Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair

"Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair" is a parlor song by Stephen Foster (1826-1864). It was published by Firth, Pond & Co. of New York in 1854. Foster wrote the song with his wife Jane McDowell in mind. "Jeanie" was a notorious beneficiary of the ASCAP boycott of 1941. During this period, most modern music could not be played by the major radio broadcasters due to a dispute over licensing fees. The broadcasters used public-domain songs during this period, and according to Time magazine, "So often had BMI's Jeannie [sic] With the Light Brown Hair been played that she was widely reported to have turned grey."^[1] The song's ubiquitous airplay in the 1940s led Spike Jones to create a parody, called "I Dream of Brownie with the Light Blue Jeans". In the song, it turns out that "Brownie" is a wire-haired terrier. The instrumental interlude contains a number of references to other Stephen Foster songs.

References