The Snake
Al Wilson Lyrics


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On her way to work one morning
Down the path alongside the lake
A tender-hearted woman saw a poor half-frozen snake
His pretty colored skin had been all frosted with the dew
"Oh well," she cried, "I'll take you in and I'll take care of you"
"Take me in, oh, tender woman (yes, come on in)
Take me in, for heaven's sake (yes, come on in)
Take me in, tender woman," sighed the snake

Now she wrapped him up all cozy in a coverture of silk
And laid him by the fireside with some honey and some milk
Now she hurried home from work that night, as soon she arrived
Now she found that pretty snake she'd taken in had been revived
"Take me in, oh, tender woman (yes, come on in)
Take me in, for heaven's sake (yes, come on in)
Take me in, tender woman," sighed the snake

Now she clutched him to her bosom, "You're so beautiful," she cried
"But if I hadn't brought you in by now you might have died"
Now she stroked his pretty skin again and then kissed and held him tight
But instead of saying thanks, that snake gave her a vicious bite (ooh)
"Take me in, oh, tender woman (yes, come on in)
Take me in, for heaven's sake (yes, come on in)
Take me in, tender woman," sighed the snake

"I saved you," cried that woman
"And you've bitten me, even why?
And you know your bite is poisonous and now I'm gonna die"
"Oh, shut up, silly woman," said that reptile with a grin
"Now you knew darn well I was a snake before you brought me in"
"Please take me in, oh, tender woman (yes, come on in)
Take me in, for heaven's sake (yes, come on in)
Take me in, tender woman," sighed the snake
Sighed the snake
Take me in tender woman
(Come on in you pretty snake, come on in)
Snake, snake (yeah, come on in you pretty snake)




Take me in, tender woman (come on in, yeah, yeah, yeah)
Snake (come on in yeah, yeah, yeah)

Overall Meaning

The song "The Snake" by Al Wilson tells the story of a tender-hearted woman who encounters a poor half-frozen snake on her way to work. Despite the snake's reputation as being dangerous, the woman takes it in and cares for it. She wraps it up in a cozy silk cover and feeds it honey and milk. When she returns from work, she discovers that the snake has been revived.


However, when the woman tries to show affection to the snake, it bites her viciously. Despite the woman’s plea that she saved the snake and that it has now fatally bitten her, the snake responds by reminding her that he always was a snake and that the woman knew he was a snake before she took him in.


The story is often interpreted as a cautionary tale about kindness and trust. It warns people that even the most vulnerable looking creatures can have a dangerous nature, and one should not be too quick to trust.


Some possible themes that can be derived from the lyrics include the consequences of being too trusting, the idea that our nature cannot be changed, and the concept that some individuals might lack gratitude for the help they receive.


Line by Line Meaning

On her way to work one morning
While on her way to work one morning


Down the path alongside the lake
Along the path that runs alongside the lake


A tender-hearted woman saw a poor half-frozen snake
The woman with a kind and compassionate heart saw a snake that was half-frozen and in poor shape


His pretty colored skin had been all frosted with the dew
The snake's beautiful colored skin was covered with frost and dew


"Oh well," she cried, "I'll take you in and I'll take care of you"
She exclaimed that she would take the snake with her and take care of it.


"Take me in, oh, tender woman (yes, come on in) Take me in, for heaven's sake (yes, come on in) Take me in, tender woman," sighed the snake
The snake requested the woman to take him in using a repeated three-line chorus.


Now she wrapped him up all cozy in a coverture of silk
She wrapped the snake in silk and made it comfortable.


And laid him by the fireside with some honey and some milk
She laid the snake comfortably beside the fireplace with some milk and honey.


Now she hurried home from work that night, as soon she arrived
The woman rushed home from work to check on the snake as soon as she arrived


Now she found that pretty snake she'd taken in had been revived
She discovered that the snake was now healthy and had regained its vitality.


"Take me in, oh, tender woman (yes, come on in) Take me in, for heaven's sake (yes, come on in) Take me in, tender woman," sighed the snake
The snake kept requesting to be taken in by the woman with the same repeated chorus.


Now she clutched him to her bosom, "You're so beautiful," she cried
She held the snake to her chest and remarked how beautiful it was.


"But if I hadn't brought you in by now you might have died"
She thought aloud that if she had not rescued the snake, it might have died.


Now she stroked his pretty skin again and then kissed and held him tight
She caressed the snake's pretty skin, hugged it tightly, and then gave it a kiss.


But instead of saying thanks, that snake gave her a vicious bite (ooh)
To her surprise, instead of showing gratitude, the snake bit her hard.


"Take me in, oh, tender woman (yes, come on in) Take me in, for heaven's sake (yes, come on in) Take me in, tender woman," sighed the snake
Again, the snake kept repeating its plea to be taken by the woman with the same chorus.


"I saved you," cried that woman
The woman yelled that she had rescued the snake.


"And you've bitten me, even why? And you know your bite is poisonous and now I'm gonna die"
She asked the snake why it had bitten her even though she had helped it, and she realized that the snake's bite was toxic and fatal.


"Oh, shut up, silly woman," said that reptile with a grin "Now you knew darn well I was a snake before you brought me in"
The snake replied with a grin, telling the woman that she knew it was a snake when she brought it in and she should have been more cautious.


