A young girl explains that her grandmother told her over and over again how deceitful men are. This influences the girl so much that she tells each man who courts her to leave. Finally she realizes that if all her grandmother told her was true, she surely would have died an old maid. Attitudes of the young and the old will be the topic of discussion upon reading this poem. The powerful refrain and dramatic focus combine to make this a great narrative song.
Many variations exist.
There is still controversy over whether it is of Negro origin or not. If the Negro did not originate it, he certainly sang many variations of it. The story line is of Frankie, the woman who was done wrong by her lover, Johnny. He went off with another woman. Finally Frankie finds him in a bar and shoots him.