Billy Boy is a folk song and nursery rhyme that’s credited to the US, but it has its roots in the English folk song “My Boy Billy” which dates back to 1912. When it was first shared, it was often known as Charming William or Willie Lad but these names died out, leaving Billy Boy as the most popular choice.
Some of the lines from this rhyme have been taken as inspiration for other films and songs, and it’s also been re-recorded many times. Pete Seeger created a parody in 1941 to protest against the war while the 1948 Disney movie “So Dear To My Heart” plays extracts from the song throughout the whole film.
The true meaning of the nursery rhyme is not as clear as you’d hope, but some believe that it’s connected to the more gruesome “Lord Randall” where the suitor ends up poisoned and meets a rather murky end.
Billy Boy Lyrics
Oh, where have you been,
Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
Oh, where have you been,
Charming Billy?
I have been to seek a wife,
She’s the joy of my life,
She’s a young thing
And cannot leave her mother.
Did she ask you to come in,
Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
Did she ask you to come in,
Charming Billy?
Yes, she asked me to come in,
There’s a dimple in her chin.
She’s a young thing
And cannot leave her mother.
Can she make a cherry pie,
Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
Can she make a cherry pie,
Charming Billy?
She can make a cherry pie,
Quick as a cat can wink an eye,
She’s a young thing
And cannot leave her mother.
How old is she,
Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
How old is she,
Charming Billy?
Three times six and four times seven,
Twenty-eight and eleven,
She’s a young thing
And cannot leave her mother.
Billy Boy Music Sheet