"Please take me in, oh, tender woman (yes, come on in) Take me in, for heaven's sake (yes, come on in) Take me in, tender woman," sighed the snake
Finally, the snake repeated its plea to be taken in by the woman with the same chorus.


Sighed the snake
The snake sighed.


Take me in tender woman (Come on in you pretty snake, come on in) Snake, snake (yeah, come on in you pretty snake) Take me in, tender woman (come on in, yeah, yeah, yeah) Snake (come on in yeah, yeah, yeah)
The snake's pleading chorus with the same words was repeated multiple times as the song ends.




Lyrics Β© Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Oscar Brown Jr.

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Most interesting comments from YouTube:

@sebastianozezza6716

On her way to work one morning
Down the path alongside the lake
A tender-hearted woman saw a poor half-frozen snake
His pretty colored skin had been all frosted with the dew
"Oh well, " she cried, "I'll take you in and I'll take care of you"
"Take me in, oh, tender woman (yes, come on in)
Take me in, for heaven's sake (yes, come on in)
Take me in, tender woman, " sighed the snake
Now she wrapped him up all cozy in a coverture of silk
And laid him by the fireside with some honey and some milk
Now she hurried home from work that night, as soon she arrived
Now she found that pretty snake she'd taken in had been revived
"Take me in, oh, tender woman (yes, come on in)
Take me in, for heaven's sake (yes, come on in)
Take me in, tender woman, " sighed the snake
Now she clutched him to her bosom, "You're so beautiful, " she cried
"But if I hadn't brought you in by now you might have died"
Now she stroked his pretty skin again and then kissed and held him tight
But instead of saying thanks, that snake gave her a vicious bite (ooh)
"Take me in, oh, tender woman (yes, come on in)
Take me in, for heaven's sake (yes, come on in)
Take me in, tender woman, " sighed the snake
"I saved you, " cried that woman
"And you've bitten me, even why?
And you know your bite is poisonous and now I'm gonna die"
"Oh, shut up, silly woman, " said that reptile with a grin
"Now you knew darn well I was a snake before you brought me in"
"Please take me in, oh, tender woman (yes, come on in)
Take me in, for heaven's sake (yes, come on in)
Take me in, tender woman, " sighed the snake
Sighed the snake
Take me in tender woman
(Come on in you pretty snake, come on in)
Snake, snake (yeah, come on in you pretty snake)
Take me in, tender woman (come on in, yeah, yeah, yeah)
Snake (come on in yeah, yeah, yeah)



@k333nya

~LYRICS~

On her way to work one morning
Down the path along side the lake
A tender hearted woman saw a poor half frozen snake
His pretty colored skin had been all frosted with the dew
"Oh well," she cried, "I'll take you in and I'll take care of you"
"Take me in oh tender woman (come on in)
Take me in, for heaven's sake (come on in)
Take me in, for heaven's sake
Take me in tender woman," sighed the snake

She wrapped him up all cozy in a curvature of silk
And then laid him by the fireside with some honey and some milk
Now she hurried home from work that night as soon as she arrived
She found that pretty snake she'd taking in had been revived
"Take me in, oh tender woman (come on in)
Take me in, for heaven's sake (come on in)
Take me in tender woman," sighed the snake

Now she clutched him to her bosom, "You're so beautiful," she cried
"But if I hadn't brought you in by now you might have died"
Now she stroked his pretty skin again and then kissed and held him tight
But instead of saying thanks, that snake gave her a vicious bite (oh...)
"Take me in, oh tender woman (come on in)
Take me in, for heaven's sake (come on in)
Take me in tender woman," sighed the snake

"I saved you," cried that woman
"And you've bit me even, why?
And you know your bite is poisonous and now I'm gonna die"
"Oh shut up, silly woman," said the reptile with a grin
"You knew damn well I was a snake before you brought me in
"Please take me in, oh tender woman (come on in)
Take me in, for heaven's sake (come on in)
Take me in tender woman," sighed the snake
Sighed the snake
"Take me in, tender woman"
Sighed the snake, sighed the snake
"Take me in, tender woman"
Sighed the snake



All comments from YouTube:

@barbl8801

Thanks so much, love it, President Trump's SONG now , too, BLESS YOU AL WILSON...

@robertstine2182

SO fabulous and funny. "You knew damn well I was a snake before you brought me in!" A lesson for all of us.

@ravenaussie3760

Hello, profile picture twin.

@emmabamgboye9373

No one is ever more 'in love', than when they're broke or homeless

@connie44533

Right!

@kasarabian3274

Appropriate reference to the MAGA innocents, eh? We all know who the snake is.

@Prehab224

Always loved this song. β€˜You knew darn well I was a snake before you brought me in.’ Awesome commentary on human nature.

@tanyawebber8867

Great Northern soul track ❀

@louceelou4094

I love this song! My mom would blast Northern soul in her car and the once she picked me up from junior school with the snake on. The headmaster who was standing at the gate had the biggest smile on his face when she pulled up and started to dance a little. I will never forget that.. One of the best song's.

@talyman589

I'm 55 and only just discovered this great song and the rest of Al's songs

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