Topic: Henry Thomas Lyrics

[SCWV]

I've tried transcribing this Henry Thomas song, and what a mess it is in parts, so all help welcome. Thomas's version is itself a bit of a mess in that it's at least three songs in one, but it all adds up to a great 3 minutes IMO. The first section has similarities with Honey Won't You Allow Me One More Chance, but is a version of an Irving Jones song called Let Me Bring My Clothes Back Home (according to Paul Oliver in Songsters and Saints) which is itself a response to a popular Jones song called Takes Your Clothes and Go, a song about a woman who has thrown her husband out.

The original has the lines:

His wife said, "Honey, I'm tired of coon
I goin' to pass for white."

Which leads Oliver to transcribe Henry Thomas's less objectionable version as:

My wife said ?Honey, I?m done with beans
I?m gonna pass for green"

I'm not so sure of that myself. I actually hear something like "pass the train". I'm also not convinced of the start of the first line in the Oliver transcription, "Albert turn round, packed his trunk and go" but have no other proposals yet.

I don't know where the middle section comes from (the "Down to church..." section), and can't find anyone who's attempted a transcription yet, probably for good reason! It's tough slogging. I can't find my copy of Tony Russell's Blacks, Whites and Blues right now to see if maybe he has something to say about this song.

The next section of Thomas's Arkansas is based on the song The State of Arkansas, which exists in many versions and comes out of the white minstrel tradition according to Oliver. Thomas's version seems closely linked to Uncle Dave Macon's song Uncle Dave?s Travels Part 1: Misery in Arkansas. Elsewhere on Weenie, John Miller has noted the similarity to Kelly Harrell's My Name is John Johanna, which itself is a version of State of Arkansas as far as I can tell. Some will also notice hints of the song Diamond Joe.

Thomas ends his weird hodge-podge with a Travelin' Man verse for good measure.

I think it all adds up to a crazy masterpiece. Here's the entire transcription with many holes to fill in.

Arkansas ? Henry Thomas

Oh Roberta (turn) round, "pack your trunk and go"
Yes, he came back home last night
My wife said ?Honey, I?m done with beans
I?m gonna [pass the train]? *
Oh my little honey, don't you make me go
I'll get a job if you allow me sure
All crapshooters, I will shun
Good little baby, just let me work
When you buy chicken, all I want is the bone
When you buy beer, I?ll be satisfied with foam
I?ll work both night and day
I?ll be careful what I say
Honey (What?) please, let me bring my clothes back home

Down the track this mornin? she did stroll
Well a accident, her foot got caught in a hole
I?m goin? to tell you the truth
A natural that poor man
Night is young, dresses turn, the railroad track is run??
I?m going to buy ?em all
Cigarettes and chewing tobacco as I can??
And ? the road with a?? [heavy poor man]?

I am a rambler and gambling man, I?ve gambled in many towns
I?ve rambled this wide world over, I rambled this world around
I had my ups and downs through life and bitter times I saw
But I never knew what misery was till I [left old] Arkansas**

I started out one morning to meet the early train
He said, "You better work with me, I have some land to drain
I?ll give you fifty cents a day, your washing, board and all
And you should be a different man for the state of old Arkansas"

I worked six months for the rascal, [Joe Heron] was his name***
He fed me old corn dodger, it was hard as any rock
My tooth?s all got loosened, and my knee-bone ?gin to raw [and the depot can?t be found??]****
That was the kind of hash I got for the state of old Arkansas

Travellin? man, I?ve traveled all around this world
Travellin? man, I?ve traveled from land to land
Travellin? man, I?ve traveled all around this world
Well it tain?t no use ridin? on through ?cause I?ve traveled this land

* as noted above, Paul Oliver has this as "pass for green"
** Oliver has this as the much more sensible "Till I lit on old Arkansas", since Arkansas is the scene of the misery related. But I swear Thomas sings "left old Arkansas" - perhaps not paying attention much to the words?
*** Oliver has "Johanna", a link to the John Johanna songs. A reference I just found on the net refers to the Mack McCormick transcription in the vinyl Herwin Henry Thomas set as having this as "Joe Herrin".
**** Oliver's version is first, what I'm sort of hearing is second, in brackets. The Dave Macon version has this line as "my knees began to knock", i.e. he's weak from starvation.

[edited to add: I've added a file for those who don't have the song]
[edited transcription above to incorporate some changes from Mack McCormick transcription]

As a bonus, here is a version of Dave Macon's Misery in Arkansas I found on the net at http://departments.umw.edu/hipr/www/206/songtext/uncle_dave_macon.txt

Misery in Arkansas

[spoken] Now good people, I'm a-singing this song especially for
my old school mate-friend, Joe Morris of Nashville, Tennessee.
One of the leading clothing men.  He's a man who'll address you
at the door and he'll dress you up before you go out.

