She sat by the window

Looks like this blog has reached beyond the usual crowd of middle-aged BBGSians who miss their school. I received a lovely email from Mr. Robert Blair of Victoria, Australia who found this blog while looking for some scouting songs from the '50s and '60s. Well, since BBGS was pioneered by English missionaries with Victorian-era ideals, it's not an unusual connection. I'll let you hear from him in his own words...

Dear Joanna,

You may find this communication odd. I am not a member of your school community. I am a 60+ man from near Melbourne in Victoria Australia. I came across your web site when I goggled the above song and I found your site and no complete list of the verses of this fun song. I learned it as a kid in the scouts in the 1950s and 1960s.
Chui Yen, 5Sc4 (1993) remembered some of the verses.

In case your readers are interested most of the others are:

She sat by the window and played her guitar
He sat down beside her and smoked his cigar
He told her he loved her, but oh how he lied
She told him she loved him but she did not lie
And when they were married some cooking she tried
The onions she boiled and the taters she fried
She got indigestion and poor thing she died
He went to the funeral but just for the ride
He sat on her tombstone and laughed till he cried
He caught consumption and he also died
She went to heaven and flip flop she flied
He went to hades and frizzled and fried
She leaned out of heaven and spat in his eye
The moral of this story is don't tell a lie

Of course this sort of song lends itself to modification and additions - that's half the fun.
I have included a couple of verses that were never in our scout song books published from 1948 till 1960s. Also words were replaced with actions and non word sounds, etc.

Thanks for your time,
Cheers,
Robert Blair


The email he was referring to from Chui Yen, 5Sc4 (1993) is re-produced below...

Joanna, I applaud your efforts and written flair in keeping up the BBGS spirit and memories.

Going through the various list of songs, another popped into my head which goes something like this:

" ...She sat by the window and played the guitar
Played the guitar, played the guitar
She sat by the window and played the guitar
Played the guitar, played the guitar
Plaaaayyyeed the guitar hahaha.

He sat down beside her and....(missing lyrics)

He told her he loved her but oh how he lied
Oh how he lied, oh how he lied
He told her he loved her but oh how he lied
Oh how he lied, oh how he lied
Ohhhh how he lied hahaha ..."

I don't think I can remember the rest and I'm sure there was something amiss in the middle.

Best regards
Chui Yen, 5Sc4 (1993)