George Formby - Leaning On A Lamp Post

[bottletree33]

just bought 20 films of george on ebay for less than a fiver.

[mkcwebmaster]

@bottletree33 I wouldn't recommend those cheap eBay copies at all, they are dreadful quality. I know, I bought one myself. You're better off getting them from Amazon, although obviously at a higher price.

[bottletree33]

@mkcwebmaster Oh don't tell me that now. I was looking forward to watching them. £3.99 down the drain....... damn and blast.

[oldbobg]

After all these years, I finaly understand where Peter Noone got the idea to record this tune in the '60's. Youtube is amazing for those looking for the inspiration behind tunes!

[throovest]

One of the great songs of pop

[shamusoz]

George is a childhood memory for me. Great old songs.

[captainjack77]

I'm completely unsure how I discovered this song. But thankfully I did. 

[cambridgewilliam]

LOVE THEM ALL

[mrspike309]

this song is one of my dads favourite songs

[maxica4]

im 11 and i love this stuff

[mufc99ok]

just classic stuff indeed

[wf1pinnell]

played at my grandads funeral.... everyone burst out laughing was just him all over lol

[TheMrOdagled]

How can you dislike THIS!!!

[Notstrongbow]

Absolutely priceless!!........Absolute clowns who don't get it.......XX

[exclusiveforus]

NOSEDIVE! 2:10

[dorkdoll]

fabulous

[johnredpath]

loved the skinner show and it's just great that georges comedy and music is being spoken about again- I used to love George as a kid and had forgotten all about the great man.

[fairways17]

since the skinner show must have played this 50 times supurb

[dickens0033]

this guy really hangs with Hendrix, he was a man before his time.....his lyrics..

[manciggy1]

As Frank said George was a huge star in his day but now his films, like those of Gracie Fields, are pretty unwatchable. His legacy is his Uke playing.

I now await the Will Hay revival. The only film comedian that Britain has produced that can rank along the Hollywood greats like the Marx Bros.

[LukeTheGinger121]

Absolutely fantastic! Always had a love for this kind of stuff, and after watching Frank Skinner's documentary the other night I have decided to buy my self a uke and learn to play some Formby stuff! The man is legend!

[JeepRuby101]

How could anybody dislike this? Perhaps they prefer Herman's Hermits version...shame

[MerlinTheBird]

@Kevin107ish Me too! :)

[Kevin107ish]

I was immediately drawn here by the Excellent Frank Skinner documentary on BBC4. George Formby will live 4ever!

[LukeTheGinger121]

@Kevin107ish that was a fantastic show! Always kind of known about him and heard a few bits and pieces here and there, but thanks to Frank Skinner, I'm now a proper fan!

[Ekumens]

@Kevin107ish

I second this. It was a wonderful documentary, very thorough .I'm now completely with Formby and his work thanks to Frank Skinner. Yes Formby will live, he is just timeless!

[frogstamper]

@Kevin107ish Thats the same reason I've ended up here, just watched the FS doc....superb documentary, the BBC at its very best.

[monkeytown1000]

@ clawpuss3

George Harrison was a big George Formby fan and knew most of his songs. He also played the ukelele, at the end of a night when he'd had guests round and had a few he'd get out the uke and play a few George Formby songs.

[CHameleonX9]

That's some Bajolele skill; I need me' one of those.

[Telford90]

The true originator of rock n roll.

[hannahlolzy]

My nana brought me up, singing this song:)xxx

[Motogpfan466]

Great banjo music, shame george formby was not a very nice person to know.

[1785Sam]

like if you seen him on QI

[mrreaderman]

Such a nice song and musician. More people shoud know Formby!

[kavazci]

Legged-it home every Sat'day night, at 5.30, t'watch show. Hip - just a bit. The piano lady plays harps now, I guess?

[SoNIXZzBRAD]

Love love love this man

[AndresAndres8401]

This music always brings a tear to me eye.

[kopynd1]

class

[EdsehGFX]

what is he playing? a banjolele??

[endonchi]

en español la canta la banda el recodo y se llama el farol.

[maureen1938]

ITS WONDERFUL to hear this super oldie again...THANK YOU for posting

[2jesushchrist]

@Jesterartaud I guess your students would be pressed to know those who rely more on dialogue. Or how to spell Will Haye.You should however. No need to be sorry, you're entitled to your opinion but it changes nothing, Formby is not only in a different class to Chaplin but a different category. Fans of one are unlikely to be impressed by the other and whilst both raise the odd smile with today's audience, neither are really funny to today's taste being over reliant on sentimentality unlike L&H

[driverjackboy]

i sang this on kareoke when i was about 11 and im 19 lol i didnt know it was that old haha

[13421JLUJ]

Thank you ever so much for this video!

