"My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean"

Dotted half rest, the ascending interval la/re, and rests ending every line of each verse.

• Grade: Third
• Origin: United Kingdom, Scotland - Traditional, cir. 1881
• Key: G Major
• Time: 3/4
• Form: AB verse/refrain
• Rhythm: intermediate: | ta/ ti ta | ta ta ta | ta ta/ a | (ta/a) ta | ta/a/a | (ta/a/a) |
• Pitches: intermediate: mi so la ti do re mi
• Intervals: intermediate: so/mi, do\la, so\mi, la/re, so/do
• Musical Elements: notes: dotted half, half, dotted quarter, eighth; rests: dotted half, half; pickup beat, verse/refrain
• Key Words: world geography, Scotland, United Kingdom, sailing, sea shanty, camp song, Bonnie (refers to a man or a woman), lies, ocean, pillow, night, dreamt, winds, blow, sea, brought; abbreviation: o'er (over)

Each song in the Music You Can Read® catalog includes:

• Descriptive Page
• Song Formats:
  • music
  • beat divisions
  • rhythm
  • pitches (numbers/solfeggio)
  • pitch letter names
  • lyrics

"My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean"

1. My Bonnie lies over the ocean,

My Bonnie lies over the sea,
My Bonnie lies over the ocean,

Oh, bring back my Bonnie to me.

Refrain
Bring back, bring back,
Oh bring back my Bonnie to me, to me.

Bring back, bring back,
Oh, bring back my Bonnie to me.

2. Last night as I lay on my pillow,

Last night as I lay on my bed,
Last night as I lay on my pillow,
I dreamt that my Bonnie was dead.

Refrain

3. Oh blow the winds o'er the ocean,

And blow the winds o'er the sea,

Oh blow the winds o'er the ocean,

And bring back my Bonnie to me.

Refrain

4. The winds have blown over the ocean,

The winds have blown over the sea,

The winds have blown over the ocean, And brought back my Bonnie to me.

Refrain