Topic: Lil' Son Jackson Lyrics

[banjochris]

Going back to that St. James Infirmary line about "Let her go, God bless her" (for some reason my browser isn't letting me do the insert quote thing), Dock Boggs sings that verse in his version of the song, which is called "Old Joe's Barroom" and is on the Folkways CD set or Vol. 2 of the LPs. Also, if I remember rightly, Mance Lipscomb sings this verse at the end of "A Well Spent Life" -- he looks at the camera after singing "You'll never find another man like me" and laughs and says "You'll never find another Mance," which later became one of the Arhoolie album titles. Oddly, I don't think any performance of St James Infirmary by Mance has ever been issued on LP or CD -- the movie's the only place I've heard it from him.
Chris

[Bunker Hill]

Bessie Tucker (also a Texan) recorded "Mean Old Jack Stropper Blues" in 1928 or 1929.  I thought I had a copy of it, but I can't put my hands on it, so I can't make any meaningful comment. 

I have it on a 1976 Blues Classics compilation (When Women Sang The Blues, LP26) where it was mistitled Mean Old Stropper Blues - the error was picked up in review which started a debate.

[Bunker Hill]

Oddly, I don't think any performance of St James Infirmary by Mance has ever been issued on LP or CD -- the movie's the only place I've heard it from him.

He only recorded it once in Navasota, 11 August 1960 for Chris Strachwitz and is one of seven unreleased songs from the session, most of which originally appeared on the first Mance LP (Texas Sharecropper & Songster, Arhoolie F 1001).

[Bunker Hill]

Bessie Tucker (also a Texan) recorded "Mean Old Jack Stropper Blues" in 1928 or 1929. 

I'm sure that I speak for all of us when I say that I hope never to see your urge to unearth anything curbed.

FWIW the terminology "Jack Stropper" apparently dates back to the days of steamboat card sharps who would cunningly (and carefully trim) the "jack" cards and was apparently discussed in Mary Wheeler's 1944 book "Steamboatin' Days", which  I don't possess.

[Johnm]

Reading your post on jack stroppers, I had the oddest feeling, Bunker Hill, of "I know this has been posted on before".  Fortunately, I was able to find it.  It is in the Lil' Son Jackson thread, page 1, over on page 3 of the Main Forum.  Sorry, I don't know how to do the link.
All best,
Johnm

[Bunker Hill]

Reading your post on jack stroppers, I had the oddest feeling, Bunker Hill, of "I know this has been posted on before". Fortunately, I was able to find it.  It is in the Lil' Son Jackson thread, page 1, over on page 3 of the Main Forum.  Sorry, I don't know how to do the link.

Lord, talk about my reinventing the wheel. I went back 30 years only to excavate what had been recently mined by Blues & Rhythm and brought up to date. Sheesh.

[bob long]

I'm looking for help, not with hearing the words but in understanding them.

The second verse goes something like this

81 is in the yard,82's out on the road
81 makes your living, 82 put you out of doors

I would really appreciate an explanation, or even a hunch about what this means. I note Eric Clapton has recently covered this song. I wonder if he knows?

[Prof Scratchy]

I don't know this song - but could the numbers refer to playing policy? Viz:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Eleven_Forty_Four
Also Blake's Playing Policy Blues, where all the numbers have an underlying code? Just a big hunch though...

[dj]

Policy is a good guess, but every description I can find in a quick search states that policy numbers only went up to 78.

I'd guess that 81 and 82 were either engines or, more likely, trains that ran on the Santa Fe line.  81 is in the train yard for cleaning, maintenance, or repairs, and 82 is out running its route. 

http://www.earlyblues.com/Katy.htm traces the verse back to Victoria Spivey and suggests that the line refers to a "passenger train woman".   

[Prof Scratchy]

Yes - trains make more sense in the context, don't they?

[uncle bud]

I agree that it's referring to train numbers. Clifford Gibson sings a similarly constructed verse in Drayman Blues:

Fifty-three's done run, fifty-four, what do I care?
Fifty-three's done run, long as fifty-four is here
Fifty-five's done gone, fifty-six ain't goin' to leave me here

edited to add: ah yes, that Spivey verse cinches it, doesn't it.

[bob long]

Thanks to you all! Yes the Spivey lyrics not only explain the origin but they also make more sense because the train which isn't running is TAKING not Making her living.

I'm currently learning this song. If and when I get to perform it, I'm going to change Jackson's lyric and substitute

"81 takes your living, 82 put you out of doors"

Your help is much appreciated.

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Since there was already a Lil' Son Jackson Lyrics thread, I merged Bob's "Travelin' Alone" thread into it, but left the topic titles from his thread as they were for ease of following that discussion.
All best,
Johnm

[Dom94]

Hi all,
You don't have much time but I need your help for the song:Ticket Agent Blues (Arhoolie)

it begins like that:

Hey now, mister ticket agent come brought man right your train
Hey now  mister ticket agent, brought man right your train
You know I ride the road, just to see my leave girl again

You say buy your ticket cause this train is not the mine
you say buy your ticket ,this train is not the mine
I see my girl again if I ..?
...?

[mr mando]

Bonjour,

le dernier couplet, je ne le comprend que par passages, mais le premier et le second couplets sont:

Hey now, mister ticket agent, can a broke man ride your train
Hey now mister ticket agent, broke man ride your train
You know I ride the road, just to see my little girl again

He said buy your ticket cause the train ain?t none o? mine
He said buy your ticket, this train ain?t none of mine
I see my girl again if I have to ride the blinds

in Houston??
in Houston??
And when I get to Dallas you know .........