Russ Childers

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Sat, 27 Oct 2018 17:09:40 -0400

Limberjacks

Mon, 01 Jan 2018 00:00:00 -0500

Limberjacks

WHAT IS A LIMBERJACK? A limberjack is a loose-limbed dancing doll. This toy probably originated in 16th century Europe when a seated street performer attached a string from his knee to a jointed wooden toy and by jiggling made it dance on a board. A wooden stick replaced the string sometime in 19th century England. In Appalachia, these traditional toys are often hand-carved with a stick in the back. The manipulator, keeping time to a lively fiddle tune, taps on a narrow flexible wooden board. The vibrating board makes the doll appear to do a clackety mountain clog dance. A skillful handler can make this toy an effective rhythm instrument.

I make handcrafted dancing goat limberjacks, hippos, opossums… and more… available for purchase. $30 plus shipping. Inquiries to russchilders1@gmail.com.

My uniquely painted Appalachian limberjacks are handcrafted to provide many enjoyable hours of fun. Originally mountain craftsmen whittled these “jacks” into shapes which were held together with pieces of wire. I use power tools and eye hooks for their assembly.

The basic limberjacks I make are men/women, chickens, and goats. They come in a variety of colors. Each limberjack comes with a paddle board.

Limber Jack

Limber Jill

Limber Goat

Limber Chicken

We also do special orders. Below are examples:

Limber Hippo Fiona

Limber Hound

Limber Dachshund

Limber Horse

Limber Elephant

Limber Opossum

Limber Zebra

Limber Lion

Limber Flamingo

Limber Scottie

Welcome to RussChilders.com 2.0!

Mon, 30 May 2016 00:00:00 -0400

Hello! Welcome to the newly redesigned RussChilders.com site! This site launched more than 15 years ago and has had its content updated numerous times during its life, but the style remained pretty much the same all those years.

Now, we are pleased to bring you a fresh new look that works on mobile devices.

Have any feedback? Let us know on our Facebook page

The original site. Nothing ever really disappears on the internet

We Are Climbing Jacob's Ladder

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

This is a 1860s slave spiritual; Pete Seeger used this song during a textile workers’ protest in the 1940s but changed the lyrics in the chorus to “workers of the south.”

We are climbing Jacob’s Ladder
We are climbing Jacob’s Ladder
We are climbing Jacob’s Ladder
Brothers, sisters, all.

Every round goes higher, higher
Every round goes higher, higher
Every round goes higher, higher
Brothers, sisters, all.

We are climbing higher, higher
We are climbing higher, higher
We are climbing higher, higher
Brothers, sisters, all.

More Songs

Soldier's Joy

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Soldier’s Joy

Soldier’s Joy (What is a soldier’s joy? It could be his “pay day,” another name for this song from Civil War times.)

I love somebody, yes I do (3x)
I love somebody but I won’t say who.

Grasshopper sitting on a sweet potato vine (3x)
Along come a chicken and said “You’re mine!”

25 cents for the morphine
15 cents for the beer
25 cents for the morphine
To take me out of here.

I am my father’s pride and joy (3x)
Sing another round of “Soldier’s Joy.”

More Songs

Soldier, Soldier

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Soldier, Soldier, Won’t You Marry Me?

(This song comes from the earliest days of our country. Some things never change.)

Soldier, soldier, won’t you marry me
with your musket, fife, and drum?
Oh no, sweet maid, I cannot marry you
for I have no HAT to put on.

So off she went to the hatmaker’s shop
As fast as she could run,
She bought him a hat, a very fine hat,
And the soldier put it on.

Soldier, soldier, won’t you marry me
with your musket, fife, and drum?
Oh no, sweet maid, I cannot marry you
for I have no SHIRT to put on, etc.

Britches

Coat

Tie

Boots

Gloves

NOW, soldier, soldier, will you marry me
with your musket, fife, and drum?
Oh no, sweet maid, I cannot marry you
for I have a WIFE at home!!!!

More Songs

Shoo Fly

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Shoo fly, don’t bother me
Shoo fly, don’t bother me
Shoo fly, don’t bother me
For I belong to somebody

chorus
I feel, I feel, I feel, I feel like a morning star
I feel, I feel, I feel, I feel like a morning star

More Songs

She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

She’ll be coming round the mountain when she comes (toot toot)
She’ll be coming round the mountain when she comes
She’ll be coming round the mountain
She’ll be coming round the mountain
She’ll be coming round the mountain when she comes.

She’ll be driving 6 white horses when she comes (whoa back)

Oh we’ll all go out to meet her when she comes (hi babe)

Oh we’ll kill the old red rooster when she comes (cockadoodledoo)

Then we’ll all have chicken and dumplings when she comes (yum yum)

Oh we’ll have to sleep with Granny when she comes (snore, snore)

She’ll be wearing her red pajamas when she comes (scratch scratch)

We’ll be sad to see her going when she goes (bye bye)

More Songs

Polly Put The Kettle On

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

“Source: Retired educator/fiddle player Lefty Shafer told us that this was a popular song from one-room schoolhouse days in eastern Ohio of the 19th century.”

Polly, put the kettle on (3x)
We’ll all have tea.

Sukey, take it off again (3x)
They’ve all gone away.

Blow the fire and make the toast
Put the muffins down to roast
Blow the fire and make the toast
We’ll all have tea.

According to the ANNOTATED MOTHER GOOSE, in the mid 19th c. Polly was often used as a pet-name for Mary and Sukey was used for Susan. This was originally a popular country dance and song. “Polly put the kettle on and we’ll all have tea” became a much-repeated catch phrase around 1870. The 3rd stanza first appeared in print in 1858.

More Songs

Paper of Pins

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

(In England 200 years ago, this was a dance called “The Keys to Canterbury.”)

Boys: I’ll give to you a paper of pins, if that’s the way our love begins,
If you will marry, marry, marry, you will marry me.

chorus
Girls: I’ll not accept your paper of pins, if that’s the way our love begins,
And I’ll not marry, marry, marry, I’ll not marry you.

Boys: I’ll give to you a dress of red, stitched all around with golden thread,
If you will marry, marry, marry, you will marry me.

chorus
Girls: I’ll not accept your dress of red, stitched all around with golden thread,
And I’ll not marry, marry, marry, I’ll not marry you.

Boys: I’ll give to you a dress of green, that you may look just like the Queen,
If you will marry, marry, marry, you will marry me.

chorus
Girls: I’ll not accept your dress of green, that I may look just like the Queen,
And I’ll not marry, marry, marry, I’ll not marry you.

Boys: I’ll give to you a little dog, Tray, to go with you when you go away,
If you will marry, marry, marry, you will marry me.

chorus
Girls: I’ll not accept your little dog, Tray, to go with me when I go away,
And I’ll not marry, marry, marry, I’ll not marry you.

