Good-bye-ee!

"Good-bye-ee!" is a popular song which was written and composed by R. P. Weston and Bert Lee.[1] Performed by music hall stars Florrie Forde, Daisy Wood, and Charles Whittle, it was a hit in 1917.[1]

This article is about the First World War song. For the Blackadder episode, see Goodbyeee.

Weston and Lee got the idea for the song when they saw a group of factory girls calling out goodbye to soldiers marching to Victoria station.[1] They were saying the word in the exaggerated way which had been popularised as a catchphrase by comedian Harry Tate.[1] They then travelled to Brighton and wrote the song on a wet afternoon in their cabin under the pier.[2]

The song lent its name to "Goodbyeee", the final episode of the sitcom Blackadder Goes Forth.[3]

Chorus

Good-bye-ee! good-bye-ee![4]
Wipe the tear, baby dear, from your eye-ee.
Tho' it's hard to part I know,
I'll be tickled to death to go.
Don't cry-ee! don't sigh-ee!
There's a silver lining in the sky-ee.
Bonsoir old thing, cheerio! chin chin!
Nah-poo! Toodle-oo!
Good-bye-ee!

The salutations at the end of the chorus are from various languages.[5] Bonsoir is French for goodnight.[5] Chin chin is a Chinese toast.[5] "Nahpoo" and "toodle-oo" are English idioms from corruptions of the French il n'y en a plus (there is no more) and à tout à l'heure (see you later).[5]

References
  1. Richard Anthony Baker (2014), British Music Hall: An Illustrated History, Pen and Sword, p. 146, ISBN 9781473837188
  2. "Smart Serenaders", Theatrephile, D.F. Cheshire and S. McCarthy (5–8): 56, 1984
  3. Roberts, J.F. (9 October 2012). "The True History of the Black Adder by J F Roberts: extract". telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  4. Akers, Peter (February 2017). "Goodbye-ee Lyrics". Song Lyrics From Around The World. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  5. Tim Kendall (2013), Poetry of the First World War: An Anthology, Oxford University Press, p. 298, ISBN 9780199581443
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