Song
cupboard I
I am
glad for two bright eyes
I had
a little sailboat
I
have a little house
I
have a little tiny house
I
know where I’m going
I
like peace, I like quiet
I
love my little donkey
I saw
a ship a-sailing
I
went to the animal fair
I
went to the cabbages
I
wish I had the shepherd’s lamb
If
all the seas were one sea
If I
were a blackbird
I’m
only a poor little sparrow
It’s
a small world
It
could be a wonderful world
Last updated: 1/21/2020
11:50 AM
The songs below are part of ‘Away we
go’ Round and about
compiled,
adapted and illustrated by Dany Rosevear
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children’ home
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songs click on O
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author sing a song click on the title at:
© Dany Rosevear 2008 All rights reserved
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I am glad for two bright eyes 🔊 This song
comes from http://hagonoy-bahay-kubo.blogspot.co.uk/2009/02/nursery-rhymes-and-songs.html
a great collection of nursery rhymes and songs. Music by Dany
Rosevear. This lends itself to hand play. |
I am glad for two bright eyes To see the world’s delights; To wink and blink and close so tight At bedtime every night. I am glad for my little ears, To hear the meadow lark. To hear the wind blow, “Oo-oo-oo!” And hear the doggies bark. I am glad for my little nose To smell the flowers so sweet; And I am glad I have a mouth To smile and talk and eat. I am glad for my two hands, For they can clap and play. And I am glad for legs and feet, To run and skip all day. |
I had a little sailboat 🔊 This song
comes from ‘140 folk songs’ from the Concorde Series 1921. The words are by
John Irwin using a traditional French tune ‘Il était une bergère’. |
I had a little sailboat, Its decks were new and all painted blue; I had a little sailboat, And sailed it on the brook, Tra-la! And sailed it on the brook. A little frog sat staring, A little frog that was on a log; A little frog sat staring, Then leaped upon the deck, Tra-la! Then leaped upon the deck. My ship went topsy-turvy, Its sails so white disappeared from sight; My ship went topsy-turvy, Beneath the water clear, Tra-la! Beneath the water clear. |
I have a little house 🔊 Welcome to my
house. Words and
music by Patty Zeitlin. "I Have a
Little House" is from her CD and book Castle in My City. Copyright of the
song is, as follows; Ballades, ASCAP.Words and music by Patty Zeitlin c. 1963
Bullfrog Ballades, ASCAP I was
introduced to this song through Tony Sarletan’s ‘The Song Bag’ LP. |
I
have a little house, a little house, a little house, I
have a little house just for me; With
flowers and grass and sycamore trees, Round
that little house just for me. I
have a little bed, a little bed, a little bed I
have a little bed just for me, And
I rest my head on that little bed In
that little house just for me. I
have a little chair, a little chair, a little chair I
have a little chair just for me, And
I sit right there in that little chair In
that little house just for me. I
have a little table, a little table, a little table, I
have a little table just for me, And
whenever I’m able I eat on that table, In
that little house just for me. And
when you come I’ll let you in Because
I surely like you; You
can sleep on my bed and sit on my chair, And
eat on my table too, my friend, In
that little house just for me – and you! |
This is from the traditional Welsh
song ‘ Tŷ Bach Twt’ ‘The tidy little house’ You can find the Welsh
version at: http://www.mamalisa.com/?lang=Welsh&t=es&p=2547#multimediaBoxInternalLink The words here are a delightful take
by Mari Griffiths and originally came from the BBC radio Music Box programme. |
I have a little tiny house, A tiny house, a tiny house. I have a little tiny house, That’s right
beside the seaside. Hi-dee-ho, de-hi-dee-hi-dee-ho, That’s right
beside the seaside. I do no
work, I sit and watch, I sit and
watch, I sit and watch. I do no
work, I sit and watch, The high
tide and the low tide. Hi-dee-ho,
de-hi-dee-hi-dee-ho, The high tide
and the low tide. And here I
live and eat and sleep, And eat and
sleep, and eat and sleep; And here I
live and eat and sleep, Contented by
the fireside. Hi-dee-ho,
de-hi-dee-hi-dee-ho, Contented by
the fireside. |
I know where I’m going O A Irish folk song that works beautifully as a lullaby. |
I know where I'm going, And I know who's going with me, I know who I love, And the dear knows who I'll marry. I have stockings of silk And shoes of fine green leather, Combs to buckle my hair, And a ring for every finger. Feather beds are soft, And painted rooms are bonnie, But I would leave them all, To go with my love my Johnny. Some say that he's poor, But I say he's bonnie, The fairest of them all My handsome winsome Johnny. I know where I'm going, And I know who's going with me, I know who I love, But the dear knows who I'll marry. |
I like peace, I like quiet 🔊 Which sounds do
