Greetings:

The tune for Woody Guthrie's song is Lady of Carlisle. It's in the Digital Tradition. Guthrie's original recording is available on a CD from Smithsonian-Folkways called Long Ways to Travel, 1944-1949. The song has also been recorded by Magpie.

In addition, Ethan Miller, a young musician from rural Maine, sings the song to a somewhat more modern, uptempo acoustic rock tune that he wrote by reworking the original. Miller also added a new final stanza:

So now listen to me, daughter,
Listen to me, my dear son,
Don't you dare think I'm something special,
And you couldn't do just what I've done.
Don't you dare think I'm something special,
And you couldn't do just what I've done.
If we're gonna win this fight for freedom,
You got to do just what I done.

I have a live recording of Ethan Miller singing his version of Harriet Tubman's Ballad, taken from the sound board when he appeared at CB's 313 Gallery in New York a couple of years ago. I'm willing to lend it if you would like to learn the song, provided you agree not to make any illegal copies. If you are interested, please contact me by e-mail only, and not by PM. I read my e-mail at least once a day, but I might not log onto Mudcat for weeks at a time.

--- Steve