only likes hippopotamuses [sic]
And hippopotamuses [sic] like me, too

Mom says a hippo would eat me up, but then
Teacher says a hippo is a vegetarian
There's lots of room for him in our two-car garage
I'd feed him there and wash him there and give him his massage."

 


song 21
There's A Hippo in my Tub

(transcribed by Sandy Davis)

There's a hippo in my tub singing in the shower.
She's having such a jolly time she'll be in there least an hour.
The bathrooms filled with bubbles so that I can barely see
but I'm sure there's a hippo in my and there's no room left for me.

I guess your wondering why I'm here outside the bathroom door.
I know I'm still as dirty as can be
but peeking through the bubbles I blink my eyes to see
to see that peeking through the bubbles two eyes blink back at me.

There's a penguin in my tub wearing a tuxedo.
he's swimming under water cause he thinks he's a torpedo.
The waters full of icebergs and frosty as can be
and I' m sure there's a penguin in that tub and its just to cold for me.

I guess your wondering why I 'm here outside the bathroom door.
I know I'm still as dirty as can be
but peeking through the bubbles I blink my eyes to see that peeking
through the bubbles
two eyes blink back at me.

There's a Crocodile in my tub lounging in the water
He's asking me to join him - but I don't think that I oughta
He ate the soap and sponge and swallowed them with glee
and I'm sure there's a Crocodile in my tub look he making room for me.
and I'm sure there's a Crocodile in my tub look he's making room for me


song 22
Deepest Africa
(lyrics transcribed by Sue Shefman)

I was in deepest Africa,
Yes I was, yes I was.
I was in deepest Africa,
Teaching elephants to dance.

Don't look askance for elephants
love to sing & dance
in their fancy hot pants.
I was in deepest Africa,
Teaching elephants to dance.

I was in deepest Africa,
Yes I was, yes I was.
I was in deepest Africa,
Watching a toucan cancan.

When in Sudan a toucan can
cancan better than
any 10 toucans cancan.
I was in deepest Africa,
Watching a toucan cancan.

I was in deepest Africa,
Yes I was, yes I was.
I was in deepest Africa,
Teaching a gnu to knit.

Each stitch that gnu would knit
He would throw a fit
like a gnu knit-wit.
I was in deepest Africa,
Teaching a gnu to knit. (Knit 1, pearl 2; knit1, pearl 2)

I was in deepest Africa,
Yes I was, yes I was.
I was in deepest Africa,
Teaching a baboon to croon.

Each June that baboon croon
made the she baboon
loonier than moon loons. 
I was in deepest Africa,
Teaching a baboon to croon.

I was in deepest Africa,
Yes I was, yes I was.
I was in deepest Africa,
Teaching hippopotomi...to fly.

Don't sigh, look up in the sky
hippopotomi
will be flying by
I was in deepest Africa,
Teaching hippopotomi...to fly.


song 23
The Hippy Hippo
(lyrics transcribed by Ramon Valencia)


HIPPO: Hiya. I'm a hippopotamus ... the heaviest hippo in the whole jungle. One morning I turned on my radio, and I heard a man say ...

ANNOUNCER: (scolding) Look at yourself in the mirror. Are you getting too fat?

HIPPO: (self-conscious) Well, yeah ...

ANNOUNCER: Do you push people off the sidewalk when you walk by, hmm?

HIPPO: Yeah, sometimes ...

ANNOUNCER: But nobody likes a hefty hippo. You know you ought to exercise and diet, diet and exercise, exercise and diet, ...

HIPPO: Well, I figured the man was right. Maybe I WAS getting too fat. So ...

(singing)
For months I have been exercising
So I could lose some weight.
I lost the weight, and it wasn't surprising
'Cause I hardly ate.

I exercised one, two, three, four,
Rolled on my tummy and slept on the floor,
Up and down and round and round,
So I wouldn't be as chubby as I was before.

Now I'm a happy hippo,
And it was worth the fuss.
My friends will be happy to see that I am
A skinny hippopotamus.

(speaking) So I quickly put on my tiny new bathing suit and went to the beach.

[Traveling music]

HIPPO: (cheerful) Hi, Ossie Elephant. Hey, how do you like my new bathing suit?

ELEPHANT: (cheerful) Hello, Hippo. Hmmm ...

[Music: sour note]

ELEPHANT: (disapproving) What happened to you? You look awful.
You're so frail.
Your face is pale.
Why, you're thin as a rail.
Have a sandwich.

HIPPO: (defensive) No, thank you. See, I'm on a diet ...

ELEPHANT: (coaxing) Come on, eat it.

HIPPO: (giving in) Well, just one. Mmm, mmm, yum. Oh, uh, there's Zeebie the zebra. Hiya, Zeeb!

ZEBRA: Hiya, Hippo. Hmmm ....

[Music: sour note]

ZEBRA: (disapproving) What happened to you? You look awful.
You're so frail.
Your face is pale.
Why, you're thin as a rail.
Have a candy bar.

