Songs - Around the World
Useful Links
A list of useful song linksDownloadable Material
Tie Me Kangaroo Down
The first verse is almost spoken or narrated
There’s an old Australian stockman - lying, dying...
And he gets himself up onto one elbow
And turns to his mates who are all gathered around
And he says....
I’m going, Blue; this you gotta do,
I’m not gonna pull through, Blue, so this you gotta do . .
.
Chorus:
Tie me kangaroo down, sport
Tie me kangaroo down.
Tie me kangaroo down, sport
Tie me kangaroo down.
Watch me wallabies feed, mate
Watch me wallabies feed.
They’re a dangerous breed, mate
So, watch me wallabies feed.
(chorus)
Let me wombats go loose, Bruce,
Let me wombats go loose.
They’re of no further use, Bruce,
So let me wombats go lose.
(chorus)
Keep me cockatoo cool, curl
Keep me cockatoo cool.
Don’t go actin’ the fool, curl
Just keep me cockatoo cool.
(chorus)
Take me koala back, Jack
Take me koala back.
He lives somewhere out on the track, Mack
So, take me koala back.
(chorus)
Mind me platypus duck, Bill
Mind me platypus duck.
Don’t let him go running amuck, Bill
Just, mind me platypus duck.
(chorus)
Play your digeridoo, Blue
Play your digeridoo.
(Dying) Like, keep playing it ‘til I shoot through, Blue
Play your digeridoo.
(chorus)
Tan me hide when I’m dead, Fred
Tan me hide when I’m dead.
So, we tanned his hide, when he died, Clyde
And that’s it hangin’ on the shed.
(chorus)
Waltzing Matilda
Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong,
Under the shade of a coolibah tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled
You’ll come a waltzing Matilda with me.
Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You’ll come a waltzing Matilda with me,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled,
You’ll come a waltzing Matilda with me.
Down came a jumbuck to drink at that billabong,
Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee,
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tuckerbag
You’ll come a waltzing Matilda with me.
Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You’ll come a waltzing Matilda with me,
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tuckerbag,
You’ll come a waltzing Matilda with me.
Up rode the squatter mounted on his thoroughbred,
Down came the troopers - one, two, three,
Whose that jolly jumbuck you’ve got in your tuckerbag?
You’ll come a waltzing Matilda with me.
Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You’ll come a waltzing Matilda with me,
Whose that jolly jumbuck you’ve got in your tuckerbag?
You’ll come a waltzing Matilda with me.
Up jumped the swagman, and sprang into the billabong,
You’ll never catch me alive said he,
And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong
You’ll come a waltzing Matilda with me.
Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You’ll come a waltzing Matilda with me,
And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong,
You’ll come a waltzing Matilda with me.
Waltzing Matilda -- An Older Version
Oh, There was once a swagman camped in a billabong
Under the shade of a coolabah tree
And he sang as he looked at his old billy boiling
“Who’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me?
Who’ll come a Waltzing Matilda, my darling,
Who’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me
Waltzing Watilda and leading a water-bag
Who’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Down came a jumbuck to drink at the water hole
Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him in glee
And he sang as he stuffed him away in his tuckerbag
“You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.”
(Repeat Chorus)
Down came the squatter, a riding on his thoroughbred
Down came policemen, One, two and three
“Whose is the jumbuck you’ve got in your tuckerbag
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.”
(Repeat Chorus)
But the swagman, he up and he jumped in the water hole
Drowning himself by the Coolabah tree
And his ghost may be heard as it sings in the billibong
“Who’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me?”
(Repeat Chorus)
This Land is Your Land
As I went walking, that ribbon of highway
I saw above me that endless skyway
I saw below that golden valley.
This land was made for you and me.
This land is your land, this land is my land.
From California to the New York Island
From the Redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters.
This was made for your and me.
I saw a sign that said “No Trespassing.”
And on the other side, that sign said nothing.
And all around me a voice was calling
”That sign was made for you and me.”
This land is your land, this land is my land.
From California to the New York Island
From the Redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters.
