Mockin’ Bird Hill

Today’s a rainy, windy day here in Winnipeg, Canada (hey, it’s better than another spring snowstorm!), so it’s a perfect day to curl up with some comfort music.

I’ve often shared songs that I heard during my childhood. And when I think of that time, an artist that comes to mind so often is the American folk singer, musician, author and actor Burl Ives (1909-1995).

Ives’ career spanned from 1929 to 1993, and his list of recordings, books and films is immense. Among my favourite songs of his are “Little White Duck,” “A Holly Jolly Christmas,” and today’s selection, “Mockin’ Bird Hill.” Many years after his death, some of his Christmas recordings still appear on the Billboard magazine holiday charts.

Ives appeared to be a big man, and I always felt in awe of his gentle presence, though I only knew him through his voice on the record player or occasional sightings on TV specials. Interestingly, many songs he sang were under three minutes, and a few were shorter than that; many were traditional folk songs.

“Mockin’ Bird Hill” was based on a Swedish waltz, “Livet i Finnskogarna” (Life in the Finn Woods), which Swedish accordionist Calle Jularbo (1893-1966) recorded in 1915. Jularbo then co-wrote “Mockin’ Bird Hill” with lyrics by American songwriter and performer George Vaughn Horton (1911-1988).

“When the sun in the morning peeps over the hill
And kisses the roses ’round my window sill
Then my heart fills with gladness when I hear the trill
Of the birds in the treetops on Mockingbird Hill

Tra la la, tweedle dee dee dee
It gives me a thrill
To wake up in the morning
To the mockingbird’s trill
Tra la la tweedle dee dee dee
There’s peace and good will
You’re welcome as the flowers
On Mockingbird Hill

Got a three-cornered plow and an acre to till
And a mule that I bought for a ten-dollar bill
There’s a tumble-down shack and a rusty old mill
But it’s my Home Sweet Home up on Mockingbird Hill

Tra la la, tweedle dee dee dee
It gives me a thrill
To wake up in the morning
To the mockingbird’s trill
Tra la la tweedle dee dee dee
There’s peace and good will
You’re welcome as the flowers
On Mockingbird Hill

When it’s late in the evening I climb up the hill
And survey all my kingdom while everything’s still
Only me and the sky and an old whippoorwill
Singin’ songs in the twilight on Mockingbird Hill

Tra la la, tweedle dee dee dee
It gives me a thrill
To wake up in the morning
To the mockingbird’s trill
Tra la la tweedle dee dee dee
There’s peace and good will
You’re welcome as the flowers
On Mockingbird Hill”

“Mockin’ Bird Hill,” by Calle Jularbo and George Vaughn Horton.
Lyrics retrieved from AZLyrics.com.

The song appears on Ives’ 1961 album, The Versatile Burl Ives! Another famous version of the song was the 1951 single by American singer and actress Patti Page (1927-2013).

Now you know a little about why this is my Song of the Day for Today. Thanks for joining me here.

Here is the audio from the Burl Ives YouTube topic channel:

With warm wishes,

Steve