A Tisket A Tasket is a children’s lullaby that was originally published in the US in 1879. However, it wasn’t until jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald recorded it in 1938 that it enjoyed widespread popularity and became a household favorite.
The words “Tisket” and “Tasket” do not have any specific meaning and are just included in the lyrics to make up the rhyme and provide an easy set of words for children to remember.
Traditionally this rhyme was part of a game of kiss-chase. Children sit in a circle, with one child holding a handkerchief or scarf. They skip around the outside of the circle and drop the scarf. The closest child must pick it up and try to catch them. If caught, the child had to either receive a kiss, rejoin the circle or confess who they loved. A kiss on the top of the head was the reward for success.
A Tisket A Tasket Lyrics
A-tisket a-tasket
A green and yellow basket
I wrote a letter to my love
And on the way I dropped it
I dropped it, I dropped it
Yes, on the way I dropped it
A little girlie picked it up
And took it to the market
She was truckin’ on down the avenue
Without a single thing to do
She was peck, peck, peckin’ all around
When she spied it on the ground
A-tisket a-tasket
She took my yellow basket
And if she doesn’t bring it back
I think that I shall die
A-tisket a-tasket
A green and yellow basket
I wrote a letter to my love
And on the way I dropped it
I dropped it, I dropped it
Yes, on the way I dropped it
A little girlie picked it up
And took it to the market
(Was it red?) No, no, no, no
(Was it brown?) No, no, no, no
(Was it blue?) No, no, no, no
Just a little yellow baske
A Tisket A Tasket Music Sheet
