I COME TO SEE JANIE
Jamaican: Trad

1, I come to see Janie, I come to see Janie,
I come to see Janie an’ where is she now?

2, She’s washing her clothes, she’s washing her clothes,
She’s washing her clothes, you can’t see her now.

3, Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye, goodbye,
Goodbye, goodbye, I’ll call back again.

4, I come to see Janie, I come to see Janie,
I come to see Janie an’ where is she now?

5, She’s ironing her clothes, she’s ironing her clothes,
She’s ironing her clothes, you can’t see her now.

6, Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye, goodbye,
Goodbye, goodbye, I’ll call back again.

7, I come to see Janie etc.

8, She’s sick, she’s sick, she’s sick, she’s sick,
She’s sick, she’s sick, she can’t see you now.

9, Goodbye, goodbye, etc.

10, I come to see Janie etc.

11, She’s dead, she’s dead, she’s dead, she’s dead,
She’s dead, she’s dead, an’ cannot be seen.

12, An’ what shall we bury her in, what shall we bury her in,
What shall we bury her in, bury her in blue?

13, Blue is for sailors, oh blue is for sailors,
Blue is for sailors so that will not do.

14, What shall we bury her in, what shall we bury her in,
What shall we bury her in, bury her in green?

15, Green is for lizards, oh green is for lizards,
Green is for lizards so that will not do.

16, What shall we bury her in, what shall we bury her in,
What shall we bury her in, bury her in black?

17, Black is for mourners, oh black is for mourners,
Black is for mourners so that will not do.

18, What shall we bury her in, what shall we bury her in,
What shall we bury her in, bury her in white?

19, White is for de duppies, oh white is for de duppies,
White is for de duppies an’ here she is now!


According to the notes accompanying this song:
Half the fun of this song for Jamaican children is in going on and on until everyone has had a turn to be Janie. The player taking the part of Janie has to mime washing, ironing, being in bed sick, and any other actions suggested as an excuse for her not being able to see her friends. The rest of the singers join hands and advance in a long line at the words ‘I come to see Janie’ and each time that Janie’s mother tells them they can’t see her they fall back singing ‘Goodbye, goodbye’. The same pattern is repeated with the colours until the very last verse when, at the mention of the word ‘duppies’ (ghosts), Janie rises from the dead and chases the other players. The one she catches becomes Janie and the song begins all over again.

From:
"Beeny Bud"
12 Jamaican Folk-Songs for children
Collected & arranged for schools by OLIVE LEWIN
Oxford University Press 1975
ISBN 0 19 330543 7

X: 1
T: I come to see Janie
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
N: Lilting
O: Jamaica
Z: NP 04/09/2023
K: G
D| DBB BAG| EAA AGE| DBB BAG| ddd d2||


NP