This was made for your and me.
This Land is Your Land
Chorus
This land in your land, this land is my land,
From California, to the New York Island,
From the redwood forests to the Gulf Stream waters,
This land was made for you and me.
As I was walking, that ribbon of highway,
I saw above me that endless skyway,
I saw below me that golden valley,
This land was made for you and me.
I’ve roamed and rambled and I followed my footsteps,
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts,
And all around me a voice was sounding,
This land was made for you and me.
I followed your low hills and I followed your cliff rims,
Your marble canyons and sunny bright waters,
This voice came calling, as the fog was lifting,
This land was made for you and me.
As the sun was shining and I was strolling,
Through the wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling,
I could feel inside me and see all ‘round me
This land was made for you and me.
Taps
Sing with reverence.
Day is done
Gone the sun
From the Lakes
From the hills
From the sky
All is well
Safely rest
God is nigh.
Fading light
Dims the sight,
And a star gems the sky,
Gleaming bright,
From afar,
Drawing nigh,
Falls the night.
Thanks and praise,
For our days,
Neath the sun,
Neath the stars,
Neath the sky,
As we go,
This we know,
God is nigh.
Taps (Fast)
Day is done, day is done, day is done
Gone the sun, gone the sun, gone the sun
From the lake, from the hill, from the sky
All is well, all is well, all is well
Safely rest, safely rest, safely rest
God is nigh, God is nigh, God is nigh.
The Story of Taps
Taps was devised during the Civil War. In 1862, the Union Army of
the Potomac, under Major General George McClellan, was transported
to the Virginia Peninsula to launch a campaign against the Confederate
capital at Richmond. The Army met stiff resistance at the outskirts
of Richmond. After a series of battles, McClellan, a cautious general
by nature, and misinformed as to the strength of the Confederate
army confronting him, elected to “change bases” - a carefully
worded synonym for retreat - to a site to the south, on the bank
of the James River. During this retreat, the Army of the Potomac
was forced to stand and fight the pursuing Confederate army at Malvern
Hill. The Confederate army, rather unwisely, charged the Union line
and was defeated. The battle of Malvern Hill was fought on June
28 - July 1, 1862.
On July 2 (134 years ago today), in a miserable rain, the Army of
the Potomac completed its depressing and embarrassing retreat to
Harrison’s Landing on the James River. The retreat was a grim
disillusionment for the North, which had expected a short war. For
the Army of the Potomac, it was its darkest and saddest hour.
Encamped at Harrison’s Landing that summer was Brigadier General
Daniel Butterfield. He was the commander of the 3rd brigade of the
1st division of the Army of the Potomac’s 5th corps. A fairly
undistinguished officer otherwise, General Butterfield had an ear
for music. Previously, he had observed that his brigade’s bugle
call caused confusion in camp, because it could not be distinguished
from that of other brigades. So he devised a unique bugle call for
the 3rd brigade.
Now, in camp along the James, he noted that the regulation evening
bugle call for lights out was neither musical nor inspirational,
nor tranquilizing. He devised a alternative tune for his bugler,
which, after a couple of attempts, became Taps. The tune became
popular, and soon the entire Army of the Potomac was using the call
in place of the regulation call for lights out.
Eventually, Taps was adopted by all Union armies, and became official
army regulation. Taps remains regulation to this day. The story
of Taps is particularly appropriate for July 2, given that today
is the anniversary of the Army of the Potomac’s long retreat
to the Harrison’s Landing camp.
America
Oh beautiful, for spacious skies
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain.
America, America;
God shed his grace on thee.
And crown thy good with brotherhood
from sea to shining sea!
America (My Country ‘Tis of Thee)
My country ‘tis of thee,
Sweet land of liberty,
Of thee I sing.
Land where my fathers died,
Land of the pilgrims’ pride,
From ev’ry mountain side
Let freedom ring.
The Star-Spangled Banner
Oh say, can you see by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watch’d were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof throughout the night that our flag was still there.
Oh say, does that Star-Spangled Banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the land of the brave.