Boys: I’ll give to you a coach and four, that you may ride from door to door,
If you will marry, marry, marry, you will marry me.

chorus
Girls: I’ll not accept your coach and four, that I may ride from door to door,
And I’ll not marry, marry, marry, I’ll not marry you.

Boys: I’ll give to you the key to my heart, that we may marry and never part,
If you will marry, marry, marry, you will marry me.

chorus
Girls: I’ll not accept the key to your heart, that we may marry and never part,
And I’ll not marry, marry, marry, I’ll not marry you.

Boys: I’ll give to you the key to my chest, so you have money at your request,
If you will marry, marry, marry, you will marry me.

chorus
Girls: I will accept the key to your chest! So I have money at my request!
And I will marry, marry, marry, I will marry you!

Boys: You love coffee & I love tea; you love my money more than you love me,
So I’ll not marry, marry, marry, I’ll not marry you.*

chorus
Girls: Then I shall choose to be an old maid; I’ll take my chair & sit in the shade,
And I won’t marry, marry, marry, I won’t marry you!

Boys: What good’s my money without you? Take my heart and money, too.
And I will marry, marry, marry, I will marry you.*

*Choose your own ending! This would be fun acted out on stools, boys and girls, with girls picking up their stools and moving away on “take my stool and sit in the shade.”

More Songs

Old Man, Old Man

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

(Elmer Bird WV tune & words*)

*Old man, old man, can I have your daughter
To bake my bread and carry my water, Old Man

*Young man, young man, you can’t have my daughter
To be near you and carry your water, Young man

*Ducks on the mill pond, geese in the clover
Jumped in the bed and the bed turned over, Old Man

(Gerry Milnes’s words)

Old man, old man, can I have your daughter
To milk my cow and carry my water? Ha Ha Ha

Yes sir, yes sir, take her on behind you
Take her up the holler where the devil can’t find you, Ha Ha Ha

Old man, old man, give me chew tobaccer
If y’ain’t got homegrown I’ll take manufactured, Ha Ha Ha

Ducks on the mill pond, geese in the ocean
Hug them pretty girls if I take a notion, Ha Ha Ha

Down in the holler I thought I heard a fiddle ring
Nothing but a little boy pickin on a banjer string, Ha Ha Ha

More Songs

Oh Susanna

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

(Stephen Foster wrote this nonsense song in Cincinnati, 1840s.)

I come from Alabama with my banjo on my knee
I’m goin’ to Louisiana for my true love for to see
It rained all night the day I left, the weather it was dry,
The sun so hot I froze to death,
Susannah, don’t you cry.

chorus
Oh Susannah, oh don’t you cry for me,
I come from Alabama with my banjo on my knee.

I jumped aboard the telegraph and traveled down the wires.
The electric fluid magnified and lit five hundred fires.
The full moon burst, my horse ran off, I really thought I’d die.
I shut my eyes to hold my breath,
Susannah, don’t you cry.

I had a dream the other night, when everything was still.
I dreamt I saw Susannah dear a-comin’ down the hill.
The buckwheat cake was in her mouth, the tear was in her eye.
Says I “I’m coming from the South,
Susannah, don’t you cry.”

I soon will be in New Orleans, and then I’ll look around.
And when I find Susannah dear, I’ll fall upon the ground.
But if I do not find my love, then I will surely die.
And when I’m gone and six feet down,
Susannah, don’t you cry!

More Songs

Mole In The Ground

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

I wish I was a mole in the ground (2x)
If I’s a mole in the ground
I’d root that mountain down
I wish I was a mole in the ground.

I wish I was a bird in a tree (2x)
If I’s a bird in the tree
I’d see what I could see
I wish I was a bird in a tree.

Tempie, let your bangs hang down (2x)
Let your bangs hang down
Let them curl all around
Tempie, let your bangs hang down.

Tempie wants a 2-dollar shawl (2x)
I come over the hill
with a 20-dollar bill
And it’s “Honey, where you been so long?”

Honey, where you been so long? (2x)
I been in the bend
with the rough and rowdy men,
And it’s Honey, where you been so long?

I don’t like a railroad man (2x)
A railroad man
will kill you when he can
And drink up your blood like wine.

I wish I was a hole in the ground (2x)
If I’s a hole in the ground,
I’d be a mountain upside down,
I wish I was a hole in the ground.

I wish I was a lizard in the spring (2x)
If I’s a lizard in the spring
I’d hear my darling sing
I wish I was a lizard in the spring.

More Songs

Kickin' My Dog Around

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Me and Willie Dixon and Old Bill Brown
Tuk a load a’ corn to town
Our ol’ dog raised sech a fuss
We jist had him foller us

As we passed by the gen’ral store
A crowd of farmers around the door
Seed our dog ‘neath the wagon blocks
And they pelted him with a bunch of rocks

chorus
Now every time I go to town
The boys start kickin my dog around
I don’t care that he is a hound
They gotta stop kickin my dog around

They tied a tin-can to his tail
And run him past the county jail
That jist natcherly made me sore
and Wilie cussed - and Billie swore.

Me and Willie Dixon and old Bill Brown
Lost no time in a-hoppin down
We sure cleaned up them boys in town
Fer kickin my old dog around.

chorus
Now every time I go to town
The boys start kickin my dog around
I don’t care that he is a hound
They gotta stop kickin my dog around

Folks say a dog cain’t hold no grudge
But onct when I had too much (budge) (fudge)
Some fellers tried to do me up
They didn’t count on my old pup.

He seed his duty thar and then
He lit right into them gentlemen
He sure messed up that courthouse square
With rags and meat and hide and hair.

chorus
Now every time I go to town
The boys start kickin my dog around
I don’t care that he is a hound
They gotta stop kickin my dog around

More Songs

I Saw Esau

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

This is an Appalachian riddle.

I saw Esau sitting on a seesaw; I saw Esau; he saw me.
How many s’s in that?
(Answer: None!)

More Songs

Hot Corn, Cold Corn

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Up stairs, downstairs, out in the kitchen
Up stairs, downstairs, out in the kitchen
Up stairs, downstairs, out in the kitchen
See Uncle Bill, he’s reeling and pitchin’

Hot corn, cold corn, bring along the demijohn,
Hot corn, cold corn, bring along the demijohn,
Hot corn, cold corn, bring along the demijohn,
Fare you well, Uncle Bill, see you in the morning, Yes sir

Old Aunt Peggy, won’t you fill ‘em up again,
Old Aunt Peggy, won’t you fill ‘em up again,
Old Aunt Peggy, won’t you fill ‘em up again,
Ain’t had a drink since I don’t know when

All I want to keep me happy
Two little boys to call me pappy
One called Paul and one called Davy
One loves ham and the other loves gravy

Preachers in the pulpit taking in the money
Childrens in the bee hive taking in the honey
Old Aunt Sally just a jumpin’ for joy
Happiest lot of people that ever I saw

