Play party songs
Here comes Sally
Hey, Betty Martin
Old brass wagon
Pig in the parlour
Sandy land
Weevily wheat
Last updated: 06/03/2016 17:07
The songs below are part of ‘Away we
go’ Round and about
compiled, adapted, translated and illustrated by Dany Rosevear
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To listen to music from these
songs click on title at O
To watch
the author sing a song click on the title at:
© Dany Rosevear 2008 All rights reserved
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Here comes Sally O Replace ‘Sally’ with ‘Ollie’
or the name of the lead child. Listen to a lively version
by John Langstaff: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Here-Comes-Sally/dp/B001HR6MYS Pairs facing each other in a
class circle, one half of each couple on the outside, the others make an
inner circle. Six or seven children wait in the centre of that circle. They
choose a named leader.
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Hey, Betty Martin O Originally an English tune; ‘In
Yorkshire I was born and bred..., about a canny country bumpkin not fooled by
city folk. Later fifers and drummers played this tune in the Anglo-American
war of 1812. This game will give practice
in taking and inviting others to take turns, while developing patience at the
same time! It is also an opportunity to study pitch, use hands to demonstrate
this, begin high and move lower on the first phrase. Begin in a circle holding
hands, with one child, Betty or Billy, on the inside. This child and subsequent
partners together choose which action to make in the following verse. Watch at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcVQrJ-VGaw&feature=related though this delightful version
is much closer to the previous song ‘Weevily
wheat’!
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Old brass wagon O Here is a singing game from
the days when covered wagons rolled across the USA to the lands in the west.
This ‘play party’ classic would have been sung in rural and frontier towns in
many parts of the States from the mid1800s to around 1950. At this time there
was often prejudice against dancing but singing games such as this one were
deemed to be more socially acceptable. Watch another version at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcwwMgduorU&feature=related Make a large circle standing
in pairs holding hands.
Swing
Do-si-do
Promenade |
Pig in the parlour O People would come from miles
around by horseback or wagon on Saturday night, in places such as Missouri,
USA, to attend a ‘play party’ where popular games like this were once played.
Play parties were also a perfect chance to begin courtship. This well known traditional
tune is better known as ‘For he’s a jolly good fellow’ or ‘The bear went over
the mountain’. The original refrain ‘And it is Irish too’ was a sensitive
one, as it referred to the poverty of the Irish at that time with the need of
the poor to keep livestock in the house. Listen at: http://web.lyon.edu/wolfcollection/songs/ashpig1247.html Use other farm animal names
e.g. ‘We’ve got a cow in the kitchen’ Practice the right hand /
left hand manoeuvre well before attempting this dance. Stand in a circle next
to a partner.
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Sandy land O ‘Sandy land’, a singing game
from Georgia U.S.A., works well as a partner song with ‘Skip to my Lou’. Younger children would enjoy
either miming the actions below or singing animal noises to the same tune;
Moo, moo, moo, moo, moo, moo, moo, etc.. Each child stands next to a
partner joining hands to make a large circle.
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Weevily wheat O
This early American square dance
song was popular with those of English and Scottish descent and was possibly
linked with Bonnie Prince Charlie. In those days weevils in the
wheat were a regular storage problem, keeping food pest free was a necessary
preoccupation. ‘Weevily’ wheat would have been fed
to the hens. Make a square set with four
pairs. Pair A and C stand facing each other as do B and D. Listen at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYg7bc_WvEU
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