[ConfuseACatLtd2]

this is so cute :)

[MTAYLOR2468]

this is a real fun song to sing. im learning this song for my vocal lessons at ACU

[diddymuck]

utterly charming.

[lukekellycopy]

like his dad, he orders editors to keep the footage of him telling them to start

[StanleyBilly12]

I think of this song everytime i lean on a lampost on the corner of a street when a certain little lady comes by <3

[TheBeatlesShop]

Brilliant George!

[jamienicholasrowson]

Go on George, u legend!

[davidshurrmusic]

probably the best thing ever

[MACHAWK123]

Ah, it takes me back to my childhood. Watching repeated George films on the TV in the early sixties. This is quite a lovely song of it's time. Try IchingIching's version too (not bango or ukelele).

[feroequinologist]

Puts a lump in your throat and brings tears to the eyes listening to this! What a performer George Formby was, During the years of ww2 his were some of the most requested songs especially on programmes like BFN Two way Family favourits sadly missed as all great artists are! As Charles Daniels 7 said "A true British Legand"

[rose6921]

beautiful song and a fantastic actor too,ive had many a laugh thanks to this man :-) they dont make films like they used to lol

[nomonotonous]

beautiful song

[sturdle]

George is/was wonderful, who was the girl playing the piano? where is She now????

[mkcwebmaster]

The girl at the piano is Polly Ward, although of course she's just acting so I wouldn't have thought it was actually her playing that you can hear. You can get more info on Polly Ward if you Google her name.

[dan88891]

@mkcwebmaster if you look it looks as if she was playing it on the tape

[dan88891]

@mkcwebmaster it looks like the piano is being played on the tape.

[jaksongpg]

@mkcwebmaster

those were the days! to think I was still under 40 then...

[sturdle]

@sturdle we enjoyed some good stuff didn't we..........

[Seaventeares]

@sturdle I'll take a wild stab in the dark and guess that the girl playing the joanna is no longer with us.

[anonUK]

@sturdle

Polly Ward (orig. Byno Poluski) 1910-1987

[sturdle]

@anonUK thanks......

[sturdle]

the piano is brilliant may have asked before, where is she? still alive??

[1912cunard]

Not the worlds best singer, but where would be with out George? He together with Gracie Fields and Jessie Matthews were Britains biggest earners ini the 1930s. People of the working classes loved George. A real Lancashire gem.

[poppycharlie1]

the very best ever artist,love him

[CharrJim]

I just love this song reminds me of my granddad x

[sainsburytrucker]

good old George, he was a motorcycle enthusiast so he must've been a good bloke! Check out 'No Limits' which has some great B+W footage of the Isle of Man TT races

[redman9pablo]

those were the days,my grandfather bought george formby old house off him in sefton park liverpool,he said he was an lovely down to earth man

[typesticker]

It is somewhat unfair to compare Chaplin and Laurel and Hardy who were primarily silent movie comedians (or at least their careers were well established before talkies), and George Formby, who relied on wise-cracking humor and music to propel his career. The one element of their humor that they all share is the appeal to the working class, the common man, and this was a very important part of their popularity. I find it easier to draw parallels between Formby and Cliff Edwards or even Bob Hope.

[1DanielChristensen]

Hmm. Herman's Hermits changed it a lot for their cover such that it's almost original.

[candw87]

@1DanielChristensen George played and sang this in 1933 he was the original snger

[oldfugnug]

George Formby's songs will be fondly remembered in Britain long after silent movie star Charlie Chaplin has been well and truly forgotten. Chaplin may have been a legend in his time but never gets a mention anywhere these days. Laurel and Hardy were truly brilliant but were a completely different act to Formby so it is wrong to compare them.

[mkcwebmaster]

@oldfugnug - A couple of comments say Laurel and Hardy were a completely different act to Formby. But hang on, both were comedy film acts, so whilst they were very different in style, I wouldn't say their acts were "completely" different. I reckon Formby's and L&H's job descriptions would be pretty similar in fact. Just an observation from argumentative me :)

[hellesterne]

@oldfugnug You say it is wrong to compare Laurel and Hardy to Formby. Quite right. And it's absurd to compare Chaplin to him, too. Chaplin was an entirely different figure in the entertainment world. He will never be forgotten, incidentally. He was--to put it simply--a genius. The other night they played his old film The Immigrant (on Turner Classic Movies), and it was absolutely brilliantly funny. And only today, I watched Limelight--with Claire Bloom and Chaplin. A classic.

