Songs: Elmer, The Happy Little Bottle Opener

notes / gigs / releases

Elmer the happy little bottle opener
Elmer the happy little bottle opener
Elmer the happy little bottle opener
Elmer the happy little bottle opener

Was it Champagne or a bottle of Chardonnay?
Tell me Elmer, what have you been opening today?

Elmer the happy little bottle opener
Elmer the happy little bottle opener
Elmer the happy little bottle opener
Elmer the happy little bottle opener

Was it a bottle of beer or some lovely Muscadet?
Tell me Elmer, what have you been opening today?

Elmer the happy little bottle opener
Elmer the happy little bottle opener
Elmer the happy little bottle opener
Elmer the happy little bottle opener

One day Elmer the happy bottle opener came home from work. He was very tired. "I am very tired" he said to his wife, Mrs Bottle Opener.

She asked, lovingly.

"Well Mrs Bottle Opener", he replied, for he always called her Mrs Bottle - it was one of their little jokes - "All day long I've been opening bottles of this, opening bottles of that. Quite frankly I'm absolutely bushed."

Said his wife.

"No", said Elmer, "Why is that?"

She laughed.

"You know, you might just be right," smiled Elmer. "I know, why don't we open up a bottle of our own, just to celebrate, together?"

Said his wife, and together they went upstairs.

Goodnight Elmer the happy little bottle opener, goodnight Mrs Bottle Opener. Goodnight everybody else.

Elmer the happy little bottle opener
Elmer the happy little bottle opener
Elmer the happy little bottle opener
Elmer the happy little bottle opener

Published by Wipe Out Music Publishing

The idea here was to do a children's telly theme tune, with a small story in the middle. As you can probably tell, I didn't spend an awfully long time on the story, though I was surprised to find, over ten years after releasing this song, that I'd missed out ALL of Mrs Bottle Opener's dialogue! I did record it, but it clearly fell off when I mixed it for the Shed Anthems Extras CD.

She basically said "You're a bottle opener and bottle opening is what you do", I think. It's not really a great loss to literature!

After I'd finished "The Perky Tape" we reformed Voon, and we played this song live a LOT. It was HUGE fun to do!