I have found quite a few versions of this song, which has a long and
fascinating history. Below I've posted several sets of variant lyrics
and some background info on the song's probable origins.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Junior Birdmen Song
[Tune: On Brave Old Army Team]
Up in the air, Junior Birdmen; up in the air, upside down,
Up in the air, Junior Birdmen; with your noses to the ground.
And when you hear the grand announcement: that your wings are made of
tin.
Well, then you know, Junior Birdmen, it's time to send your box tops
in.
For it takes: 5 box tops, 4 bottle bottoms, 3 coupons, 2 wrappers, and
one thin dime!
Actions: Make a face mask each time you sing the words, "Junior
Birdmen" by lacing your fingers. Then, with thumbs under the chin,
twist your hands outwards so that you make goggles for the eyes. On
"Upside down," perform a jet plane swoop outstretched arms. On
"Ground," bring the swooping arms as near to the ground as possible.
JUNIOR BIRDMEN OF AMERICA MICHIGAN'S HALL OF FAME, 1935
http://home.earthlink.net/~ralphcooper/pimage38.htm
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The Junior Birdmen of America site linked above seems to me the most
authoritative source of information about the true beginnings of the
song, which appears to have originated in the 1930s among model
aviation enthusiasts, as a parody of the Army Air Corps song "Into the
Air, Army Air Corps." The Army Air Corps was the predecessor to the US
Air Force, and the song was altered accordingly, becoming "Into the
Air, U.S. Air Force." The "Junior Birdmen" version, after having been
created by airplane model-makers, was used in jest by actual aviators
in World War II, and later in Air Force ROTC training. Finally it
became a campfire song popular among Boy Scouts.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
These are the lyrics to the original Army Air Corps song:
Spirit of the Air Corps
Into the air, Army Air Corps,
Give 'er the gun, Pilots true,
Into the air, Army Air Corps,
Hold your nose up in the blue.
And when you hear our engines singing,
And our steel props start to whine,
You can bet the Army Air Corps
Is along the firing line.
We have our hands on the throttles
As we all wait for the nod,
And we will meet them half way, men,
We will drive them to the sod.
And then when our last flight is over,
And we meet our Flying Boss,
You can bet the air is clear, men,
From Orion to the Cross.
A simple MIDI audio file of the tune:
The Mudcat Cafe
http://www.mudcat.org/midi/midifiles/birdmen.mid
----------------------------------------------------------------------
--= MORE 'JUNIOR BIRDMEN' LORE =--
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Remember when you were in Basic Training and being indoctrinated into
the mystique of the old Army Air Corp and they insisted you learn
these songs and sing them whenever you marched from one place to
another even to the latrine?
Remember?
Into the air, Junior Birdmen
Into the air, pilots green!
Into the air, Junior Birdmen,
Climb into that old machine!
And when you hear that Franklin sputterin’
And you get your wings of tin
We will know the Junior Birdmen
Have sent their boxtops in!
The Eighth Air Force Historical Society
http://www.geocities.com/eighthafhs/april00.html
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Junior Birdmen
Up in the air, Junior Birdmen; up in the air, upside down,
Up in the air, Junior Birdmen; with your noses to the ground.
And when you hear the grand announcement: that your wings are made of
tin.
Well, then you know, Junior Birdmen, it's time to send your box tops
in.
For it takes: 5 box tops, 4 bottle bottoms, 3 coupons, 2
wrappers, and one thin dime!
Make a face mask each time you sing the words, "Junior Birdmen" by
lacing your fingers. Then, with thumbs under the chin, twist your
hands outwards so that you make goggles for the eyes. On "Upside
down," perform a jet plane swoop outstretched arms. On "Ground," bring
the swooping arms as near to the ground as possible.
Yawgoog Scout Reservation
http://yawgoogscoutreservation.org/SongBook/default.asp?id_num=29&entrymode=viewlyrics
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Don't forget "Junior Birdmen"
To the Air Force song.....
Into the air Junior Birdmen.
Into the air upside down.
Is it a bird, plane or superman?
Oh, my goodness,
Bless my soul,
It's a member of the junior bird patrol!
And before you USAF types think I'm being disrespectful, it was a song
we sang many years ago when I was in Air Force ROTC.
WTV Zone
http://www.wtv-zone.com/harmandmac/trg/preview/spoilers8-5.html
----------------------------------------------------------------------
JUNIOR BIRDMAN
Camp Song
Chorus:
Up in the air junior birdman
Up in the air upside down
Up in the air junior birdman
Keep your noses off the ground
When you hear the grand announcement
that your wings are made of tin.
Then you know that Junior Birdman,
has turned his box tops in.*
For it takes: 5 box tops,
4 bottle bottoms,
3 coupons,
2 wrappers,
and one thin dime!
B-i-r-d, B-i-r-d, B-i-r-d-m-a-n
Birdman, Birdman, Birdman
Buzzzzzzzz!
* Alternate Verse
When you hear the doorbell ring (buzz, buzz)
When you see the badge of tin (tin, tin)
Then you know that junior birdman
Has turned his box tops in.
Lyrics Playground
http://lyricsplayground.com/alpha/songs/j/juniorbirdman.html
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Junior Birdman was a gesture used on the Captain Video Children's TV
show, which I gather was on in the late 50s and early 60s. I guess
it's supposed to represent an aviator's helmet and goggles. It's to be
accompanied by a song:
Up in the air, Junior Birdman
Up in the air, Upside Down!
Up in the air, Junior Birdman
Keep your nose to the ground.
It goes on to talk about boxtops and decoder rings... The gesture is
achieved by putting the thumb and forefinger of each hand together to
make an "O", andleaving the remaining fingers straight. Keeping the
"remaining fingers" parallel to each other, rotate your fingertips
back towards your ears, and lift your elbows up so that your
"remaining fingers" are pointing down the sides of your face and the
"O"s are in front of your eyes.
Homepage of Hans Spiller
http://www.exmsft.com/~hanss/entropy.htm
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Here you'll find two long and interesting threads discussing the
"Junior Birdmen" song:
The Mudcat Cafe
http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=17941
The Mudcat Cafe
http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=19806
----------------------------------------------------------------------
More on the real "Junior Birdmen of America":
In various other ways, men and women became missionaries on behalf of
the winged gospel. Many carried the message to youth, often promoting
the building and flying of model airplanes. In the 1920s and 1930s,
schools, recreation programs, hospitals, and even department stores,
radio stations, and newspapers actively supported model aeronautics.
Publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst created the largest
model-building organization, the Junior Birdmen of America. Hearst
papers ran columns offering advice and tips to Junior Birdmen and
sponsored flying meets where members competed for prizes. His faith in
the winged gospel was embedded in the Junior Birdmen's motto: "Today
pilots of models, Tomorrow model pilots."
Centennial of Flight
http://www.centennialofflight.gov/essay/Social/winged_gospel/SH2.htm
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Google search strategy:
Google Web Search: "junior birdman"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%22junior+birdman
Google Web Search: "junior birdmen"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%22junior+birdmen
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I hope this information is useful. If anything is unclear, or if a
link doesn't work for you, please request clarification; I'll gladly
offer further assistance before you rate my answer.
Best wishes,
pinkfreud |
