"The tune that old cow died on must have been…

“Beef-flat” sounds like “B-flat.”

“‘The tune that old cow died on,’ must have been written in beef flat.—Whitehall Times.” was printed in the Record of the Times (Wilkes-Barre, PA) on September 14, 1877. This pun was reprinted in many newspapers.

“When a butcher sings in the bathtub it’s probably beef-flat” was printed in the syndicated “Barbs” column by Hal Cochran in the Escanaba (MI) Daily Times on December 24, 1962.

“What’s a cow’s favorite musical note? ‘Beef’ flat” was printed in the Interior Journal (Stanford, KY) on June 17, 2004. “What’s a cow’s favorite moosical note? Beef-flat!” was posted on Twitter by Bollywood Sargam on June 28, 2009.

Newspapers.com
14 September 1877, Record of the Times (Wilkes-Barre, PA), pg. 3, col. 1:
“The tune that old cow died on,” must have been written in beef flat.—Whitehall Times.

Newspapers.com
25 September 1877, Public Ledger (Memphis, TN), “Facts and Fancies,” pg. 3, col. 7:
“The tune that the old cow died on,” must have been written in beef flat.—Whitehall Times.

Newspapers.com
11 October 1877, Grand Island (NE) Times, pg. 3, col. 2:
The tune the old cow died on must have been written in beef-flat.

Newspapers.com
24 December 1962, Escanaba (MI) Daily Times, “Barbs” by Hal Cochran, pg. 4, col. 6:
When a butcher sings in the bathtub it’s probably beef-flat.

Newspapers.com
20 June 1963, Windsor (ON) Star, pg. 1, col. 7:
A Smile
A tune the old cow died on must have been written in beef-flat.

Newspapers.com
5 May 1971, The Clarion-Ledger (Jackson, MS), “Jumble” by Henri Arnold and Bob Lee, pg. 27, col. 1:
How to sing a cow to sleep—IN BEEF FLAT

Newspapers.com
5 April 1994, Fort Worth (TX) Star-Telegram, “Riddles,” pg. F15, col. 5:
Q: What musical key do cows like to play in?
A: Beef flat.
Jarred Simpson, 9
All Saints Episcopal

Newspapers.com
17 June 2004, Interior Journal (Stanford, KY), “Cow Jokes,” pg. B2, col. 5:
What’s a cow’s favorite musical note? “Beef” flat.

Twitter
Abby Mager
@amager15
gruender joke of the day: what’s a cow’s favorite musical note? ...... beef flat.
4:49 PM · Mar 20, 2009·Twitter Web Client

Twitter
StevieZ
@StevieZ
What’s a cow’s favourite musical note? Beef flat.
10:56 AM · Apr 13, 2009·Twitter Web Client

Twitter
Bollywood Sargam
@bollywoodsargam
Cow jokes - 3236 Joke: What’s a cow’s favorite moosical note? Beef-flat! .... http://tinyurl.com/kkj82h
6:58 AM · Jun 28, 2009·Twitter Web Client

Twitter
Torah Town
@TheGaryArbaugh
What’s a cow’s favorite moosical note?
Beef-flat
9:00 PM · Jul 18, 2009·Twitter Web Client

Reddit—a:t5_37gc2
Posted by u/Thatchner August 18, 2015
What’s a cow’s favorite music note?
Beef-flat! :D

Reddit—Puns
Posted by u/Punsville May 28, 2017
Meat Puns
What’s a cow’s favorite moosical note? Beef-flat

Twitter
Kris Bowie
@KristiaBowie
What’s a cow’s favorite moosical note? Beef-flat!
11:02 PM · Apr 24, 2022·Twitter for Android

“The tune that old cow died on must have been written in beef flat”