About Me

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Lake Mathews (Perris), CA, United States
Born in Illinois, I grew up in Wilmette, a northern suburb of Chicago. I have one sibling, an older brother. I am married, for the 2nd time now, to Butch & got 4 children in the deal. They have gone on to make me grandmother 25 times over & great-grandmother to over 20!. After many years working in industry, I got my bachelors and masters degrees in speech communication, & was a professor in that field for 13 years. I retired in 2001 & returned to school & got my doctorate in folklore. Now I meld my two interests - folklore & genealogy - & add my teaching background, resulting in my current profession: speaker/author/entertainer of genealogically-related topics. I play many folk instruments, but my preference is guitar, which I have been playing since 1963. I write the "Aunty Jeff" column for the Informer, newsletter of the Jefferson County NY Gen. Soc. I work in partnership with Gena Philibert-Ortega & Sara Cochran as Genealogy Journeys® where we focus on educating folks about Social History. More about that: genaandjean.blogspot.com. More on our podcasts: genjourneys.podbean.com. More about my own projects: Circlemending.org.

Sunday, September 26, 2010

Sunday Singalong with Circlemending - waterways

It is time to share a song. I am listening to some sea chanteys while I write this so my mind immediately goes to that as a theme. Sometimes sea or waterway songs can give a person a sense of peace; sometimes the story is one of stormy seas and peace is hardly an aspect.

I have a fondness for Bill Staines's song "River" - it makes me want to find the closest river and just sit on the bank with my feet in the cool water, feeling the smooth rocks, and watch the sun go down. Do you know it? It's on YouTube (of course): Aileen & Elkin Thomas (one of my favorite musical couples) performed it with him at the 1987 Philadelphia Folk Festival (how I would have loved to have been there).

Or just read the lyrics.

Do you have a favorite waterway song? Share the title, some lyrics, or link to an MP3 or YouTube performance. Don't forget to tell us why it is a special song to you.
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3 comments:

  1. Jennifer R. BernardSeptember 26, 2010 at 7:47 AM

    Jean:

    Pocahantas: "Just Around the River Bend." (1995)

    The song was released "just in time" and my life made a few more turns around the river bend. A 'not so long ago' memory was revisited today; thank you for your post. Now blessed with a wonderful family of my own I must give thanks to this fine song.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRliKvrs2jA

    Jennifer

    Jennifer R. Bernard

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  2. Pitterle PostingsSeptember 26, 2010 at 9:32 AM

    I love the old song, "Down by the Riverside". It is fun to sing and most people know at least a portion of it. I also love the old song "Oh Shenandoah" Both of those are great river songs!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Heather Wilkinson RojoSeptember 28, 2010 at 6:11 PM

    I'm from New England. I love the song "Dirty Water" by the Standells, but not because they always play it when they air a Red Sox Game. It's a song about the Charles River. I went to Boston and sailed and rowed in the Charles, and my daughter rowed crew for Simmons College when she went to college. We spent many chilly mornings cheering on her team from the banks of the Charles River. We still go to concerts on the riverbank. I can't tell you how many days have been spent on the banks of the Charles River- but that song fits the memories perfectly!

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