Genre Children's song Language English | Writer(s) Verna Hills | |
"The Wheels on the Bus" is an American folk song dating no later than 1939 written by Verna Hills. It is a popular children's song in the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia and Canada, and is often sung by children on bus trips to keep themselves amused. It has a very repetitive rhythm, making the song easy for a large number of people to sing, in a manner similar to the song "99 Bottles of Beer". It is based on fellow traditional British song "Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush". The song is also sometimes sung to the tune of "Buffalo Gals", as in the version done by Raffi.
The song is now very popular for children in several other languages.
Normally followed by "The wipers on the bus go swish swish swish" (with action), "the horn on the bus goes beep beep beep" and "the people on the bus go up and down" (with action).
Mad Donna's cover version
In 2002 British Madonna impersonator "Mad Donna" had a hit with the song, featuring a version of Madonna's "Ray of Light" over which the classic children's song was sung. The single reached #17 in the United Kingdom and also made the charts elsewhere in Europe.