Beef tongue, fresh or brined, simmered with peppercorns and garlic, then sliced thin and piled between two slices of rye bread, is proof that manna actually existed. As a kid, I detested it. Watching my parents eat tongue not only turned my stomach; it made my own tongue itch. Now that my antipathy towards this best of deli meats has reversed itself, I find that tongue has been dropped from a surprising number of deli menus—as in Ottawa, where the incident that inspired this song took place.

So How Come You Don’t Have Tongue? 
© 2002 I. Sheldon Posen  Well Done Music  BMI

I was in a kosher deli, it was just the other day
When an old man called the waiter and I overheard him say
“I’m looking at the menu and the specials on the wall
“And I can’t find a thing to eat, ’cause there’s no tongue at all!”
You’ve got turkey and pastrami, you’ve got latkes and salami
You’ve got pickled peppers packed in jars and crocks
You’ve got gribines and knishes, and a zillion kinds of fishes
(I see whitefish, sable, cisco, carp, and lox)
You’ve got vursht-and-eggs and knakers fressed by all the alte kakers
You’ve got kishka, helzl, fricassee, and lung
You’ve got gefilte fish and khreyn, you’ve got seltzer (“two cents plain”)
So how come you don’t have tongue? 

I looked the menu over and I saw that he was right
There was not a single reference to any “tongue” in sight
And just like him I’d always thought, of deli it was king
So, khalishing for tongue on rye, I too began to sing:
You’ve got coleslaw and dill pickle, you’ve got rye and pumpernickel
You’ve got jars of prunes that always get results 
You’ve got smoked meat by the platter that you trim up lean or fatter
I get heartburn just imagining the shmaltz
You’ve got kneydelakh and kugel for the spendthrift and the frugal
You’ve got khalaptches whose praise is widely sung
And by all accounts it’s true-ish that deli-wise, you’re Jewish 
So how come you don’t have tongue?

By now the other customers had turned their heads our way
And listened to our plea for deli justice and fair play
Then all for one and one for all they rallied to our cause
And so we sang our song again to thunderous applause:
You’ve got corned beef on the slicer and it couldn’t be much nicer
You’ve got kreplakh that’ll make a tasty snack
You’ve got miltz and pickled herring, and ptcha (now that is daring)
And chopped liver that’s an instant heart attack
You’ve got tcholent, meat or parev, so that no one they should “stareve”
You’ve got waiters who were old when they were young
You’ve got borshtch and matzabray and every kind of khazeray—
So how come you don’t have tongue?

Manna

So How Come You Don't Have Tongue

Ridge (Demo)

Midnight

07 Last

06 Drain

04 Substance

02 Zero Gravity

01 Intro

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Beat Credit: VITALS xJabariOnTheBeat

One Way RustyXShank

song i found from 2010 featuring alan ransom on drums, rythym and lead guitar

Doomtrain 2010 with Alan Ransom (AlleyCat)

Eaten by Tigers(Don Lewis)

Ridge (Demo)

Alan Ransom (AlleyCat)

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