Lyr Req: Take 'em Away (Mance Lipscomb)

Subject: Lyr Req: Take 'em Away (Mance Lipscomb)
From: GUEST,Gutbucketeer
Date: 17 Feb 03 - 05:59 PM

Yesterday on the Prarie Home Companion the Old Crow Medicine Show sang a song that is supposed to be by Mance Lipscomb. The PHC lists the song as "Take 'Em Away" and the chorus goes something like

Take 'Em Away
Take 'Em Away
Lord take away these chains from me...

I can't find any other refrence about the song on the Web. I've checked various websites and recordings of both Mance Lipscomb and the Old Crow Medicine Show. Did anyone else hear the show? Does anyone know of a recording of the song? it's lyrics and/or chords?
Is this its correct name?

Thanks
JAB

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Take 'em Away (Mance Lipscomb)
From: Richie
Date: 17 Feb 03 - 06:06 PM

I have one of the Old Crowe's CDs. My bluegrass group played a concert with them and they blew me away. They are great!

I'll look around for you. It's not on my CD.

-Richie

Subject: Lyr Add: STEAL AWAY AND PRAY (Mance Lipscomb)
From: Richie
Date: 17 Feb 03 - 06:15 PM

The song might be:

I'm Looking for My Jesus-

Mance Lipscomb: Mance Lipscomb, Vol. 5, Arhoolie 1049, LP (1970), cut# 11.

Can't find the lyrics yet.

it could be related to:

STEAL AWAY AND PRAY

O, steal away and pray
I'm looking for my Jesus
Steal away and pray
I'm looking for my Jesus
Steal away and pray
I'm looking for my Jesus
Can't stay away
Sinners, why don't you pray?
Sinners, why don't you pray?
Sinners, why don't you pray?
I can't stay away

Seekers, why don't you pray?
Seekers, why don't you pray?
Seekers, why don't you pray?
I can't stay away

Mourners, why don't you pray?
Mourners, why don't you pray?
Mourners, why don't you pray?
I can't stay away

Brothers, why don't you pray?
Brothers, why don't you pray?
Brothers, why don't you pray?
I can't stay away

-Richie

Subject: Lyr Add: TAKE 'EM AWAY (Critter Fuqua)
From: GutBucketeer
Date: 17 Feb 03 - 07:55 PM

Thanks Richie:

I just listened to the online archives of the 2/15/03 show, and these are the lyrics I heard:

TAKE 'EM AWAY
Mance Lipscomb as sung by the Old Crow Medicine Show

Chorus:

Take 'em away. Take 'em away, Lord.
Take away these chains from me.
My heart is broken 'cause my spirit's not free.
Lord, take away these chains from me.

Some birds' feathers are too bright to be caged.
I know I'm not that colorful, but a bird just the same.
So open up your gate now, and let me put down my load,
So I can feel at ease and go back to my home.

Chorus:

Sun beams down, my legs can't seem to stand.
There's a boss man in the turn row with a rifle in his hand.
I got nine children and nothin' in the pan.
My wife, she died hungry while I was plowin' land.

Chorus:

Can't see when I go to work; can't wee when I get off.
How do you expect a man not to get lost?
Every year I just get deeper in dept.
If there is a happy day, Lord, I haven't seen one yet.

Chorus:

The land that I love is the land that I'm working,
But its hard to love it all the time when your back is a-hurtin'.
I'm getting too old now to push this here plow,
So please let me lay down and look at the clouds.

Chorus:

The land that I know is where two rivers collide:
The Brazos, and the Navasote, and the big blue sky,
Flood rains, freight trains, and watermelon vines.
Of any place on God's green earth, this is where I choose to die.

Chorus:

JAB

It's a powerful song.

A few obvious typos corrected, and subject line corrected. --JoeClone, 3-Mar-03.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Take 'em Away (Mance Lipscomb)
From: masato sakurai
Date: 17 Feb 03 - 10:44 PM

Link: ARCHIVED PERFORMANCE OF A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION: February 15, 2003.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Take 'em Away (Mance Lipscomb)
From: GutBucketeer
Date: 18 Feb 03 - 10:40 PM

refresh:

Sorry about the typos in the above lyrics. I'm still looking for more info about this song.