you like best? A song from BBC TVs Play School; words by Michael Cole, music
by Peter Gosling. |
I like peace, I like quiet, I like to hear small things stir. I like peace, I like quiet, I like to hear the birds wings whirr. I like noise, I like row, I like to hear things bang and pow! I like noise, I like row, I like to hear things wham and wow! I like peace, I like quiet, I like to hear the whisper of grass. I like noise, I like riot, I like to hear jets go past. I like dongs and bongs and clangs And noises that give you a shock! I like hush and I like shh… Quiet enough to hear the ticking of a clock. |
I love my little donkey 🔊 An Orléanais
song with English words by Helen Henschel for ‘A third 60 songs for little
children’ OUP 1960. |
I love my little donkey, Hee, haw! Hee, haw! I love my little donkey, His coat’s so soft, His velvet coat’s so soft. I drive my little donkey, Gee up! Gee up! I drive my little donkey, In a painted cart, In a little painted cart. The bells they jingle gaily, Dingle ding, ding, ding, The bells they jingle gaily, As off we trot, Merrily off we trot. I lead my little donkey, Hee, haw! Hee, haw! I lead my little donkey, To his bed in his stall, So good night, that’s all. |
Iona and
Peter Opie say in their’ Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes’ that the lines
below were copied with some variation into a family album of verse, dated
1815,by a Mrs Elizabeth Susannah Graham. A version
with ‘raisins in the cabin, And almonds in the hold ‘is from ’Ye fairy ship’
by Walter Crane and the tune below
with slight changes comes from ‘The Baby's Bouquet, A Fresh Bunch
of Rhymes and Tunes’ by Walter Crane (1878).
I am more familiar with
the words below. A correspondent for the Revue Celtique,
1880, saw children singing it as they danced in a circle imitating ducks. |
I saw a ship a-sailing, A-sailing on the sea; And oh, but it was laden, With pretty things for me! There were comfits in the cabin, And apples in the hold; The sails were made of satin, And the masts were made of gold. The four-and-twenty sailors That stood between the decks, Were four-and-twenty white mice With chains about their necks. The captain was a duck, a duck, With a packet on his back; And when the ship began to move, The captain said, "Quack! Quack! " |
Have fun with the sound effects in
this song using the voice or percussion.. Sung by American sailors as early as
1898; the words were more appropriate to a seafaring life ‘The monkey
he got drunk’ More
modern versions end with: ‘And that was the end of the monkey...’ It was also popular as an American
minstrel song where ‘the monk, the monk, the monk, the monk...’ was sung ad
infinitum. |
I went to the animal fair, The birds and the beasts were there, The big baboon by the light of the moon Was combing his auburn hair. The monkey fell out of his bunk, Bump! And slid down the elephant's trunk, Wheee! The elephant sneezed, Atchoo! And fell on his knees, Oh dear! And what became of the monkey, monkey, monkey, monkey, And what became of the monk? |
A song about the caterpillar life cycle
by Tom Stanier and Liz Bennett from BBC TV’s Watch. |
I went to the cabbages one day, What do you think I saw? Eggs in a cluster, yellow as a duster, What could it all be for? I went to the cabbages one day, What do you think I saw? Caterpillars crunching, caterpillars munching, What could it all be for? I went to the cabbages one day, What do you think I saw? I saw a soopa doopa pupa, What could it all be for? I went to the cabbages one day, What do you think I saw? I saw a butterfly, watched it flutter by; What could it all be for? I went to the cabbages one day, What do you think I saw? Eggs in a cluster, yellow as a duster, What could it all be for? |
I wish I had the shepherd’s lamb 🔊 A song most
children in Ireland learn at school either in English or Gaelic. The Gaelic
chorus here is phonetic rather than as Gaelic is written. The translation is:
And O I call you, I call you, You are my heart’s love without deceit… And you
are mother’s little pet. |
I wish
I had the shepherd's lamb, The shepherd's lamb, the shepherd's lamb; I wish I had the shepherd's lamb, And Katie coming after. Iss O! gurrim gurrim hoo, Iss grah machree gon kellig hoo, Iss O! gurrim gurrim hoo, Sthoo patha beg dhu wauher. I wish I had a yellow cow, A yellow cow, a yellow cow, I wish I had a yellow cow, And welcome from my darling. I wish I had a Kerry cow, A Kerry cow, a Kerry cow, I wish I had a Kerry cow, I’d milk her night and morning. I wish I had a Galway hat, A Galway hat, a Galway hat, I wish I had a Galway hat, I’d
give it to my darling. I wish I had a house and land, A house and land, a house and land, I wish I had a house and land, I’d ask her if she’d marry. |
If all the seas were one sea 🔊 A traditional thyme
found in many Mother Goose collections. Iona and Peter
Opie in the Oxford dictionary of nursery rhymes, suggest it was first
