The Other Day I Met a Bear

"The Other Day I Met a Bear" (also known as "The Bear in the Forest" or "Bear in Tennis Shoes") is a traditional American camp song, sung as an echo song.

"The Other Day I Met a Bear"
Song
Written1919
GenreCamp song
Songwriter(s)Carey Morgan, Lee David

The music was composed in 1919 by Carey Morgan and Lee David to accompany lyrics for "Sipping Cider Through a Straw". A similar or related tune is used for "Princess Pat".

Lyrics
Sheet music with the “tennis shoes” variant lyrics, up to 3rd stanza.

The traditional lyrics are:

This is a Repeat After Me song!


The other day

I met a bear

Out in the woods

Oh way out there


He looked at me

I looked at him

He sized up me

I sized up him


He said to me

Why don't you run

I see you ain't

Got any gun


I said to him

That's a good idea

So come on feet

Away from here


And so I ran

Away from there

But right behind

Me was that bear


And then I see

Ahead of me

A great big tree

Oh, glory be!


The lowest branch

Was ten feet up

I'd have to jump

And trust my luck!


And so I jumped

Into the air

But I missed that branch

A way up there


Now don't you fret

Now don't you frown

'Cause I caught that branch

On the way back down


This is the end

There ain't no more

Until I meet

That bear once more[1]


Some versions also include the following lines after the last stanza:

And so I met

That bear once more,

Now he’s a rug

On my bedroom floor.


The "Bear in Tennis Shoes" version starts with the following lines:

The other day,

I met a bear,

In tennis shoes,

A dandy pair.

This version ends with:

The moral of,

This story is,

Don't talk to bears,

In tennis shoes.[2]

Other uses

"The Other Day I Met a Bear" is one of the songs sung by Barney the dinosaur on the 1990 children's video Campfire Sing-along except it was shortened to 4 stanzas instead of 10. On Barney & Friends, the tune was used for The Exercise Song. The 2007 album For the Kids Three! includes a version of the song by Barenaked Ladies.[3]

In Japanese, the song is known as "Mori no Kuma-san" (森のくまさん or 森の熊さん), with lyrics written by Yoshihiro Baba. It is on the soundtrack to the film version of Ranma ½ (1989) and an instrumental version is used frequently in the Family Stadium video game series.

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References
  1. "The Other Day, I Met a Bear Lyrics". Scout Songs. Retrieved 2019-08-07.
  2. "A Bear in Tennis Shoes Lyrics". Scout Songs. Retrieved 2019-08-07.
  3. "For the Kids Three!". AllMusic.com. Retrieved 2015-03-23.
  • Lyrics from NIEHS, National Institute of Health.
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