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1950s skye boat song

(71 Posts)
Owdcodger52 Fri 08-Feb-19 20:45:31

I am trying to find out who sang the skye boat song on the school radio we used to listen to once a week.The singer was a female and had a beautiful voice so hope someone can help.

Jalima1108 Wed 13-Feb-19 20:01:54

I can see now how you thought that.

Perhaps my school explained the song and the story to us.

Jabberwok Wed 13-Feb-19 17:32:12

Jalima, I also as a child was under the impression that the Skye Boat song was about Jesus!! I think it was 'Carry the man that's born to be king, over the sea and sky'' that gave me that impresion! Of course 'and' is 'to', which I eventually rumbled!!
The Ash Grove, is lovely Annie, but so sad, applicable for all who have loved and lost. ?

NanKate Tue 12-Feb-19 12:53:51

Your name tells me so Sassenach ?

Urmstongran Mon 11-Feb-19 09:57:37

Did we hear back on this from the OP?

sassenach512 Sun 10-Feb-19 22:34:27

I love Outlander too NanKate both the books and the show smile

Jalima1108 Sun 10-Feb-19 21:46:54

I got bogged down in the American book NanKate and abandoned the books altogether then.

NanKate Sun 10-Feb-19 19:43:39

Jalima I’m a bit of an old romantic and loved the books and the film series is equally good IMO.

Paddy I’m glad I have another follower of Diana Gabaldon books and I agree the Amazon Prime series is gripping.

I access it through Amazon Prime which is a subscription app. You can’t get it through Sky or Netflix.

Cherrytree59 Sun 10-Feb-19 18:31:02

Paddyann you maybe right but I believe the original version was a Scottish song that portrayed the Jacobite Rebellion 1745 from a warlike perspective. It was rewritten by Burns 1791 and I feel it was more about human side and a possible warning as to what was to come in France. ( French revolution) ' The tree of liberty '
Burns was imho a great observer and anti-war, but his politics seemed to swing b back and fro.

Apologies OP I have wandered, not what your thread is about.smile

Jalima1108 Sun 10-Feb-19 17:50:22

Is it on Sky?
We don't have Sky, or Netflix.

paddyann Sun 10-Feb-19 17:05:53

Outlander is a great series. I enjoyed it better than the books and the music is magic ,especially written for the series it makes me cry buckets every time .Good choice with the actors too they make the charcters so believeable

Jalima1108 Sun 10-Feb-19 15:15:41

It is one hymn that always brings tears to my eyes.
It is The Naval Hymn.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=1KCiMdR1ox0

Grandma70s Sun 10-Feb-19 15:10:39

Just a comment about Eternal Father, strong to save.

Whenever we sang this at school prayers in the 1950s, one teacher... or mistress as they were known then - always left the hall, and came back when it was over. She was fairly young and beautiful, and the rumour was that her fiancé had died at sea during the war. She couldn’t listen to it. We all thought this was incredibly romantic and tragic. I think it is probably true. She never married.

Jalima1108 Sun 10-Feb-19 14:57:20

perhaps turgid is not quite the right word - boring? like wading through treacle?

Jalima1108 Sun 10-Feb-19 14:56:09

Are they better than the books NanKate?
the books were turgid

Tweedle24 Sun 10-Feb-19 14:26:47

I did basic training in the RAF and we learned to slow march to Skye Boat Song.

NanKate Sun 10-Feb-19 14:07:26

For any of you with Amazon Prime do watch the intro music to Outlander. Different words to the Skye Boat Song, but it relates to the series. If you like adventure, romance, timeslip these four series are just brilliant viewing.

trisher Sun 10-Feb-19 13:32:09

I think Michael row the boat ashore is about dying and perhaps (I haven't googled it yet) a spiritual from America
"The Jordan River is deep and wide,
Alleluia
All my friends on the other side
Alleluia."
I shall now be singing Michael Row the boat ashore all day. It has replaced the Skye Boat Song!!!!!

Jalima1108 Sun 10-Feb-19 13:20:37

There are still people who say they are the true heir to the Scottish throne ,I think one Polish man ,Prince somebody and a man who lives in Australia
paddyann The Australian man was most definitely the true heir to the throne. He was descended from the Plantagenets who would probably still be on the throne if some Queen or other had not had a 13 month pregnancy!
However, 'King Michael' Abney-Hastings (d 2012) was an unpretentious Australian farmer and wouldn't have wanted to claim the throne and I don't think his son does either.

I have recollections of learning about the Jacobite rebellions in school but that was lost in the mists of time grin

Jalima1108 Sun 10-Feb-19 13:14:08

To all those who have corrected me: I did realise by the time I was about 11 that the Skye Boat Song wasn’t about Jesus!
grin sorry!!

Michael Row the Boat Ashore - is that about Jesus?

trisher Sun 10-Feb-19 13:05:02

That used to be sung (and still may be) in every working man's club in Hull that catered to trawler men at 9pm every night. It is known as the sailor's hymn. Most of the people singing would have lost a family member or even more than one. Trawling was a hazardous occupation.

Fennel Sun 10-Feb-19 12:57:34

I can't add to the posts above except that this was oneof the songs we learnt at school. We learnt many sea-songs, because we were on the NE coast.
Another one, a hymn
Eternal Father strong to save
Whose arm has bound the restless wave.....

trisher Sun 10-Feb-19 12:41:59

muffinthemoo they were still doing Singing Together when I started teaching, and almost when I retired!
If you want a trip down memory lane you can buy copies of the booklets on e-bay. (I DO NOT NEED ONE! -I have to keep repeating this!)
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Geoffrey-Fraser-SINGING-TOGETHER-1958-Engravings-BBC-Rhythm-and-Melody-SCHOOLS-/132945726471

Grandma70s Sun 10-Feb-19 05:51:12

To all those who have corrected me: I did realise by the time I was about 11 that the Skye Boat Song wasn’t about Jesus!

If only children were taught such lovely songs now.

Grandma2213 Sun 10-Feb-19 02:09:53

I've just remembered another favourite which we voted as the best one year. It must have been between 1954 and 1957 I think. I have just sung it straight through!

Far far away is my pearly Adriatic.
Far far away is my pretty island home.
Far far away is my lovely Isabella.
Far far away from her I now must roam.

For I'm a sailor, sailing right across the ocean.
Tossed by the billows, tossed by the foam.

Chirry birry birry I'm a sailor.
Chirry birry birry I'm a sailor.
Chirry birry birry I'm a sailor.
Sailing away from home.

60+ years since I learned that. Now I wish I could remember where I put my keys so well!! wink

Grandma2213 Sun 10-Feb-19 01:37:21

I loved that programme and the Skye Boat Song was one of my favourites. In our tiny one classroom village school the big radio was in a cupboard which was ceremoniously opened and we all (24) of us sat at the dinner table to join in the songs.
We bought our shoes at a shop which had 'Prince Charlie's House' emblazoned on the front of the building. Apparently he stayed there during the Jacobite siege of Carlisle. I have since read all about it and was horrified to realise that in school we never learned any of this amazing history of our local area. By the way the story would make a compelling mini series! Lack of forethought, poor planning, rumours, fear and plain incompetence all round and on all sides ... remind you of anything?!