singing at school - Singing Together and Time and Tune anyone?

[morningtoncrescent62]

I've been reading some of the posts in the resurrected 80s thread - I recognise some of the songs there even though I was at primary school late 60s/early 70s. But does anyone remember these two radio series, possibly a slightly earlier vintage than the happy-clappy 80s Come and Praise set? Time and Tune used to have a theme each term - I remember the Sleeping Beauty one, and one about the Incas, and one about Panji and the Buffalo (which we also did as a play). You had your pamphlet and followed along each week while they taught the songs and I think they tried to teach you to read music as well. Singing Together was more of a folksy sing-song, I don't remember it having themes, but I might have misremembered.

Anyone remember?

I used to teach with Time and Tune (can't stay in tune myself), always loved it. There was an underground themed one- dig it? - that was awesome!

Time and Tune was brill. (I started school about 75-6.) I remember one that had wizards in it. "Wicked magician fly. When you are safe in bed, he's flying overhead, wicked magician fly."

Also there was a song that went "Oh i wish I had a hundred pounds i would leave the great city roar, o would buy a little country house with a shining stream at my door, there I'd settle down far from all the din of the busy town." Can't remember the rest!

I remember Singing Together! I was HE and really looked forward to it. I still have a couple of the booklets-my children used them to pick out tunes with recorders and things.

I also remember a fantastic programme about prehistory, with scary music, and a geography programme called, I think, Exploration Earth. My dad wrote the scripts for that one.

I remember Time and tune - loved it.
There was one about a newspaper office - 'Time and Tune Echo, Echo, Echo....'
One about Eskimos - but I can't remember any songs.
And my favourite about Twigwitch - spirit of the Chestnut tree!

I was always disappointed though that we weren't allowed chime bars or tambourines etc, just the singing.

Brave Topolini vroom, vroom vraaa.....

Yes, I remember Singing Together and I think I'll spend the next 24 hours singing about a brave little fiat coping with the busy streets of Rome. Sigh.

I think you're right - no theme as such - but every term the programme held a vote to see which 3 songs had been the most popular. This would have been mid to late 70s.

I've remembered another song from Time and Tune.
"When Marco Polo reached Venice, with Chinese silks and gold, no citizen would believe him or trust the tales he told. Travellers tales, travellers tales you can't believe in Tra - a - a- avellers tales."

oh Singing Together.
I may have imagined I but I'm sure we sang a version of Beowulf - I remember having to look up the word 'vanguard'.

and where was 'Hold High The Eagle' from?

Opal - I remember that one!!

Oh yes, Seeline - tap, tap Twigwitch, rap-a-tap Twigwitch! We did that with clapping but like you, sadly, no chime bars.

There was one in Singing Together about the clatter of clogs on cobblestones in the early morning as all the miners went off to work. I wish I could remember it properly.

The one about the miners sounds nice. Some of them were lovely. I think the ones i remember would have been around 76-77.
Seeline is it the Marco Polo one you remember? Do you remember the ones i posted upthread as they would have been in the same school year i think.

YEs - the Marco Polo one. THe others don't ring any bells. I think I might have been a bit older than you - started school in '73. I think we only had T&T in the infants, and I went into the Juniors in '75.

We did Travellers' Tales! I only remember the Marco Polo verse though. We did the Bay of Biscay too. And Stenkha Rahzin (?sp) From beyond the wooded Island, to the river wide and free Proudly sail the arrow-breasted ships of Cossack yeomanry...
And a song about pearl fishing in the Philippines- Minoro a little boy diving for pearls.

I've found the Stenka Razin one www.traditionalmusic.co.uk/song-midis/Stenka_Razin.htm

[[http://www.broadcastforschools.co.uk/site/Time_and_Tune all series
listed here]]

We did Singing together and Time and Tune-I still have some of the books from there.
I particularly remember doing "Trig Trog" as our Christmas show
("Welcome Trig trog, we long to hear you, Welcome trig trog we sing a song.
Welcome Trig Trog we want to hear you we have waited far too long.") and one about a boy who get spanked for I think something like letting the rice boil dry and goes to consult 1000 monkeys about how unfair that is.
"Why I've been hit upon, my sit-upon and that's the matter with me."

And from the other series a song going "Britains never shall be marr-i-ed to a mermay-id at the bottom of the deep blue sea" which was a parody of Rule Britannia.

I think some of them were done as small musicals and others were a collection of traditional songs.

I still have some of the singing together books somewhere, held together by sellotape. The must be over 45 years old

I've found the "wicked magician" one i mentioned
www.broadcastforschools.co.uk/site/Time_and_Tune/Alvida_and_the_Magician%27s_Cape

And from the other series a song going "Britains never shall be marr-i-ed to a mermay-id at the bottom of the deep blue sea" which was a parody of Rule Britannia.

Oh, I remember that. I think it came at the end of the verses, which weren't like Rule Britannia. I can't remember any more of it, though - it's going to bug me all day!

I can remember two verses:

Oh 'twas in the broad Atlantic, mid the equinoctial gale
That a young fellow fell overboard among the sharks and whales
And down he went as a streak of light, so quickly down went he
Until he came to a mermaid at the bottom of the deep blue sea

Singing Rule Britannia, Britannia rules the waves
And Britons never, never, never shall be married
To a mermaid at the bottom of the deep blue sea

and

We sent a boat to look for him expecting to find his corpse
When up he came with a bang and a shout and a voice sepulchrally
hoarse
My comrades and my messmates oh do not look for me
For I'm married to a mermaid at the bottom of the deep blue sea

and the last verse went along the lines of:
"The anchor was weighed and the sails unfurled and the ship was sailing free
And we went to our Captain and our tale we told to he..."
Not sure about that last bit or the rest of the verse.
I think it ends with the Captain shouting "Be happy with your wife at the bottom of the deep blue sea"

Got the rest of the words - just need to remember the tune now!

Found it

Well, I'm pretty sure we didn't sing it as immaculately as those young men, Witchend - thanks for posting.

I LOVED those! I especially loved the dinosaurs Time & Tune, can remember a lot of the words! We did Music Workshop in P5 and did the plays that the songs came from as a class, my best primary school memories!

I remember Time and Tune! There were similar programmes as well, that we sang to in the late 70s. Does anyone else remember the one with:

Down to the meadowlands we go,
Walking in the sunlight,
Walking in the sunlight,
Down to the meadowlands we go,
Where the waving fields of barley grow.
Streamlets are rushing by, down from the mountain high,
Singing we onward go, swiftly the waters flo-ow,
Streamlets are rushing by, down from the mountain high,
Singing we onward go, swiftly they flow.

There's one I remember set to a very catchy little French folk tune which had the words:

Now in my father's garden are flowers beyond compare,
Now in my father's garden are flowers beyond compare,
And birds of every colour fly in from everywhere.
I want to be near you, You're the one for me, for me,
I want to be near you, You're the one for me.

Never been able to find those again though I hum them to myself regularly.

I'm wondering if it was Music Makers actually. Grand Tour of Europe looks likely.