I'm just from Nobletown, I've travelled this wild world round,
I've have the ups and downs through life,
And better days I've saw,
I never knowd what misery was, till I come to old Arkansas.

I landed in the Spring, one sultry afternoon,
Up stepped a walking skeleton, and handed me his paw,
Invited me to his hotel, the best in Arkansas.

I followed my conductor unto his dwelling place,
And poverty did picture in his melacholy face,
His bread was corn dodger, his beef I couldn't chaw,
That was the kind of hash I got in the State of Arkansas.

I started out next morning to catch the early train,
He said, "You'd better work for me, I have some land to drain.
I'll give you fifty cents a day, your board and wash and all.
Indeed you'll be a different man, when you leave old Arkansas."

I worked six months for the son-of-a-gun, Jess Harrold was his
name,
He stood six feet two-and-a-half, as tall as any crane,
His hair hung down in ringlets all round a lantern jaw,
Indeed he was a photograph for the gents of Arkansas.

He fed me on corn dodgers as hard as any rock,
My teeth began to loosen, and my knees began to knock,
I got so think on sassafrass tea, I could hide behind a straw,
Indeed, I was a different man when I left old Arkansas.

If ever I see this land again I'll hand to you my paw,
Oh, it will be through a telescope from here to old Arkansas.

I'm just from Nobletown, I've travelled this wild world round,
I've have the ups and downs through life,
And better days I've saw,
I never knowd what misery was, till I come to old Arkansas.

I was searching the Weenie Campbell forums with regarding the translation of Henry Thomas lyrics when I stumbled upon this thread.  Kelly Harrell also had a version of Arkansas entitled My Name Is John Jo Hannah .  Harrell's version, recorded in 1927, was included on Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music which happens to be his best song ever.  Most of my transcription is correct:

JOHN JO HANNAH

My name is John Jo Hannah
I came from Buffalo Town
For nine long years I've rambled
This wide, wide world around
Through up and down in misery
And some good days I saw
But I never knew what misery was until I went to Arkansas

I went up to the Station
To the Operator to buy
I told him my situation
And where I wanted to ride
He said, "Hand me down five dollars Lad"
A ticket you shall draw
To land you safe by Railway in the State of Arkansas

I rode up to the Station
A chance to meet a friend
Allan Catcher was his name
Although they called him Cain
His hair hung down in rat-tails
Below his under-jaw
He said he, "'Run' the best hotel in the State of Arkansas"

I followed my companion
To his respected place
Saw pity & starvation
Was pictured on his face
His bread was old corn-dodgers
His beef I could not chaw
He charged me fifty cents a day in the State of Arkansas

(Whistling)

I got up that next morning
To catch that early train
He said, "Don't be in a hurry lad
I have some land to drain."
You'll get your fifty cents a day
& all that you can chaw
You'll find yourself a different lad when you leave ol' Arkansas

I worked six weeks for Son-of-a-Gun
Alan Catcher was his name
He stood seven feet, two inches
As tall as any crane
I got so thin on sassafrass tea
I could hide behind a straw
You'll bet I was a different lad when I left ol' Arkansas

Fare well you ol' corn rabbits
I'll show you dodger pills
Back away you ol' walking skeletons
You old fat back heels
If you ever see my face again
I will hand you down my paw
I will be looking through a telescope from home to Arkansas

[banjochris]

Uncle Dave Macon also recorded a version of this with a different melody as Uncle Dave's Travels - Part 1.
Chris

[unezrider]

hello friend,
there's a really cool song on old crow medicine show's first cd, 'o.c.m.s' (produced by david rawlings, of gillian welch fame) called 'trials & troubles'.
the lyrics are a little murky in a couple of spots, but here is how it starts;
"down the track this mornin' she did stroll
 with a (maxi pad, & her foot got caught in a hole?)
 i am gonna tell you the truth
(a dier's touch & coal hand)
 how you cry every time the southern makes it's run
 i am going to buy 'em all
 cigarettes & chewing tobacco when i can
 trials & troubles are heavy for a man"

now the henry thomas verse goes..
"down the track this morning she did stroll
 with an accident, & her foot got caught in a hole
 i am going to tell you the truth
(a natural, that coal man)
(night is gone & places time the red track is run)
 i am going to buy 'em all
 cigarettes & chewing tobacco that i can
 a (natural) & troubles are heavy for a man"

oh so very similar.... the lyrics in parenthesis are my phonetic approximations of what is being sung.
the 'trials & troubles' song on the old crow album is written by secor/watson (band members). they seem to be really good about giving credit where credit is due on traditional numbers, so this ones origins are a bit of a mystery to me still. perhaps there is an old song called that? or perhaps the henry thomas tune was their source, & they built upon that. i know this doesn't shed much more light on your search, but maybe it will point you in a right direction.
good luck,
chris
 
**on further listening to the old crow song, they are more than likely singing "accident" & not "maxi pad" - but that's how i've always heard it, & damnit! i still like it that way

[ThatGuyJay]

I"m still new here but I was wondering if there is a thread for the chords that go along with any of these songs. I become a bigger Henry Thomas fan with every listen. There is so much going on in such a simple format its easy to miss until you break it down. Is there anything on the site similar in concept to the level of analysis performed on the work of Charley Patton and Robert Johnson?

