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lead belly - irene (44-a) lyrics

[chorus]
irene, goodnight
irene, goodnight
goodnight, irene, goodnight, irene
i guess you’re in my dreams

[spoken]
this song was made about a man and a woman who was walkin’ along one sunday evening. and the woman didn’t have but one child in the world and that was this girl. and just before this girl and man done got to the house, she said, “now you ask mother for me when you get home”. and the man told her, “all right.” he go and ask the woman for her daughter and the last child she had, you might know what the woman told the man. she didn’t get mad with him and she didn’t talk rough but she told him. and he went back to the girl, and she said, “what did mama tell you?” he looked at irene – her name was irene – he looked at irene, and here is what he said:

[verse 1]
i asked your mother for you
she told me you was too young
i wish to the lord that i never seen your face
i’m sorry you ever was born

[spoken]
what was it about?

[chorus]
irene, goodnight
irene, goodnight
goodnight, irene, goodnight, irene
i guess you’re in my dreams

[spoken]
she told him, sat down, said, “now listen. mama won’t give me up, but if you slip back here some night at twelve o’clock, i’ll slip off with you, and you and i will marry.” he told her, “all right.” she says, “just before you leave, i wants to marry a town man.” he knowed he lived ninety miles in the country. there wasn’t even much of a country store around him. two chances to one he never had been to town before in his life. but he looked at irene and here is what he told her:

[verse 2]
sometimes i lives in the country
sometimes i lives in town
sometimes i haves a great notion
jumpin’ into the river and drown

[spoken]
what was worrying him?

[chorus]
irene, goodnight
irene, goodnight
goodnight, irene, goodnight, irene
i guess you’re in my dreams

[spoken]
sure enough the man slipped back there at twelve o’clock and stole her away from home. and he didn’t stay at home with her that night. so he had stole her away from home, and she looked at him when he come in one night, she sit down and she wanted to talk to him

[verse 3]
“you caused me to weep, and you caused me to moan
you caused me to leave my home”
the last word i heared her say
“i want you to sing a song”

[spoken]
what was in the song?

[chorus]
irene, goodnight
irene, goodnight
goodnight, irene, goodnight, irene
i guess you’re in my dreams

[spoken]
sure enough, she told him, say “if you don’t stay at home with me, i’m gonna leave.” he didn’t believe twice four was eight, and he didn’t believe twice ten was twenty. but he went off one night too many. so when he left, he came back and found a clean house. all the doors was open, and he walked right there on through the house, and he went onto the back side and here is what he said:

[verse 4]
last sat-rday night, i got married
me and my wife settled down
now me and my wife have parted
gonna take me a stroll uptown”

[spoken]
what was the trouble about?

[chorus]
irene, goodnight
irene, goodnight
goodnight, irene, goodnight, irene
i guess you’re in my dreams

- lead belly lyrics

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