The yoof of today...

merlot Also; When father papered the parlour, you couldn't see him for paste!

My mum used to sing this,

Will you please come down and finish the baby, finish the baby do
He's got two eyes and one little nose
Ten little fingers and ten little toes
Got no hair, got no teeth, and the poor little thing can't chew....
So will you please come down and finish the baby, finish the baby do!

Does anyone else remember it?

I didn't sing classic nursery rhymes to my grandkids, it was Nellie the Elephant, the mouse in the windmill in old Amsterdam etc As the boys got older and liked the old James Bond films, we watched Dr No and I taught them " underneath the mango tree". When my son asked his boys if they wanted to come and stay with Nanny, the oldest said yes, but as long as we don't have to sing the mango song ! Whenever my granddaughters had problems, I would burst into Reggae " don't you worry bout a thing, coz every little things gonna be alright " !! It was a standing joke, and they in turn do it to me now !

Also who could forget the song about trying to move the piano (can't remember details )

Bernard Cribbens, There I was, digging this hole ...

I'm a pink toothbrush, you're a blue toothbrush......

I need to get dressed!!!!!! (Not a song!) ?

I taught GS the Ying tong song and DSs thought it sounded racist! Nevertheless we sing it on Skype every time and he has his own version now -ying tong, ying tong, ying tong I love you. That'll do for me!

"Puff the magic Dragon", which always made me cry. "3 wheels on my wagon and I'm still rolling along" and, sung loudly with the boy next door, "I'm a pink toothbrush you're a blue toothbrush" . Still sing this with my gcs.

And of course "Nellie the elephant" which gd loves!

Funny how we can remember all the words to songs of long gone by, but have no idea what we were doing last Tuesday (in my case, anyway). I suppose it shows the power of music in all its forms.

One, two, three.
Mother caught a flea.
She put it in the teapot
And made a cup of tea.
The flea jumped out.
Mother gave a shout
And Father came a-running
With his shirt hanging out.

There was a song about unicorns, explaining why there aren't any - because they were messing around and didn't board the ark. "Green alligators, and long neck geese. Some humpty backed camels and some chimpanzees"

Right Said Fred was the one about the piano.

When my boys were in Scouts (we found a local American Cub Scout group) we had a sort of gang show one day and the Americans just loved it! I played the song with a cassette recorder, dressed up in dungarees and acted it all out for them! (Quite exhausting!)

I was singing "Chick, chick, chick, chick, chicken lay a little egg for me" to DGD the other day and was very glad to hear that it is sung to the children in the nursery DD works in when they collect the eggs! And I too can remember Paddy McGinty's Goat and Delaney's Donkey. And Mud, mud glorious mud - another good one for an outdoor nursery!

Right said Fred, both of us together, one each end and steady as you go. Piano shifters song.
I'm a pink toothbrush you're a blue toothbrush.
Albert's been eaten by a lion.
Sparky's magic piano.
Girl guide songs sung in rounds.
Love to come out with old favourites and watch GD's faces, they think I am batty.

Old Mother Hubbaby
Come to bed and cuddle me.
Cock yer leg all over me
And call me Sugar Baby.

More of a rhyme really. Taught to me by my Granny.

And then there was skipping/ball bouncing songs.

One, two, three canary,
I saw sister Mary,
With a soldier in the dairy.
One, two, three canary.

Innocent little bundles we were.

I remember lots of these songs, especially the ones that used to be on children's favorites like I'm a pink toothbrush. I loved Sparky and the magic piano.
As for the hippopotomas song, someone performed it at a recent concert and the under 50s were amazed when all us oldies joined in with the chorus: Mud, mud, glorious mud!
My father used to sing Sammy was a sailor to us as children - does anyone remember that? I know all the words.
My GC like it when I sing There was an old woman who swallowed a fly, or The Owl and the Pussycat went to sea....

You can't put your muck in my dustbin
Fish and chips and vinegar
One bottle top, two bottle top,
Molly Malone
Sing even now

Lots of the songs of that era are in a piano book called Apuskiduski which I played and sang with my children (and now my GC) when they were little.

Mud mud glorious mud, and the woman who swallowed a fly - love them!

Going back to my childhood there used to be a programme on the radio on a Saturday morning called Children's Favourites.....later known as Junior Choice I believe. This consisted of requests sent in by children and if you were lucky yours was played. The songs were all especially made for children ...such as Nellie the Elephant......How much is that Doggie in the Window......I,m a pink Toothbrush. All these types of songs were made with children in mind, unlike the songs of today which are often for much older people. Nowadays you only seem to get children's songs at nursery or playgroup. We use to love this radio programme as my sister and I were forever writing in for a request and used to listen in every week in the hope it would get played. Needless to say we knew all these songs off by heart as we only had a radio in our house which seemed to be permanently on. Think children were still allowed to be children back then, and not rushed into being mini adults before their time.

Another song remembered from my Scottish granny,s side of the family. You Cannae push you granny of a bus.....for she,s your mammy,s mammy....oh you Cannae push your granny of a bus. Can,t remember all the words to this but some of our uncles used to sing this to us. Lots more verses and choruses but I only remember the first bit now and the tune.

When very young I heard "Hang down your head Tom Dooley". It made me very sad even though I didn't understand it. I also remember "Nelly the Elephant" which I loved.

"There was a mouse there,where ? there on the stair where on the stair right there,a little mouse with clogs on well I dispair going clip clackerty clop on the stair.
My Grandfather taught me all the old songs when he looked after me when mum worked the best was "Why does everybody call me bighead" wonderful memories all being passed down to DGCs.

JanaNan,

You can push your OTHER granny off a bus
You can push your OTHER granny off a bus
You can push your Other granny
For she's your Daddy's mammy
You can push your OTHER granny off a bus!

Have some lovely memories of (almost) speeding along, with my mum driving her bright yellow escort, and my daughter in the back, with the three of us singing "I know an old lady who swallowed a fly".
Happy days, they were.