The Non-Hunter's Martial Melody: Pen of Rabbits

Harlech castle, Wales

POST #17
PARODY-LYRICS

ORIGINAL SONG: "Men of Harlech", traditional Welsh hymn

PARODY COMPOSED: Giorgio Coniglio, August 2013.

KEYWORDS: traditional, environment, multicultural, diet, palindromes

Charlotte Church, child diva
 sings "Men of Harlech"

PEN of RABBITS

(to the tune of "Men of Harlech")

Welch rare-bit / rabbit

Singable Introduction:
Still today caer Harlech perches,

Dominating YouTube searches - 

Startling, stirring  [1], song of Church's

Steals your breath away.

Here’s a song about Welsh Rare-bit [2],

Squarely dealing with the hare-bits -

Seen on fare-bills quite a fair bit,

Patrons seem perplexed.

Rabbit Welsh – offensive nomen-

-clature used by Saxon foemen ?

“No Welsh eats, but cheese and dough, man,

‘less they poach some game.” [3]

Meat-free choice? – Just ask your hostess,

Beer-and-cheese-melt over toast; its

Celtic fans applaud and boast, it’s

Cambria’s national meal.

Some meat-shunners might eschew it

Welsh names for animals

Thinking it a hunter’s stew – but 
It lacks lagomorphs [4], that’s true – Bugs

Outwits Elmer Fudd!

Hare terse-verse is Nash’s [2]                 

Rare-bit search is Brasch’s [3]

‘HoJo’ wrote the spoof ‘Woad Ode’ [5]

Coniglio [6] penned some flashes.

Hail a dish that harms no hopsters

Not how Newberg hassles lobsters,

Fwycassees can fweak out sqwabsters -

Free the Cornish hen!

Easter rabbit hunt, New Zealand

Sadly, elsewhere, butchered rabbit

Satisfies game-lovers’ habits;

Easter special – Braised Brunch-Basket –

Bunny-love abused.

Hard life in the burrows,

Where bereavement’s thorough;

Peters sad, their mom or dad

Got skewered for lunch ‘al burro’.

Hail a world that harms no hopsters,

Fricassees make quail no squabsters,

Calves should escape escalope, sirs !

Peace in field and warren !

[1] Charlotte Church aged 13, recorded the traditional ‘Men of Harlech’ 1998.

[2] Ogden Nash’s 2-line poem, ‘The Rabbits’

[3] Dr R. Brasch discusses the origins of ‘Welsh rabbit’ in ‘How Did It Begin’ , MJF Books, 2006.

[4] herbivorous mammals in a zoologic order which includes rabbits and hares.

[5] Best-known spoof  - a Boy-Scout song based on the ancient British tradition of fighting naked in woad dye -  by Eton housemaster W. Hope-Jones, ‘HoJo’, published 1921.

[6] Coniglio = rabbit  (Italian) 




Performing Notes

Enjoy chord-charts and lyrics at the Corktown Ukulele Jam songbook:
Corktunes: Pen of Rabbits

[C] Here’s a [F] song ab[C]out Welsh Rare-bit,

[F] Squarely [Dm] dealing [G] with the [G7] hare-bits -

[C] Seen on [F] fare-bills [C] quite a fair [F] bit,

[C] Patrons [G] seem per[C]plexed. [F] [C]

[G7] Hare terse-verse [G7sus] is [G] Nash’s           

[C] Rare-bit search [Csus] is [C] Brasch’s 

[C] ‘Ho[Csus]Jo’ [C] wrote the spoof ‘Woad Ode’ 

Coniglio penned [Csus] some [C] flashes.

final verse:
[F] Hail a [C] world that [Dm] harms no [C] hopsters,

[F] Fricas[Dm]sees make [G] quail no [G7] squabsters,

[C] Calves should [F] escape [C] es[G]ca[C]lope, [F] sirs !

[C] Peace in [G] field and [C] warren ! [F] [C] 

To play with a 'chimier' sound:

[C] Here’s [G7] a [F] song [G7] ab[C]out [G7] Welsh [C] Rare-[C5]-bit,

[F] Square[Am]ly [Dm] deal[Dm7]ing [G] with the [G7] hare-[G7sus]-bits -

[C] Seen [G7] on [F] fare-[G7] -bills [C] quite [G7] a [C] fair [F] bit,

[C5] Pat[C]rons [G] seem per[C]plexed.  [F]  [C]


Related Palindromes: 

Ate plate, elk cub, ergo ogre, buckle et al. - PETA.  

Sleep, eels. 

Step on no pets.

Meet animals; laminate 'em.

Pure talk. A yak later up.