[waxwing]

Hey Jay,

Welcome to Weenie Campbell!

Don't know that you'll find much in depth about RJ here, been done too many other places. Patton fer sure! But notice the Tags at the bottom of the page? Click on Henry Thomas and you'll get a list of all the threads about HT And you should find a recent thread about his playing behind his quills as well as some discussion of other songs. You might prod UB and Johnm who have both hinted at doing more in depth study on their own.

You can also access a list of all Tags at the top of every Forum page and we also have a decent search function.

Enjoy!

Wax

[uncle bud]

Hi Jay - Welcome to WeenieCampbell. I don't know that I've personally done anything really in depth on Henry Thomas yet aside from figuring out some general tendencies for his songs in D position and songs in C position (which admittedly covers a lot of his recorded output) and playing a couple things. I agree, it's simple sounding stuff that's not so simple at times. He does tend to stick - most of the time - to the basic three chords though and his variations on them (like the open high E string whenever he plays an F chord in the key of C). And as discussed elsewhere on Weenie recently, he had a tendency to use the V in the bass on the I chord in those keys.

Was there a particular song you were thinking of? As Wax suggests, you may find the tags useful, especially those pointing to JohnM's analysis of some Henry Thomas material in some more general threads on blues forms and phrasing, but feel free to ask any questions. Always happy to discuss Henry Thomas.

UB

[Alexei McDonald]

The lyrics for the pertinent part of the OCMS "Trials and Troubles" are:

Down the track this morning she did stroll
In an accident her foot got caught in a hole
I?m going to tell you the truth
Die for a touch of that cold hand
I?d be crying every time the Southern makes it?s run

I?m going to buy them all
Cigarettes and chewing tobacco when I can
Trials and troubles are heavy for me

Ragtime Texas sings something close to this, but the final lines of the verse and chorus sound rather different and I can't make them out at all.

[blindwilliemctell]

The only place to find Henry Thomas lyrics on the internet. Amazing. Here is what I have so far on Fox and the Hounds, been trying to decipher this bad boy for years. A lot of the stuff I can't figure out is repeated in verses 2 and 3.



oh liza
im going away
im going away
yes it is 
't'aint no use
oh yes it's
what ill do
got no one
dont want you (to?)
goodbye
fare you well
liza
liza
liza

look down the road
look down the road
my man?
he gonna come 
other side     
look back behind 
salty dog         
- bound?
- -
be on the move?


oh mama
oh mama
i've been gone
16 years
ill be home
some these days
if i live
dont get killed?
look down the road
____ man
he gonna come
he gonna come
look back behind
salty dog
---- bound
catch---
be----



P.S. Here is what I hear in Jonah in the Wilderness (Henry Thomas):

hey jonah, hallelujah
hey jonah, preachin in that wilderness
preachin in that wilderness
preachin in that wilderness

go down yonder search the bottom of the ship
seek and you'll find the sturdy good-hearted christian
oh yonder to the power of God
seek and you'll find the sturdy good-hearted christian
surely come back, so say the lord
could not find the sturdy good-hearted christian
oh yonder to the hills i saw
seek and you'll find the sturdy good-hearted christian
Show the commandment, so did say the Lord
could not find the sturdy good-hearted christian

hey jonah, hallelujah
hey jonah, preachin in that wilderness, preachin in that wilderness

lord told jonah said to go and preach
jonah declared that he would not go
hid his-self in the bottom of the ship
search that ship from bottom to top
a hail brother jonah sent overboard
at last come a bird that dropped the seed
drop the seed that sprung the roots
from the root that sprung the vine
from the vine that sprung the shade
under that shade brother jonah layed
i walked right up into mary's room
to try the shoes that jonah tried on
when we get to heaven
i will sit and tell
i've escaped old death in heaven

hey jonah, hallelujah
hey jonah, preachin in that wilderness, preachin in that wilderness

ship was rocked from shore to shore
ship was rocked from the door to door
God declared that the ship went wrong
jonah gotta leave that livin land

hey jonah, hallelujah
hey jonah, preachin in that wilderness

god told noah go to build an ark
god told noah go to build an ark
declared to God that he would not build
hundred-40 days and 40 nights

hey jonah, hallelujah
hey jonah, preachin in that wilderness
hey jonah, hallelujah
hey jonah, preachin in that wilderness

[Slack]

Welcome BlindWillie  -- glad you found us, this is the only place you find alot of stuff on the internet.   

