Weavers - Goodnight Irene

[JoneseyBonesey]

My B.day too!

Wednesday's child is full of woe.

[suezmommom]

This was the number one song the day I was born

[gerkins1]

This was the song that was number one the day I was born.

[sonyahannah]

Cut my harmonizing teeth on this one, singing with my family to make our own fun. . . so much fun that we never knew how "deprived" we were.

[beautman1]

This video is much better than the original weavers record with gordon jenkins stings added.

Ledbelly's lyric was "I'll GET you in my dreams." but that didn't fly on a commercial label and on TV.

[wilkee41]

The Weavers & Pete Seeger were nearly destroyed by the McCarthy communist witch hunt. (from Kee , Malaysia

[glamorousgal123]

Their called "The Weavers" not "Weavers".

[wweecwcollin]

good but you cant beat leadbelly

[almostfamouschick]

This was my Grandpa's song. I miss you Grandpa. I can't believe it's already been 3 yeas

[Kendallmorse]

They don't come any better than the Weavers.

[pannoni1]

The late 1940s and early 1950s are such an underappreciated era in music, after big band but before rock n' roll. It's great for relieving stress as it's technology-free, tells a story, and is very family friendly. Tony Bennett even made a comeback this year which proves this point.

[TubeUself]

@pannoni1 Tony Bennett didn't make a comeback. He never left.

[wfulls]

If only people could still sing like this today and make it big without putting on a flashy/cheesy show. Great song, great group!

[Britcomsarebest]

I heard this song first in 1951 when I was 13 and couldn't understand it. A lullaby for Irene but it sounded more like wishing her a 'Happy Nightmare'. It put me off hit tunes for months. What was the point of the lyrics? The Weavers sang so many good happy songs like Tzena (x3) which is still a favourite of mine but sorry, Mr Leadbelly, the tune was fine but not the lyrics.

[TenderTrap86]

I can't get enough of this song!

[tuxguys]

This is an amazing cultural artifact... All of the soloists have attempted to, and largely succeeded at, absorbing a little black inflection in their singing... and Seeger, the one who will go on to the greatest solo career, is the one who doesn't sing a solo chorus.

[magicman2001]

goo'nite irene..... hello jose

[ChristophePhilippe]

Can you imagine a folk musical group today dressed like this for a public performance?

[SkrepkaMoya]

I remember Canadian soldiers sitting at our kitchen table drinking and singing "Goodnight Irene"...This was during the war years in the 40's. 

[gdwrumble12]

Goodnight... Hurricane Irene...

[Hulehan]

♫ ♪ Irene goodnight, Irene goodnight. Goodnight Irene, goodnight Irene - I'll see you in my dreams....... ♫ ♪

[maryannfish]

wonderful memory - I am 81 and vividly remember dancing to this song. we played it over and over on a 78 record...wish I could remember the other side as well. anybody know? We were a fun college group and never let "issues" keep us from good music. Days of yore in Frederick MD.

[sibyllabostoniensis]

@maryannfish , according to wikipedia, the flip side was "Tzena, Tzena, Tzena". See the sidebar for a video of the Weavers singing that, too.

[HARDYFAN11743]

What a wonderful, harmonic rendition. I miss this kind of music so much (from my childhood, when this is what one heard on the radio all the time). And when I think of those hate-mongers with their "anti-communist" hysteria. It makes one really sad to think about that era -- what beauty was lost through prejudice and stupidity (which never seems to be in short supply.

David Garlock, survivor

[MyriamRoRod]

Thank you soking09 ... I will soon be 75 years young and still learning new things... Not having been born in the good U.S. of A the words of songs did not mean that much to me... But how I've enjoyed listening to them! Reading the comments also enlightens me and fills the many gaps in my brain.

Oh... the joy of learning something new! Like who The Weavers were...

Shalom to you and everyone

[suspekt29]

Thumbs up if TWIN PEAKS brought you here.

