55 Best Campfire Songs Ever: Family Friendly Guide (Lyrics, Kids, Books)
Ready for a sing-along? Here are the best campfire songs ever. They include classic, folk, modern, and kids. Plus our pick of the best kids campfire songs and 5 of the best campfire songbooks.
And you can even sing them all with your kids – they’re all family friendly – without alcohol, violence, or innuendo.
55 Best Campfire Songs Ever
In this post, you’ll find our picks for the best campfire songs of all time. Every song includes a lyric video and the opening words to get you started.
Let’s do this!
Jump to Kids Campfire Songs | Best Campfire Songs Books
42 Classic and Modern Campfire Songs
Here are all these campfire lyric songs in one playlist.
Okay, now on to the full list of individual campfire songs.
Campfire Song Song: Spongebob Squarepants
“I call this one, the campfire song song.
Let’s gather ’round the campfire, and sing our campfire song.
Our -c-a-m-p-f-i-r-e- -s-o-n-g- song.”
Perfect for adults and kids, let your tongue get tangled!
Lean on Me: Bill Withers
“Sometimes in our lives we all have pain
We all have sorrow
But if we are wise
We know that there’s always tomorrow”
Lean on Me was been covered by many artists, including, Mud, Al Jarreau, Michael Bolton, Bonnie Tyler, Anne Murray, and The Temptations.
Sweet Home Alabama: Lynyrd Skynyrd
“Big wheels keep on turning, Carry me home to see my kin”
A Horse With No Name: America
“I’ve been through the desert on a horse with no name, It felt good to be out of the rain.”
Yellow Submarine: The Beatles
“We all live in a yellow submarine, Yellow submarine, yellow submarine”
Take Me Home Country Roads: John Denver
“Almost heaven, West Virginia, Blue Ridge Mountains, Shenandoah River”
Daydream Believer: The Monkees
“Cheer up sleepy Jean, Oh, what can it mean to a
Daydream believer and a Homecoming queen?”
There She Goes: The La’s
“There she goes, There she goes again
Racing through’ my brain, And I just can’t contain, This feelin’ that remains”
Sweet Caroline: Neil Diamond
“Hands, touching hands, Reaching out, touching me, touching you
Sweet Caroline, Good times never seemed so good”
Free Fallin’: Tom Petty
“She’s a good girl, loves her mama
Loves Jesus and America too
She’s a good girl, she’s crazy ’bout Elvis
Loves horses and her boyfriend too”
Here’s more about how to build, cook, and s’more on a campfire.
Can’t Help Falling in Love: Elvis
“Wise men say only fools rush in
But I can’t help falling in love with you”
Day-O (The Banana Boat Song): Harry Belafonte
“Day-o, day-o
Daylight come and me wan’ go home”
Up&Up: Coldplay
“Fixing up a car to drive in it again
Searching for the water, hoping for the rain
Up and up
Up and up”
Blowin’ in the Wind: Bob Dylan
“The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind
The answer is blowin’ in the wind”
Our House: Crosby, Still Nash & Young
“Our house is a very, very, very fine house with two cats in the yard
Life used to be so hard
Now everything is easy ’cause of you
And our la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la”
Bad Moon Rising: Creedence Clearwater Revival
“I see a bad moon a-rising
I see trouble on the way
I see earthquakes and lightnin’
I see bad times today”
The Sound of Silence: Simon and Garfunkel
“Hello darkness, my old friend
I’ve come to talk with you again
Because a vision softly creeping
Left its seeds while I was sleeping”
After a night around the campfire, your clothes are going to smell pretty smoky. Here’s how to get the smoke smell out of clothes.
Ring of Fire: Johnny Cash
“Love is a burning thing
And it makes a fiery ring
Bound by wild desire
I fell in to a ring of fire”
Leaving on a Jet Plane: John Denver (Peter, Paul and Mary)
“‘Cause I’m leavin’ on a jet plane
Don’t know when I’ll be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go”
This song was written by John Denver and has been covered by Peter Paul and Mary, Frank Sinatra, and Chantal Kreviazuk.
Hey Jude: The Beatles
“Hey Jude, don’t make it bad
Take a sad song and make it better
Remember to let her into your heart
Then you can start to make it better”
Killing Me Softly with His Song: Roberta Flack (Fugees)
“Strumming my pain with his fingers
Singing my life with his words
Killing me softly with his song”
Killing Me Softly has also been recorded by Luther Vandross, Colbie Caillat, Anne Murray, Perry Como and the Fugees.
Wonderwall: Oasis
“Today is gonna be the day
That they’re gonna throw it back to you
By now you should’ve somehow
Realized what you gotta do”
Yellow: Coldplay
“Look at the stars
Look how they shine for you
And everything you do
Yeah they were all yellow”
Wild Horses: The Rolling Stones
“Wild horses couldn’t drag me away
Wild, wild horses couldn’t drag me away”
All I Want Is You: U2
“You say you want
Diamonds on a ring of gold
You say you want
Your story to remain untold”
(Sittin’ on) the Dock of the Bay: Otis Redding
“Sittin’ in the mornin’ sun
I’ll be sittin’ when the evenin’ comes
Watchin’ the ships roll in
Then I watch ’em roll away again”
Stand By Me: Ben E. King
“When the night has come
And the land is dark
And the moon is the only light we’ll see
No I won’t be afraid, no I won’t be afraid
Just as long as you stand, stand by me”
Yesterday: The Beatles
“Yesterday
All my troubles seemed so far away
Now it looks as though they’re here to stay
Oh, I believe in yesterday”
You’ve Got A Friend: James Taylor
“When you’re down and troubled
And you need some love and care
And nothing, nothing is going right
Close your eyes and think of me”
Island in the Sun: Weezer
“When you are on a holiday
You can’t find the words to say
All the things that come to you
And I wanna feel it to”
Handbags and Gladrags: Rod Stewart
“Ever seen a blind man cross the road,
Trying to make the other side.