[moscowguitarman]

@oldfugnug ??? Chaplin is far more famous than Formby!

[2jesushchrist]

@moscowguitarman Chaplin's name is far more famous, Like Mickey Mouse's is more famous than Foghorn Leghorn But the big ol' southern rooster is a million times more funny. Fame isn't always down to the ability to make people laugh and owe's a lot to studio systems, promotion and the amount of cash an artist has behind them. Formby's work is not only very British but pretty North Western English but is a precurser to Wisdom and Carry on both of which are also funnier than Chaplins sentimentalism

[uke1964]

thats a great up load ,class

[foodog1]

"She's not a girl like that!"

George shreddin on his uke.....CLASS!!

[TheElvisSinger]

'Nice Day, Isn't it.' - Still brings a smile. Brilliant thanks for posting.

[hellesterne]

Nobody played the uke" like George Formby. He was brilliant. He made a great many movies, too, I believe.

[komaid]

Leaning On A Lamp Post was one of the Noel Gay songs featured in the musical play, Me And My Gal, which was originally staged in London in 1937 but not seen in the U.S. until 1986. Probably the most well-known song from Me And My Gal is The Lambeth Walk, which was the closing number of Act 1.

[gsbob1]

True British legend

[SweetSue4]

I like Herman's Hermits version better.

[dfcvda]

he was a legend in GB a long time ago but not forgotten

[finchyboyyo]

back the warriors

[john111257]

OUR GEORGE...SUPERSTAR..LOVIN IT

[kopynd]

one of the best

[ivanstax]

Love the guy . please check my version. hope you like it

[420wine]

i love when he breaks into that punk sound .

[whiskeyshan]

@420wine lol! i know exactly what you mean - when you think this was recorded in 1937 - really advanced for its time

[rlneesam]

Redredreds George Formby did more for the morale of a struggling British people during WW2 than anyone except maybe Tommy Handley. Laurel and Hardy, Chaplin etc were conspicuous by their absence from these shores - fair enough, Oliver Hardy was not British!

[CharlesDaniels7]

He very famous and a true British legend!

[Garfulon]

is this guy very famous?

[sallythewerewolf]

In Britain he's a beloved legend...George Harrison absolutely idolised him and recorded at least one of his songs...

[BruceKap440]

There is a clip of the "professional singer" Val Rosing, singing the same song in the same movie. Rosing (who is my father-in-law) was one of Britain's most popular crooners of the 1930s and was the original singer on Try A Little Tenderness, Teddy Bears Picnic and many other Henry Hall Orchestra Recordings. But George's version is the one that became famous.

[diddymuck]

he's on the level of, say, Ray Bolger or Red Skelton.

[rslitman]

For 43 years, until earlier this week, I thought that the movie in which this originated was called "Hold On!" and came out in 1966.

[mkcwebmaster]

I think a lot of people think Herman's Hermits were the original performers of the song. To British people, I George Formby is equally famous as the likes of Laurel & Hardy or Charlie Chaplin, but it seems most Americans these days have never heard of him. I guess his popularity (which was huge in Britain) didn't reach across the pond.

[redredreds100]

as much as i love george, he is no way in the class of Laurel & Hardy , and even further fro chaplin.

[mkcwebmaster]

I have to agree. Fame and class are two different things.

[sturdle]

@mkcwebmaster we are fortunate we had them though......

[oldfugnug]

Reply to redredreds...Utter rubish!!!

George Formby and L&H were totally different acts. I love watching Ollie & Stan but their act was totally different to George's and you cannot compare the two. With regards Chaplin, George Formby will still be fondly remembered in Britain long after Charlie what's his name has been forgotten.

[OzzInter]

@mkcwebmaster

George's provincial English accent was too difficult for American to understand.

The films, which were hits in Commonwealth countries, failed in America

[BOT101st]

With all the people saying about all the cuts and stuff, the film they used back then wasn't edited the same way as today, and you only had a certain length of film, so you had to get it perfect or just keep on with the recording

[mkcwebmaster]

They could do a retake if they wanted to. Even back in the 1930s, scenes were still edited and combined to make the finished product. I find it hard to believe they would say, "We'll have to make do, we haven't got any more film left". Surely not?

[charleyfarley321]

It remins me of Blackpool in the 50's

We went there on the factory fortnight every year

[seanandhisuke]

This scene of the film has always puzzled me. Why did George stop singing and why was the song cut down for the film? At 2:18 it looks like George pulls a face to some one behind the camera's. Maybe one of the film crew?