[csfjklsafj]

WE WILL BE SAYING THIS SUNDAY NIGHT AT MIDNIGHT lol. Thumbs up if HURRICANE IRENE brought you here

[denlibdut]

@csfjklsafj Hurricane Irene did exactly that. and I am sending well-wishes from Souh Africa to family and friends in the Northeast US and Eastern Canada that all will go well this evening and tomorrow will be a brighter, happier day.

[JonoGetsMad]

one person fails at life

[jjmcgo]

Anybody who espouses Communism (Obama, Van Jones, Bill Ayres, etc.) should be executed or at least imprisoned for 30 years, no parole. I'm glad the Weavers were shunned. Pete Seeger was an active Communist for over 17 years until Congress questioned him and convicted him.

[chalklounge]

@jjmcgo You are a psychotic moron.

[eotto2001]

@jjmcgo Actually, if you read on it, Seeger fought against a big government intruding on his First Amendment rights and therefore was pro-Constitution and Bill of Rights which those things guarantee. In our system, one has the right to be or assemble with all kinds of people or groups whether they be anarchist, T-Party, libertarians, communist, etc. We may not like it but if we believe in the Bill of Rights and Constitution, those beliefs are allowed under it. ;-)

[JonoGetsMad]

@jjmcgo just a reminder. you're still an idiot.

[Demobius]

I saw Ronnie Gilbert as a solo act at the Oregon Country Fair around 2005. She was a tiny little old lady, but still singing.

[allenshepard]

hey woh now the weavers wouldnt like the negative comments about people of different colors. just listen and enjoy

[iamnonny2]

the cleaned up version of this song was written by an 8 year old boy who never got credit for it,. He is now my husband and I am very proud of him for writing these new lyrics.

[dylan9127]

@iamnonny2 your husband is eight years old?

[straightarrow372]

I find interesting that slight lilt that the announcer speaks with. I hear actors speaking in that lilt in lots of old movies. You don't hear anyone talk that way any more.

[ismeme]

@straightarrow372 I think that's called MidAtlantic English. Basically it's a nice flat American accent that made the speaker sound as if they could be from "anywhere" and understandable by anyone, so it was often taught to those in the film, radio or tv industries. Sometimes you hear a hint of British which is why it's also called the Transatlantic Accent - think Orson Welles, Katherine Hepburn and many others from that era of Hollywood.

[straightarrow372]

@ismeme I know people used to be taught to speak that way, but there's something funny about it now. I guess now they're taught California English, but even so I think there has been a slight phonetic shift over time that makes this accent antiquated.

[ismeme]

@straightarrow372 There definitely has been a shift. Language evolves and this recording is upwards of 60 yrs old so the speech will sound funny to us now. Most interesting, the man speaking is Lee Hays who was raised in the deep South. You'd never guess it from his (lack of) accent.

[csandpl]

Just a bit of research on the Weavers will clue you in on how popular they were, how important to the development of what became 'folk music', and what they suffered, labeled communists and blacklisted, unable to perform. Their catalog on Decca was pulled off the shelves. Eventually the tide turned, after several years, and they were able to perform again. "Goodnight Irene" was a HUGE hit - starying at #1 for 13 weeks. .

[mojopo]

@csandpl They had some bad Karma. That's what happens for ripping off Solomon Linda's "Mbube".

[eotto2001]

@mojopo Wasn't "Mbube" a public domain folk song?

[mojopo]

@eotto2001 No, it was not.

[TamarZucker]

When I was a little girl my mom used to take me to a Hootenanny event that was held regularly at Cooper Union (located in NYC's East Village; an art, architecture, engineering college, that has given every student free tuition for 150 years. This is also where Abe Lincoln gave "Right Makes Might" speech assuring him the presidency) where Weavers /Pete Seeger always played. I saw them live many times and singing this song.

[wheimer2]

@csandpl In 1950, one year after Leadbelly's death, the American folk band The Weavers recorded a version of "Goodnight, Irene". The single first reached the Billboard Best Seller chart on June 30, 1950 and lasted 25 weeks on the chart, peaking at #1.

