Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitaro (Mother Maybelle)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitaro (Mother Maybelle)
From: GUEST,Mother Maybelle's Guitaro
Date: 25 Feb 23 - 12:11 PM

I think I've worked out the missing lines:

A married man will bring you shame,
For he'll go home tomorrow.
I'd rather spend my nights alone
Strummin' my guitaro, strummin' my guitaro.
I've been in love a dozen times.
I'll love again tomorrow,
But now my weary heart and mind
Must hide with my guitaro, hide with my guitaro.

A single man will take your heart
And in its place leave sorrow.
Though someone else can have my part,
I'll caress my guitaro, caress my guitaro.
I've been married. I've been single.
They both led to sorrow.
But I’ll admit the night was cold
Strummin' my guitaro, strummin' my guitaro, strummin' my guitaro.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitaro- Mother Maybelle
From: Sandy Mc Lean
Date: 22 Dec 10 - 02:16 PM

The Carter's Guitaro

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitaro- Mother Maybelle
From: Ebbie
Date: 15 Feb 05 - 10:55 PM

Ah - another illusion shattered. I pictured you with the ears of an owl. :)

But thanks for sticking with it.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitaro- Mother Maybelle
From: GUEST,gene
Date: 15 Feb 05 - 09:07 PM

i only had to listen to it a DOZEN times OR MORE...!

Duets, Trios & Quartets give me the most trouble

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitaro- Mother Maybelle
From: Ebbie
Date: 15 Feb 05 - 08:52 PM

So right! Amazing! Thank you.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitaro- Mother Maybelle
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 15 Feb 05 - 08:29 PM

"But I'll admit the nights get cold"

Yes! exactly right.

Funny how hearing it the right way suddenly makes everything fall into place.

Subject: I think I hear this??
From: GUEST,Gene
Date: 14 Feb 05 - 03:02 PM

Strumming my Guitarro

A married man will bring you shame
[For] he'll go home tomorrow
I'd rather spend my nights alone
Strumming my guitarro, strumming my guitarro

          I've been in love a dozen times
          I'll love again tomorrow
          But now my weary heart and mind
          [Just?] cry with my guitarro, cry with my guitarro]

A single man will take your heart
And in its place leave sorrow
So someone else can have my part
I'll caress my guitarro, caress my guitarro

         I've been married, I've been single
         They both led to sorrow
         [But I'll admit the nights get cold]
         Strumming my guitarro, strumming my guitarro

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitaro- Mother Maybelle
From: masato sakurai
Date: 14 Feb 05 - 12:14 PM

Yes, Chris. As Ebbie says, 'Strummin' My Guitaro' (Mother Maybelle Carter) is at The Record Lady's All-Time Country Favorites (Real Country Page 20).

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitaro- Mother Maybelle
From: Chris in Wheaton
Date: 14 Feb 05 - 11:30 AM

So - where is Maybelle's Guitaro? Are the any mp3 clips of the sound on the web?

Very interesting.......... Chris

Subject: Lyr Add: STRUMMING MY GUITARO (Harlan Howard)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 13 Feb 05 - 12:10 PM

Here's how I hear it, but I must admit that penultimate line has me stumped. I've listened to it over and over, and it doesn't even sound like English.

STRUMMIN' MY GUITARO
Harlan Howard
As sung by Mother Maybelle Carter

A married man will bring you shame,
For he'll go home tomorrow.
I'd rather spend my nights alone
Strummin' my guitaro, strummin' my guitaro.
I've been in love a dozen times.
I'll love again tomorrow,
But now my weary heart and mind
Must hide with my guitaro, hide with my guitaro.

A single man will take your heart
And in its place leave sorrow.
Though someone else can have my part,
I'll caress my guitaro, caress my guitaro.
I've been married. I've been single.
They both led to sorrow.
But I ??
Strummin' my guitaro, strummin' my guitaro, strummin' my guitaro.

[Here's a picture of a guitaro.

Here's another, with description.

Here's a description of an album which makes specific reference to the guitaro, copied from a Library of Congress page:

Sara & Maybelle Carter. Bear Family Records BCD 15471. CD. Reissues of two albums recorded for Columbia in 1966 by Sara and Maybelle, two members of the original Carter Family, whose pioneering style helped to define early country music in the 1930s. Selections 1-12 are the contents of the Historic Reunion album made by Sara and Maybelle. Their harmony singing is augmented by bass vocals from A.P. Carter's son Joe; the Carters accompany themselves on guitar, autoharp, and an autoharp-like instrument called the guitaro. Selections 13-24 are the contents of the Living Legend album made by Maybelle six months earlier with accompaniment by session musicians on guitar, bass, and drums. Repertoire on both albums is a mixture of gospel and other songs they recorded commercially as a family in the 1930s, instrumental tunes, an original song by Johnny Cash (Maybelle's son-in-law), and others. Twenty-page booklet has notes by Charles Wolfe, photos, and a discography by Richard Weize. Historical / Country

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitarrro- Mother Maybelle
From: Peace
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 12:40 AM

Try an e-mail to here. Might find where to look or a place to locate the lyrics.

[e-mail]

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitarrro- Mother Maybelle
From: Peace
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 12:37 AM

Ebbie,

It was written by Howard Harlan: "Strumming my Guitaro"

I will go dig s'more.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitarrro- Mother Maybelle
From: DonMeixner
Date: 12 Feb 05 - 12:15 AM

Sorry Ebbie, I don't.

Harpgirl, our resident Autoharp expert and historian may know it though.

D

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitarrro- Mother Maybelle
From: GUEST,Sleepless Dad
Date: 11 Feb 05 - 08:21 PM

I'm pretty sure that there is a website devoted to the lyrics of the Carter Family. And I'm pretty sure I've seen a link in a Mudcat thread. You might do a search for it. I'm sure it will show up.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitarrro- Mother Maybelle
From: Ebbie
Date: 11 Feb 05 - 06:35 PM

Ah. I hadn't thought of that. I was thinking kind of in terms of 'guitar- oh'. Maybelle certainly played the autoharp, not a guitar, in that song.

So, Don, do you know the song? I want to sing the song in our group but those two crucial missing lines would prevent me.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitarrro- Mother Maybelle
From: DonMeixner
Date: 11 Feb 05 - 04:46 PM

The Guitaro is an instrument from Oscar Schmidt that used Autoharp chording machinery on a zither body that you held like a Guitar. You can see them now and then on EBay and they fetch pretty good Money.

Maybelle endorsed the Guitaro for Oscar Schmidt and she is famous for the Auto Harp.

Don

Subject: Lyr Req: Strumming My Guitarrro- Mother Maybelle
From: Ebbie
Date: 11 Feb 05 - 02:39 PM

I stumbled across this long-forgotten song and don't remember all the words. I don't know that I ever knew all the words. I did find it in The Record Lady but there are a couple of lines I can't make out. Does some savvy Mudcat know? Here's what I have:

Strumming my Guitarro

A married man will bring you shame
'Cause he'll go home tomorrow
I'd rather spend my nights alone
Strumming my guitarro, strumming my guitarro

          I've been in love a dozen times
          I'll love again tomorrow
          But now my weary heart and mind
          Must ??   my guitarro, ?? my guitarro

A single man will take your heart
And in its place leave sorrow
So someone else can have my part
I'll caress my guitarro, caress my guitarro

         I've been married, I've been single
         They both led to sorrow
         But I ??
         Strumming my guitarro, strumming my guitarro