Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody

Subject: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: nancyjo
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 12:01 PM

In reading some old posts, I came across mention of singing Amazing Grace to the tune of Gilligans Island. The result cracked everyone at work up -especially when repeating "was blind but now I see" twice, just like "a three hour tour".

This gave me an idea for entertainment at an event coming up, and I was wondering what other combinations people have come up with? When I was a kid, my dad would sing The Marines Hymn to the tune of My Darling Clementine. And I remember singing the words to Robert Frost's "Stopping by woods on a snow evening" to Hernando's Hideaway.

Was this ever a thread before? If so, can someone tell me what search words to use?
Does anyone have any more suggestions? Thanks in advance.

nancyjo

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: GUEST,EBarnacle as Guest
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 12:03 PM

It's not wrong, just unusual.

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: Micca
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 12:07 PM

nancyjo, here are a few good examples i.e
" While shepherds watched their Flocks" to "Ilkley moor baht 'at"
"Clementine" to " Bread of Heaven"
" my old mans a Dustman" to "British Grenadiers"

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: GUEST
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 12:07 PM

it's been discussed before - but I don't remember the thread names.

doing an advanced search on "amazing grace" AND "gilligan's" might bring it up.

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: GUEST,ClaireBear
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 12:12 PM

About 20 years ago, a friend of mine (Annie? You out there?) used to close her shows with the lyrics to "Chantilly Lace" sung to "The Parting Glass." Just about the funniest thing I'd ever heard.

Claire

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: Don Firth
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 12:37 PM

The Star Spangled Banner works pretty well with the tune of Wildwood Flower.

Don Firth

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: Don Firth
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 12:38 PM

And, of course, the other way around.

Don Firth

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: clueless don
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 12:42 PM

You can do this with a lot of songs. It isn't particularly funny, but I used to find myself singing "Cockies of Bungaree" to the tune of "The Wild Colonial Boy". And every time I hear the hymn title "A Mighty Fortress is our God" (I'm not familiar with the hymn itself), I find myself launching into "A mighty fortress is our God, DOO-DAH! DOO-DAH! a mighty fortress is our God, Oh, da Doo-Dah Day!" (well, there's another 10000 millenia in purgatory!)

Regarding doing "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" to "Hernando's Hideaway", I remember hearing about doing an Emily Dickinson poem (I think it was "Because I could not Wait for Death") to "The Yellow Rose of Texas".

I have heard at least one performer do "Stairway to Gilligan's Island."

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: curmudgeon
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 12:49 PM

Try the "Wild Colonial Boy" to "Ghost Riders in the Sky;" Tooraly ay, Tooraly oh, the wild colonial boy!

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: GUEST,fred miller
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 01:01 PM

I think you can do pretty much any Dickinson poem to yellow rose of texas, or so I've heard. I do Froggie went acourtin to the tune of in the mood--the uh-huhs work nicely. Some of these things have come up before, but usually in drifts of other threads I think.

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: Burke
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 01:31 PM

It's come up a lot see switching lyrics and melodys

Amazing Grace, Gilligan's, Yellow Rose of Texas, Hernando's Hideaway, While Shepherd's, House of the Rising Sun, are all 4 lines of 8,6,8,6 syllables. Most of these Common Meter poems should be interchangeable in terms of tunes.

"Ilkley moor baht 'at"
is actually the newer words, written for the hymn tune Cranbrook that was traditionally used with "While Shepherd's" or "Grace 'tis a Charming Sound"

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: Mrs.Duck
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 01:39 PM

Beat me to that one Burke.

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs with wrong lyrics
From: Wolfgang
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 02:12 PM

taking up EBarnacle's ball...

If neither lyrics nor tune are wrong, only the combination of them unusual, why do we (including me, of course) talk of the tune being wrong and not of the lyrics being wrong?
Why does a sentence like 'he sings these lyrics to the wrong tune' feel better than a sentence like 'she sings this tune with the wrong lyrics'?

Back to the theme of the thread: The German national anthem can be sung to the tune of the European hymn (which has led to some anti-European comments in the British press). However, it can also be sung to the tune of the anthem of the late (or is 'late' restricted to persons?) GDR. My personal most preferred tune to which our anthem can be sung is 'Hang down your head, T.D.'

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: GUEST,MMario
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 02:22 PM

I prefer to think of them as "different" tunes - rather than "wrong" tunes.

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: Mrs.Duck
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 02:24 PM

Spancil Hill also works to Ghost Riders in the Sky
or Wild Rover to the Banana Boat song

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: nancyjo
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 02:25 PM

Thanks so much for all the responses, especially for leading me to the past thread "switching songs and melodies". That provided lots of laughs. Thanks, all.

nancyjo

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: Gareth
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 02:34 PM

Yeah, but you try singing the harmony of "Bread of Heaven" to "Molly Malone" - I've not been able to look the Minister in the eye since.

Gareth

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: Joe_F
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 04:14 PM

In the 1950s, when Americans wished to annoy a Marine, they would sing the Marines' Hymn ttto "The Ghost Riders in the Sky", with the chorus

Gung ho! Gung ho!
The United States Marines.

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: Leadfingers
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 04:24 PM

Couldnt be bothered checking the clickied thread to see if was mentioned but Aunt Fortescues Blues Rockers did I think 127 gigs in their career and finished each one with 'Wild Rover'to a different tune.At Uxbridge it was Te Laughing Policeman!!!

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 05:07 PM

Clive Lever (the man with the keyboard at Sidmouth) took up the challenge from my late wife Jacqui to do "Wild Rover" to a different tune every week at our then club till Christmas. He was still going strong next Easter. Highlights were "A Boy named Sue", and "Stairway to Heaven".

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: Herga Kitty
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 05:42 PM

Having been obliged as a penance to sing it to the tune of Away in a Manger at the Wareham Wail last year (in order to get any food at the mediaeval banquet) the Sidmouth Anchor Middle Bar Singers sang the Wild Rover to many other tunes as well.

I'm grateful to Mr Happy, who, last year at MBS Lynne's Donisthorpe music weekend, got us singing Happiness to the tune of the Ellen Vannen, and vice versa.

And of course, no rendition of the White Cockade is complete without Pinball Wizard and My Old Man's a Dustman....

Kitty

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: Snuffy
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 06:06 PM

I regularly sing My Old Man's a Dustman to the tune of Adieu Sweet Lovely Nancy, and at Bridgnorth sang a full-length version of The Lion and Albert to My Bonnie Lies Over The Ocean

WassaiL! V

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: Dickmac
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 06:09 PM

To please? both sides of the religious divide what about Roddy McCorley to the tune of The Sash.

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: brid widder
Date: 27 Aug 03 - 06:09 PM

Those of us who saw the New Year in at the Tap & Spile in Whitby last year will never forget Les, Maggie & co singing 'Two Little Boys had Two Little Toys' to the tune of 'Leaving of Liverpool'... my team's rendition of 'She Loves You Yea Yea Yea' to Wild Mountain Thyme was, I thought, a definite improvement on the alternative...

Subject: RE: Humor- Singing songs to wrong melody
From: clueless don
Date: 29 Aug 03 - 12:37 PM

In addition to what I wrote in my previous post, I have often had fun trying to sing the hymn "Jerusalem" to different melodies. It can be made to work with "And now I am the leader of the Queen's Na-vee", though it works better to "I am the very model of a modern Major General". But I am most pleased with singing it to the melody of the theme music from the old American TV show "My Three Sons".