[corvus13]

@wheimer2 The version by Gordon Jenkins was #1 at that time.

[Trains4four]

My name is Irene and sorry but I dnt like the song goodnight Irene !!!!sorry but I guys hav amazing voices

[ViceroyCDR]

Super awesome. My late aunt used to play guitar and sing this one.

[GLITTERYUNICORNS1]

HaHa i can see the woman's tiny foot tapping!

[mollymitch1]

Try Time Life Music. If anyone has it they will. Google them for their details, Gary

[mollymitch1]

When we were kids .we were taught not to put our feet on the furniture and I was born 1947 so was at the era when this came out. On the subect Jerry Lee Lewis doing this song, another comment on here he has this song on a cd. If you can find it do yourself a favour and listen to it.

[sade1769]

Please folks, check out the version of this song by Jerry Lee Lewis and Van Morrison from about 1989. The video is here on youtube as well as the original audio of Leadbelly's version. These versions capture the true passion of this song. Take the time if you are a music fan!

[nsxt2000]

This is the classic version of Irene - and a great song.

Mike S.

[oo1ooo1oo]

This Weavers version of Goodnight Irene lacks all conviction, it's insipid.

Like Will Young doing 'Light My Fire'...

Where's the line about morphine? All tidied up for white Americans I guess.

Hearing Leadbelly do Goodnight Irene compares to nothing else on earth. Leadbelly just completely owned it, in any version there is out there.

[calihartley2010]

@oo1ooo1oo this is just as good. why do you say insipid? Maybe you are black and hate music sung by whites.

[syngar99]

@oo1ooo1oo oh give it a rest you thug. "owned it" indeed

[goingenorden]

Vad heter den kvinnliga medlemen i Weavers?Jag har inte sett hennes namn

någonstans

[ForCarolToEnjoy]

I SING THIS SONG WITH MY RESIDENTS....IT IS A CLASSIC

[Ditch1221]

My Dad sang this song when he had too many beers.We wondered if he ever had an old girlfriend named Irene.Of corse Mom hated the song.Funny how a song can bring back memories from over a half of a century.

[rhk1958]

Schöne Melodie, ergreifende Geschichte....

für Goldbeere hab ich eine deutsche Version geschrieben:

Anitas Schlaflied

Dein Tom Bombadil

[arnoldrm0123]

@rhk1958 Ja, es war ein sehr schönes Lied.



[theuc]

Evil Commiesss!!!!!!

No just kiddin. Have these video's ever been released on dvd?

[genegenegene100]

my ma hummed this non stop for years it seems

[MrMyDiggerdave]

my dad sung this to me ,i am now 62 , great song, happy memories

[difa2ol]

This was always the last song played at wedding dances when I was kid. Wonderful memories!

[mrblindfreddy9999]

gives me goosebumps ...they are soooo good

[jbc6254]

It still amazes me that a group of musicians this clean-cut and wholesome looking could ever be considered subversives, especially considering that Pete Seeger is an WWII veteran.

[jayraskin]

@jbc6254 In a system based on lies and deception like capitalism, anybody who tells the truth is subversive.

[UncleCharlieOakley]

I can never get through hearing this without crying. Ronnie Gilbert's voice is transcendent.

[allenshepard]

@UncleCharlieOakley She's Amazing. My favorite singer off all time

[crackfarm76]

i love the combination of all of their strong and full voices--adore the female singer--her voice just gets me right to the bone. the weavers had such a varied repertoire--gotta love artists willing to perform music of various genres!

"This Machine Surrounds Hate and Forces It to Surrender" Seeger's banjo

[mrblindfreddy9999]

I remember this as a little kid in the 50's

[joolspirog]

Bristol Rover FC football club, this is their theme tune, they all sing this as a show of faiyth to their team.

[docterphreak]

Hauntingly beautiful, and I'm not just saying that...

[westernpanorama]

Jó lett a videó.