Yonder comes the preacher and the chickens are a crying
Yonder comes the preacher and the chickens are a crying
Yonder comes the preacher and the chickens are a crying
Toe nails clickin’ and feathers are a flyin’

More Songs

Groundhog

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Shoulder up your gun and whistle up your dog (2x)
We’re off to the woods to catch a groundhog
Oh Ground Hog

Here comes Granny walking with a cane (2x)
Says she’s gonna eat groundhog brain
Eeyew! Ground Hog

Here comes Sal with a great long pole (2x)
We’ll twist that whistle pig outta his hole
Oh Ground Hog

I dug down but I didn’t dig deep (2x)
I caught that whistle pig fast asleep
Oh Ground Hog

Put that hog in a big tote sack (2x)
Slung that sack right over my back
Oh Ground Hog

Children screamed and children cried (2x)
They love ground hog stewed or fried
Oh Ground Hog

Y’eat up the meat and y’save the hide (2x)
Make the best shoelaces y’ever tied
Oh Ground Hog

Come here, Pa, make Sally stop (2x)
She’ll eat ground hog til she pops
Oh Ground Hog

Here comes Sal with a snicker and a grin (2x)
Groundhog grease all over her chin
Oh Ground Hog

Little piece of cornbread sittin on the shelf (2x)
If you want anymore you gotta sing it yourself
Oh Ground Hog

More Songs

Go Tell Aunt Rhody

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Go tell Aunt Rhody, Go tell Aunt Rhody
Go tell Aunt Rhody, The old gray goose is dead

The one that she’s been saving (3x)
To make her feather bed

She died in the mill pond (3x)
Standing on her head

The goslings are cryin’ (3x)
Because their mothers dead

The gander is a mournin’(3x)
Because his wife is dead

The barnyard is a weepin’(3x)
Waiting to be fed

Bye lo, my baby (3x)
Bye Bye, Bye lo my baby

More Songs

Froggie Went A-Courtin'

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Frog went a-courtin’ he did ride, uh huh
Frog went a-courtin’ he did ride, uh huh
Frog went a-courtin’ he did ride,
Too-dum too-de-oh, too-dum too-de-oh

Rid his duck to Mousie’s den, uh huh
Rid his duck to Mousie’s den, uh huh
Rid his duck to Mousie’s den,
Asked little Mouse “May I come in?” uh huh
Too-dum too-de-oh, too-dum too-de-oh

Asked little Mouse “Will ya marry me?” uh huh
Asked little Mouse “Will ya marry me?” uh huh
Asked little Mouse “Will ya marry me?”
Little Mouse said “Yessiree!” uh huh
Too-dum too-de-oh, too-dum too-de-oh

Where will the wedding supper be, uh huh
Where will the wedding supper be, uh huh
Where will the wedding supper be,
‘Way down yonder in the holler beech tree, uh huh
Too-dum too-de-oh, too-dum too-de-oh

What will the wedding supper be, uh huh
What will the wedding supper be, uh huh
What will the wedding supper be,
Soup and beans and a black-eyed pea, uh huh
Too-dum too-de-oh, too-dum too-de-oh

First to come was a big black snake, uh huh
First to come was a big black snake, uh huh
First to come was a big black snake,
Passed around the wedding cake, uh huh
Too-dum too-de-oh, too-dum too-de-oh

Next to come was a big old fly, uh huh
Next to come was a big old fly, uh huh
Next to come was a big old fly,
Passed around the wedding pie, uh huh
Too-dum too-de-oh, too-dum too-de-oh

Next to come was a little bitty ant, uh huh
Next to come was a little bitty ant, uh huh
Next to come was a little bitty ant,
Tearin’ around and trying to dance, uh huh
Too-dum too-de-oh, too-dum too-de-oh

Last to come was a little old bug, uh huh
Last to come was a little old bug, uh huh
Last to come was a little old bug,
Passed around the likker jug, uh oh!
Too-dum too-de-oh, too-dum too-de-oh

They all got drunk and had a big fight, uh huh
They all got drunk and had a big fight, uh huh
They all got drunk and had a big fight,
Lord! It was an awful sight, uh huh
Too-dum too-de-oh, too-dum too-de-oh

There’s a little piece of cornbread sittin on the shelf, uh huh
There’s a little piece of cornbread sittin on the shelf, uh huh
There’s a little piece of cornbread sittin on the shelf,
If you want anymore, you’ve got to sing it yourself, uh huh
Too-dum too-de-oh, too-dum too-de-oh

These lyrics come from the singing of Morgan Sexton of eastern Kentucky.

More Songs

My Darling Nellie Gray

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Darling Nellie Gray – Written by Benjamin Russell Hanby, 1856

Based on story Hanby heard through experiences of his abolitionist Methodist preacher father. One story is that Joseph Selby was an elderly free black man who died in the Hanby family home during an escape north. Hanby also witnessed a slave auction in his youth. The Hanbys lived near Oberlin, Ohio; the house is now a museum. This sentimental song was said to be as popularly effective as Uncle Tom’s Cabin in its pre-Civil War stand against slavery.

There’s a low green valley on the old Kentucky shore
Where I whiled many happy hours away
A-sitting and a-singing by that little cottage door
Where lived my darling Nellie Gray.

Last night I went to see her but she’s gone the neighbors say,
The white man’s bound her with his chains.
He has taken her to Georgia for to wear her life away
And she toils in the cotton and the cane.

chorus
Oh, my poor Nellie Gray, they have taken you away,
And I’ll never see my darling anymore.
I am sitting by the river and I’m weeping all the day
For you’ve gone from the old Kentucky shore.

When the moon rose up the mountain and the stars were shining, too,
I would meet my darling Nellie Gray.
We would float along the river in my little red canoe
And my banjo I would softly play.

My canoe is under water and my banjo is unstrung
I don’t care to go on living any more
My eyes are looking downward and my song shall be unsung
While I stay on this old Kentucky shore.

chorus
Oh, my poor Nellie Gray, they have taken you away,
And I’ll never see my darling anymore.
I am sitting by the river and I’m weeping all the day
For you’ve gone from the old Kentucky shore.

My eyes are getting blinded and I cannot see my way -
Hark! There’s someone knocking at my door.
I hear the angels calling and I see my Nellie Gray -
Farewell to the old Kentucky shore.

chorus
Oh my darling Nellie Gray! Up in heaven there they say
That they’ll never take you from me any more.
I’m a coming, coming , coming as the angels clear the way,
Fare thee well to the old Kentucky shore.

