The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #17683   Message #2733190
Posted By: Jim Dixon
28-Sep-09 - 10:58 AM
Thread Name: Lyr Req: New Frankie & Johnny (Gibson/Silverstein)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: New Frankie & Johnny
DDPro: Here is my transcription from John Denver's singing. I have boldfaced the words that are different from the version above. These words are relatively unimportant. They really don't change the meaning. Singers frequently change some minor words in this way to suit their own sense of rhythm or to make the words fit their own colloquial style of speaking. Ordinarily, I wouldn't consider it worthwhile to transcribe a new version that is different only in such small ways from one that has already been posted, but since you asked, and since English is not your native language, I thought this might help you understand it better.


THE NEW FRANKIE AND JOHNNY SONG
As sung by John Denver

Frankie, she was a fine-looking woman, had a man named Johnny,
And she loved him, Lord, she laid down a hundred for a suit of clothes.
Don't you see them, walking arm-in-arm down along Canal Street?
Frankie loved Johnny and, Lord, everybody knows.

Frankie, she came home one evening just a little bit early,
And she thought, ought to stop at the corner for a bottle of beer.
She sat there, and she told her troubles to the fat bartender,
Says, "Hey, Fat Daddy, has my Johnny man been here?"

He said, "Frankie", he said, "I'm terrible sorry that you asked me that question,
'Cause you know, and I know, I'm 'bout as honest as a man can be.
Saw Johnny, he was walking down Main and a-feeling the pain,
Just slipping and a-sliding with a gal named Annabel Lee."

Frankie said, "Oh no, no, it can't be so,
'Cause I know, I know my candy man wouldn't treat me wrong."
She sat there, had a few more beers, shed a few more tears,
Said, "I'm tired of getting this mean old runaround."

Then Frankie, well, she got out of the taxi at the corner of Clark Street,
Looked up, she saw Johnny and Annabel swinging there,
Pulled out, took deadly aim with a 44 pistol
And shot her Johnny in the middle of his big affair.

You know, Frankie, she was a fine-looking woman, had a man named Johnny,
And she loved him, so much she laid down a hundred for a suit of clothes.
Don't you see them, pretty as they were, walking arm-in-arm down along Canal Street?
Frankie loved Johnny and, Lord, everybody
Whole neighborhood was a-talkin' about it—

Frankie loved Johnny and, Lord, everybody knows! Yeah!