"Tico-Tico no fubá" (; "rufous-collared sparrow in the cornmeal") is a Brazilian choro written by Zequinha de Abreu in 1917. Its original title was "Tico-Tico no farelo" ("sparrow in the bran"), but since Brazilian guitarist Américo Jacomino "Canhoto" (1889âÂÂ1928) had a work with the same title, Abreu's work was given its present name in 1931, and sometime afterward Aloysio de Oliveira wrote the Portuguese lyrics to the instrumental original.
Outside Brazil, the song reached its peak popularity in the 1940s, with successful recordings by Ethel Smith, The Andrews Sisters (with English-language lyrics by Ervin Drake), Carmen Miranda, Alys Robi, and others.
The first recording of the work was made by Orquestra Colbaz (Columbia 22029, 1931).
Ethel Smith performed it on the Hammond organ in the MGM film Bathing Beauty (1944), after which her recording reached the U.S. pop charts in November 1944, peaked at No. 14 on 27 January 1945, and sold nearly two million copies worldwide.
The song was recorded by The Andrews Sisters on 7 March 1944 and it briefly reached the charts.
Over the years, "Tico-Tico no Fubá" has been reinterpreted by numerous artists across various musical styles. Notable arrangements and performances include:
In Quebec, the song has been used for several decades in commercials for Sico paint.
In the Mama's Family season three episode "An Ill Wind", an intoxicated Iola briefly sings the song's chorus before passing out onto a bed.
The song can be heard on various episodes of the Belgian Kabouter Wesley cartoon.
In the ' season one episode "El Padrino", the orchestral version of the song is played by a band during a reception.
This song was often performed by the Grateful Dead during their tuning jams between songs. It was also played as an instrumental by James Booker with the Jerry Garcia Band.
This song was used in Tom and Jerry in the episode "Muscle Beach Tom", where Tom's rival, Butch is seen dancing with a female cat.
This song was performed in the closing ceremony of the 2016 Summer Olympics.
This song was adapted to the 2016 video games Just Dance 2017 and Civilization VI.
This song was remixed with a baile funk melody during the opening of Brazilian pop singer Anitta's set for Rock in Rio Lisboa 2018.
A biographical movie about Zequinha de Abreu with the same title, Tico-Tico no Fubá was produced in 1952 by the Brazilian film studio Companhia Cinematográfica Vera Cruz, starring Anselmo Duarte as Abreu.
The title phrase also features in the lyrics to the song "O Pato" made famous by João Gilberto.
In the M*A*S*H* episode "Your Hit Parade", Father Mulcahy mentions that he requested "Tico Tico", but got "May the Good Lord Bless and Keep You" instead.