[leeperryismerry]

I thought he only did this when he was older?

I was wrong

[littleshoemaker]

Email Optimum, this needs releasing on DVD!!

[richardkreb]

One last thing, I bought the 6 disc collection from Comic Icons but have found that its the only collection available, is this true? Feather your nest seems to be no where which is a shame as it has my favourite song, anyone know if this film and others have been released on DVD yet?

[mkcwebmaster]

Quite recently "Trouble Brewing" and "Keep Your Seats, Please" were released on DVD by Optimum Releasing. "Feather Your Nest" hasn't yet been released, nor (I think) has "Keep Fit", unless anyone knows differently?

[richardkreb]

the line "are you a Dinky Doo?" is from the film 'Let George do it!' when he is mistaken for a British spy and gets tangled up in the conflict. Also memorable for a dream sequence of George beating Hitler up on his podium in the middle of a speech lol First Ealing comedy to use the war as a background in 1940 but after Chaplin's The Great Dictator, both absolute legends!

[richardkreb]

at 1:59 the song breaks into a piano solo which wasn't in the original recording which is why George looks awkward as the song must have been cut down for the film, tell from his face that he just remembered to stop singing. Great song!!

[mkcwebmaster]

So it was a mistake, and rather than say "Cut! Take 2!" they just carried on and kept the scene as is. Seems implausable, but you could be right, that is how it looks.

[ididcramsmom]

Pioneer!..Kinda corny by modern standards,but certainly WAY ahead of it's time.. I think A LOT of musicians owe this man!.....

[clawpuss3]

I think the Beatles owe a lot to George Formby

[throovest]

@clawpuss3 Yes.... I think it's about £2.9s6d

[rayfenwick]

@clawpuss3 George Harrison was a big Formby fan, and apparently took a ukulele or two with him pretty much everywhere. Queen's Brian May is another big fan (listen to the Queen song 'Good Company" and you'll see what I mean :)

[GoldenOldiesOn45RPM]

@clawpuss3 Twenty three pounds, seven shillings and seven pence to be exact

[blabberama]

anyway if you know the full song you know that there's some more lyrics. but he's a quirky characer & I think he's just letting the music speak for itself...

[blabberama]

I think he's lettin the lady do her thing on piano...

[Theopolis1]

Think he messe's up at around 1.59 looks around then stops singing ?

[mkcwebmaster]

Yes, I don't understand that bit at all. His microphone fades out and he stops singing while looking a bit puzzled.

[pete7356]

What film did George say the line "Are you a Dinky Doo" I still chuckle at that line.

[mkcwebmaster]

One of his best, the classic "Let George Do It." Even more funny is how the bloke responded saying "No she is not a Dinky Doo, my wife is a respectable woman" as if he was getting certain ideas about what Dinky Doo meant.

[KitsuneProductions]

is it possible they were miming and they turned down the recording without telling him? just a thort

[mkcwebmaster]

I'm sure they were miming, but I don't think that's the point. You can still here the piano, and they didn't have multi track recording in those days, so they obviously faded out his mic when he recorded it. The question is... why? In the film, there's only the two of them in the studio, recording in secret, well that's the story anyway. So the only way I can explain in (as far as the story goes) is the mic failed :)

[richardkreb]

Comedic and musical legend!!!

[dimitreze]

Excellent song! I just love!!

[fogonthetyneisalmine]

george lived in my street in gateshead denmark st when i was 3 monthes, so yes guess me age , good man

[0114owl1867]

he sat my mam on his knee and sang this to her in 1939, she was 18 months old i think =)

[MangekyouSasuke01]

woooooo

[0114owl1867]

yeah wooooo indeed kid !

[doglips1958]

Wow!!!!!I didn't know this song was that old!!!THANKS!!!

[sawlow2]

My daugther loved this song a lot, can someone send me the sheet music(for Trumpet), so i can play for my child.

[eskimopiess]

i LOVE this song....and im 18 & peirced. its amasing<3 :D

[philbloke]

My three year old twin boys are addicted to this song (since their mad old Dad sang a snatch of it one evening.) Great to find it here, and thank you for uploading it!

[06gaind]

best ever! im a george formby fan as well ,ive been looking for this original video

[BOT101st]

Thats the best duo ever!

A piano and a Banjo Uke :D

Amazing ol formby ;-)

[FlacosJeff]

May 26, 1904.

Happy birthday, Georgie old boy!

[typesticker]

Bravo, Someone finally posted this wonderful number and it turned out nice again!!