SodySpokes

According to Wikipedia:

“The Name Game,” or “The Banana Song”, is a children’s singalong rhyming game that creates variations on a person’s name. It was written by singer Shirley Ellis with Lincoln Chase

Ellis told Melody Maker magazine that the song was based on a game she played as a child.

Using the name Micah as an example, the song follows this pattern:

Micah, Micah, bo-bicah,
Banana-fana fo-ficah
Fee-fi-mo-icah
Micah!

A verse can be created for any name, with X as the name and X?1 as the name without the first consonant sound (if it begins with a consonant), as follows:

(X), (X), bo-b(X?1)
Banana-fana fo-f(X?1)
Fee-fi-mo-m(X?1)
X!

If the name starts with a vowel or vowel sound, the “b” “f” or “m” is inserted in front of the name.

And if the name starts with a b, f, or m, that sound simply is not repeated. (For example: Billy becomes “Billy Billy bo-illy”; Fred becomes “banana fana fo-red”; Marsha becomes “fee fi mo-arsha”.)

Playing the game with names such as Alice, Dallas, Tucker, Chuck, Buck, Huck, Bart, Art, Mitch, Rich, Richie, Maggie, or, in British English, Danny, results in profanity or crude language.

SHIRLEY ELLIS – The Name Game

The name game!

Shirley!
Shirley, Shirley bo Birley Bonana fanna fo Firley
Fee fy mo Mirley, Shirley!

Lincoln!
Lincoln, Lincoln bo Bincoln Bonana fanna fo Fincoln
Fee fy mo Mincoln, Lincoln!

Come on everybody!
I say now let’s play a game
I betcha I can make a rhyme out of anybody’s name
The first letter of the name, I treat it like it wasn’t there
But a B or an F or an M will appear
And then I say bo add a B then I say the name and Bonana fanna and a
fo
And then I say the name again with an F very plain
and a fee fy and a mo
And then I say the name again with an M this time
and there isn’t any name that I can’t rhyme

Arnold!
Arnold, Arnold bo Barnold Bonana fanna fo Farnold
Fee fy mo Marnold Arnold!

But if the first two letters are ever the same,
I drop them both and say the name like
Bob, Bob drop the B’s Bo ob
For Fred, Fred drop the F’s Fo red
For Mary, Mary drop the M’s Mo ary
That’s the only rule that is contrary.

Okay? Now say Bo: Bo
Now Tony with a B: Bony
Then Bonana fanna fo: bonana fanna fo
Then you say the name again with an F very plain: Fony
Then a fee fy and a mo: fee fy mo
Then you say the name again with an M this time: Mony
And there isn’t any name that you can’t rhyme

Every body do Tony!
Pretty good, let’s do Billy!
Very good, let’s do Marsha!
A little trick with Nick!
The name game

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