Hundreds of 'race' singers have flooded the market with what is generally regarded as the worst contribution to the cause of good music ever inflicted on the public. The lyrics of a great many of these 'blues' are worse than the lowest sort of doggerel - Talking Machine Journal, February 1924, plucked from Stephen Calt's Barrelhouse Words
Hi all - For some reason, I just noticed that we don't have a sticky topic explaining in general the way that lyric transcriptions and requests are dealt with on Weenie, so better late than never.
Pretty simple: When asking for lyrics or help with lyrics, the best approach is to post what you have transcribed yourself first. Then other people can jump in and offer suggestions, corrections, references to other lyrics etc.
We realize English is not the first language of everyone who visits the forum and there will be exceptions to the above.
Hi all, I thought this would be a good time to give an update on the status of the Country Blues Lyrics board. Because I've known for some time that the lyric threads are of little educational value if they don't include performance videos of the songs being transcribed, I have added performance videos to virtually every thread on the board, with the exception of ones where no version of the performance could be found on youtube or I didn't know how to search, as in the case of some of the prison field recordings, or ones that asked for help in writing original lyrics, or questioned the origin of a turn of phrase encountered in Country Blues lyrics. As you can imagine, this took some time to do.
For that reason, I would like to suggest new posting protocols for the Country Blues Lyrics board: * When posting to a pre-existing thread a new song for which a transcription has not previously been posted, or starting a new thread with a request for lyrics to a song or the lyrics for a song, complete or in progress, please attach a performance video of the rendition that is being transcribed. * If you know that there were multiple takes of the song you're posting the lyrics to, please name the take of the song that you're transcribing and make sure that the video you attach is of the same take. I should note that this procedure was observed scrupulously in the Blind Lemon Jefferson Lyrics thread, and it made all of the difference in the world in being able to match up the right videos with the right sets of lyrics. (Speaking of the Lemon Jefferson lyric thread, what an amazing collaborative achievement! Kudos to all who contributed. I added videos up to page 22 of the thread, of which there are 49 pages. There are some alternate takes listed after that, but I don't know if they made it into Weeniepedia. I will check on that.)
Please do observe these new guidelines. I'd prefer not to be put in the position of adding performance videos to new posts on this board in perpetuity. Thanks for your help in this, going forward. I'm really glad to have done it because I think the board will be so much more effective as a learning and listening place now.
All best, Johnm
« Last Edit: July 19, 2020, 02:00:22 PM by Johnm »
Thanks for the good words, Prof! I had been pecking away at it for the past year or two, but in the past couple of months realized that devoting more time to it and just blitzing it for a while could actually get the job done. I really enjoyed returning to some of these threads and re-visiting the collaboration and good humor that went into the transcription work. all best, Johnm
John, this is so valuable, so thanks for all your effort bringing this up to date. It has prompted me to go back and review many posts, and I look forward to doing a lot more of that, especially for musicians that I wasn't familiar with. What a terrific resource! Many thanks John and those who perpetuate the practice going forward. Jean
You're welcome, Chris, and hearty thanks to you for the countless number of times you've provided a solution for the missing or mis-heard words or phrases in the lyric transcriptions that other posters and I have been putting up in the threads here. The accuracy of so many transcriptions is a direct result of your hearing and willingness to share what you've heard. All best, Johnm
Hi all, If you're planning on posting a video with some song lyrics that you're transcribing or have questions about, a word to the wise: I found that a number of videos I posted to the Bo Carter thread from "novonine", concluded before the end of the song, added two-three minutes of silence to the end of the video, and in one instance, edited the video so that the verses were out of order from how they were actually recorded. I've checked all the videos in that thread by novonine to make sure they are they right length, at least, but I've not listened to all of them. I will replace them wherever possible, and I'd say the channel is to be avoided, if you want to be sure that the video you're linking to accurately captures the song you're transcribing. EDITED TO ADD: I was able to replace all of the novonine videos in the Bo Carter thread. I also would recommend avoiding videos by Ragtime Dorian Henry, almost all of which have been "re-mastered" and have phony-sounding reverb added. all best, Johnm
« Last Edit: August 01, 2020, 05:45:15 PM by Johnm »
I also would recommend avoiding videos by Ragtime Dorian Henry, almost all of which have been "re-mastered" and have phony-sounding reverb added. all best, Johnm
It's really sad, because RDH has a made a great collection of tunes available. I'll try to remember to avoid his stuff.
I know what you mean, Dave. I realized that if I'm going to name youtube posters to avoid, I should probably also give positive reviews to posters who do a great job. I've never had any problems with videos from the following youtube posters: * Traveler Into The Blue * randomandrare * Edith de Ronde * Stefan Wirz * BBYMRLCCOTN (for Old-Time) * sam collins
I'm sure there are some other good channels, but I've found the ones named above to be consistently good.
Can somebody transcribe and post lyrics of " Hard Times Killing Floor " as performed by Jack Owens in this video? :
I can understand first verse but later I do not understand :
1. Hard times everywhere , where I go Lord, hard times seem to drive to the door Lord, hard times seem to drive to the door Lord, hard times seem to drive me to the door
2. ? etc.
I know that original Skip James lyrics are ;
Hard Time Killin' Floor Blues Skip James Hard time here and everywhere you go Times is harder than ever been before And the people are driftin' from door to door Can't find no heaven, I don't care where they go Hear me tell you people, just before I go These hard times will kill you just dry long so Well, you hear me singin' my lonesome song These hard times can last us so very long If I ever get off this killin' floor I'll never get down this low no more No-no, no-no, I'll never get down this low no more And you say you had money, you better be sure 'Cause these hard times will drive you from door to door Sing this song and I ain't gonna sing no more Sing this song and I ain't gonna sing no more Hard times will drive you from door to door
Very hard to hear, Bud Spires is so loud. I've got partial stuff.
2. Ever get up offa this [stone or old?] [prison floor?] devil drop down that road (maybe he sings "devil drive down that road") devil drop down baby don't you know devil drop down don't you know devil drop down that road
3. Papa, lordy mama, sure is [???] Papa, lordy mama, [??? his soul ???] etc
4. I ain't going [????] baby, [???] your [door?] stay right here [??????] tracked [him? her?] down to the buryin' [whole unintelligible phrase]
5. Well I love my baby gal, tell the world I do, sometime I believe I get down [??? ????] hmm, hmmm, hmm, hmmm hmm, hmmm, hmm, hmmm
6. [????] I never see your baby girl no more never see your baby gal no more never see your baby gal no more never see her no more
7. Well hard times here everywhere I go, hard times [?????????] hard times baby [come?] 'round your door hard times 'round your door hard times baby, at your door
Thanks Dave! I have transcribed complete guitar playing of Jack Owens in tabs and score and will post it here when I find the right place on Forum. Best regards.
Hi, I submit guitar transcription as recorded by Jack Owens 1978 omitting unnecessary embelisments & notes . This should me enough for any guitarist to understang Jack Owens playing style . Original Jack Owens guitar tuning is E open E minor. ( E6 , B, E,G,B,E1) . Original tempo is approx : 88 bpm-92 bpm Thanks again to Dave transcribing majority of the vocal text. However some minor adjustments I made due to not understanding some words. These words are marked in red. Best regards