Here are a few fascinating facts about the one eyed purple guy’s genesis:

Writer and performer Sheb Wooley was an interesting guy -- Raised on a farm in Erick, Oklahoma, his first careers were cowboy and rodeo rider, followed by welding work for the local oil industry.  But his heart was in music and from high school on he always had a country and western band.

In 1946, he moved to Ft. Worth, Texas to pursue his career as a musician on a local radio show.  Plowing his earnings into acting lessons soon led to success as an actor in Western movies and TV Shows.  You can see Sheb in “High Noon”, “The Cisco Kid”, and “Rawhide”.  His last film, his 40^th, was the 1986 double-Oscar nominated “Hoosiers”.

Sheb was known for his quirky sense of humor and having a flair for parody.  By all accounts, he was a fun guy.  He married a young lady, Melva Miller, from his home town whose family had take in a cousin, Roger.  The same Roger Miller who wrote another major novelty hit, “Dang Me” and the classic “Trailer for Sale or Rent”.  Two hardworking farm boys from Erick, OK made a major impression on Nashville, Hollywood and popular culture – A true American success story, but I digress.

Let’s look at what was happening in music and movies at the time “Purple People Eater” was written.  The late 1950’s were a time of over-the-top Sci Fi Films that were almost as much fun as they were scary;  movies like “Invasion of the Body Snatchers”, “Attack of the 50 Foot Woman”, “The Blob”, and “Godzilla” -- Gotta love those titles.

It was the era of rock and roll novelty songs like “Short Shorts”, “Yakety Yak”, “Splish Splash” and “The Witch Doctor”.  Little Richard and Chuck Berry were topping the chart with R & B tinged rock and roll with a good time feel. 

"Purple People Eater" from Kidsongs Music Video Story "Very Silly Songs" and The Kidsongs TV Show "Let's Learn About Animals".  these titles are also available for Download.

“Purple People Eater” is the happy combination of all of these elements.  Like many popular novelty songs it has a memorable title and a silly premise.  Sheb wrote a catchy melody, added a prominent sax solo and a rockin’ beat.  He added witty lyrics to parody the popular Sci Fi movies of the day, giving the starring role to a friendly “Purple People Eater” who liked short shorts and rock roll, added some sped up vocals a la the Chipmunks and -- Voila! -- A hit was born. 

So is “Purple People Eater” a cleverly crafted pop song incorporating all things 1958?  Or was it something else?  When asked about it, Sheb said, “A friend of mine told me his son had come home from school with a joke:  ‘What has one eye, one horn, flies and eats people?  A flying Purple People Eater!’  I wrote the song in a matter of minutes – Just dashed it off as a sort of afterthought.”

Sheb might have been joking with his response.  Either way, the song has made a lot of people happy and has tons of long-lasting “kid appeal”.  That’s why we’ve included “Purple People Eater” in our Kidsongs catalog.  Take a peek at our version from the aptly titled “Very Silly Songs” and rock it out with your little ones.

To see the complete lyrics, click here.

Check back often for more blog articles from this series, “Kidsongs Guide to Children’s Songs”.  Learn the history, fun facts and some behind-the-scenes stories about everyone’s favorite songs.

“The Petting Zoo” is another very popular song about baby animals.  This one is very interactive, so encourage your kids to get up and moving and act it out.  Here's a sampling of the lyrics:

At the petting zoo
There is a little bunny rabbit
At the petting zoo
There is a little bunny rabbit
The bunny- likes to hop, hop, hop
The bunny- likes to hop, hop, hop

That’s your cue…get hopping!  Once you get through all of the animals in the song, encourage your child to add their own verses paired with their favorite animal's actions to keep the activity going.

And let’s not forget a real oldie:  “How Much is That Doggie in the Window?”.  It’s a perennial favorite that spans generations. Just the idea of a little puppy in a shop window, wagging its tail, hoping to be taken home, is enough to hook most of us. It’s a song with a cute story that’s easy to turn into a simple play along game for you and your kids to enjoy.

Lots of our Kidsongs videos show the Kidsongs Kids doing simple choreography and hand movements designed to help develop our young viewer's coordination. The added attraction of adorable baby animals in the music videos that I’ve written about here, make an especially winning combination.  

Enjoy !

Enjoy the rest of summer and the memories that will your family will make together!

Start off with singing the song with your little ones and if they don't know it yet, teach them!  Singing together is a wonderful way to build a bond.  Next, grab some magazines and some safety scissors and have the kids look for pictures of farm animals.  Cut them out and paste them on 3"x 5" cards.

Have the children identify the sound each animal makes and write it on a card with a marker.  Play a game with the kids where you show them the card and they make the sound.  Since they have already learned from Old MacDonald that a cow goes "moo" and a pig goes "oink" they should be able to master this fairly quickly. 

When you have a short break, hide the cards in easy to find places and take the kids on a hunt to find them all.

Keep the cards for their next visit or send them home.  They will remember you every time they see them.