Hello
(Tunes: Coca Cola’s I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing
or Auld Lang Syne)
I love to hear the word Hello,
Wherever I may go.
It’s full of friendship
And good cheer
And warms the heart up so.
Hello, Hello, Hello, Hello,
Hello, Hello, Hello...
When e’er we meet
Like friends let’s greet
Each other with Hello
Hello, Hello, Hello, Hello,
Hello, Hello, Hello...
Billboards
(Tune: Superfragilisticespyalladocious)
As I was walking down the street one dark and gloomy day,
I came upon a billboard and much to my dismay,
The sign was torn and tattered from the storm the night before,
The wind and rain had done it’s work and this it what I saw:
“Smoke Coca-Cola Cigarettes -- chew Wrigley’s Spearmint
beer --
Kennel Ration Dog Food keeps your wife’s complexion clear;
Simonize your baby with a Hershey’s candy bar --
And Texaco’s the beauty cream that’s used by all the stars!”
“So take your next vacation in a brand new Fridgidaire --
Learn to play piano in your winter underwear --
Doctors say that babies should smoke until they are three,
And people over 65 should bathe in Lipton Tea!”
(slowly)....in flow-thru tea bags.
On The Loose
Refrain
On the loose to climb a mountain,
On the loose where I am free.
On the loose to live my life the way I think my life should be.
For I’ve only got a moment, and a whole world left to see.
I’ll be looking for tomorrow on the loose.
Have you ever watched the sunrise turn the sky completely red?
Have you slept beneath the moon and stars, a pine bough for your
bed?
Do you sit and talk with friends, though not a word is ever said?
Then you’re just like me and you’ve been on the loose.
There’s a trail that I’ll be hiking just to see where
it might go,
Many places yet to visit, many people yet to know,
For in following my dreams I will live and I will grow
In a world that’s waiting out there on the loose.
So in search of love and laughter I’ll be traveling ‘cross
this land,
Never sure of where I’m going, ‘cause I haven’t any
plans,
And in time when you are ready, come and join me-take my hand.
And together we’ll share life out on the loose.
Let us sit and watch the sunset as the daylight slowly fades.
Thinking about tomorrow’s, about friendships we have made.
I will value them forever, and I hope you’ll do the same.
And forever we’ll explore life on the loose.
Vive l’Amour
Let every good Scout now join in a song,
Vive la compagnie.
Success to each other and pass it along.
Vive la Compagnie.
Chorus
Vive la, vive la, vive l’amour,
Vive la, vive la, vive l’amour,
Vive l’amour, vive l’amour,
Vive la compagnie.
Come all you good people and join in with me,
Vive la compagnie.
And raise up your voices in close harmony.
Vive la compagnie.
A friend on your left and a friend on your right,
Vive la compagnie.
In love and good fellowship let us unite.
Vive la compagnie.
With friends all around us, we’ll sing out our song,
Vive la compagnie.
We’ll banish our troubles, it won’t take us long.
Vive la compagnie.
Now wider and wider our circle expands,
Vive la compagnie.
We sing to our comrades in faraway lands.
Vive la compagnie.
Should time or occasion compel us to part,
Vive la compagnie.
These days shall forever enliven our heart.
Viva la compagnie
Upward Trail
We’re on the upward trail, we’re on the upward trail.
Singing, singing, everybody singing, as we go.
We’re on the upward trail, we’re on the upward trail.
Singing, singing, everybody singing, Scouting bound.
Kee Chee
A wuni kuni ka yah wuni, [Repeat.]
Ahyi yi iki ay kae ayna, [Repeat.]
Ah ooo, ah ooo, ah dee mee KEE CHEE.
Actions:
1. Hands on own knees; hands on knees of person to the left; hands
on own knees; hands on knees of person to the right.
2. Hands on own knees; hands crossed on own knees; hands uncrossed
on own knees; Left hand on knee of person to the left while right
hand in knee of person to the right.
