Nursery rhyme – “down by the river where the green grass grows…” Do you know of any other variations?

Question

I first heard this nursery rhyme while watching an episode from the fifth series (2003) of "Cold Feet," a Granada Television production in the UK. It occurred when Adam Williams (played by James Nesbitt) takes his baby son, Matthew, to a parent-and-baby singing circle. The words, as I remember them, are as follows:
"Down by the river where the green grass grows,
There sits XXX washing his clothes.
He sings, he sings, a song so sweet,
Crying to his playmates up and down the street."
The song seemed to be intended for group singing, with the same verse being repeated around the group like a game, using different members' names in place of "XXX." I remember it vividly because it’s probably the most absurd rhyme I’ve ever heard, and because of that, it’s also the most hilarious! The presentation of the song in "Cold Feet" was particularly amusing due to the seriousness with which the group's singing leader enforced the rules of this singing game. 
Do you know of any other variations of this rhyme?

Deondre Oberbrunner · Accepted Answer

Down by the river where the green grass grows

There sits ___ sweet as a rose

She sings, she sings, she she sings so sweet

Along came __ and kissed her on the cheek.

When I was a child we jumped rope to this rhyme,

Anonymous · Answer

Down by the river where the green grass grows
There sits Mary washing her clothes
She sings, she sings, she sings so sweet
And calls her friends all up and down the street
Susan O Susan please come to tea
Come next Saturday at half past three
Tea cakes, pancakes, all you see
O won’t we have a happy time at half past three!

Anonymous · Answer

Down by the river where the green grasss grows, there sat xxxx pretty as a rose. Along came xxxx, kissed her on the cheek. How many kisses did she get that week? 1,2,3,4,5,………………

Anonymous

Nursery rhyme – “down by the river where the green grass grows…” Do you know of any other variations?

3 Answers

AI-Powered Insights

Want to answer this question?

Categories

Tags

Related Questions