Songs/poems our Mothers sang

Sook - the way I knew it was:

Aunty Mary, had a canary,
Up the leg of her drawers,
She pulled a string to make it sing
And down came Santa Claus!

No no, it was:-

Auntie Mary had a canary
Up the leg of her drawers.
Chase me Charlie. chase me Charlie,
Won't you sho-ow me yours?

My mother had a lovely voice.She,her sisters and brothers were all in church choir,younger bro. was an organist.Songs round piano part of their childhood.
Remember mum singing many of songs mentioned here.
Brahms lullaby,Climb up sunshine mountain,I dreamt that I dwelt in marble halls .Hush little baby don't say a word.
We had some 78 records -Paul Robeson,Peter Dawson,Isabel Baillie.
I well remember 'Lulalula Byebye do you want the moon to play with,all the stars to run away with' and 'Ma Curly- headed Babby' were on the Paul Robeson record and we all sang along with it.

My mother never sang or recited poetry to her children. I, on the other hand, did both ad nauseum. I sang (to their undoubted embarrassment) to my children on the way to school, in the car, before bed etc. I have a wonderful collection of poetry books and was often to be heard declaiming my favourites. Now that my children are adults and I hear my daughter singing to her children I think it couldn't have been such a bad experience for them after all.
I sang 'Daisy, Daisy' as a lullaby to every one and my eldest granddaughter is called.....Daisy.

Ah grannyactivist ,

Some of the things we do for children DO pay off .

I read and sang to mine loads and loads .

{smile]

My Mother did not read stories either , I am afraid the business took precedence . probably a good thing, provided a good living .

but that is why I did not go into business until mine were at UNI. so I could devote all my time to them.

Do not regret one moment .

[moon ] + Still a little left

Marezydotes and dozeydontes and liddle lamseydivey kiddledivey too wouldnlt you!

My mother sang hymns and popular music to us as children, probably why I remember the words of the old songs better than my own era. I never ever heard my Father sing

Flowerofthewest,your song is the only one here I heard as a child.

Can't remember my mum reading to us well we were twins nd my dad was not the type but do remember him singing Irish songs to mewhen sat on his lap. Must have Ben small cant remember all words! Just remembering enjoying it.
Used to read loads to my two remember a ladybird series puddle lane probably still got in loft! As well as all traditional ones my daughter used to love the chicken liken story!

Auntie Mary had a canary
Up the leg of her drawers.
When she farted
It departed
Down the leg of her drawers!

is all I have ever known!

(On the A303 back to Devon)

Theseus wonders if any Scottish Grans remember "Down in the Glen" which his mother used to sing to him?

My mother had a beautiful voice, and I still can't hear "Somewhere over the rainbow" without a tear....

Her mother used to sing a snatch of a song about "The Boers have got my daddy, my brave soldier dad" which she must have heard from her mother, I think?

The hush of eventide
On the hills beyond the Clyde . . .

Did Theseus sing this version to the tune "Down in the Glen"

A gypsy said to me
Would you like a cup of tea?
I said no no I like cocoa
Down in the glen

My sweetheart said to me
Would you like to marry me?
I said yes yes In my best dress
Down in the glen.

My mum used to sing' Blue Moon' accompanied by my dad on the piano.
Every time I hear it now I think of her.
My grandad used to sing 'Put a bit of treacle on your pudding Mary Ann' a song with quite suggestive lyrics.(In a strong Cockney accent ).

feetlebaum, Elegran and nanaej isn't it funny how we all have our own version of the song. Apart from my mum I have never heard anyone else sing it.

She had another rhyme you may have heard

Not last night, but the night before,

Two tom cats came knocking on our door,

I went downstairs to let them in and they knocked me down with a rolling pin,

The rolling pin was made of brass and they knocked me down flat on my a**e

I'm sure the tom cats weren't of the fur and purr variety

Sook my version is:

You know last night
Well the night before
Two tom-cats came knocking at the door
One had a fiddle and one had a drum
And one had a pancake stuck on his bum

Another one we liked as children was:

One fine day in the middle of the night
Two dead men got up to fight
Back to back they faced each other
Drew their swords and shot each other

Why can I remember these rhymes when I can't remember what I went upstairs for!

I remember my Mum used to sing--- Those were the days my friend---
by Mary Hopkins

Thanks Gagagran I've not heard your version before. I'm enjoying this. I wonder from where and when the verses originate?

Here's another version that my mum told us

Not last night but the night before
Three wee witches (or monkeys) came to the door
One with a fiddle and one with a drum
And one with a pancake stuck to her thumb (or bum).

Has anyone ever heard this fragment. Husband's mother used to sing it

Adelina Brown
The belle of Chinatown
Earning lots of dollars
Ironing shirts and collars....

And she didn't know any more...

Seems I was right about the tom cats not being of the fur and purr variety. Tom cat is slang for a sexually active male, or for a man to prowl around searching for sex ( tom catting). Trust my mother

Gagagran have you remembered what you went upstairs for

Cathy we sang that when I was in my twenties!

So did we, Galen and Cathy. It was a great favourite at discos at the sports club we all went to near the school where we taught in Kenya. Shows what a wide age range we have, doesn't it?

Sook we had a different ending to the tom cats. You don't pause between verses - the first word of the next line finishes the previous line.

Not last night but the night before
Two tom cats came knocking at the door.
I went downstairs to let them in
They knocked me down with a rolling pin.
The rolling pin was made of brass
Cut three slices off my

ask no questions, tell no lies
Ever seen a Chinaman doing up his

flies are a nuisance, bugs are worse
And that's the end of this Chinese verse.

My Dad used to sing, No matter how young a prune may be ,It's always covered in wrinkles. We have wrinkles on our face, the prune has wrinkles in every place... There must be more but I don't remember it.