3. Left arm extends forward; right hand touches left wrist then
left shoulder; left hand crosses to right shoulder; right arm extends
forward; left hand touches right wrist then right shoulder; right
hand crosses to left shoulder. (At end of song, hands are crossed,
touching opposite shoulder.)
Commercial Mix-up
[Tune: Farmer in the Dell]
Last night I watched TV, I saw my favorite show.
I heard this strange commercial, and I can’t believe it’s
so.
Feed your dog Chiffon. Comet cures the cold.
Use S-O-S pads on your face to keep from looking old.
Mop your floors with Crest. Use Crisco on your tile.
Clean your teeth with Borateem, it leaves a shining smile.
For headaches take some Certs. Use Tide to clean your face.
And do shampoo with Elmer’s Glue, it holds your hair in place.
Perhaps I am confused, I might not have it right.
But one thing that I’m certain of, I’ll watch TV tonight!.
Dunderbeck
There was a strange old butcher. His name was Dunderbeck.
He was very fond of sausage-meat, and sauerkraut and speck.
He had the finest butcher shop, the finest ever seen,
Until one day he invented his wonderful sausage machine.
Chorus
On Mr. Dunderbeck! How could you be so mean?
I told you you’d be sorry for inventing that machine,
For all the neighbor’s dogs and cats will never more be seen,
They’ll all be ground to sausage meat in Dunderbeck’s
machine.
One day a very little girl came walking in the store.
She ordered up some sausage meat and eggs, a half a score.
And while she stood a-waiting she whistled up a tune,
And the sausage meat it started up and danced around the room.
Once day when he was working the machine it would not go.
So Dunderbeck, he climbed inside to see what made it so.
His wife she had a night-mare and came walking in her sleep.
She gave the crank a heck of a yank, and Dunderbeck was meat!
Fried Ham
Fried ham, fried ham, cheese and baloney;
After the macaroni, we’ll have onions, and pickles, and olives,
and pretzels;
Then we’ll have some more fried ham, fried ham.
Next verse, same as the first, . . . style:
Some suggested styles: OPERA, ORIENTAL, . . . SCOUT, SOUTHERN DRAWL
Ilky Moor
1. Where hast tha’ been since I saw thee, I saw thee? On Ilky
moor baht hat. Where hast tha’ been since I saw . . . Where
hast tha’ been since I saw . . . Where hast tha’ been
since I saw thee, since I saw thee? On Ilky moor baht hat. On Ilky
moor baht hat. On Ilky moor baht hat.
2. Tha’s been a-courting Mary Jane.
3. Tha’ll go and catch thy death of cold.
4. Then we shall have to bury thee.
5. Then worms will come and eat thee up.
6. Then ducks will come and eat up worms.
7. Then we shall go and eat up ducks.
8. Then we shall all have eaten thee.
9. That’s where we get our Johnny back.
It Ain’t Gonna Rain No More
Oh! the night was dark and dreary,
The air was full of sleet,
The old man stood out in the storm,
His shoes were full of feet.
Chorus
Oh, it ain’t gonna rain no more, no more,
It ain’t gonna rain no more,
How in the heck can I wash my neck,
If it ain’t gonna rain no more.
Oh! Mosquito he fly high,
Mosquito he fly low,
If old man ‘Skeeta light on me,
He ain’t gonna fly no more.
Oh the butterfly flits on wings of gold,
The June-Bug wings of flame,
The Bed-Bug has no wings at all,
But he gets there just the same.
Here’s to the chigger who’s not any bigger,
That the head of a very small pin.
But the lump that it raises itches like the blazes,
And that’s where the rub comes in.
Saw a black-and-white animal in the woods,
Say ain’t that little cat pretty,
Went right over to pick it up,
But it wasn’t that kind of kitty.
When Mr. Noah built the Ark,
He said it was his duty,
He saved the birds and beasts and bugs,
But why did he save the cootie?
Oh, of all the fishes in the sea,
My favorite is the bass,
He climbs up in the seaweed trees,
And slides down on his hands and knees.
A peanut sat on a railroad track,
Its heart was all a-flutter,
Along came a choo-choo train,
Toot, Toot! Peanut butter!
