Lyr Req: Old Joe Clark (from Tommy Jarrell)

Subject: Lyr Req: Tommy Jarrell - Old Joe Clark
From: GUEST,RoberM
Date: 06 Mar 11 - 12:33 PM

The Recording is called - Back Home in the Blue Ridge (LP)
or Down to the Cider Mill (CD) both on County Records.
I add also a the lyrics of Tommy's father Ben Jarrell
who recorded with Da Costa Woltz' Southern Broadcasters,
because a correct line is missing that I cannot hear
(the rest of those lyrics is cited from Bluegrass Messengers' Website:

-------------------------------

Old Joe Clark - Ben Jarrell of Da Costa Woltz'

I went to see my honey babe,
She's standing in the door;
Shoes and stockin's in her hand,
And her feet all over the floor.

Low part:

Chorus: Fare you well, old Joe Clark, goodbye, Betsy Brown;
Fare you well, old Joe Clark, I'm bound to leave this town.

Never marry an old maid, boys,
I'll tell you the reason why;
Her neck's so long and stringy, boys,
I'm afraid she'll never die.

(Chorus)

(Chorus again)

Old Joe Clark's a (brave old rogue ?) - (part not correct in BM)
I'll tell you the reason why;
Dashed through my field the other day,
And troad down all my rye.

(Chorus)

--------------------

Tommy Jarrell's Old Joe Clark
(Back Home in the Blue Ridge LP or Down to the Cider Mill CD)

Sung to 2nd Low part:

I don't like Old Joe Clark, I'll tell you the reason why:
He ran through my field the other day, and troad down all my rye.

Fare you well, Old Joe Clark, goodbye Betty Brown,
Fare you well, Old Joe Clark, I'm gonna leave this town

Sung to 1st High part)

He used to live (?)
(?) In that big hotel, a-courtin' Betty Brown.

Sung to low part:

Old Joe Clark is a fine old man, so is(?) Betty Brown,
Old Joe Clark is a fine old man, (?)house on down

-------------------------

Tommy Jarrell seems to sing Betty instead of the more common Betsy (Brown)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Tommy Jarrell - Old Joe Clark
From: GUEST
Date: 06 Mar 11 - 12:35 PM

I forgot to mention that the words (brave old rogue) is my guess - that's what it sounds like, to my ears.

Thanks for any help in this hearing dilemma.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Tommy Jarrell - Old Joe Clark
From: Lighter
Date: 06 Mar 11 - 01:19 PM

I dunno if "brave old rogue" is right or not, but it sure sounds real.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Tommy Jarrell - Old Joe Clark
From: GUEST,RobM
Date: 06 Mar 11 - 04:26 PM

Thanks for the reply,
It sounds almost like Ben Jarrell says "rave" there, but "brave" is my guess until someone hears a more likely word.

The greatest problem I had was with Tommy Jarrell's lyrics, for some reason Brad Leftwich's book on the Round-Peak Banjo Style didn't contain any lyrics to Old Joe Clark, otherwise the book is a great source for the Jarrell and Round Peak Area lyrics.

Even if Tommy Jarrell didn't have a beautiful singing voice in modern sense, he had a very powerful and high-pitched voice that was really great for this music. To be able to sing in those keys used is very hard for most people, I think.

So where I have put a question sign and brackets I don't have any clue to what he's saying.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Tommy Jarrell - Old Joe Clark
From: Lighter
Date: 06 Mar 11 - 05:04 PM

Is "rare old rogue" a possibility? Not that it's any better or sounds any more authentic.

"so is Betty Brown" is weird, but possibly not too weird. Could it be "cou'ting Betty Brown"?

Maybe it's "biggest house in town."

"Living in the big hotel" is probably right. At least I've heard it before.

