Bananas Are The Best
Banana, banana, bananas are the best
A nice squishy middle in a big yella vest
Today or manyana, ah'll be sayin ‘Can ah,
Can ah have a ba-na-na?’
What am ah goin to have for ma tea? Banana!
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday? Banana!
What's ma Sunday dinner goin to be? Banana!
Can ah have a ba-na-na?
You can slide down a tree on the skin - banana!
Wear it on your head for a hat - banana!
Try and use a cokey-nut for that - banana!
Can ah have a ba-na-na?
Fifty million monkeys can't be wrong - banana!
From totie wans tae Old King Kong - banana!
They all love to sing this song - banana!
'Can ah have a ba-na-na?'
It's perfect with ice cream - banana!
It's a banana dream - banana!
We're all going to SCREAM - banana!
Can ah have a ba-na-na?
Additional verses you can sing if you want to
You can stick it in your ear for a phone
Throw it tae yer dog for a bone
Give me a jungle of ma own
Can ah have a banana?
It's long and it's yella and it's bent
The taste is heaven sent
Don't waste your money on yer rent
Can ah have a banana?
This song is a big favourite with young people, who like to shout now and then.
The words of the song happened in a very surprising way.
In about 1964 Ewan McVicar was working in Nairobi, Kenya, and he heard a Swahili pop song that had this tune. Some of the words were:
Si ni lala, ne wapi banana? (When I am sleeping, where are bananas?)
Ata tembaya, ni wapi banana (And when I'm walking, where are bananas?)
Ata chakula, si wezi kula (And eating, when you are eating)
Kula na banana. (Eat bananas)
Then 20 years later, Ewan was working back in Scotland. One day he got a phone call from Artie Trezise of The Singing Kettle. They were working on a new album of songs and needed more material. Did Ewan have any new songs?
Ewan answered, 'No. I could write one, but what about?'
'Well, bananas are always funny,' said Artie.
Ewan remembered the Swahili pop song. And turned it into a Glesga (Glasgow) song.
'Manãna' is a Spanish word that means 'tomorrow'.
Many school classes have made new verses for this song with Ewan and other singers.
