There are some things that once you know about them, they shipwreck your brain so badly that you remain stuck upon the reef of insanity and bad taste forever. One of these things is the fact that many songs share common meters and as such, the lyrics and music are all interchangeable.
One such set of meters where the lyrics and music are all interchangeable is what's known as the "Ballad Meter". For those who like to analyse meter and poetic rhythm, Ballad Meter is made up of alternating iambic tetrameter and iambic trimeter.
An iamb (or iambus) is a metrical foot used in poetry which consists of a short syllable followed by a long syllable. Or to put this in simple terms it is a "ba-baaaah". Alternating iambic tetrameter and iambic trimeter means that you get alternating lines of eight and six syllables, or 8.6.8.6
If this sounds complicated, then ignore the technical explanation and just jump straight on in. Ballad Meter is unbelievably common and dare I say it, rudely intrusive. Once you hear it, you can not unhear it. It is used in all kinds of hymns, classic songs, sea shanties, and even poetry.
Perhaps the most famous example of this is the singing of the lyrics of the hymn "Amazing Grace" (1772) by Anglican clergyman John Newton to the tune of the "House Of The Rising Sun" (#6393 - Roud Folk Song Index) and as arranged by Alan Price for the English band The Animals in 1964. Both the words and the tuns have long passed into the public domain and so, you are free to record and flog your own version of this for profit.
However, perhaps the funnest version of Ballad Meter is the theme song to the 1964-67 TV series "Gilligan's Island" by Sherwood Schwartz and George Wyle. It's best that you don't hear the words being sung to this, so that way you can take any of the following pieces of songs and poetry and jam it into the Gilligan's Island theme song yourself... or any of the other songs that fit into each other's music. I am hardly the first to have noticed this before and in fact there are probably lists on the internet with more of these things. Perhaps the most famous example of this kind of thing is the game "One Song To The Tune Of Another" on BBC Radio 4's "I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue"; which explodes the idea further by taking words and tunes that have no way of fitting into each other; this is done for comic effect.
Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale, A tale of a fateful trip,
That started from this tropic port
Aboard this tiny ship.
Aboard this tiny ship.
Australians all let us rejoice for we are young and free.
We've golden soil and wealth for toil.
Our home is girt by sea.
Our home is girt by sea.
Amazing Grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now am found;
Was blind but now I see.
Was blind but now I see.
There is a house in New Orleans they call "The Rising Sun".
It's been the ruin of many a poor boy.
And God I know I'm one.
And God I know I'm one.
Oh little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie.
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep,
The silent stars go by.
The silent stars go by.
There's a yellow rose in Texas that I am gonna see.
Nobody else could miss her,
Not half as much as me,
Not half as much as me.
While shepherds watched their flocks by night, all seated on the ground.
An angel of the Lord came down,
And glory shone around.
And glory shone around.
I'd like to teach the world to sing, in perfect harmony.
I'd like to hold it in my arms,
And keep it company,
And keep it company.
I'd like to be somebody else and not know where I've been.
I'd like to build myself a house,
Out of plasticine.
Out of plasticine.
I cut down trees, I eat my lunch, I go to the lavatory.
On Wednesdays I go shopping and
Have buttered scones for tea,
Have buttered scones for tea.
Oh beautiful, for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain.
For purple mountain majesties,
Above the fruited plain.
Above the fruited plain.
There is a green hill far away, without a city wall,
Where the dear Lord was crucified,
Who died to save us all.
Who died to save us all.
From Aztec Shore to Arctic Zone, To Europe and Far East,
The Flag is carried by our ships,
In times of war and peace,
In times of war and peace.
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear,
The hour I first believed,
The hour I first believed.
I'm gonna be a mighty king, so enemies beware.
Well I've never seen a king of beasts,
With quite so little hair,
With quite so little hair.
Because I was afraid to speak, when I was just a lad.
Me father gave me nose a tweak,
And told me I was bad.
And told me I was bad.
While other nations of the globe, behold us from afar,
We'll rise to high renown and shine,
Our glorious southern star;
Our glorious southern star.
Mister Sifter sold me songs, when I was just sixteen
And now he stops at traffic lights
But only when they're green,
But only when they're green.
Because I could not stop for Death, He kindly stopped for me.
The Carriage held but just Ourselves,
And Immortality.
And Immortality.
Of course, you could have used any of the other songs that use this meter but a song like "Amazing Grace" or "The House Of The Rising Sun" is bound to be more serious. The Gilligan's Island theme song is far more jaunty than most other songs that use Ballad Meter and as such, is one of the better options to use as the tune.
The other thing of note is that the Gilligan's Island theme song repeats the last line, which isn't necessary for Ballad Meter but it is fun. It is useful if you are in a group of people and you are throwing around turns to decide who gets the next verse of a song because it gives you just enough thinking time to be able come up with something on the fly.
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