BILLY'S DREAM

I had a fight with Satan last night,
As I lay me half awake.
Ole Satan came to my bedside,
And he began to shake.
Oh, he shook me long, and he shook me strong,
And he grabbed me clear out of bed;
He grabbed me by the collar,
And he looked me in the face,
And what do you think he said?

"There's gold in the mountains,
And there's silver in the mine,
And it all belongs to you, Uncle Billy
If you will only be mine."
(missing lines)
And I grabbed him by the collar,
And I looked him in the face,
And what do you think I said?

"Get you gone, oh Satan;
You came to me to kill.
You might fool white folks with your trash,
But you can't fool poor black Bill."

Oh, I was feelin' quite chilly,
And I thought I might catch cold;
So I crept into my bed,
And through the night I saw the good Lord his head.
Ole Satan had vanished through the floor,
(missing lines)
And the Lord to me he said:

"Well done, my faithful servant;
You can sit at my right hand,
Play on the golden harp all day,
Although you are a poor colored man."

Collected by Charles Neely, Tales and Songs of Southern Illinois (Carbondale and Edwardsville: Southern Illinois University Press, 1989 reprint / 1938), p. 215-216.

Notes: "According to Paskman and Spaeth, Gentlemen, Be Seated! pp. 74-86, this song was the star number of Billy Arnold's repertoire."

"Communicated by Mr. Dave H. Adamson, Jr., Belleville, who got it from his mother, Mrs. D. H. Adamson, Sr., Bellville."

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Note: The Neely book has no tune for this song.
-Joe Offer-