More Songs

Dance All Night

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Dance all night with a bottle in your hand
a bottle in your hand, a bottle in your hand
Dance all night with a bottle in your hand,
Just before dawn, give the fiddler a dram

Who’s been here while I’ve been gone,
Pretty little girl with the red dress on,
she took it off, and I put it on,
In comes Sally with her big boots on

Who’s been here since I’ve been gone
Old Uncle Ben with his night cap on
One shoe off and one shoe on,
In walked Sally with her blue dress on

Dance all night with the fiddlers gal
Take her round and give her a whirl,
Up the river and round the bend,
That’s all there is; this is the end

More Songs

Crawdad Hole

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

The Crawdad Song

chorus
You get a line and I’ll get a pole, honey
You get a line and I’ll get a pole, babe
You get a line and I’ll get a pole,
We’ll go down to that crawdad hole,
Honey, oh baby mine.

What did the duck say to the drake?, honey
What did the duck say to the drake?, babe
What did the duck say to the drake?
There ain’t no crawdads in this lake
Honey, oh baby mine.

Yonder stands a man with a pack on his back, honey
Yonder stands a man with a pack on his back, babe
Yonder stands a man with a pack on his back
Got all the crawdads he can pack
Honey, oh baby mine.

Man fell down and broke that pack, honey
Man fell down and broke that pack, babe
Man fell down and broke that pack,
You ought to see them crawdads packing on back
Honey, oh baby mine.

Wake up Johnny you slept too late, honey
Wake up Johnny you slept too late, babe
Wake up now, you slept too late
Crawdad man done passed your gate,
Honey, oh baby mine.

Wake up Suzie you slept too late, honey
Wake up Suzie you slept too late, babe
Wake up now, you slept too late
Last piece of crawdad done left your plate
Honey, oh baby mine.

What you gonna do when the creek runs dry, honey
What you gonna do when the creek runs dry, babe
What you gonna do when the creek runs dry,
Sit on the banks, watch the crawdads die
Honey, oh baby mine.

More Songs

Come Little Leaves

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

By George Cooper (Sing Through the Seasons by Bruderhof Communities. Plough Publishing, 1972. Page 69.)

“Come, little leaves,” said the Wind one day,
“Come o’er the meadows with me and play;
Put on your dresses of red and gold
For summer is gone and the days grow cold.”

Soon as the leaves heard the Wind’s loud call,
Down they came fluttering, one and all;
Over the brown fields they danced and flew,
A-singing the glad little songs they knew.

Dancing and whirling the little leaves went;
Winter had called them, and they were content;
Soon, fast asleep in their earthy beds,
The snow laid a coverlet over their heads.

(Mary Belle Reid learned this song as a child and sang it to her son Russ when he was small.)

More Songs

Chicken

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

(Uncle Dave Macon used to sing this, dance, and play the banjo - all at once! Make this more difficult. Try handspelling “chicken” as you sing the chorus!)

In a little country schoolhouse where the children used to go
There lived a little feller by the name of Ragtime Joe.
One day the teacher called the class to spell a certain sort of bird
The bird it was a chicken and they could not spell the word.
So the teacher called on Ragtime Joe to spell that word for them.
He did not hesitate a bit; this is the way that he began:

chorus
C (that’s the way to begin)
H (that’s the second letter in)
I (that is the third)
C (is the fourth letter in this bird)
K (that’s a filling it in)
E (getting near the end)
C H I C K E N
That ‘ere’s the way to spell chicken!

Parson Johnson held a concert at the old schoolhouse one night
He hired a lot of talent that could sing and could recite.
But when they pulled the curtain back, everything went wrong,
Til one feller loudly called “Let’s hear it for Ragtime Joe!”
He sang them a ragtime jukin’ tune, but it did not go so well.
He said “I went acrost on that so I guess I’ll have to spell.”
And then he told the audience he’d composed this chicken song
And when he sang these words to them, he took the house by storm.

chorus
C (that’s the way to begin)
H (that’s the second letter in)
I (that is the third)
C (is the fourth letter in this bird)
K (that’s a filling it in)
E (getting near the end)
C H I C K E N
That ‘ere’s the way to spell chicken!

More Songs

Boatman

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Boatman Dance

Heigh ho away we go
Floatin’ down the river on the Ohio
Or,
Heigh ho the boatman go
Polin’ up the river on the Ohio

Boatman dance, boatman sing
Boatman do most everything
When the boatman gets on shore
He spends his money and he works for more

chorus
Dance boatman dance
Sing boatman sing
Dance all night til broad daylight
Go home with the gals in the morning

The boatman is a thrifty man
There’s none can do as the boatman can
He’ll steal your sheep, he’ll steal your shoat
He’ll put ‘em in a bag and take ‘em to the boat

chorus
Dance boatman dance
Sing boatman sing
Dance all night til broad daylight
Go home with the gals in the morning

verse
I never saw a pretty girl in my life
But what she wouldn’t be a boatman’s wife
When the boatman blows his horn
Look out old man, your daughter’s gone

chorus
Dance boatman dance
Sing boatman sing
Dance all night til broad daylight
Go home with the gals in the morning

More Songs

Baby-O

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

What Shall We Do With the Baby-O?

(some verses Gerry Milnes, some Jean Ritchie, some original)

What shall we do with the baby-o
We’ll wrap her up in calico
We’ll send her to her mammy-o
That’s what we’ll do with the baby-o (2x)

What shall we do with the baby-o
We’ll wrap her up in the tablecloth
We’ll throw her up in the stable loft
That’s what we’ll do with the baby-o (2x)

What shall we do with the baby-o
We’ll stick a finger in her eye
That will surely make her cry
That’s what we’ll do with the baby-o (2x)

What shall we do with the baby-o
We’ll stick our fingers in our ears
That will make her hard to hear
That’s what we’ll do with the baby-o (2x)

Arne’s verse:

What shall we do with the baby-o
We’ll box her up and send her far
She won’t get back by foot or car
That’s what we’ll do with the baby-o (2x)

What shall we do with the baby-o
We’ll tickle her nose and tickle her chin
We’ll wrap her up in the county-pin* (counterpane = bedspread)
That’s what we’ll do with the baby-o (2x)

What shall we do with the baby-o
We’ll dance her north and dance her south
We’ll pour a little moonshine in her mouth
That’s what we’ll do with the baby-o (2x)

More Songs

Right Hand Star

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Right hand across and form a star
Left hand back and a star you are
Gents turn back and swing the girl behind you
Right back now and swing your own

Railroad Track

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Source: “Railroad Track,” West Virginia version - see www.bubbaguitar.com. A Look at Southern Squares

All join hands and make a big ring
Circle to the left with your pretty little thing.
All the way around and half way back
LADIES in the lead, gents in back.
Hold where you are and settle down
Swing your partner one time around.

LADIES in the center back to back
GENTS you walk the railroad track.
Pass your partner BY ONE
Swing the next.
Don’t forget to place HIM back

LADIES walk the railroad track.
Pass your partner BY TWO
Swing the next.
Don’t forget to place HER back

GENTS you walk the railroad track.
Pass your partner BY THREE
Swing the next.

(continue as above until all have danced with each other; partners will be next in line to dance)

Get your partner when you come around.
Swing HER out and promenade.
Promenade around that ring
Promenade your pretty little thing.

