Biography:
Jake Thackray (27 February, 1938 - 24 December, 2002) was a singer-songwriter in the tradition of French chansonniers such as his friend and inspiration Georges Brassens. Born in Yorkshire and educated at the highly respected University of Durham, Thackray became a teacher in the early 1960s and started singing, both in folk clubs and to amuse his students. He became a familiar figure on television in the late 1960s, often composing a new song every week.
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Am
It was a grand upstanding bantam cock,
Am
So brisk and stiff and spry,
G F Em
With springy step and jaunty plume
E Am
And a purposeful look in his eye,
E Am
In his little black blinking eye, he had.
Am
I took him to the coop and introduced him
Am
To my seventeen wide-eyed hens.
G F Em
He tupped and he tupped as a hero tups
E Am
And he bowed from the waist to them all, and then
E Am
He upped and he tupped 'em all again, he did.
Am
And then upon the peace of me ducks and me geese
Am
He rudely did intrude.
G F Em
With glazed emyes and open mouths
E Am
They bore it all with fortitude
E Am
And a little bit of gratitude, they did.
Am
He jumped my giggling guinea fowl
Am
And forced his attentions upon
G F Em
My twenty hysterical turkeys and
E Am
A visiting migrant swan.
E Am
But the bantam thundered on, he did.
Am
He ravished my fan-tailed pigeons and
Am
Me lily-white columbines,
G F Em
And while I was locking up the budgerigar
E Am
He jumped my parrot from behind;
E Am
She was sitting on me shoulder at the time.
Am
And all of a sudden with a gasp and a gulp
Am
He clapped his hands to his head,
G F EM
Fell flat on his back with his toes in the air.
E Am
My bantam cock lay dead
E Am
And the vultures circled overhead, they did.
Am
What a champion brute; what a noble cock;
Am
What a way to live and to die.
G F Em
I was diggin' him a grave to save his bones
E Am
From the hungry buzzards in the sky
E Am
When the bantam opened up a sly little eye.
Am
He gave me a grin and a terrible wink
Am
The way that roosters do.
G F Em
He said, 'You see them big daft buggers up there?
E Am
They'll be down in a minute or two;
E Am
They'll be down in a minute or two.'
It was a grand upstanding bantam cock,
Am
So brisk and stiff and spry,
G F Em
With springy step and jaunty plume
E Am
And a purposeful look in his eye,
E Am
In his little black blinking eye, he had.
Am
I took him to the coop and introduced him
Am
To my seventeen wide-eyed hens.
G F Em
He tupped and he tupped as a hero tups
E Am
And he bowed from the waist to them all, and then
E Am
He upped and he tupped 'em all again, he did.
Am
And then upon the peace of me ducks and me geese
Am
He rudely did intrude.
G F Em
With glazed emyes and open mouths
E Am
They bore it all with fortitude
E Am
And a little bit of gratitude, they did.
Am
He jumped my giggling guinea fowl
Am
And forced his attentions upon
G F Em
My twenty hysterical turkeys and
E Am
A visiting migrant swan.
E Am
But the bantam thundered on, he did.
Am
He ravished my fan-tailed pigeons and
Am
Me lily-white columbines,
G F Em
And while I was locking up the budgerigar
E Am
He jumped my parrot from behind;
E Am
She was sitting on me shoulder at the time.
Am
And all of a sudden with a gasp and a gulp
Am
He clapped his hands to his head,
G F EM
Fell flat on his back with his toes in the air.
E Am
My bantam cock lay dead
E Am
And the vultures circled overhead, they did.
Am
What a champion brute; what a noble cock;
Am
What a way to live and to die.
G F Em
I was diggin' him a grave to save his bones
E Am
From the hungry buzzards in the sky
E Am
When the bantam opened up a sly little eye.
Am
He gave me a grin and a terrible wink
Am
The way that roosters do.
G F Em
He said, 'You see them big daft buggers up there?
E Am
They'll be down in a minute or two;
E Am
They'll be down in a minute or two.'
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