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12 messages

Bingo was his name-o

07 Jan 23 - 12:29 PM (#4161629)
Subject: Bingo was his name-o
From: Steve Shaw

Someone bought us a little battery-operated robin for Christmas which sings different little ditties and waggles its head when you clap your hands. One of the tunes is this nursery rhyme that both our children sang forty years ago in their playgroups. It was one of their favourites and we often heard them chuntering away with it when they were playing quietly with their toys. I was astonished to find that wiki calls it a folk song and that it dates back to at least 1785! Looks like it's gone through a bit of a folk process since then too!


07 Jan 23 - 12:45 PM (#4161632)
Subject: RE: Bingo was his name-o
From: meself

It's the best song I can think of for teaching children how to spell "Bingo" ... !


07 Jan 23 - 12:48 PM (#4161633)
Subject: RE: Bingo was his name-o
From: GerryM

One of the many songs I learned on the bus on the road to Day Camp, circa 1960.


07 Jan 23 - 12:52 PM (#4161636)
Subject: RE: Bingo was his name-o
From: Nigel Parsons

Of course it's already in Mudcat: BINGO


07 Jan 23 - 02:00 PM (#4161640)
Subject: RE: Bingo was his name-o
From: Steve Shaw

The search thingie isn't working properly just now, Nigel.


02 Jul 23 - 11:17 AM (#4175974)
Subject: RE: Bingo was his name-o
From: Nigel Parsons

Just seen a very worrying discussion on FaceBook regarding this song:

There was a farmer had a dog,
And Bingo was his name, sir.
B-I-N-G-O,
B-I-N-G-O,
B-I-N-G-O
And Bingo was his name, sir.

"Was Bingo the name of the farmer, or of the dog?"

I'd always assumed it was the dog. But now I'm uncertain ;)


03 Jul 23 - 12:16 PM (#4176039)
Subject: RE: Bingo was his name-o
From: Steve Gardham

Same tune basically as 'Come , landlord fill the flowing bowl' and another children's game to the same tune was 'I wrote a letter to my love, and on the way I dropped it'


03 Jul 23 - 01:24 PM (#4176041)
Subject: RE: Bingo was his name-o
From: GUEST

Was it sung by a fat lady with a walking stick?Either way up


04 Jul 23 - 02:37 AM (#4176067)
Subject: RE: Bingo was his name-o
From: GUEST,Nick Dow

C# collected it. It used to crop up on the radio, on Children's Hour. (Bingo was his name, sir, Bingo was his name, I'll sing B and you sing I etc.)


04 Jul 23 - 03:43 AM (#4176069)
Subject: RE: Bingo was his name-o
From: GUEST,RJM

It is one that passed me by.
I remember singing other folk songs at school and at woodcraft folk. on the subject of learning spelling through singing.
Does anybody else remember singing the alphabet. abc defg hijklm nopq rstu wxyz


04 Jul 23 - 03:44 AM (#4176070)
Subject: RE: Bingo was his name-o
From: GUEST,RJM

I missed the v, typo


04 Jul 23 - 06:05 AM (#4176078)
Subject: RE: Bingo was his name-o
From: Steve Gardham

Yes, Dick
More of a jig metre though, tune similar to first phrase of Bingo. Second half perhaps related to Blaydon Races amongst others. Probably a pretty standard ditty tune of the early 19th century.