Teaching Words

LADIES step into center and stand back to back facing out.
GENTS walk single file counterclockwise (ccw) all the way around the ladies,
pass partner,
stop in front of the next lady and swing with her.

Now, at the finish of this swing,
LADIES put the gents in the center back to back.
LADIES now promenade single file ccw all the way around,
pass ORIGINAL partner and next gent,
stop before the third gent and swing with him.

GENT puts the lady in the center back to back
and continues ccw all the way around the ladies,
passes the last one he swung
and stops in front of the next lady to swing with her.

Repeat, alternating between gents and ladies until back with partners.

Divide the Ring

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

DIVIDE THE RING AND DOCEY PARTNERS

Everybody swing his prettiest gal Left allemande and a right hand grand And promenade, Oh, Promenade.

First couple balance, first couple swing

Down the center and divide the ring

Lady goes right and the gent goes left

Docey partners one and all, Docey corners don’t you fall

Swing your own with a pretty little whirl

And all run away with the corner girl.

Same old gent and a new little thing

Down the center and divide the ring

Lady goes right and the gent goes wrong

Docey partners one and all, Docey corners don’t you fall

Swing your own with a pretty little whirl

And all run away with the corner girl.

(Second couple twice then third couple twice, fourth couple twice.)

Now your home and everybody swing Allemande left with your left hand Right hand to partner and a right and left grand Promenade eight when you come straight.

Birdie in the Cage

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

First ol’ couple lead to the right
With birdie in the cage and 3 hands round
Bird hop out - ol’ crow in
3 hands round and gone again
Break and swing your opposite girl
Right back now and swing your own

Virginia Reel

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Prompts to Virginia Reel:
8 cts. Honor your partner (forward-2-3-bow; back-2-3-4)
8 cts. Right turkey wing
8 cts. Left turkey wing
8 cts. Do si do (or, No turkey wing)
8 cts. Head couple sashay down, back
32 cts. Head couple reel (right to own, left on outside, opp. line)
8 cts. Head couple exchange places and sashay back to top of the line
8 cts. Head couple cast off at top
8 cts. Head couple arch at the bottom, everybody through
New head couple

chorus
Patter to Virginia Reel:
Honor your partner with a bow
Back to the line like you know how.
Meet your partner with a right turkey wing;
Back with the left, now give her a swing.
Do si do with the one you know
Now head couple sashay down -
And sashay back.
Head couple reel! With a right to your own
And a left on the outside, opposite line.
Head couple swing at the bottom of the set
And sashay home.
Cast off at the top of the line,
Come along, boys, you’re doing fine.
Head couple arch at the bottom of the set;
Partners meet and promenade home.
Come back up where you belong
with a New Head Couple!

More dances

Take a Peek

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Take a Peek

Source: Eileen Britton - Jerusalem, Ohio

Allemande left your corners all, honey
Allemande left and allemande low, babe
Meet your honey and what do you do?
You promenade her two by two
Honey, baby mine

1st couple out and take a little peek, honey
Back to the center and swing your sweet, babe
Around that couple and peek once more
Back in the center and swing all four
Honey, baby mine

Same couple out and take a little peek, honey
Back to the center and swing your sweet, babe
Around that couple and peek once more
Back in the center and swing all four
Honey, baby mine

Red River Valley

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Red River Valley

This singing and swinging square dance evolved from Martha Danforth’s singing call plus the West Virginia version found in a 1947 book called Folk Dances for All by Michael Herman.

Directions: Square your sets. Directions are to the head (#1 couple) that moves around the set in counterclockwise fashion to visit #2, #3, and #4. After the Grand Right and Left, the dance continues with #2 couple visiting #3, #4, and #1. The dance continues until couples #3 and #4 have led out, ending with the chorus each time.

Red River pal = partner

Girl in the valley = opposite lady

Now you lead right down to the valley
And you circle to the left and to the right
Now you swing with the girl in the valley
And you swing with your Red River pal.

Alternate pattern for second couple met:

Now you lead right down to the valley
And you circle to the left and to the right
Now the girls make a wheel in the valley
And the boys do-si-do so polite.

Now you lead right down to the valley
And you circle to the left and to the right
Now you swing with the girl in the valley
And you swing HOME your Red River pal.

chorus
Now you allemande LEFT on the corner,
RIGHT hand to your own, GRAND RIGHT AND LEFT.
Now you meet that girl in the valley
And you swing HOME your Red River pal.

Noble Duke of York

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Play party (Kentucky version)

Oh the Noble Duke of York,
He had ten thousand men
He marched them up to the top of the hill
And marched them down again.

Directions: Two lines of 5-6 couples (ideally boys on one side, girls on other) = a set. ALL SING. Head couple joins inner hands as they march to the bottom between the lines and turn to return to the top of the line on “men.” STRESS that the head couple should march and take the full 8 beats before turning on “men”; they should take the full 8 beats to reach the top of the line on “again.” DO NOT RUSH THIS.

Oh when they were up, they were up,
And when they were down, they were down
And when they were only halfway up,
They were neither up nor down.

Directions: The head couple takes a full 16 beats to join both hands across the set and skip and twirl in a clockwise fashion all the way down to the bottom of the set, where they make an arch on the word “down.” DO NOT RUSH THIS.

Oh a-hunting we will go
A-hunting we will go
We’ll catch a fox and put him in a box
And then we’ll let him go

Directions: The new head couple separates (“cast off”) and leads each line down the set in a single line (“follow the leader” fashion) on the outside of each line to join hands at the bottom and duck under the arch, leading all the couples back up the line in place, with the new head couple at the top, ready to begin the next figure. DO NOT RUSH THIS!

If couples are slow in getting back to place, they may begin to sing another verse, as needed, inserting new words as above. More verses are below (enough for 8 times through, i.e., 8 couples). When everyone is back in place, begin the first verse again with the new head couple.

Fancy ending: When the new head couple is once again the original head couple, they lead the line back and meet to duck under the arch at the bottom, but this time they arch as well, just on the other side of the arching couple, and each couple, as they come through, arches on the immediate upper side until everyone has formed an arch.

We’ll catch a mouse and put him in a house… etc.
We’ll catch a fish and put him in a dish… etc.
We’ll catch a snake and put him in a lake… etc.
We’ll catch a lamb and put him in a pan… etc.
We’ll catch a goat and put him in a boat… etc.
We’ll catch a bear and put him in a chair… etc.
We’ll catch a whale and put him in a pail… etc.
We’ll catch a pig and put him in a wig… etc.
We’ll catch a skunk and put him in a bunk… etc.
We’ll catch an armadillo and put him in a pillow… etc.
We’ll catch a brontosaurus and put him in the chorus… etc.
We’ll catch a cow - I don’t know how… etc.
We’ll catch a sheep and put him in a jeep… etc.
We’ll catch a dog and put him in a log… etc.
We’ll catch a cat and put him in a hat… etc.

