Rain Rain Go Away

"Rain Rain Go Away" is a popular English language nursery rhyme. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 19096.

Lyrics

There are many versions and variations of this rhyming couplet. The most common modern version of is:

Rain rain go away,

Come again another day.^[1]

Origins

Similar rhymes can be found in many societies, including ancient Greece. The modern English language rhyme can be dated to at least to the seventeenth century when James Howell in his collection of proverbs noted:

Raine raine goe to Spain: faire weather come againe.^[1]

A version very similar to the modern version was noted by John Aubrey in 1687 as used by "little children" to "charme away the Raine...":

Rain raine goe away,

Come again a Saturday.^[1]

A wide variety of alternative have been recorded including: "Midsummer day", "washing day", "Christmas Day" and "Martha's wedding day".^[1]

In the mid-nineteenth century James Orchard Halliwell collected and published the version:

Rain, rain, go away

Come again another day

Little Arthur wants to play.^[2]

In a book from the late 19th century, the lyrics are as follows:

Rain, Rain,

Go away;

Come again,

April day;

Little Johnny wants to play.^[3]

In popular culture

• A song, based on the rhyme, was co-written by Gloria Shayne Baker and Noël Regney.^[4] "Rain Rain Go Away" was initially recorded by Bobby Vinton.
• The folk group Peter, Paul & Mary recorded a version of "It's Raining" on their first LP in 1962.
• Asian American rapper Jin sampled Rain Rain Go Away, Come again some other day" in the song called "Rain, Rain Go Away" he made dedicated to the victims of Virginia Tech Shooting.^[5]
• It is used in the theme tune for the Australian children's television programme Round the Twist.

Notes