[Bunker Hill]

FWIW here's Mack McCormick's take on ther lyric from his booklet to the 1974 Herwin double LP.

Oh Liza, I'm going away 
I'm going away  Yes I is, t?aint no use 
Now ? what'l I do? 
Got no woman, don't want you, goodbye 
Fare you well, Liza 
Liza, Liza 
Look down the road, look down the road 
Possum man, big old gun 
On his side, look like mine
Salty dog, let's get some
Catch it soon, you oughta go 
Well mama, well mama 
I've been gone sixteen years 
I'll be home some of these days 
If I live, don't get killed 
Look down the road 
Possum man, big old gun 
Big old gun, look like mine 
Salty dog, let's get some 
Catch it soon, you oughta go.

[GeorgeB]

Check out the "Bob McKinney" version by the Haints. http://www.thehaints.com/music.html
They are an old-tyme string band out of BC Canada. Unfortunately track 14 is not on sample so ya would have to buy the CD, which is well worth it, but track 4, Milwaukee Blues, is on sample (the whole song) so you can get an idea of what they offer.  Pharis Romero has an unbelievably beautiful voice. I saw them live at a house concert and they are the nicest folks you could meet. And Erynn Marshall's fiddle playing is a treat all by itself. Also Jason Romero plays some of the most tasteful banjo I've heard in a long time. (This from a bluegrass jammer who thinks that hell is where everybody is issued a banjo )

[uncle bud]

Was listening to this footstomper today. Here's the lyrics. I'm having trouble with the last verse if you know what he's saying! Mack McCormick's notes have the line as "She went down to the bottom field, did not go to stay", but I don't really hear that myself.




Run Mollie Run - Henry Thomas


Run Mollie run (3)
Let us have some fun

Liza was a gambler, learned me how to steal
Learned me how to deal those cards, to hold that jack a trey

Run Mollie run (3)
Let us have some fun

Music in the kitchen, music in the hall
If you can't come Saturday night, you need not come at all

Run Mollie run (3)
Let us have some fun

Whoa Liza, poor girl
Whoa Liza Jane
Whoa Liza, poor girl
Died on the train

Miss Liza was a gambler, she learned me how to steal
She learned me how to deal those cards, to hold that jack a trey

Run Mollie run (3)
Let us have some fun

I went down to Huntsville, I did not go to stay
Just got there in the good old time to wear them ball and chain

Run Mollie run (3)
Let us have some fun

Cherry, cherry, cherry like a rose
How I love that pretty yellow gal
God almighty knows

Run Mollie run (3)
Let us have some fun

Poor Liza
Poor Liza Jane
Poor Liza, poor girl
Died on the train

I went down to Huntsville, did not go to stay
Just got there to do old time, to wear them ball and chain

Run Mollie run (3)
Let us have some fun

Miss Liza was a gambler, she learned me how to steal
She learned me how to deal those cards, a-hold that jack a trey

Run Mollie run (3)
Let us have some fun

She went down to [bottom of the street], did not go to stay
She just got there to do old time, to wear that rollin' ball

Run Mollie run (3)
Let us have some fun

[Bunker Hill]

Mack McCormick's transcription in the booklet to the Herwin LP gives it as:

She went down to the bottom field, did not go to stay
She just got there in the good old time to wear that rollin' ball
Run, Mollie, run
Run, Mollie, run (2)
Let us have some fun.

He also footnotes the line "She learned me how to deal those cards, a-hold that jack a trey" as:

A dealer who holds out a jack and three seriously reduces his opponent's chances of laying down a sequence in Coon Can or similar games.

[uncle bud]

Yup, the Herwin notes were the McCormick transcription I was referring to, but I am still not really hearing "bottom field". His notes don't describe what is meant by "bottom field" or refer to a verse from one of the song precedents either.

I may now be hearing "She went down in the bottom and she did not go to stay".

[Gumbo]

Yup, the Herwin notes were the McCormick transcription I was referring to, but I am still not really hearing "bottom field". His notes don't describe what is meant by "bottom field" or refer to a verse from one of the song precedents either.

I may now be hearing "She went down in the bottom and she did not go to stay".

I was just looking at the map and is it possible that if Henry went down to Huntsville then Molly might have gone to Pulaski, and, it being the birthplace of the Klu Klux Klan, she might not go to stay.

Of course that puts the song on the Tennessee/Alabama border rather than Texas, but Henry wasn't a stay at home kind of guy by all accounts, and he would only have to cross Louisiana and Mississippi to get from Huntsville, Tx to Huntsville AL. So really i'm just throwing this up to see if it lands - give it a listen and see if you can hear it.