Favorite Camp Songs
About 15 years ago, as a resident of Pennsylvania, I attended a “hymn sing” at our church the weekend after Christmas. This tradition started at the church to give the pastor a break after the hectic Christmas schedule. We sang many of my favorites that Sunday morning to the piano instead of our regular organ, and I was definitely feeling like I was back at camp. (Except for the bitter PA cold, of course!)
One congregant called out, “Tell Me Why,” and the church music director busted out those familiar first notes. I looked around in amazement. Wait a minute? This was a Camp Winnataska song! What were all these people in Pennsylvania doing singing my favorite song from Winnataska in faraway Pell City, AL?
Then I chuckled at myself. This has happened several times in my life, and I don’t know why I was as surprised as an adult to find out that a Winnataska song came from somewhere else. I remember the first time that I connected that one of the best-loved Choctaw cheers was actually an Elvis song. (For all you campers in the 80’s: ”Well, since my parents left me…”)
Most of what we sing at camp probably has been sung somewhere else, or is a borrowed tune at least. That doesn’t make me love my favorite camp song any less, however. I remember when I was a Chico director, and sweet 6 year-old Frances Allison was a camper under my charge. (Yes, the very same Frances Allison who was a Comanche this past summer!) We began singing, “Tell Me Why,” at dinner one evening and she looked over at me and sighed, “This is what my mommy sings me to when I can’t go to sleep.”
And she’s not alone. Several generations of children whose parents attended Winnataska have most likely heard camp songs as lullabies ever since they can remember. I know my kids knew many words to camp songs before they arrived as Chicos.
Because the internet makes research so easy these days, I did a little digging into, “Tell Me Why.” First of all, I found many songs called, “Tell Me Why,” from Mary J. Bilge (not ours) to Wynona Judd (also not ours.) I discovered that it was written in 1945 by Mitchell Parish, Michael Edwards and Sigmund Spaeth, as a part of the musical, “Stardust.” I had pretty good luck on iTunes and YouTube. It popped up as a Girl Scout song on iTunes, and a hit by Eddie Cochran, rock and country star, on YouTube. I decided however, to share with you a cute grandma and pop duet; because I feel it’s more in tune with the spirit of the song. * Please remember that YouTube is a public forum, and you should have permission from your mom and dad to view videos there.
I also found a verse to the song that I’ve never heard before. It’s before the “Tell me why the stars do shine…” chorus.
It goes something like this:
All through the night, all through the day,
I keep on wondering so.
Sweetheart, will you answer me true?
There's something I want to know:
I went to my neighborhood book club a couple of weeks ago. I have several friends in book club who are “camp people.” Not Winnataska folks, but they grew up going to camp and can understand why a grown woman would want to spend an entire summer in the Alabama heat and humidity. Anyway, as we moved from discussing our book to discussing our lives, the topic of camp came up. As is the case in so many of our fun gatherings, someone broke out in a camp song, “Tell me why the stars do shine...”
Why am I not surprised?
MaryMargaret Shepherd
So, camp friends, what's your favorite camp song? Do you know any history behind, "Tell Me Why," or did your parents sing it to you as a youngster? Do you think we should add the newly-found verse of keep it the same? Please share! :)
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