Most of these words are from Oh, A-Hunting We Will Go by John Langstaff. Atheneum, 1984.

Nine Pin Reel

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

This square dance is also a competitive mixer. It calls for a four-couple square set, plus one in the center. The ninepin is usually a man but may also be a woman. In that case, in all directions below substitute “man” for “woman,” and “woman” for “man.” Start with the ninepin in the center.

All join hands, circle to the left around the Ninepin, circle back to the right.
Head couples (#1 couple and #3 couple) join hands in the center around the Ninepin, circle left, circle right. Step back to home position, leaving Ninepin in the center.
Side couples (#2 couple and #4 couple) do the same.
Head couples sashay across the set past Ninepin and back across the set on the other side of Ninepin. (Their movement is counterclockwise in the center of the set around Ninepin.)
Side couples do the same.

chorus
Ninepin briefly swings the woman from each couple in turn, sending her partner into the center.
End with all 4 men in the center, plus Ninepin.
All 5 men form a circle, circle left.
Caller stops music suddenly and the 5 men in the center scramble for a partner from the outside ring.
The person left in the center without a partner becomes the new Ninepin. And the dance starts again.

Inside Arch, Outside Under

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Source: Martha Danforth, caller; also from American Square Dances of the West and Southwest by Lee Owens (Kessinger, 2005)

First couple leads out to the right of the ring,
Circle up four go half-way ‘round
Inside couple arch.

chorus
Inside arch, outside under
Inside arch, outside under
Inside arch, outside under
Inside arch, outside under

Out in the center, give her a swing
Lead right on to the next in the ring
Join your hands and circle up four
Circle four in the middle of the floor.
Birdie in the cage, close the door
Flop your wings and sing no more.
Bird flies out, crow hops in,
Three hands up and gone again.
Crow steps up and partners swing,

On you go to the next in the ring.
Circle four go half-way round
Inside couple arch.

chorus
Inside arch, outside under
Inside arch, outside under
Inside arch, outside under
Inside arch, outside under

Chorus:
Everybody dance and everybody swing,
And swing on back to your place in the ring.
Corner with your left, go left hand round,
Right to your partner, right and left grand,
Grand right and left ‘til you meet your own
Promenade your partners home.
Take those pretty girls right on around,
Square your sets and settle down.

Repeat the call for Couples #2, #3, and #4 in turn.

Glory to the Mountain

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Source: This traditional children’s play party from the streets of New York gives us a chance to “carol,” using the old meaning of the word “to dance.” Join hands in a circle and pick a leader to march around outside the circle in the opposite direction from the inner circle’s movement. As the leader sings “one, two, three, follow me” he taps individuals to join hands with him in the outer ring until only one is left in the center. Then “all bow to the mountain.” The “mountain” becomes the new leader.

Let’s all sing glory to the mountain,
The mountain is so high,
It reaches to the sky,
And it’s one, two, three, follow me,
And we’ll all sing glory to the mountain, etc.
[Or, ending] And we’ll all bow to the mountain

Forward Up Six

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Source: This is based upon a visiting couple call that Russ learned from Cincinnati caller Martha Danforth. Although she used a rhyming patter call, Russ uses prompts that don’t necessarily rhyme and are not the exact words given here. Note that instructions are directed to the gents. In the figures, the instructions are to the lead gent.

All join hands and circle to the left…
…Now back to the right, you’re going wrong.
When you get home, swing your partner.

BREAK: Allemande your corner with the old left hand
Now back to your partner with a right and left grand
Rights and lefts around the hall
Meet your partner, promenade all

FIGURE: First couple out to couple number two
Circle up four, that’s what you do
Leave your lady where she be
Now on to the next and circle up three

Steal that lady in your right hand
Circle up four, you’re doing grand
Leave her there, go home alone…

Forward up six and six fall back
Two lone gents go back to back
Right hands high and left hands low
Twirl the gals and let ‘em go

(Repeat the “forward up six” pattern three more times until lead gent comes back to his original partner.)

Swing your partners!

BREAK

FIGURE: Repeat with gent number two going out to couple number three, four, and one, followed by the “forward up six” pattern until gent number two meets his original partner.

Swing your partners!

BREAK

FIGURE: Repeat with gent number three going out to couple number four, one, and two, followed by the “forward up six” pattern until gent number three meets his original partner.

Swing your partners!

BREAK

FIGURE: Repeat with gent number four going out to couple number one, two, and three, followed by the “forward up six” pattern until gent number four meets his original partner.

Swing your partners!

BREAK

Floating Down the River

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Floating Down the River (play party)

Source: Traditional play party from Tennessee. See Nancy & John Langstaff collection, Sally Go Round the Moon.

Directions: Need odd number, at least 9, but 17 is best. Make a circle of 8 (or 16) with one lone child in the center of the ring. Children join hands in one large circle, with the lone child in the center. All circle to the left, singing and circling slowly:

We’re floating down the river
We’re floating down below
We’re floating down the river
To the O-hi-O!

As children circle and sing “we’re floating down the river,” the child in the center slowly spins the opposite direction with arm outstretched, pointing. At the end of “O-hi-O!” wherever her finger points is her new partner in the center. Then she grabs that partner; all sing and clap in place as the two in the center hold hands and spin or jump up and down or whatever they want to do:

(faster)
Two in the boat and you can’t jump, Josie
Two in the boat and you can’t jump, Josie
Two in the boat and you can’t jump, Josie
Oh my! Susan Brown!

On “Brown,” the children all take that as the signal (as in “settle down, Brown!”) to resume slowly-paced circling to the left as all sing “We’re floating down the river” again. The two children in the center each spin slowly in the opposite direction with arms outstretched and again point to their new partners, grabbing them for the next part:
Four in the boat and you can’t jump, Josie, etc.

This keeps repeating (“Eight in the boat,” “Sixteen in the boat”) until no one is in the outer ring and everyone is jumping in the middle. Be sure to end by having all children join hands in large circle again to finish with a final “We’re floating down the river… to the O-hi-o.” THE END.

EXTRA ENDING: Finally, this is the perfect opportunity to keep hands (“Nobody let go!”) and lead the children in a snake dance that winds up in the center and unwinds again from the center and around the room as the fiddler keeps playing…

Appalachian Christmas Resources

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Experiencing an Appalachian Christmas

A Selected Booklist

Here are some useful sources for further reading about Appalachian celebrations. Since some of these titles may be out of print, be sure to contact your public library.

Old Songs & Singing Games by Richard Chase, Dover, 1972.

Singing Games and Playparty Games by Richard Chase Dover, 1949, 1967.

Smokehouse Ham, Spoon Bread, & Scuppernong Wine: The Folklore and Art of Southern Appalachian Cooking by Joseph E. Dabney, Cumberland House, 1998.

