“Little Orphant Annie”
Thursday, October 26th, 2006I wrote and recorded a children’s song for Halloween:
You can listen to it by clicking here.
Actually, I didn’t write the words, only the music. The lyrics are by James Whitcomb Riley (1849–1916).
It’s sung by the monsters who live in my attic. Sometimes they sing out of tune. I asked them to try recording it again and sing a little bit more in tune this time (please!), but they said that they were “too tired”.
LITTLE ORPHANT ANNIE
Verse 1:
E7…………………………………………..
Lit-tle Or-phant An-nie’s come to our house to stay,
F#m7………………………………………………….
An’ wash the cups an’ sau-cers up, an’ brush the crumbs a-way,
E7………………………………………………………….
An’ shoo the chick-ens off the porch, and dust the hearth, and sweep,
F#m7………………………………………………………
An’ make the fire, an’ bake the bread, an’ earn her board-an’-keep,
E7…………………………………………………..
An’ all us oth-er chil-dern, when the sup-per-things is done,
F#m7……………………………………………..
We set a-round the kit-chen fire an’ has the mos-test fun
Am……………………………………………..
A-lis-t’nin to the witch-tales ‘at Ann-ie tells a-bout,
Chorus:
Am7………………………..
An’ the Gob-ble-uns ‘ll git you
C6…………………
Ef you Don’t Watch Out!
Am7………………..
Ef you Don’t Watch Out!
Verse 2:
Wunst they wuz a lit-tle boy would-n’t say his pray-ers-
An’ when he went to bed at night, a-way up-stairs,
His Mam-my heerd him hol-ler, an’ his Dad-dy heerd him bawl,
An’ when they turn’t the kiv-vers down, he wuz-n’t there at all!
An’ they seeked him in the raf-ter-room, an’ cub-by hole, an’ press,
An’ seeked him up the chim-bly-flue, an’ ev-er’-wheres, I guess;
But all they ever found wuz thist his pants an’ round-a-bout:-
An’ the Gob-ble-uns ‘ll git you
Ef you Don’t Watch Out!
Ef you Don’t Watch Out!
Verse 3:
An’ one time a little girl ‘ud allus laugh an’ grin,
An’ make fun of ever’ one, an’ all her blood-an’-kin;
An’ wunst, when they was ‘company,’ an’ ole folks wuz there,
She mocked ’em an’ shocked ’em, an’ said she didn’t care!
An’ thist as she kicked her heels, an’ turn’t to run an’ hide,
They wuz two great big Black Things a-standin’ by her side,
An’ they snatched her through the ceilin’ ‘fore she knowed what she’s about!
An’ the Gobble-uns ‘ll git you
Ef you Don’t Watch Out!
Verse 4:
An’ little Orphant Annie says, when the blaze is blue,
An’ the lamp-wick sputters, an’ the wind goes woo-oo!
An’ you hear the crickets quit, an’ the moon is gray,
An’ the lightnin’-bugs in dew is all squenched away,-
You better mind yer parunts, an’ yer teachurs fond an’ dear,
An’ churish them ‘at loves you, an’ dry the orphant’s tear,
An’ he’p the pore an’ needy ones ‘at clusters all about,
Er the Gobble-uns ‘ll git you
Ef you Don’t Watch Out!