TV Squad: The Five: Best Sesame Street songs

So TV Squad listed out their five favorite Sesame Street songs the other day. More precisely, contributing writer Adam Finley did in relation to Joe Raposo, Sesame Street composer.

In the spirit of Muppet-related discourse, I’m putting my own list below:

  1. It’s not easy being green
  2. Just plain classic Henson/Muppet/Sesame Street goodness.

  3. One two three four five six seven eight nine ten. Eleven Twelve.
  4. The pinball song. Simple, effective and catchy as hell. I had a high school math teacher use this song as an explanation of base 12 numbering. Don’t ask. I couldn’t explain it now anyhow.

  5. Theme from Teeny Little Super Guy
  6. Male Announcer: Ladies and Gentlemen, the Teeny Little Super Guy

    Female Singers:
    Teeny Little Super Guy
    Pops right up before your eye
    He’s no bigger than your thumb

    Teeny Little Super Guy:
    Snap your fingers, here I come
    Now stop me if you’ve heard this one…

    Female Singers:
    Don’t look in the sky
    Don’t look in the sea
    He’s inside of you and me

    Teeny Little Super Guy:
    Did I ever tell you about the time?…

    Female Singers: You can’t tell a hero by his size

    All: I’m just a Teeny Little Super Guy

  7. C is for Cookie
  8. Beautifully simplistic.

  9. Ladybug Picnic
  10. One two three
    Four five six
    Seven eight nine
    Ten eleven twelve
    Ladybugs
    Came to the ladybugs’ picnic

    One two three
    Four five six
    Seven eight nine
    Ten eleven twelve
    And they all played games
    At the ladybugs’ picnic

    They had twelve sacks so they ran sack races
    And they fell on their backs and they fell on their faces
    The ladybugs 12
    At the ladybugs’ picnic

    They played jump rope but the rope it broke
    So they just sat around telling knock-knock jokes
    The ladybugs 12
    At the ladybugs’ picnic

    One two three
    Four five six
    Seven eight nine
    Ten eleven twelve
    And they chatted away
    At the ladybugs’ picnic

    They talked about the high price of furniture and rugs
    And fire insurance for ladybugs
    The ladybugs 12
    At the ladybugs’ picnic
    12!

    I must be a real sucker for the number twelve.

There’s my list. And yes, I realize there’s no Mahna Mahna (which I think of as a Muppet Show song). Feel free to agree, disagree, suggest or defend your own choices in the comments.

8 thoughts on “TV Squad: The Five: Best Sesame Street songs

  1. Shannon Ahern says:

    The Count’s “Batty Bat” song! The singing bats are so cute!

    ***

    Count: In old Transylvania, when I was a lad
    Our castle was poor, but we never were sad
    We learned to be happy!
    We’d dance ‘round the hall
    And learning to count was the key to it all
    By counting each count, I knew just where to start
    And one special step has stayed close to my heart

    [He begins to waltz about the room]

    One, two, three, spread out the cape
    One, two, three, twirl ‘round the floor
    One, two, three, left foot you swing
    One, two, three, then start to sing
    One, two, three, loud as you please!
    One, two, three, counting with ease!
    One, two, three, doing the batty bat!

    Bats: Batty, batty bat; batty bat; batty bat; batty bat!

    Count: One, two, three, count!

    Bats: Batty, batty bat; batty bat; batty bat; batty bat!

    Count: One, two, three, count!

    Bats: Batty, batty bat; batty bat; batty bat; batty bat!

    Count: One, two, three, count!
    Won’t you dance with me, doing the batty bat?

    [speaking] Ah, my happy childhood in the Carpathian mountains!

    [singing]

    So now, in my own castle, I can enjoy
    This wonderful dance that I learned as a boy
    I see just how wise was my whole family
    They taught me to count, and so now look at me!
    I’m counting and dancing, and I swear that it’s true
    If you do the same, you will be happy, too!

    [speaking] Come! We try again!

    [He resumes waltzing and singing]

    One, two, three, spread out the cape
    One, two, three, twirl ‘round the floor
    One, two, three, left foot you swing
    One, two, three, then start to sing
    One, two, three, loud as you please!
    One, two, three, counting with ease!
    One, two, three, doing the batty bat!

    Bats: Batty, batty bat; batty bat; batty bat; batty bat!

    Count: One, two, three, count!

    Bats: Batty, batty bat; batty bat; batty bat; batty bat!

    Count: One, two, three, count!

    Bats: Batty, batty bat; batty bat; batty bat; batty bat!

    Count: One, two, three, count!
    Won’t you dance with me, doing the batty bat?

  2. The ladybug’s picnic is indeed great–haven’t thought about that song in years. Another great favorite: “Lovely Eleven Morning”:

    It’s a lovely eleven morning
    I heard eleven worms yawning (yawn)
    I saw eleven cows sleeping ‘midst the buttercups
    I said, How’s the cottage cheese?
    And they said, Oh, dry up…

    Eleven little birdies in the trees
    Bright yellow beaks and pinky knees
    Eleven chicks hatching
    Eleven cats scratching
    Eleven’s the number for me

    Eleven ducklings, quacking,
    (quack-quack-quack)
    Eleven pigs, lip-smacking.
    One two three four five six
    Seven eight nine ten eleven
    Eleven’s the number for me
    Don’t you see?
    Eleven’s the number for me!

    (Then the cartoon shepherdess tumbles into a pigpen.)

  3. Crystal says:

    Perfect. Exactly the list I would have chosen. I was worried for a minute when I didn’t see Ladybug Picnic, but it was there. To this day, on any occasion I have to count to twelve, I do it to that beat.

  4. Momonja says:

    I don’t know if you guys still remember this but…

    there is this Sesame Street song which still haunts me to this day and I don’t know the title, but

    the clip shows pictures of a sunflower in a pot on an apartment window sill and there is an acoustic classical guitar playing in the background.

    and I don’t know the title, arrgh.

  5. SAN says:

    I don’t know the episode
    But it was like 25 yrs or more ago
    The scene was a sunflower on a flower pot
    sitting on the ledge of a balcony
    just after the rain.
    There is a solo nylon/classical guitar playing on the background

    Does anybody know the title of the song played?
    Any in fo is appreciated pls post the answer.

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