delivered by Rowland Hill (1744-1833), a great preacher, as a rebuke to two
‘ungodly’ men who ventured into his church and then left ‘turning their backs
upon the gospel’. |
If all the seas were one
sea, What a GREAT sea that
would be! If all the trees were one
tree, What a GREAT tree that
would be! If all the axes were one
axe, What a GREAT axe that
would be! If all the men were one
man, What a GREAT t man he
would be! And if the GREAT man took
the GREAT axe, And cut down the GREAT
tree, And let it fall into the
GREAT sea, What a splish splash that
would be! |
If I were a blackbird 🔊 A traditional folk
song from Ireland. Can be sung as a lullaby. |
If I were a blackbird, I'd
whistle and sing And I'd follow the ship
that my true love sails in; And on the top rigging I'd
there build my nest And pillow my head on his
lily white breast. I am a young maiden and my
story is sad, For once I was courted by
a brave sailor lad, He courted me truly by
night and by day But now my dear sailor has
gone far away. He promised to take me to
Donnybrook fair, To buy me red ribbons to
tie up my hair And when he'd return from
the ocean so wide, He'd take me and make me
his own loving bride. Whistle & Chorus |
I’m only a poor little sparrow 🔊 A nostalgia
song to have fun with. From my early teaching days. By Michael Coleman and
Kevin Parrott who had several othe popular hits at the time. It was in
the charts in 1979 for eleven weeks with a group of school children ‘The
Ramblers’ giving many notable performances. |
I'm only a poor little
sparrow (Aaah!) No colourful feathers have
I (What a shame) I can't even sing (Aaah!) When I'm nesting in Spring
(Aaah!) And the turnips don't grow
very high (It's a shame) Most sparrows I know are
so cheeky, (That's right) In fact they're incredibly
brave, (So brave) But for me that's not true
(Aaah!) All I ever do (Aaah!) Is worry myself to the
grave. (It's a shame) She's only a poor little
sparrow, No colourful feathers has
she, She can't even sing When she's nesting in
Spring And the turnips don't grow
very high. Whenever I try to be
helpful, (Not) I seem to do something
that's wrong; (That's right) Only one day last week, (Yes) I chopped someone’s beak, (Yes) And now it's as broad as
it's long. (Oh, poor thing) I once had a boyfriend
called Bertie, (Woooh) He said I was pretty as
three, (Haaah) He built me a nest, (Yes) Gave me all of his best, (Yes) Then jumped up and fell
off a tree. (Haha) (She's only a poor little
sparrow,) That's right (No colourful feathers has
she,) All brown (She can't even sing,) Tweet-tweet (When she's nesting in
Spring,) (She's only a poor little
bird.) That's right |
It’s a small world 🔊 Written by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman for the 1964
World’s Fair in New York. It will be a familiar song to those familiar with
Disney theme parks but is a delightful song in it’s own right with the words
stating the obvious: we all need to get on and work with each other for the
sake of our planet and indeed ourselves. The verse and chorus can be sung as a round as the words work in
counterpoint. |
It's a world of laughter,
a world of tears; It's a world of hopes and
a world of fears. There's so much that we
share, That it's time we're
aware. It's a small world after
all. It's a small world after
all. It's a small world after
all. It's a small world after
all. It's a small, small world. There is just one moon and
one golden sun, And a smile means
friendship to every one. Though the mountains divide
and the oceans are wide, It's a small world after
all. It's a small world after
all. It's a small world after
all. It's a small world after
all. It's a small, small world. |
It could be a wonderful world 🔊 This song
written by
Hy Zaret and with music by Lou Singer is a timely reminder of our obligations
and need to live in unity and peace with our fellow earthdwellers. It was made
popular by Pete Seeger. |
If
we could consider each other, Our
neighbour, a friend, or a brother, It
could be a wonderful, wonderful world, It
could be a wonderful world, Uh-huh, It
could be a wonderful world. If
each little kid could have fresh milk each day, If
each working man had enough time to play, If
each homeless soul had a good place to stay, It
could be a wonderful world, Uh-huh, It
could be a wonderful world. If
we could consider each other, A
neighbour, a friend, or a brother, It
could be a wonderful, wonderful world, It
could be a wonderful world, Uh-huh, It
could be a wonderful world. If
there were no poor and the rich were content, If
strangers were welcome wherever they went, If
each of us knew what true brotherhood meant, It
could be a wonderful world, Uh-huh, It
could be a wonderful world. If
we could consider each other, A
neighbour, a friend, or a brother, It
could be a wonderful, wonderful world, It
could be a wonderful world, Uh-huh, It
could be a wonderful world. |
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