Songs for Scouts

Subject: RE: Songs for Scouts
From: Peter T.
Date: 14 Aug 97 - 10:03 AM

A brief addendum. If you try this, you will be amazed at how stunned most kids are that their favorite songs are playable, and that there are about 5 chord sequences to learn, and maybe 4 keys. They have no idea that it is as simple as it is. They tend to think that most songs belong to some unbelievably complex distant universe - I assume this is because no one teaches music anymore in schools. And they taught it badly before. I once explained the 50's "Duke of Earl" progression (the old I-VI-II-IV-V-I) for a group of 13-14 year old kids, and they fell all over the floor laughing hysterically. They didn't believe that it was really just like that, and that you could do that so easily, and write other songs using the same sequence. They made me do it over and over again for hours. We sat around making up new do-wop songs for about half a day. They love -- LOVE! -- this stuff. Yours, Peter

Subject: RE: Songs for Scouts
From: Peter T.
Date: 14 Aug 97 - 09:43 AM

Dear Jon, My experience as a participant and occasional leader of singalongs has been that it is very hard to get early teens to join in for pure singing. However, if you can get a guitar into their hands, and give them about two lessons they will put up with anything. They are desperate to learn how to play the guitar! If you round up as many guitars as you can find, and have someone give a crash course in the basics of chording and progressions on the guitar with as many of the kids in your troop as possible, using the songs you want to have them sing as the repertoire, then you will be away. What you need for the singsong is one adult player, and as many kid players as possible: the rest will (in my experience) sing along just to be part of the group because every teenager wants to be where there are massed guitars. To keep them interested in what you want them to sing, you (or whoever is doing this) will probably have to find one or two of their latest hits and work out the progressions, which are probably the usual three chords anyway. Yours, Peter

Subject: RE: Songs for Scouts
From: Wolfgang Hell
Date: 14 Aug 97 - 09:21 AM

There is a German Songbook for Scouts on the web, which has quite a large section with English songs, about 10% of them folk. It gives a good impression what one particular group of German scouts are singing. All notes and link descriptions are in German. But if this does not deter you follow me to the English section of that songbook. Note that not all of their English songs, even not all folksongs, are found in this section. If you want to find all English songs you have to follow their other links. Good luck.

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: Songs for Scouts
From: Bert Hansell
Date: 14 Aug 97 - 08:58 AM

Try "Woad" & "Ricketi-tin".

Subject: RE: Songs for Scouts
From: hartley
Date: 14 Aug 97 - 08:54 AM

I was in scout for many years and perhaps too many years old to remember well. And my daughter was in girl scouts for a couple of years and worked with her group. In neither case was group singing emphasized, so that aspect of group activity may vary. However, I do remember that was singing we did do were songs like Row, Row, Row Your Boat and Down in the Valley. A lot the songs were made up songs to popular folk tunes, song that hyped the value of being a scout or a good scout. So, I probably got a lot of tunes in my head now but not the right lyrics. Scouts weren't suppose to sing about themes such as in Bank of the Ohio, etc. My daughter had even less singing in her troup even at camp outs. I guess the advent of taped music killed the incentive to be live. Also, there were canned lyrics about scouting to old folk tunes. A think scout lyrics are not memorable and the sophistication level of the kids today have outstripped the aims of the leaders. I tried to play and get sing-a-longs going and it was tough. Also, I would suggest that parents of scouts, in their 20's and 30's for the most part, don't do a lot of singing. So may be kids are reflecting what they find a home. My personal experience, however, has been that singing or playing music can be a real group cementing expereince and equalizer (most of the time). I think that group singing/playing should be more pushed in schools; one of the real team building expereinces around.

Subject: RE: Songs for Scouts
From:
Date: 14 Aug 97 - 01:55 AM

I suggest My Uncle Walter Waltzes With Bears.

Personally, although an ex-scout and cub myself I have never had experience singing to such groups as such groups. I have however sung songs to kids that age and found that they seem to like amusing songs, and/or songs with choruses that are easy to sing along with. Sea shanties often go over fairly well -- South Australia, or that one about Lord Nelson had a remedy to cure your mal de mer {sic} (which they seem to think is Mouldy Mare) They can roar along with the choruses.

However, we live in the age of Bevis and Butthead and suchlike so I agree that it is hard to get kids when amongst other kids to sing along. they are more prone to try when they are a few kids amongst adults. I find it is still easy to frighten them with ghost stories over the embers on the seashore in the dark so you might buy a few books of tradtional ghost stories.

Subject: Songs for Scouts
From: Joe Offer
Date: 14 Aug 97 - 01:32 AM

Jon W. brought up a question in the "live music" thread . He wondered if anyone has suggestions on how to coax Boy Scouts into singing. I've got the same question.
I was a Cubmaster for some 10 years, working with boys 6-11 years old. I did a lot of singing with them, and thye seemed to enjoy it. I have to admit that I found the most of the songs in books published by the Boy Scouts didn't go over very well. I seemed to have a lot of success with songs that dealt with booze and violence. "Mountain Dew" was popular, and so was "The Deacon Went Down." they liked Shel Silverstein's "Welcome to Our House," and the one about Anne Boleyn called "With Her Head Tucked Underneath Her Arm." They also loved "MTA," and "The Hole in the Bottom of the Sea."
When the kids hit Boy Scout age, 12, they weren't so interested in the songs I sang, and I kind of lost heart. then I took them to camp, and the counselors sang. Since the counselors were close to their own age, the boys decided it was OK to sing. Some of the songs they liked at camp were "Titanic," "The Rooster" (in the database - the song about the rooster helping out the chicken that wouldn't lay eggs), "The Cat Came Back," and even the "Hokey-Pokey."
So, Jon, there's one hint - get them to a place where they have kids doing the song leading. Any other hints or song suggestions for Jon, anyone?
-Joe Offer-