the old man is snoring
he went to bed, bumped his head
and didn't get up in the morning
sure, tell me all you want that the 1950s were a happy time. that's about when this nursery rhyme is first recorded as being told as it is. it probably came from the united kingdom, but origins aren't exactly set.
it might actually be a mother goose nursery rhyme that isn't about a king or a plague or execution or whatever. the internet is vastly unhelpful here. some suggest that the old man is a metaphor for a god, but i'm not sure what that implies. that it's raining because god is snoring? is it raining snot? i don't understand.
some renditions of the song say "wouldn't" rather than "couldn't." so it's a song about the aftermath of medical situations.
here's a fun one: it's actually about war. there we go! in another version, it's plural, the old men are snoring. oliver cromwell's invasions and campaign was fought in very rainy weather, and many people were executed. in welsh, the word "bedd" means grave. if you didn't die hanging (snoring is a sound that apparently people may make as they choke for air) you'd be hit in the head while sleeping to have your skull crushed in... bumped his head.
enjoy the rainy season.
