Opie collection of children's games & songs

Recording of children demonstrating songs and discussing playground games with Iona Opie (part 2 of 2)

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  • Type

    sound

  • Duration

    00:15:10

  • Shelf mark

    C898/03

  • Subjects

    Children's games; Children's songs

  • Recording date

    1978-07

  • Is part of (Collection)

    Opie collection of children's games and songs

  • Recording locations

    Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire and Micklefield, Yorkshire and Garforth, Yorkshire, England

  • Interviewers

    Opie, Iona (speaker, female), Webb, Damian (speaker, male)

  • Speakers

    unidentified (children)

  • Abstract

    Part 2 of 2. [00:00:00 - 00:15:10]. This recording continues to interview children from Micklefield, Yorkshire, as heard on the C898-03-01 recording. At [00:05:08] there is a break in the recording and when the tape resumes Iona Opie is now at St Benedict's Roman Catholic Primary School, Garforth, Yorkshire. The recording begins with the group of Micklefield schoolchildren performing singing games. This includes the song 'The Big Ship Sails' to which the children add an extra verse. They sing: 'Now we're on the battle ship, the battle ship, the battle ship, now we're on the battle ship, crash, bang fire!' [00:00:51 - 00:01:32]. Iona then asks the children to explain how the singing game 'The Rosy Apple' is played. The children do not sing this song but explain that to play it the players must form a ring with one child in the middle who skips around and chooses another player to join them in the inner circle [00:01:33 - 00:03:58]. Lastly, the children sing 'In and Out the Shading Bluebells' which is a variation of 'In and Out the Dusty Bluebells' [00:03:59 - 00:05:08]. After the pause in the recording, the tape resumes at St Benedict's Roman Catholic Primary School. Here, the children also perform singing games popular on their playground. The first is ' The Tennessee Wig-Walk' which is a variation of 'I'm a Bow-Legged Chicken' [00:06:04 - 00:09:00]. They then go on to perform 'Sunny Side Up'. Iona notes that the children sing: 'play like a Pekinese' and asks the children what they mean by this. One of the children replies that it is 'like a guitar player' and Father Damian notes that they used to sing 'look like a Japanese' before it became 'play like a Pekinese' [00:09:40 - 00:12:57]. Lastly, the children perform a number of clapping songs. These include 'Under the Bram Bush' [00:05:15 - 00:05:50]; 'I Went to a Baker's Shop' [00:12:58 - 00:14:03] and 'Who Stole the Buns from the Baker's Shop?' [00:14:04 - 00:15:10].

  • Description

    Item notes: Recording of children demonstrating songs and discussing playground games with Iona Opie. Speakers' notes: Group of Aylesbury, Micklefield and Garforth schoolchildren. Recording notes: Slight audible bleed from right channel. Otherwise good throughout.

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