Alligator pie, alligator pie,
If I don't get some I think I'm gonna die.
Give away the green grass, give away the sky,
But don't give away my alligator pie.
Alligator stew, alligator stew,
If I don't get some I don't know what I'll do.
Give away my furry hat, give away my shoe,
But don't give away my alligator stew.
Alligator soup, alligator soup,
If I don't get some I think I'm gonna droop.
Give away my hockey stick, give away my hoop,
But don't give away my alligator soup.
Though he'd previously been a "serious", "adult" poet with works such as
Civil Elegies, after the birth of his children (this volume is so dedicated,
for Kevin and Hilary) Canadian poet
Dennis Lee began composing silly and nonsense verse to entertain them. The poem Alligator Pie is merely one poem in the same-named 1974 collection, illustrated lavishly by
Frank Newfeld and winning the
Book of the Year for Children award from
the Association of Children's Librarians. Ken Setterington (
Children and Youth Advocate for Library Services, Toronto Public Library - a more distinguished commentator I cannot conceive of) claims that Alligator Pie was the work that "got Canadians interested in Canadian children's books," clearing the path for such successes as
Mordecai Richler's
Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang and
Robert Munsch's
The Paper Bag Princess, among others.
This essential (and très Canadian) volume of goofy verse includes the following poems:
...
"Alligator Pie" is apparently also the name of a shooter submitted to some drinks database by a big nobody by the name of Eileen Kennelly, inspired no doubt by the various and sundry reptilian concoctions in the poem:
Alligator Pie
1/4 oz. Bailey's Irish Cream
1/4 oz. Melon Liqueur
1/4 oz. Banana Liqueur
Whipped Cream
Shake over ice and strain into a shot glass.
Back to the Everything Bartender
...
Alligator Pie seems also to be the name of an obscure new Canadian quasi-swing band (see the lingering effects of children's literature on popular culture!) which recently released an album entitled Swing Hard, Speak Easy. Nothing more on them is known.