Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye Facts for Kids

Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye is a famous traditional song, also known as "Johnny We Hardly Knew Ye" or "Johnny I Hardly Knew Ya". It uses the same tune as another well-known song, "When Johnny Comes Marching Home".

The song was first printed in London in 1867. Joseph B. Geoghegan, a talented English songwriter, wrote it. It was very popular in Britain, Ireland, and the United States until the early 1900s. In 1961, The Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem recorded it, which made it popular again.

At first, people thought the song was funny. But today, it's seen as a strong anti-war song. The song tells the story of an Irish woman. She meets her old boyfriend on the road to Athy in County Kildare, Ireland. He left her and their child to become a soldier. He was badly hurt while fighting in a place called "Sulloon" or Ceylon (which is now Sri Lanka). He lost his legs, arms, and eyes. The woman says she is still happy to see him and will stay with him. Many modern versions of the song end with a message against war.

People often thought this song was written in Ireland a long time ago, maybe around the late 1700s or early 1800s. They believed it was a song against joining the army, written during the Kandyan Wars in Sri Lanka. Some also thought that "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" was a changed version of "Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye" to make it sound more supportive of war. However, a recent study by Jonathan Lighter showed that these ideas are not correct. He found that "Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye" originally had a different melody. Also, "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" was actually published in 1863, four years before "Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye."

Song Changes and Adaptations
Books and Titles
Selected Recordings
See also

Song Changes and Adaptations

Over time, people have changed some parts of the song. Here are a few examples:

Chorus and Lines

The repeating part "With your drums and guns and drums and guns" is sometimes sung as "With your drums and guns and guns and drums."
Another version is "We had guns and drums and drums and guns," like in the Dropkick Murphys version.
The line "Why did ye run from me and the child?" sometimes replaces "Why did ye skedaddle from me and the child?"
"Where are the legs with which you run?" sometimes replaces "Where are the legs that used to run?" This often comes with a change from "When you went to carry a gun" to "When first you went to carry a gun," as heard in The Clancy Brothers' version.

Anti-War Endings

In some versions, the song ends with a strong anti-war message:

They're rolling out the guns again, hurroo, hurroo
They're rolling out the guns again, hurroo, hurroo
They're rolling out the guns again
But they won't take back our sons again
No they'll will never take back our sons again
Johnny, I'm swearing to ye.

Other Song Adaptations

The band Steeleye Span made their own version called "Fighting For Strangers" on their album Rocket Cottage. It's quite different but includes the line "Johnny, what've they done to you."
The song "English Civil War" by The Clash uses parts of the melody and words from the original.
The "Anthem of the Commandos" for the Colombian Army uses the same melody.
The Dutch song "Vannacht" by Pater Moeskroen also uses this tune.
P J Harvey's song "Let England Shake" changes and uses the line, "Indeed your dancing days are done."
In the 2001 film The Luck of the Irish, the bad guys sing this song during a celebration.
The band Fiddler's Green used some of the lyrics in their 1995 song "Hip Hurray."
Marc Gunn and Jamie Haeuser recorded it on their album How America Saved Irish Music (2014).

Books and Titles

The title "Johnny We Hardly Knew Ye" has also been used for books:

Johnny We Hardly Knew Ye: A book by Kenneth O'Donnell and David Powers about the short time John F. Kennedy was president, published in 1972.
Daddy, we hardly knew you: A book by Germaine Greer, published in London in 1989.
Johnny, I Hardly Knew You: A book by Edna O'Brien, published in London in 1977.

Selected Recordings

Many artists have recorded "Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye" over the years. Here are some of them:

1959 – Tommy Makem – The Newport Folk Festival, Vol. 1
1960 – Bud & Travis – ...In Concert
1961 – The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem
1961 – The Chad Mitchell Trio (mixed with "When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again")
1961 – Maureen O'Hara
1963 – Anita Carter
1965 – The Leprechauns – "14 Irish Folk Songs"
1969 – Frida Boccara – Un jour, un enfant (in French, called "Johnny jambe de bois")
1972 – Unknown – To Lord Byron (This version was an anthem for a Greek student group during the Dekemvriana conflict.)
1982 – Susan Dunn – Recital with Pianoforte
1986 – Benjamin Luxon and Bill Crofut – "Folksongs at Tanglewood"
1986 – Easterhouse – Contenders
1989 – Hamish Imlach – Portrait LP
1991 – Guns N' Roses – In their song "Civil War," Axl Rose whistles part of the melody.
1993 – Joan Baez – Rare, Live & Classic (She often sang this song in the 1970s to speak out against the Vietnam War.)
1994 – Vlad Tepes – "Wladimir's March" (an instrumental intro)
1994 – The Cranberries – In their song "Zombie," they sing "With their tanks and their bombs, and their bombs, and their guns," which refers to the chorus of this song.
2001 – The Tossers – Communication & Conviction: Last Seven Years (They recorded another live version in 2008.)
2002 – Isla St Clair – Amazing Grace – anthems to inspire
2002 – Faye Ringel – Hot Chestnuts
2003 – The Irish Rovers – Live In Concert
2006 – The tune can be heard in an episode of "The Simpsons" (Season 18, Episode 5).
2007 – Dropkick Murphys – The Meanest of Times (This version was also available for the video game Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock.)
2008 – Karan Casey – Ships in the Forest
2008 – Tracy Smith – Taverns And Tall Ships
2009 – Janis Ian – Essential Janis Ian
2009 – Susan McKeown and Lorin Sklamberg – Saints & Tzadiks – "Prayer for the Dead"
2011 – duYun – Shark In You
2012 – Foreign Feathers – It Could Be Worse
2012 – Vintage Wine – Drums and Guns
2013 – Patty Duke – Patty Duke Sings Folk Songs- Time To Move On
2013 – Santiano – Mit Den Gezeiten
2013 – Marisa Anderson – Traditional and Public Domain Songs
2016 – The McMiners – Country Cross
2017 – Ferocious Dog – The Red Album
2017 – Teufelstanz – Camera Obscura

Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye facts for kids

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