Back Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair Breton Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair German Juanita, la del cabello rubio Spanish 金髪のジェニー Japanese 금발의 제니 Korean Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair (песня) Russian
| "Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair" | |
|---|---|
 Original sheet music cover | |
| Song | |
| Published | 1854 |
| Genre | Parlor song |
| Songwriter(s) | Stephen Foster |
"Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair" is a parlor song by Stephen Foster (1826–1864), published by Firth, Pond & Co. of New York in 1854. Foster wrote the song with his estranged wife Jane McDowell in mind. The lyrics allude to a permanent separation.[1]
"Jeanie" was a notorious beneficiary of the ASCAP boycott of 1941, a dispute caused by ASCAP increasing its licensing fees. During this period, radio broadcasters played only public-domain music or songs licensed by ASCAP rival BMI. According to a 1941 article in 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."[2]
- ^ O'Connell, Joanne. "Understanding Stephen Collins Foster, His World and Music", ProQuest. March 23, 2007.
- ^ "No Letup". Time Magazine. January 27, 1941. Archived from the original on May 30, 2008.[dead link]