Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song

Subject: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: Grab
Date: 28 Jan 00 - 09:50 AM

Can't believe it - the DigiTrad database is totally missing the classic Scout campfire song, Gin Gan Goolie! This shall hereby be corrected...

Gin Gan Goolie
Lord Baden-Powell

Gin gan goolie-goolie-goolie-goolie wotcha,
gin gan goo, gin gan goo.
Gin gan goolie-goolie-goolie-goolie wotcha,
gin gan goo, gin gan goo.

Hayla, hayla shayla, hayla shayla hayla hoo-oo,
Hayla, hayla shayla, hayla shayla hayla hoo.

Shallywally-shallywally-shallywally-shallywally,
oompah, ooppah, oompah, oompah.

(etc).

Pronunciation:

'G' is hard, as in 'game' (not soft, as in 'gentle').
The 'A's in 'shallywally' are short, as in 'apple'.

This is usually sung all together for the first go through, then after that one side keeps 'oompah'-ing while the other side sings, then they swap over. It can also be done as a canon (round). It's great for kids cos it's total nonsense and it's easy to learn, although when you split up it tends to be a war of attrition as each side gets louder and some kids lose timing and put others off, and it all falls apart quite amusingly!

As a note to anyone who asks what it means, it means absolutely nothing at all. In fact, Baden-Powell put in some serious research to produce a song which was completely meaningless in every language he could find!

If I've got time, I'll post the music to it as well. I may have to do that with tab for pitch and ASCII-art musical notes for timing, since I've got no MIDI/ABC facilities.

Grab.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: Grab
Date: 28 Jan 00 - 09:54 AM

Oops - don't know how I got 2 copies of this! Aarrgghh! Sorry!

Grab.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: AndyG
Date: 28 Jan 00 - 10:08 AM

But it's in the forum,
the ging gang gooly thread with discussion.

AndyG

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: Grab
Date: 28 Jan 00 - 01:06 PM

Oh dear, another fine mess. Checked the links under 'G', but forgot to search the threads too. :( Ah well, sorry folks.

Grab.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: harpgirl
Date: 29 Jun 00 - 02:32 PM

...remind me to wish you a happy birthday next april, GRAB!

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: GUEST,SM Bill
Date: 21 Nov 01 - 12:26 PM

Any chance of getting the melody for this song? I would like to teach this to my boys, to help emhpasize the tradition of Scouting, but I don't recall the tune.

Thanks for your help.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: Sorcha
Date: 21 Nov 01 - 12:32 PM

MIDI here.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: brid widder
Date: 21 Nov 01 - 06:42 PM

you might not believe this but I promise it is true

my son is a cub scout leader he says...scouts and cub scouts ARE NOT ALLOWED TO SING THIS SONG anymore...because of it's use of the word 'goolie' which has sexual connotations apparently...Honi soit qui mal y pense

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: Wotcha
Date: 21 Nov 01 - 07:14 PM

Got learn this one at Orley Farm School ... down the Hill from Herga ... many years ago and I was no Boy Scout.
Cheers,
Brian

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: AllisonA(Animaterra)
Date: 21 Nov 01 - 11:31 PM

What in the world is the sexual connotation with "goolie", for goodness sake? Inquiring minds want to know!
Some people will "mal y pense" about anything!!!)

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: Sorcha
Date: 22 Nov 01 - 12:22 AM

Especially the Scouts, lately, it seems. I beleive it, having seen Scouting from the inside to the outside for over 40 years. Not the same program I grew up with. Not sure I would even want to be associated with it now. Pity, it was (read WAS) a good program. I find it hard to believe Baden-Powell would agree with some of this beauracratic horseshit.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: GUEST,.gargoyle
Date: 22 Nov 01 - 12:30 AM

Has Mr. dick greenhouse been sick?

Has he died?

Has he mearly lost interest....like sooooo mmaannnnyyyy before?

Is MAX taxing his dick to the max?

Has susan lost her true love?

Or perhaps, another site has laid a greater claim to the archives of the Digital Tradition?

The last update, was a long time ago.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: The Walrus at work
Date: 22 Nov 01 - 01:09 PM

Animaterra,

"...What in the world is the sexual connotation with "goolie", for goodness sake? Inquiring minds want to know!..."

The Hindi(?) word for "Ball" is "Gola", during the Raj, British soldiers anglicised this to "gooly" (plural "goolies"), this became asscociated goolies = balls = testicles.

Damned silly isn't it?

Walrus

By the bye: If the Scout movement have a problem with "Gin Gan Gooly" - What do they make of "Scouting for Boys"?

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: GUEST,SM Bill
Date: 12 Dec 01 - 01:22 PM

Hey, Sorcha, thanks so much for the link to the midi file. Now I finally get to learn a song that so many apparently already know!

To all others: thanks for the entertaining thread. I will continue to maintain my positive attitude, because I believe the Scouting program continues to encourage strong moral character development when all the rest of the world seems to want to challenge the same. Peace.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: Cappuccino
Date: 12 Dec 01 - 05:18 PM

I know a charity worker who recently found himself in a church service in a remote village in Zambia, where the preacher announced 'let's ask our guest from England to sing a traditional song from his own country'.

This was the only song he could think of. It is, as a result, now surprisingly popular in the depths of Africa.

- IanB

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Gin Gan Goolie - Scout song
From: RangerSteve
Date: 12 Dec 01 - 05:38 PM

Thanks, Grab, for starting this thread. I learned it at scout camp up in the Catskill Mts about 40 years ago and I still sing it, usually at work, where, fortunately, I'm alone most of the time. I didn't know it had such a noted author.