Bye, baby Bunting

"Bye, baby Bunting" Lyrics

The most common modern version is:

Bye, baby Bunting,
Daddy’s gone a-hunting,
Gone to get a rabbit skin
To wrap the baby Bunting in.

"Bye, baby Bunting" Chords

C    G7   C
Bye, baby Bunting,
        G7     C
Daddy’s gone a-hunting to
         G7     D
get poor baby a rabbit skin to
         A7   D
wrap the baby Bunting in.

"Bye, baby Bunting" Origins

The expression bunting is a term of endearment that may also imply 'plump'. The earliest published version was published in Gammer Gurton's Garland or The Nursery Parnassus in England in 1784. A version in Songs for the Nursery 1805 had the longer lyrics:

Bye, baby Bunting,
Father's gone a-hunting,
Mother's gone a-milking,
Sister's gone a-silking,
Brother's gone to buy a skin
To wrap the baby Bunting in.