Oh a man lay down by a sewer
And by a sewer he died.
Now, at the coroner’s request,
They called it sewer-side.
A golf ball sailin’ thru the air,
Whizzed by a man a hummin’
He heard a caddy holler, “Fore!”
An’ he thought three more were comin’.
“The way to tell the twins apart,”
The proud father said,
“I put my finger in Willie’s mouth,
If he bites it, then it’s Ned.”
When boating, never quarrel,
For you’ll find, without a doubt,
A boat is not the proper place
To have a falling out.
“The coffee is exhausted, Sir.”
The diner was advised.
Says he, “It’s been so weak of late,
I’m really not surprised.”
There’s a gal up in the hills,
She’s awfully shy and meek,
She undresses in the dark
Because the mountains peak.
The rich man drives a Cadillac,
The poor man drives a Ford.
But my old man drives down the road,
Between four wheels and a board.
Mary had a little lamb,
She fed it castor oil.
And everywhere that little lamb went,
It fertilized the soil.
Mary had a steamboat;
The steamboat had a bell.
Mary went to heaven,
The steamboat went “Toot, toot.”
Mary had a little lamb,
But now that lamb is dead.
So now she takes the lamb to school,
Between two slabs of bread.
When Mary had a little lamb,
The doctor almost cried.
But when Ol’ MacDonald had a farm,
The doctor almost died.
Said baby tern to mother tern,
“Can I have a brother.”
“Yes” said mom to baby tern,
“One good tern deserves another.”
Mary is a proper girl,
She goes to church on Sundays.
She prays to the Lord to give her strength,
To chase the boys on Mondays.
Oh for a home where the buffalo roam,
Where the deer and the antelope play.
Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,
For what can an antelope say?
Song of the States
Oh what did Dela ware, friends, Oh what did Dela ware?
I ask you again, as a personal friend, what did Dela ware?
She wore her New Jersey, friends, she wore her New Jersey.
I tell you again, as a personal friend, she wore her New
Jersey.
2. Oh, how did Flori-die, friends?
She died in Mis-sour-i, friends.
3. Oh, what did Io-way, friends?
She weighed a Washington, friends.
4. Oh, what did Ida-ho, friends?
She hoed her Mary-land, friends.
5. Oh, how did Wiscon-sin, friends?
She stole a New-bras-key, friends.
6. Oh, what did Tennessee, friends?
She saw what Arkan-sas, friends.
7. Oh, where has Ore-gon, friends?
She’s taking Okla-home, friends.
8. Oh, what did Massa-chew, friends?
She chewed her Connecti-cud, friends.
9. Oh, what did Missi-sip, friends?
She sipped her Mini-soda, friends.
10.Oh, what did Ohi-owe, friends?
She owed her state Taxes, friends.
11.Oh, why did Califone, friends?
She called to say, “Hawaii,” friends.
Amazing Grace
Amazing grace! how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind but now I see.
Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.
Through many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come;
Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me
home.
When we’ve been there ten thousand years, bright shining as
the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s Praise, than when we
first begun.
Amazing grace has set me free,
To touch, to taste, to feel;
The wonders of accepting love,
Have made me whole and real.
Battle Hymn of the Republic
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord,
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of his terrible swift sword,
His truth is marching on.
Chorus
Glory, glory hallelujah! [Repeat twice more.]
His truth is marching on.
I have seen Him in the watch fires of a hundred circling camps;
They have builded Him an alter in the evening dews and damps;
I can read his righteous message by their dim and flaring lamps;
His day is marching on.
He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat;
He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment seat;
Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer Him, be jubilant, my feet!
Our God is marching on.
Dixie
I wish I was in the land of cotton,
Old times there are not forgotten;
Look away! Look away! Look away! Dixieland.
In Dixieland where I was born in,
Early on one frosty morning’;
Look away! Look away! Look away! Dixieland.
Chorus
Then I wish I was in Dixie, hooray! Hooray!
In Dixieland I’ll take my stand to live and die in Dixie;
Away, away, away down south in Dixie. [Repeat.]