HIPPO: (defensive) No, I ... I really couldn't ... (giving in) Well, just a snip.

ZEBRA: We'll have to fatten you up again. Have a malted milk.

HIPPO: Well, just a sip. (gulps)

ZEBRA: And a hamburger.

HIPPO: Just a bite.

ZEBRA: Try some whipped cream cake.

HIPPO: Well, all right.

[Sound of cloth ripping]

HIPPO: (disappointed) Now look what you made me do. I ate so much I ripped my new little bathing suit.

ZEBRA: That's fine. Now you have more room for your food. Who ever heard of a skinny hippo? Have more peanuts ... more hamburgers ... more chocolate. You're looking better already. Hey, here come your hips again.

[Sound effect: Ptt! Ptt!]

HIPPO: (happy) Gee ...

(singing)
Now I'm a happy hippo.
Come take a look at me.
I'm full of pep and zippo.
I'm a very hippy hippo,
And that's how every happy hippopotamus should be!


song 24
Hipposong
Al Stewart (lyrics transcribed by Ramon Valencia)

I was surrounded by a large hippopotamus
And nine of his friends, who declared, "Quite a lot of us
Are feeling rather blue,
And we don't know what to do."

I turned away, but the large hippopotamus
Said that his pit of despair appeared bottomless,
Yet hippopotami
Are not supposed to cry.

I said, "My, my!
Other people's problems do get tedious, by and by.
My, my!
You can never solve them, oh, no matter how hard you try."

This brought a tear from the large hippopotamus,
Who said in a voice that was growing monotonous,
"You cannot get the sense
Of how it feels to be immense.

"The sleek and the slim make fun of the lot of us,
And creatures who fly through the air sit on top of us.
Even in the pool
We're faced with ridicule."

I said, "My, my!
Other people's problems do get tedious, by and by.
My, my!
You can never solve them, oh, no matter how hard you try."

I came back as a large hippopotamus ...


song 25
Hippo Hop

(transcribed by Sue Shefman)

I have a friend
Who just brought back from France
A way to spend her leisure - it's a dance.
She said listen to all you're missin'.

Whatever you're doing you can drop
Come and dance the Hippo Hop.
It's the latest and the greatest,
And I just can't stop.

Right after you hear the hippo roar,
Waddle up and down the floor.
It's entrancing to be dancing,
And I'm always wanting more.

You wiggle and wiggle to the left and the right.
You jump and bump as though you're having a fight.
You pretend that your pants are crawling with ants.
And that's how to have a hippo dance.

You ought to turn on some rock and pop.
Let your feet begin to flop.
Keep it snappy and be happy.
Let's do the Hippo Hop.

I watched my friend
Careen and twist and prance,
Until the end of that peculiar dance.
Once you view it, you have to do it.

Right after you hear the hippo roar,
Waddle up and down the floor.
It's entrancing to be dancing,
And I'm always wanting more.

You wiggle and wiggle to the left and the right.
You jump and bum as though you're having a fight.
You pretend that your pants are crawling with ants.
And that's how to have a hippo dance.

You ought to turn on some rock and pop.
Let your feet begin to flop.
Keep it snappy and be happy.
Let's do the Hippo Hop.


song 27
Look At The Hippo

(lyrics transcribed by Ramon Valencia)

Look at the hippo.
He's running around.
He is a hippo.
He's all over town.

Look at the hippo.
He is my friend.
He is a hippo,
And he'll never end.

Look ... at ... the hippo!
Look ... at ... the hippo!
Look ... at ... the hippo!
Look ... at ... the hippo!

Look at the hippo.
He's running around.
He is a hippo.
He's big, and he's brown.

Look at the hippo.
He is my friend.
I'll dance with the hippo
Again and again and again and again and again!

Look ... at ... the hippo!
Look ... at ... the hippo!
Look ... at ... the hippo!
Look ... at ... the hippo!

Look at the hippo.
He's running around.
He is a hippo.
He's all over town.

Look at the hippo.
He is my friend.
Here's to the hippo.
My sentiments again:

Look ... at ... the hippo!
Look ... at ... the hippo!
Look ... at ... the hippo!
Look ... at ... the hippo!

Look ... at ... the hippo!
Look ... at ... the hippo!
Look ... at ... the hippo!
Look ... at ... the hippo!


song 28
Hippo Encore

(transcribed by Sue Shefman)
(transcript updated by Paul Tait Dec 2005 -- Thx!)

This is some more news about our old friend the hippopotamus.

The amorous hippopotamus whose love song we know
Is now married and father of 10.
He murmurs God rot 'em as he watches them grow,
And he longs to be single again.

He'll gambol no more on the banks of the Nile
Which Nasser* is flooding next spring.
With hippopotamas, in silken pajamas,
No more will he teach them to sing:

Mud, mud, glorious mud.
Nothing quite like it for soothing the blood.
So follow me follow, down to the hollow,
And there let us wallow in glorious mud!

 

* Nasser - president of Egypt who caused a lot of upset when he had a dam built which involved flooding the surrounding area.