Tuesday, December 29, 2009

The Fourth Day of Christmas

On the fourth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.


I like to think that the composer of this song was a woman. Today her true love sent her more birds...four calling birds. However, they're not what you might think. According to the Wikipedia entry, over the years some errors have slipped into the original version of the song; one of them occurs in today's verse. The four calling birds were originally four colly birds, another word for a blackbird.

With that in mind, I started thinking about blackbirds. A little research revealed that the colly birds in the song (Old World Blackbirds) aren't the same as New World blackbirds. They're actually a completely different species. Although both groups contain birds of all colors, many of them are black, like the grackles, cowbirds, and occasional red-winged blackbirds I see in my area.

Other information:
  • In the nursery rhyme Sing a Song of Sixpence four and twenty of them were baked in a pie.
  • The SR-71 Blackbird plane was a reconnaissance aircraft used from the 1960s through the 1990s.
  • The Blackbyrds was a rhythm and blues group in the 1970s.
  • "Blackbird" is a Beatles song from the album The Beatles (AKA The White Album).
Time for a sing-along:



Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these broken wings and learn to fly
All your life
You were only waiting for this moment to arise

Black bird singing in the dead of night
Take these sunken eyes and learn to see
all your life
you were only waiting for this moment to be free

Blackbird fly, Blackbird fly
Into the light of the dark black night.

Blackbird fly, Blackbird fly
Into the light of the dark black night.

Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these broken wings and learn to fly
All your life
You were only waiting for this moment to arise,
You were only waiting for this moment to arise,
You were only waiting for this moment to arise

5 comments:

  1. Oh you have made my evening....I, like you, grew up on this song...Blackbird, Beatles...something so familiar and yet brings new feelings....thank you! smiles.

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  2. Hi Kathy,
    Thanks for stopping over at Maggie's garden. It's nice to meet you. I will take some time and enjoy your blog posts this evening.
    My college educated...smarty pants nephew once told me that he had learned the reference to blackbirds was really another way of referring to prostitutes, and was actually a poem by Wallace Stevens. I rather like the Beatles version. I look forward to your adventures. :D
    xxoo
    Hey...I think we're neighbors...I'm in Illinois.

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  3. You have done your homework and when I hear this song again, the picture in my head will be different! Thanks for all the info!

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  4. So far, this one is my favorite.... I just love that song by the Beatles... I was singing along with you.

    So, tomorrow, will you buy yourself some jewelry, or will it be napkin rings??? I can't wait. See you!

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  5. Emom-You're welcome!

    maggie's gardem-I didn't know the Wallace STevens poem, so I Googled it. It's too complex for me; I think I'll stick with Lennon and McCartney.

    Kathy-I think I'll always think of the sone in a different way too.

    Chic Chauffeur-I never thought about NAPKIN rings (I have the smartest blog readers!), but after Christmas maybe they would be more in the budget than jewelry!

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