Tom, Tom, the Piper's Son
Tom steals a pig and plays his pipe until the whole world dances
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Arrangement: Ian J. Watts / Mike Wilbury · Singalongasong Band / ClassicRocks
Lyrics
Tom, Tom, the piper's son,
Stole a pig and away he'd run;
The pig was eat and Tom was beat,
And Tom ran howling down the street.
Tom with his pipe made such a noise
That he pleased both the girls and boys,
And they all stopped to hear him play,
"Over the hills and far away."
Tom with his pipe he played with such skill
That those who heard him could never keep still;
As soon as he played they began for to dance,
The pigs on their hind legs would after him prance.
As Dolly was milking her cow one day,
Tom took his pipe and began to play;
So Dolly and the cow danced "The Cheshire Round,"
Till the pail was broken and the milk ran on the ground.
He met old Dame Trot with a basket of eggs,
He used his pipe and she used her legs;
She danced about till the eggs were all broke,
She began for to fret, but he laughed at the joke.
Tom, Tom, he was a piper's son,
He learned to play when he was young;
The only tune that he could play
Was "Over the hills and far away."
Traditional lyrics — public domain. Arrangement © Singalongasong Band / ClassicRocks.
History & Background
History & Origin
"Tom, Tom, the Piper's Son" exists in two distinct forms: the shorter, better-known version in which Tom steals a pig and is beaten, and this longer ballad version in which Tom is a wandering piper whose music compels everyone to dance, including Dolly, her cow and old Dame Trot's eggs.
The shorter version was first published in 1728. The longer ballad, however, derives from an earlier seventeenth-century broadside tradition, and the melody used here is drawn from that earlier material. The song "Over the Hills and Far Away" — which Tom plays and which also gives the recording its title — is itself a traditional tune with a long history in English folk song and military music.
Tom emerges from this longer version as a more interesting figure than a simple pig thief: he is a musician of genuine power, whose playing cannot be resisted. Dolly's pail breaks, Dame Trot's eggs are broken, and everything ends in laughter. This rock arrangement captures Tom's irresistible energy perfectly.
