“Read, Sing, Play ABC Sing-Along,” A Singable Book, Letter G (tune of Ta Ra Ra Boom De Ay)
Posted on: April 6, 2010
Today, we’ll tackle the letter G, to the tune of “Ta Ra Ra Boom De Ay.’
Read, Sing, Play ABC Sing-Along
Words Adapted by Teddy Slater
Illustrated by Liisa Chauncy Guida
This tune makes me giggle with prepubescent glee, remembering when we snickered and sang:
Ta Ra Ra Boom De Ay
I take your pants away
And while you’re standing there
I take your underwear!
Ahhhhh. Good times.
Gert’s Grandpa Gregory
(Lyrics by Teddy Slater, from book “ABC Sing-Along”)
Gert’s Grandpa Gregory
grew whiskers past his knee.
They grew around and ’round.
They grew down to the ground.
“Good golly,” Gert declared,
“Gramp’s got a goofy beard.”
So Grandma Gwendolyn
shaved Grandpa’s chin!
A medicine poster from Wikipedia, with caption, “Contemporary Bromo-Seltzer advertisement for medicine. Lottie Collins sings Ta-Ra-Ra Boom-de-ay! after being healed by the medicine and this effect makes her to dance and sing.”:
According to Wikipedia, this tune originated in vaudeville and music hall entertainments in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
“Ta Ra Ra…” is a handy tune which has been used for many songs and which anyone can freely use to suit their needs. Clearly, this tune is best suited for comic purposes!
This link offers some interesting information (and original lyrics used by vaudeville and music hall performers), but, as with all Wiki articles, facts should to be verified:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ta-ra-ra_Boom-de-ay
To get the tune, my favorite instrumental version is by the “Dukes of Dixieland,” with a jubilant Dixieland arrangement:
http://www.amazon.com/Ta-Ra-Boom-Ay/dp/B0026P5RE6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1270490241&sr=1-1
Here’s a link to an MP3 track of the song, a mechanical piano version, as sung by Lottie Collins (the subject in the medicine poster above):
http://www.amazon.com/Ta-Ra-Boom-Ay/dp/B000UXTZ8K/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1270489474&sr=1-2
