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Back in December 2002, the late Ian Watson put a note on the Topica mailing list containing a list of songs by Jake of which Titles were known but words and music were missing. Over the years many of those songs have been released either on the boxed set or occasionally found in old broadcasts, but there remain several songs of which no known record exists apart from the title.
Given the size of this board now, I was wondering if anyone recognised any of the following?
The Cake
Tonton Georges
The Appalling Mr Kinnell
Lady Penelope
Fiffi Golightly
When I Get Filthy Rich
The Lonely American
The Immortals
A Ripe Old AgeIan Watson claimed, as I recall, to have once heard Jake sing The Appalling Mr. Kinnell on a car journey and a recent correspondent wrote to me that
“Well, the only bit of it that I can remember him singing was the “chorus,” which just went ‘kin’ ‘ell, ‘kin’ ‘ell etc. The idea, as I remember it, was a series of big historical events, with Kinnell cropping up in some way, at the most dramatic moment. A bit like Herzog, or Forrest Gump, I suppose. But … he was working on it for a long time, without apparently any great breakthroughs.”
Ian
Hi Ian – I vaguely remember Lady Penelope on a childrens programme that Jake either hosted or guested on. Must have been early seventies I guess. There was a line containing the words “between the busy lizzie and the picture of the queen” . But is also very likely that my memory is playing tricks and am thinking of two completly different songs!!
Bob
Oddly enough I’ve been sorting through my Jake and Jakefest souvenirs recently and this thought also occurred to me, prompted by the only programme I bought at a very early gig, in which 58 song titles are listed, including these. There are some other titles on the list which seem to be songs that later got another name or something like “The Shepherdesses” and “Yan tan tether” (which could both be Molly Metcalfe, couldn’t they?).
I think there are a couple of others that I can’t identify but they’re not on Ian’s list: one called “A Dancer” and another “The Mole” (which could be a misprint for “The Hole” I suspect!
Pam
“A Dancer” could be “The SInger” from the lyrics of the song only one reference to her being a singer but plenty of dancing references
“My darling is a dancer and nightly we go
Stepping it out together lightly, toe to toe”“Oh my lady is a dancer and nightly we skip,
Stepping it out together lightly, hip to hip”“Oh my lady is a dancer and nightly we fly
Stepping it out together lightly, thigh to thigh.
La la la la la la li la li
Stepping it out together lightly, thigh to thigh.”Hello,
Great to see this site thriving. I remember two songs which Jake sang on the 1968 Sunday teatime vaguely edifying kids’ show Tickertape.
One was probably called either Sophie is Shy (not the Sophie of Jake’s Progress, then) or Sophie and William.
I only remember the first and what may have been the last line as it seems to round it off:
Sophie is shy, she’s ever so shy …
Sophie and William, they’re two of a kind.There was also the theme tune, part of which is quoted in an imdb entry about the show, part of which I remember:
Tick-tick-er tape, Tick-Tick-Er Tape,
A most pec-uli-er mach-ine
Tick-tick-er tape, Tick-Tick-Er Tape,
The strangest one I’ve ever seen.
Each week I fly
To be ta-antalised …but there memory gives out. Do these ring any bells with anyone?
I’ve discussed these songs further in a piece about a (very) brief encounter with Jake which can be found here:
http://sweetwordsofpismotality.blogspot.com/2010/01/on-again-on-again-jake-thackray.html
Tony
Re one of the listed songs, A Ripe Old Age:
I’m pretty certain this was the theme tune to an afternoon ITV programme. It ended (poignantly, in retrospect):
There’ll be a lot of wine and song for us
When we get to a ripe old age
A lot of wine and song for us
When we get to a ripe old age.It seems to have been an educational series about creative retirement, but the one website which refers to it requires you to register.
Tony
I have just read the posting on Pismotality and suggest every member here do the same. What a wonderful overview Tony, and one which – if I may be presumptuous – would serve well as liner notes to any future release of Jake’s work. At the very least this site should link to the article somewhere.
For a while, I’ve had the lyrics “There are songs we’ve never heard of, there are songs we’ve never sung, but there’s plenty of wine and song for us when you get to a ripe old age.”
I had heard Jake singing it on a program in the early eighties, and it stuck in my head, and only recently I have tried to find it’s origin, or even hear him sing it again. What you wrote has told me I didn’t imagine it, and I thank you very much.
Cheers’
Patrick Goodwin.Returning very late to this thread (what’s a mere 9 years 7 months amongst friends?), I was interested in the discussion on the blog post of Kirkstall Road Girl. It’s one of Jake’s songs that I’ve never liked and the reason for that was the element of ‘I know where you come from’ (or as we’d say up here, ‘I kent her faether..’) It always struck me as false and somewhat sanctimonious. The last lines really annoy me:
Chic boutiquey clothes, with her brand-new hair and a brand-new nose:
though she daubed herself with woad, we’d still know that bird down the Kirkstall Road.
There’s lots as good as her down the Kirky Road.
But they don’t go away… thank The Lord they stay…
they’re better off any way down the Kirkstall RoadThe song always reminds me of Peter Starstedt’s Where Do You Go To My Lovely? (So look into my face Marie-Claire and remember just who you are), which similarly denigrates a woman’s success in getting out of the circumstances of her birth and finding something better. I don’t buy into the idea that Jake was a misogynist, and Kirkstall Road Girl is from early in his career, but equally I don’t like the attitude expressed by either him or Starstedt..
Starstedt had a better tune, though.
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