Gentle Annie (song)

Infobox Song
Name=Gentle Annie


Caption=
Type=
Artist=Bok, Muir and Trickett
alt_artist=Gordon Bok, Ann Mayo Muir, Ed Trickett
Album=Turning Toward the Morning
Published=
Released=1999
track_no=10
Recorded
Genre=Folk
Length=4:02
Writer=Lame Jack Cousens
Composer=Stephen Foster
Label=Folk Legacy
Producer=Sandy Paton
Tracks=
prev=Slow Dance from Machu Picchu
prev_no=9
next=Sunday Morning
next_no=11
Misc=Australian version

"Gentle Annie" is a popular American song composed by Stephen Foster in 1856. The song has original lyrics but is said to be based on a traditional Irish melody. According to his niece, Evelyn Foster Morneweck, there is a tradition that it was written in honor of Annie Jenkins, the daughter of a grocer in Federal Street, Allegheny, Pennsylvania, named Morgan Jenkins. She disputes this, and states that it is probably written in honor of his cousin, Annie Evans, who died shortly before it was composed. [University of Pittsburgh Digital Library [http://digital.library.pitt.edu/cgi-bin/t/text/pageviewer-idx?c=pitttext;cc=pitttext;q1=Gentle%20Annie;rgn=full%20text;idr] ] Some sources say it is Foster's farewell to his maternal grandmother, Annie Pratt McGinnis Hart. [ [http://www.nls.uk/broadsides/broadside.cfm/id/14824 Broadside ballad entitled 'Gentle Annie' ] ] His paternal grandmother was Ann Barclay.

A parody version from Australia is also known as "Gentle Annie". This was published in "Australian Tradition", Vol. 1, no. e, in 1964. It was recorded by Martyn Wyndham-Read [ [http://www.martynwyndhamread.com Martyn Wyndham-Read ] ] . The tune is the same as the Stephen Foster version, but the lyrics are different. The Australian lyrics were written by Lame Jack Cousens of Springhurst, Victoria. Sources state that its subject is Annie Waits.The song "Gentle Annie" sung by Tommy Makem is a different song from the Foster or the Australian version.

References

* Lyrics for the Stephen Foster song [http://www.pdmusic.org/foster/scf56a.txt]
* Lyrics for the Australian version [http://www.mudcat.org/@displaysong.cfm?SongID=2198]
* Australian Notes on both versions [http://www.rowethmusic.com.au/betweenthelines/issueeighteen.html]