Ever seen a young girl growing old,
Trying to make herself a bride.”
Cat’s in the Cradle: Harry Chapin / Ugly Kid Joe
“My child arrived just the other day
He came to the world in the usual way”
This was originally done by Harry Chapin. It was later covered by Ugly Kid Joe, Johnny Cash, and DMC. It has been featured on The Simpsons, The Office, Superstore, Grand Theft Auto V, Boy Meets World, and Shrek the Third.
Chasing Cars: Snow Patrol
“We’ll do it all
Everything
On our own”
California Dreamin’: The Mamas and the Papas
“All the leaves are brown (all the leaves are brown)
And the sky is grey (and the sky is grey)”
Baby, I Love Your Way: Peter Frampton
“Shadows grow so long before my eyes,
And they’re moving across the page
Suddenly the day turns into night,
Far away, from the city”
Sweet Child O’ Mine: Guns N’ Roses
“She’s got a smile it seems to me
Reminds me of childhood memories
Where everything
Was as fresh as the bright blue sky”
Walk the Line: Johnny Cash
“I keep a close watch on this heart of mine
I keep my eyes wide open all the time
I keep the ends out for the tie that binds
Because you’re mine, I walk the line”
Always on My Mind: Willie Nelson
“Maybe I didn’t love you
Quite as often as I could have
And maybe I didn’t treat you
Quite as good as I should have”
Everybody Hurts: R.E.M.
“When your day is long
And the night
The night is yours alone
When you’re sure you’ve had enough”
Ain’t No Sunshine: Bill Withers
“Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone
It’s not warm when she’s away”
Walking After Midnight: Patsy Cline
“I go out walkin’ after midnight
Out in the moonlight
Just like we used to do, I’m always walkin’
After midnight, searchin’ for you”
With or Without You: U2
“See the stone set in your eyes
See the thorn twist in your side
I’ll wait for you”
13 Best Kids Campfire Songs
If you have younger children (or are young at heart), you’ll want to have these songs on your campfire list. These are guaranteed to get in your head – and probably never leave…
Here are the best campfire songs for kids:
Ging Gang Goolie
“Ging gang goolie goolie goolie goolie watcha,
Ging gang goo, ging gang goo.”
We’re Going on a Bear Hunt
“We’re goin’ on a bear hunt
(We’re goin’ on a bear hunt)
We’re going to catch a big one,
(We’re going to catch a big one)”
Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh (Camp Granada Song)
“Hello Muddah, hello Faddah
Here I am at Camp Grenada
Camp is very entertaining
And they say we’ll have some fun if it stops raining”
The Green Grass Grew All Around
“Oh in the woods there was a tree
The prettiest tree
You ever did see
And the tree was in the ground
And the green grass grew all around, all around, and the green grass grew all around”
The Ants Go Marching Song
“The ants go marching one by one, hurrah, hurrah
The ants go marching one by one, hurrah, hurrah
The ants go marching one by one,”
Kookaburra
“Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree
Merry, merry king of the bush is he
Laugh, Kookaburra! Laugh, Kookaburra!
Gay your life must be”
On Top of Spaghetti Song
“On top of spaghetti all covered with cheese
I lost my poor meatball when somebody sneezed”
My Bonnie Lies Over The Ocean
“My Bonnie lies over the ocean,
My Bonnie lies over the sea.
My Bonnie lies over the ocean.
Oh bring back my Bonnie to me.”
The Wheels On The Bus
“The wheels on the bus go,
Round and round,
Round and round,
Round and round.”
I Know An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly
“I know an old lady
She swallowed a fly
But I don’t know why
She swallow the fly”
She’ll Be Coming Round The Mountain
“She’ll be coming round the mountain
She’ll be coming around the mountain when she comes (2)”
The Bear Went Over the Mountain
“The bear went over the mountain
The bear went over the mountain
The bear went over the mountain
To see what he could see
To see what he could see
To see what he could see”
Home On the Range
“O give me a home where the buffaloes roam
Where the deer and the antelope play
Where seldom is heard a discouraging word
And the skies are not cloudy all day”
Finish off a campfire sing-song with classic s’mores. Here’s the recipe (plus 6 delicious variations)
4 Campfire Song Books (Lyrics and Chords)
Campfire Songs: Lyrics And Chords More Than 100 Sing-Along Favorites- Campfire Folk Songs: Strum & Sing Guitar
- Campfire Songs: E-Z Play Today. 30 fun folky favorites for campfire sing-alongs.
- Great Family Songbook: More than 100 songs to sing and play. Includes lyrics and chords for guitar and piano.
Not sure how to make a campfire? Here’s a piece I wrote about the 6 ways to start a campfire.
Your Turn
What’s your favorite campfire song? Have I missed one? Let me know in the comments!
The best thing about your list of songs is that you’ve put youtube video links for each one, which means that I simply need to bookmark this page and open it up when we go camping! Thankyou so much!