There’s buckwheat cakes and Indian batter
Makes you fat, but that don’t matter;
Look away! Look away! Look away! Dixieland.
Then hoe it down and scratch your grabble,
To Dixieland I’m bound to travel,
Look away! Look away! Look away! Dixieland.
Edelweiss
Edelweiss, Edelweiss. Every morning you greet me.
Small and white, clean and bright,
You look happy to greet me.
Blossoms of snow, may you bloom and grow,
Bloom and grow forever,
Edelweiss, Edelweiss. Bless my homeland forever!
Home on the Range
Oh give me a home where the buffalo roam,
Where the deer and the antelope play,
Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,
And the skies are not cloudy all day.
Chorus
Home, home on the range, where the deer and the antelope play,
Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,
And the skies are not cloudy all day.
Where the air is so pure, and the zephyrs so free,
The breezes so balmy and light,
That I would not exchange my home on the range,
For all of the cities so bright.
The Red man was pressed from this part of the west,
He’s likely no more to return,
To the banks of the Red River where seldom if ever
Their flickering campfires burn.
How often at night when the heavens are bright,
With the light from the glittering stars,
Have I stood there amazed and asked as I gazed,
If their glory exceeds that of ours.
Oh, I love these wild flowers in this dear land of ours,
The curlew I love to hear cry,
And I love the white rocks and the antelope flocks,
That graze on the mountain slopes high.
Oh give me a land where the bright diamond sand,
Flows leisurely down in the stream;
Where the graceful white swan goes gliding along,
Like a maid in a heavenly dream.
Then I would not exchange my home on the range,
Where the deer and the antelope play;
Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,
And the skies are not cloudy all day.
Morningtown Ride
Train whistle blowing, makes a sleepy noise,
Underneath their blankets go all the girls and boys,
Heading from the station, out along the bay,
All bound for Morningtown, many miles away.
[Child’s name]’s at the engine, [Another child’s
name] rings the bell,
[Other child’s name] swings the lantern to show that all is
well.
Rocking, rolling riding, out along the bay,
All bound for Morningtown, many miles away.
Maybe it is raining where our train will ride,
But all the little travelers are snug and warm inside.
Somewhere there is sunshine, somewhere there is day,
Somewhere there is Morningtown, many miles away.
Oh! Susanna
I come from Alabama with my banjo on my knee,
I’m going to Louisiana, my true love for to see.
It rained all night the day I left, the weather it was dry
The sun so hot I froze to death, Susanna, don’t you cry.
Chorus
Oh! Susanna, Oh don’t you cry for me,
For I come from Alabama with my banjo on my knee.
I had a dream the other night, when everything was still;
I thought I saw Susanna dear, a coming down the hill.
A buckwheat cake was in her mouth, a tear was in her eye,
Says I, I’m coming from the south, Susanna, don’t you
cry.
I soon will be in New Orleans, and then I’ll look around,
And when I find Susanna, I’ll fall upon the ground.
But if I do not find her, then I will surely die,
And when I’m dead and buried, Oh, Susanna, don’t you cry.
Old Black Joe
Gone are the days when my heart was young and gay,
Gone are my friends, from the cotton field away
Gone from the earth, to a better land I know,
I hear their gentle voices calling, “Old Black Joe.”
Chorus
I’m coming, I’m coming, for my head is bending low;
I hear those gentle voices calling, “Old Black Joe.”
Why do I weep when my heart should feel no pain,
Why do I sigh that my friends come not again,
Grieving for forms now departed long ago?
I hear their gentle voices calling, “Old Black Joe.”
Where are the hearts once so happy and so free,
The children so dear that I held upon my knee?
Gone to the shore where my soul has long’d to go.
I hear their gentle voices calling, “Old Black Joe.”
Old Folks at Home
Way down upon the Swanee River, far, far away,
That’s where my heart is turning ever, there’s where the
old folks stay.
All up and down the whole creation, sadly I roam,
Still longing for the old plantation, and for the old folks
at home.
