The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #36282 Message #3276910
Posted By: GUEST
19-Dec-11 - 09:28 PM
Thread Name: Origins: Small Island
Subject: RE: Origins: Small Island
Like so many others on this thread, I learned the song in music class in perhaps the second or third grade (mid-late 1970s, Madison Heights, Michigan). I can recall the melody clearly, and the verse was:
Baijun boy, go back to your borning country Small island boy, go back to your borning country You come from Antigua with your foot full of chigger Bring your guitar to sing to my mother Baijun boy, go back to your borning country
I seem to recall that the spelling in the grade-school songbook was 'Baijun', perhaps to help with pronunciation.
I play guitar and could notate some of the chord changes from memory, but I don't read music well and, therefore, could not provide expert notation. The cadence was:
Baijun boy______ go back to your bor_NING_coun_TRY Small island boy______ go back to your bor_NING_coun_TRY