JAB

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Take 'em Away (Mance Lipscomb)
From: GUEST
Date: 19 Feb 03 - 01:38 PM

PHC just posted that the lyrics were written by Critter Fuqua, though the song was in the style of Mance Lipscomb.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Take 'em Away (Mance Lipscomb)
From: 12-stringer
Date: 19 Feb 03 - 03:36 PM

Intro to the song speaks of "invoking the ghost of Mance Lipscomb" -- no doubt in the reference to the Brazos and Navasota. That's as close as I can hear anything in the "style" of ML in it. Doesn't sound like his picking, doesn't sound like his singing, doesn't sound like his talking. But it does mention his home town.

The moon shines bright tonight along the Cimarron;
From Okemah comes the smell of new-mown hay.
I just invoked the ghost of Woody Guthrie.
(Can someone show me again how to fret an "A"?)
-- with apologies to Walter Brennan and the other guys in the basement.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Take 'em Away (Mance Lipscomb)
From: GutBucketeer
Date: 19 Feb 03 - 03:41 PM

That explains why after 3 days of searching I haven't been able to find out anything about the song. It's a good song though.

JAB

Subject: Lyr/Chords Add: TAKE 'EM AWAY (Old Crow Medicine..
From: GutBucketeer
Date: 15 Oct 10 - 02:03 AM

Refresh:

Here are the chords from Ultimate Guitar Chords:

Take 'em Away by Old Crow Medicine Show

Pretty straight forward, this one- 3 chords, with some subtle picking variations
once you nail it. Be sure to use a Texan accent!

CHORUS:

D                   G
Take 'em away, take 'em away Lord!
D                            A
Take away these chains from me!
D                                     G
My heart is broken 'cos my spirit's not free,
D                                    A
Lord, take away these chains from me!

Verse 1:

D                                              G
Some birds' feathers are too bright to be caged
D                                                      A
I know I'm not that colourful, but a bird just the same
D                                              G
Open up your gate now, let me put down my load
D                                           A
So I can feel at ease and go back to my home.

Version 2

100% correct.
Capo on 7th fret.

You can figure out the picking its not that hard, but it sounds just fine strumming the chords.

G             C                   G               D
Take em away Take em away Lord, Take away these chains from me.

G                           C                G                     D
My heart is broken cause my spirits not free, Lord take away these chains
G
from me.

G                         C                   G
Some bird feathers are too bright to be caged, I know i'm not that

          D
colorful, but a bird just the same.

G                            C                G
Open up your gate now let me put down my load, so i can feel at ease and
   D          G
go back to my home.


CHORUS

G                            C             G
Sun beatin' down my legs cant seem to stand, theres a boss man at a turnrow

       D
with a rifle in his hand.

G                      C                     G
I've got nine children, nothin' in the pan. My wife she died hungry while i

D          G
was plowin' land.

CHORUS

G                           C                        G
Cant see when i go to work, cant see when i get off. How do you expect a man

D
not to get lost.

G                              C                G                        
Every year i just keep getting deeper in debt, if theres a happy day Lord

D               G
I havent seen one yet.


CHORUS

G                      C                              G
Land that i love is the land that i'm workin', but its hard to love it all

                   D
the time when your back is a hurtin'.

G                      C                   G                        D
Gettin' too old now to push this here plow, let me lay down so i can look at

    G
the clouds.


CHORUS

G                               C                   G
The land that i know is where to rivers collide, the Brazos, the Navaso and

    D       G
the big blue sky.


G                            C
Flood plains, freight trains, watermelon vines

   G                                       D                G
Of any place on God's green earth, this is where I choose to die

CHORUS


Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Take 'em Away (Mance Lipscomb)
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 15 Oct 10 - 03:45 AM

On the liner notes for the album OCMS, the song is listed as written by Critter Fuqua, who also sings it. Critter famously doesn't like to fly and so I have never heard them do it live, until last month at their gig in Bristol (which was freakin' BRILLIANT). New member Cory Younts (Mandolin) seems to have replaced Critter permanently, and he sang the song. Okay, he needed some help from the audience to remember the lyrics, but I was still over the moon to hear it. :)