Chorus
All the world is sad and weary, every where I roam;
Oh people, how my heart grows weary, far from the old folks at home.
All ‘round the little farm I wandered, when I was young,
There many happy days I squandered, many the song I sung.
When I was playing with my brother, happy was I,
Oh, take me to my kind old mother, there let me live and die.
One little hut among the bushes, one that I love
Still sadly to my memory rushes, no matter where I rove.
When will I see the bees a-humming all ‘round the comb?
When will I hear the banjo strumming, down in my good old home?
Patsy Atsy Ori Ay
18 hundred and 51, work on the railroad was begun,
Work on the railroad was begun, workin’ on the railroad.
Chorus
Patsy atsy ori ay, [repeat twice]
Workin’ on the railroad.
1800 & 52, looking around for something to do, . . . .
1800 & 53, railroad company hired me, . . . .
1800 & 54, back was getting mighty sore, . . . .
1800 & 55, found myself more dead than alive, . . . .
1800 & 56, dropped a couple of dynamite sticks, . . . .
1800 & 57, found myself on the way to heaven, . . . .
1800 & 58, found myself at the Pearly Gate, . . . .
1800 & 59, found myself on a cloud sublime, . . . .
1800 & fifty-ten, started in all over again, . . . .
Shine On, Harvest Moon, Medley
Shine on, shine on harvest moon, up in the sky;
I ain’t had no lovin since January, February, June or July.
Snow time ain’t no time to sit around and croon.
So, shine on, shine on harvest moon for me and my gal.
The bells are ringing, for me and my gal;
The birds are singing for me and my gal.
Everybody’s been knowing, to a wedding they’re going,
And for weeks they’ve been sewing, every Sue and Sal.
They’re congregating for me and my gal.
The parson’s waiting for me and my gal.
And someday we’re going to build a little home for two,
For three or four or more
In loveland for me and my gal.
Skip to My Lou
Lost my partner what’ll I do? [Repeat twice more.]
Skip to my Lou, my darling.
Chorus
Skip, skip, skip to my Lou. [Repeat twice more.]
Skip to my Lou, my darling.
2. I’ll get another, a nicer one too-
3. If I lose that one, I’ll take two-
4. Flies in the sugar bowl, shoo, shoo, shoo-
5. Cat’s in the buttermilk, licking it too-
6. Kitten in the haymow, mew, mew, mew-
7. Bears in the rose bush, boo, boo, boo-
8. Mule’s in the cellar, kicking up through-
9. Dad’s old hat got torn in two-
10.Little red wagon, painted blue-
11.Had a cart and pony too-
12.Going to get a red-bird, a pretty one too-
13.If I can’t get a red-bird, a blue-bird’ll do-
14.Needle in the haystack, Number 32
15.Hurry up, slow poke, do, Oh, do-
Optional dance actions: Players form a circle and chose partners.
Dance starts with one couple moving to the center and selecting
one other person. The three hold hands and skip about the circle.
On the word, “skip,” the couple stops and joins hands
to form an arch for the third person to step under.
The couple then rejoins the circle, the person left in the
center picks another couple to skip about. Again, on the word, “skip,”
the original caller and one member of the couple called in make
the arch and rejoin the circle, leaving the other member of the
couple just called in the center. The person left in the center
chooses a third couple, and so on, until the song ends.
Sweet Betsy From Pike
Did you ever hear tell of sweet Betsy from Pike,
Who crossed the wide prairie with old Uncle Ike,
With two yoke of cattle and one spotted hog,
A tall Shanghai rooster and a large yellow dog.
Chorus
Singin’ toora-li, loora-li, loora-li, ay [Repeat.]
One evening quite early they camped on the Platte,
‘Twas near by the road on a green shady flat,
Where Betsy sore-footed lay down to repose,
There was no sounder sleeper than that Pike County rose.
They soon reached the desert, where Betsy gave out,
And down in the sand she lay rolling about;
But she got up again with a great deal of pain,
And declared she’d go back to Pike County again.
