marymarymary asked : ...these days it always sounds like a Geordie shepherd losing his rag with a sheepdog to me!...

I've probably read that sentence five or six times, and I still have no clue... What, exactly, does "losing one's rag with a sheepdog" mean???
losing one's rag : losing your temper, getting angry What he meant was that "Kumbaya" sounds like "Coom bah yah" - which if you really mangled it, might sound like a Geordie shepherd apparently using the words "Come by!" to call a sheepdog .

If you are wondering why anyone who wasn't a shepherd migh have that info.. one of the top-rated shows on BBC TV a few years back was "One Man and his Dog" which featured sheep-herding trials.
... it was simpler, more innocent world back then ...

Cheers

Steven