More Than Moonshine: Appalachian Recipes and Recollections by Sidney Saylor Farr, University of Pittsburgh Press, 1983.

The Christmas Revels Songbook: In Celebration of the Winter Solstice by John and Nancy Langstaff, Revels, 1985.

Foxfire Book of Toys and Games by Linda Garland Page and Hilton Smith, Dutton, 1985.

Folk Songs of the Southern Appalachians. 2nd ed. by Jean Ritchie, University Press of Kentucky, 1997.

Singing Family of the Cumberlands by Jean Ritchie, Geordie Music, 1980.

Foxfire Christmas: Appalachian Memories and Traditions by Eliot Wigginton, Doubleday, 1989.

Children’s Books

The Adventures of Johnny May by Robbie Branscum, Harper & Row, 1984.

Renfroe’s Christmas by Robert Burch, Viking, 1968.

A Certain Small Shepherd by Rebecca Caudill,Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1965.

*Grandfather Tales by Richard Chase, Houghton Mifflin, 1948.

Tall Tales from the High Hills by Ellis Credle, Nelson, 1957.

Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree by Gloria Houston, Dial, 1988.

Littlejim’s Gift: An Appalachian Christmas by Gloria Houston, Philomel, 1994.

The Complete Peddler’s Pack: Games, Songs, Rhymes, and Riddles by May Justus, University of Tennessee, 1967.

Granny Will Your Dog Bite, and Other Mountain Rhymes by Gerry Milnes, Knopf, 1990.

On Christmas Day in the Morning Foreword by John Langstaff. Candlewick, 1999

Silver Packages: An Appalachian Christmas Story by Cynthia Rylant, Orchard, 1987

Children of Christmas: Stories for the Season by Cynthia Rylant, Orchard, 1987

American Folk Songs for Christmas by Ruth Crawford Seeger, Oak, 1953.

An Appalachian Mother Goose by James Still, University Press of Kentucky, 1998.

*Stories from the Grandfather Tales have been published as separate titles in many versions by various authors. Some examples are Old Dry Frye, Sody Saleratus, Soap, Soap, Soap, The Green Gourd, etc. Check with a children’s librarian.

Recorded Music

Kentucky Christmas: Old and New Jean Ritchie family and friends. CD. Greenbays Recordings, n.d.

Wassail! Wassail! Early American Christmas Music Directed by John Langstaff. CD. Revels Records, 1982, 1988.

American Folk Songs for Christmas [CD]. - Mike Seeger. - Rounder Records, 1989

A Folk Song Christmas [CD]. American Melody, 2001

More Books

Student Reading Resources

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Understanding Appalachia Through Children’s Books

Celebrate Appalachia at your library! Here are some children’s books to help you get started. There are many, many more! Please ask your librarian.

Appalachia: The Voices of Sleeping Birds by Cynthia Rylant

Folk and Country Music by Roger Thomas

Foxfire Book of Toys and Games by Linda Garland Page and Hilton Smith

Grandfather Tales by Richard Chase

Granny Will Your Dog Bite and Other Mountain Rhymes by Gerald Milnes

Growing Up in a Holler in the Mountains by Karen Gravelle

Jack and the Wonder Beans by James Still

Jack Tales by Richard Chase

Making Music: 6 Instruments You Can Create by Eddie Herschel Oates

Making Musical Things by Ann Wiseman

Mama Is a Miner by George Ella Lyon

Mountain Jack Tales by Gail Haley

Mule Eggs by Cynthia DeFelice

Music in the Wood by Cornelia Cornelissen

Sody Sallyratus by Joanne Compton

Sody Salleratus by Aubrey Davis

Sody Sallyratus by Teri Sloat

Tall Tales From the High Hill by Ellis Credle

Turkey in the Straw by Barbara Shook Hazen

Whoppers: Tall Tales and Other Lies Collected from American Folklore by Alvin Schwartz

Wide-Mouthed Frog by Rex Schneider

More Books

Homemade Musical Instrument Resources

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Make Your Own Musical Instruments!

Use everyday items from around your house! Here are some books to guide you, it’s all right under your fingertips…

How to Make Flibbers, etc. Robert Lopshire. Beginner Books, 1964. Box bass, etc.

Make Your Own Musical Instruments. Margaret McLean. Lerner, 1988. Washtub bass, etc.

Making and Playing Homemade Instruments. Taught by Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer. Homespun Video, 1989. Oatmeal box banjo, etc.

Making Music: 6 Instruments You Can Create. Eddie Herschel Oates. Harper Collins, 1995. Garden hose trumpet, etc.

Foxfire Book of Toys and Games: Reminiscences and Instructions from Appalachia. Edited by Linda Garland Page. E. P. Dutton, 1985.

Making Musical Instruments. Bebecca Anders. Lerner, 1975. One-string banjo, etc.

Homemade Instruments. By Dallas Cline. Oak Publications, 1976. Clothespin dancers, Limber-Jim, etc.

Making Music. By Ann Sayre Wiseman and John Langstaff. Storey Kids, 2003. Paper bags, body rhythms, musical exercises, etc.

Music. By Ting and Neil Morris. Franklin Watts, 1993. Shoe box guitar, etc.

Music from Strings. By Josephine Paker. Millbrook, 1992. Rubber-band harp

Musical Instruments. By Meryl Doney. Franklin Watts, 1995. Oil can guitar, etc.

My First Music Book. By Helen Drew. Dorling Kindersley, 1993. Banjo, etc.

Hidden Stories In Plants. By Anne Pellowski. Macmillan, 1990. Musical instruments to make from plants!

Pioneer Sampler. By Barbara Greenwood. Ticknor and Fields, 1975. A homemade fiddle

Rocket Science: 50 Flying, Floating, Flipping, Spinning Gadgets Kids Create Themselves. By Jim Wiese. Wiley, 1995. Tin can howler, straw whistle, cottage cheese guitar, etc.

Steve Caney’s Toy Book. By Steve Caney. Workman, 1972. Dancing men, etc.

You Can Teach Yourself To Make Music with Homemade Instruments. By Mark Nelson. Mel Bay, 1995.

Some of these books may be out of print, but all are available at the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County.

More Books

Teacher Resources

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Teacher Resource Booklist

Jack Tales: Folk Tales from the Southern Appalachians. Collected and retold by Richard Chase. Houghton Mifflin, 1943.

Grandfather Tales. Collected and retold by Richard Chase. Houghton Mifflin, 1948.

American Folk Tales and Songs, and Other Examples of English-American Tradition as Preserved in the Appalachian Mountains and Elsewhere in the United States. Compiled by Richard Chase. Dover, 1956.

Foxfire 3: Animal Care, Banjos and Dulcimers, Hide Tanning, Summer and Fall Wild Plant Foods, Butter Churns, Ginseng, and Still More Affairs of Plain Living. Edited by Eliot Wigginton. Anchor, 1975.

