Shortnin' Bread

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"Shortnin' Bread" (also spelled "Shortenin' Bread" or "Short'nin' Bread") (Roud 4209) is a traditional Negro plantation song about shortbread. Its chorus goes:

Mama's little baby loves short'nin', short'nin',

Mama's little baby loves short'nin' bread

The singer steals the skillet and the bread to make for her children, and ends up in jail. According to the Columbia State University website, the earliest known reference is from 1915. Gid Tanner and the singer Lawrence Tibbett recorded popular versions of the song. Another version was featured in the 1937 film Maytime.

[edit] More recent versions

The song was recorded by the American pop band The Beach Boys. It was released on their 1979 album L.A. (Light Album).

A later version was recorded by the country rock band The Tractors, on their 1998 album Farmers in a Changing World. Their version reached #57 on the Hot Country Songs chart. The Cramps have also made a cover of this song, featured on the Stay Sick album.

[edit] Cultural references

Donald Duck sings the song while making pancakes in the 1948 animated short Three for Breakfast.
In the film Police Academy 4, the character Captain Harris is seen singing the song into his cane.
In the Season 4 I Love Lucy episode "Ethel's Home Town", Ethel Mertz performs the song onstage.
At the end of a The Fresh Prince of Bel Air episode, Will is seen singing the song while scrubbing the floor with his cousin as the end credits roll.