The Shanghai ran off and their cattle all died,
That morning the last piece of bacon was fried;
Poor Ike was discouraged and Betsy got mad,
The dog drooped his tail and looked wondrously sad.
They finally stopped on a very high hill,
And with wonder looked down upon old Placerville;
Ike sighed when he said as he looked all around
“Well, Betsy, my sweet, we might as well go down.
Old Ike and sweet Betsy attended a dance;
Ike wore a pair of his Pike County pants;
Sweet Betsy was covered with ribbons and rings;
Says Ike, “You’re an angel, but where are your wings?”
A miner asked, “Betsy, will you dance with me?”
“I will that, old hoss, if you don’t make too free;
“But don’t dance me hard, do you want to know why?
Dog on, but I’m chock full of strong alkali.”
The Cowboy’s Lament (The Street’s of Laredo)
As I walked out in the streets of Laredo,
As I walked out in Laredo one day,
I spied a young cowboy all wrapped in white linen,
All wrapped in white linen and cold as the clay.
“I see by your outfit that you are a cowboy.”
These words he did say as I boldly step by,
“Come sit down beside me and hear my sad story:
I was shot in the chest and I know I must die.
“It was once in the saddle I used to go dashing,
It was once in the saddle I use to go gay;
First to the dram-house and then to the card-house;
Got shot in the chest; I am dying today.
“Get six jolly cowboys to carry my coffin;
Get six pretty maidens to carry my pall;
Put bunches of roses all over my coffin,
Roses to deaden the clods as they fall.
“Oh beat the drum slowly and play the fife lowly,
Play the death march as you carry me along;
Take me to the green valley and lay the sod o’er me,
For I’m a young cowboy and I know I’ve done wrong.
“Go fetch me a cup, a cup of cold water,
To cool my parched lips,” the cowboy then said;
Before I returned, the spirit has left him
And gone to his Maker-the cowboy was dead.
We beat the drum slowly and played the fife lowly,
And bitterly wept as we bore him along;
For we all loved our comrade, so brave, young, and handsome,
We all loved our comrade although he done wrong.
The Gypsy Rover
The Gypsy rover went over the hill,
Down to the valley so shady;
He whistled and he sang till the green woods rang,
For he won the heart of a lady.
Chorus
Ha di do, ah dido da day, ah di do, ah di day-ee;
He whistled and he sang till the green woods rang,
For he won the heart of a lady.
She left her father’s castle gate,
She left her own true lover;
She left her servants and her estate,
To follow the Gypsy rover.
Her father saddled his fastest steed,
He searched the valley all over;
He sought his daughter at great speed,
And the whistling Gypsy rover.
He came at last to a mansion fine,
Down by the river Claydee;
And there was music and there was wine,
For the Gypsy and his lady.
“He is no Gypsy, my father,” said she,
“But a lord of freelands all over;
And I will stay to my dying day,
With my whistling Gypsy rover.
America The Beautiful
O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain.
Oh beautiful for pilgrim feet,
Whose stern, impassioned stress,
A thoroughfare for freedom beat,
Across the wilderness.
America! America! God mend thine every flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control,
Thy liberty in law.
Oh beautiful for heroes proved, in liberating strife
Who more than self their country loved,
And mercy more than life.
America! America! May God thy gold refine,
‘Till all success be nobleness,
And every gain divine.
O beautiful for patriot dreams
That sees beyond the years;
Thine alabaster cities gleam,
Undimmed by human tears.
America! America! God shed his grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood,
From sea to shining sea.
Yankee Doodle
Yankee Doodle went to town, a-riding on a pony;
Stuck a feather in his cap and called it macaroni.
Chorus
Yankee Doodle keep it up, Yankee Doodle dandy,
Mind the music and the step and with the girls be handy.
Father and I went down to camp along with Captain Gooding
And there we saw the men and boys, as thick as hasty pudding.
There was Colonel Washington, upon a strapping stallion,
A-giving orders to his men, I guess there was a million.
And there I saw a cannon barrel as big as mother’s basin,
And every time they touched it off they scampered like the nation.