When in doubt, sing what makes sense, not what you think you hear.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Tommy Jarrell - Old Joe Clark
From: GUEST,R
Date: 07 Mar 11 - 10:46 AM

For a short time I provide this link so you can hear it, for some reason I cannot make out the words where the question marks are placed:

http://www.mediafire.com/?do585kp1quewv41

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Tommy Jarrell - Old Joe Clark
From: GUEST,RM
Date: 08 Mar 11 - 06:45 AM

Here is the audio to the Ben Jarrell version:

http://www.mediafire.com/?75f79254j74mp1p

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Tommy Jarrell - Old Joe Clark
From: GUEST,RoberM
Date: 12 Mar 11 - 02:26 PM

Lighter and everyone, do you have any ideas to what he's singing now that you have been able to hear both versions? One can wonder what sources Tommy did have for his version, but the words aren't that clear to me, possibly some computer program can decipher the words used?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Tommy Jarrell - Old Joe Clark
From: GUEST,RoberM
Date: 14 Mar 11 - 12:20 PM

This is just made up (from slowing the audio down) feel free to correct.

-He used to live (all-man side in stal indian town, put) in that big hotel a-courtin Betty Brown

Old Joe Clark is a fine old man, (suitor?) to Betty Brown.
Old Joe Clark's a fine old man to (dock?) the house on down.

It's really incredible hard to hear, it just seems all made up words from Tommy Jarrell.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Joe Clark (from Tommy Jarrell)
From: GUEST,Dennis Jarrell
Date: 29 Apr 12 - 12:49 PM

Tommy Jarrell was my grandfather. I lived with him for several years in Mt. Airy. He liked his whisky when he "made" music so I've heard him sing this song several different ways, most not recorded. I have all of his LPs. I have several relatives living in Mt. Airy, including my aunt Dena Jarrell Moncus. I'll see what I can find out on my end.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Joe Clark (from Tommy Jarrell)
From: GUEST,Woody Wood
Date: 29 Apr 12 - 02:22 PM

Can't remember where I picked up:

I don't like Old Joe Clark, tell you the reason why
He blows his nose in old corn bread, he calls it chicken pie

If I had a big frame house, eighteen storeys high
Every room in that house would be packed with chicken pie

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Joe Clark (from Tommy Jarrell)
From: GUEST,Qd
Date: 04 Aug 12 - 12:09 AM

I think one of the verses goes
"used to live on the mountainside, now I live town
Boarding up in the big hotel, courting Betty brown"

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Joe Clark (from Tommy Jarrell)
From: Mik2
Date: 06 Feb 14 - 08:23 AM

I recently found the set of verses recorded:

You're correct, Qd, :

I used to live on the mountainside, but now I live in town
A-boarding at a big hotel and courting Betty Brown.

I don't like Old Joe Clark, I tell you the reason why,
He run through the field the other day and he tore down all my rye.

Old Joe Clark's a fine old man a-courtin Betty Brown
Old Joe Clark's a fine old man, from the top of the house on down.

I went over to Old Joe's house, he's standing in the door,
His shoes and stockings in his hand, his feet all over the floor.

(a parody on the verse sung by his father Ben, maybe ?)

Thanks for the replies, everyone.

@Dennis Jarrell - I think probably several of these choices of words is as you said, created in the moment from the many floating verses he knew. Thanks for replying to this thread.

I like especially his alternate 'Wreck of Old 97'.

A bit late reply here, I finally remembered this post.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Joe Clark (from Tommy Jarrell)
From: Leadfingers
Date: 07 Feb 14 - 07:00 AM

I went down to Old Joe's House , Old Joe wasn't home
I ate hos meat and dramk his drink , And threw his dog a cat !

Wild Willy Barratt's verse !

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Joe Clark (from Tommy Jarrell)
From: Mik2
Date: 08 Feb 14 - 09:37 AM

Great! I hadn't seen that variant before.

Kind of similar to the Uncle Dave Macon verse used in "I'm the Child to Fight" :

I went down to Old Joe's house, Old Joey wasn't at home,
Ate all Joe's meat and bread, and gave his dog a bone.