Foxfire Book of Toys and Games: Reminiscences and Instructions from Appalachia. Edited by Linda Garland Page. E. P. Dutton, 1985.

Folk Songs of the Southern Appalachians. 2nd ed. As sung by Jean Ritchie. University Press of Kentucky, 1997.

Homemade Instruments. By Dallas Cline. Oak Publications, 1976.

American Folk Songs for Children. By Ruth Crawford Seeger. Doubleday, 1948.

Granny Will Your Dog Bite and Other Mountain Rhymes. By Gerald Milnes. Knopf, 1990.

Singing Games and Play Party Games. Compiled by Richard Chase. Dover, 1949.

Front Porch Old-Time Songs, Jokes & Stories: 48 Great Southern Sing-Along Favorites. By Wayne Erbsen. Native Ground Music, 1993.

Whoppers, Tall Tales, and Other Lies. Collected from American folklore by Alvin Schwartz. Lippincott, 1975.

Hidden Stories In Plants. By Anne Pellowski. Macmillan, 1990. Musical instruments to make from plants!

More Books

Make a Dulci-can

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Dulci-can with painted coffee can. Dave Whitacre’s modified bridge design creates a louder sound.

Dulcimer, a word that comes from the Latin dulce melos, means “sweet sound.” A lap dulcimer is a traditional Appalachian folk instrument played in the Southern Highlands. Brought into the mountain wilderness by European settlers who migrated west from eastern seaboard cities, the dulcimer carried their Scots, Irish, and English tunes from Celtic homelands to America’s interior. The mountain dulcimer has ancient roots that probably reach back to Scandinavian origins. It is mentioned in the Book of Daniel 3:5 with other instruments of the time making “…the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of musick.” It is interesting to note that, according to Sara Johnson, the Kitchen Musician®, “the word in the original Hebrew text is now known to mean something other than ‘dulcimer’; and it is believed the King James translators were doing the best they could with knowledge available to them at the time.”

The dulci-can shown here is a straight-ahead utilitarian version of its more graceful hand-carved wooden ancestor of hourglass or teardrop shape. Made from a fretted fingerboard, three geared tuners, three guitar strings, and a recycled coffee can for a resonator, it can be played on a lap or a table top for even greater resonation. This particular design comes from the fertile imagination of David Ball of Knoxville, Tennessee.

Materials needed to complete this project are listed below. This project is intended as an on-site, guided activity taught by the artist. Expect to pay $20.00 to cover materials for each student.

Fret wire
3 geared tuners
Wooden bridge
2-012 and 1-022 ball end strings
Large coffee can
Board (pre-cut, pre-drilled, pre-slotted)

Note: If you want to try and cut the fret slots, go to Stewart McDonald’s Fret Calculator for fret spacing measurements.

Map your migration

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Here is a map that shows the 420 counties officially designated as the Appalachian Region. On a United States, North American, Western Hemisphere, or World Map, track your family’s migration. Compare with others in the class. Compile a composite map of migrations. The Appalachian residents migrated from Europe, British Isles, Africa, Native America…. and are still migrating today….

Source: Appalachian Regional Commission

Collect a story from your ancestors

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Who are your ancestors? Make a family tree to find out. Ask questions and tape the answers or write them down. A good way to jog the memories of relatives is to show them an old quilt and ask for the story of its making. Other things work well, too: a treasured piece of furniture that’s been in the family a long time, an old dish lovingly stored in the corner cupboard, a faded photograph. Along the way collect the family stories you hear from your parents, your grandparents, or favorite uncle or aunt. Polish one up and share it with your classmates. The class could put their family stories together in a book.

Make a clothespin dancer or a limberjack

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

Clothespin dancers or a limberjack

Using patterns provided in Homemade Instruments by Dallas Cline, collect materials and create dancers for accompanying your homemade musical instruments (see number 1). Call in grandparents to help with your building projects. Have them share some of their toy memories and demonstrate their favorite homemade pastimes, as in the Foxfire Book of Toys and Games.

Learn the Virginia Reel

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

This is one of the most popular dances of the Southern Highlands. One good source for the dance is Traditional American Dance Book by Rick Meyers, 1983. Directions from the traditional dance community in Norfolk, Virginia, were found on the Seven Cities of Southeastern Virginia Folk Dance Connection web site and are included below.

This dance is performed in long lines, up and down the hall. Imagine clearing the cabin of furniture and rolling up the carpet in order to have a dance! The fiddlers stood in the doorways to take up less space and to be heard equally well in both rooms of the cabin. “Stay all night, stay a little longer…“

Instructions for Dancing the Virginia Reel
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Longways dance in sets of 5 or 6 couples. 
All the men on the "right" when looking down the hall,
all the ladies on the left. ( Stand across from your partner)

Join hands in long lines, Go forward and back 8 beats of music

Right hand turn your partner 8 beats

Left Hand turn your partner 8 beats

Do-si-do (back to back) with partner 8 beats

Top couple take two hands,
Sashay 16 beats down the center of the set and back 

Top couple "reel the set" (top couple only)
-- hook right elbows with partner, turn 1-1/2 times. 
Top gent then goes to the first lady in the ladies line,
top lady goes to the first man in the man's line 
and they turn left elbows once around.

Top man and woman then meet again in the middle, 
turn right elbow once around with each other,
then left elbow with the next person in line, etc.
Continue "right to your partner, left to the next"
until the top couple has "reeled" all the way down the line.
This takes about... 48 beats (or so...)

Top couple then sashays back up the middle to the top, and separate from each
other. They "peel off " down the respective outside of the lines, (men down the
men's side, lady down the ladies side) go to the bottom and make a two-handed
arch. All the other couples follow them down to the bottom and up through the
arch, leaving the top couple at the bottom, and the second couple at the top
ready to start the dance over!!

That takes about 32 beats (or so)

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A line of 5 (or 6) couples can make it one time through the whole dance in two
repetitions of a 64-beat tune. (Notice all of the above figures "add up" to 128
beats.

It will not always match the music exactly, though. The more important part is
to keep smiling and have fun!!

Make a can-jo

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 -0500

With recycled products and kitchen trash, children can create their own music on their own manufactured instruments. Appalachian musicians sometimes had to use what was at hand when store-bought musical instruments were not available or affordable. The Foxfire Books are full of examples of this type of resourcefulness. The can-jo is Russ’s adaptation of the traditional washtub bass that is commonly used in Appalachian musical settings. Materials needed: large coffee can, wooden yardstick, string, paperclip, 2 nuts and bolts.

Directions: Punch a hole in the center of the bottom of a tin can (lid has been removed). Setting open end of can on a counter, drill two holes through the yardstick and the can so that stick extends up from closed end. Fasten with 2 nuts and bolts. Drill hole in other end of stick. Push string through the hole in the can and fasten to a paper clip inside the can so that the string cannot pop out. Stretch the string to the hole in the far end of the yardstick; tie securely and tighten as much as possible. (See picture.)