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24 May 99 - 12:32 AM (#81096) Subject: Lyrics to Old Gray Mare From: Pooh 1210 Need lyrics to old gray mare. Thanks. |
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24 May 99 - 02:10 AM (#81146) Subject: RE: Lyrics to Old Gray Mare From: BGC Ok, I hope this is some help. If you're a Simpsons fan you may remember an episode in which that song is sung on the "Gabbo" show-if you're not a fan please stick with me. The only lyrics in the show are "Old gray mare, she ain't what she used to be, ain't what she used to be, ain't what she used to be". To find the original artist and composer you could try looking at the credits at the end of that Simpsons episode as they are usually thorough with respect to that sort of thing. If I have that one on tape, I'll check it out and get back to yoy. |
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24 May 99 - 04:35 AM (#81169) Subject: Lyr Add: THE OLD GRAY MARE From: Joe Offer Well, BGC, you missed three words from the first verse: 1. Oh, the old gray mare, she ain't what she used to be,Here are the notes from Carl Sandburg's 1927 American Songbag: Before the horseless carriage came, in the years when people went buggy-riding, there were more songs about horses than now. Oats for Dobbin was an expense then as gas is at the filling station now. Fodder for the mare and her foal cost money the same as oil, water, and new wind shields do today. The horse doctor earned his living as the crack mechanic at the garage does, voicing the sentiments of an Arab to his steed, "My beautiful, my beautiful, thou standest so meekly by." The following poem is in a different vein and mood. It is keyed rather to the homely philosophy of an Iowa editor who was asked by a Kansas editor what he wanted on his gravestone. The answer was they could write, "He et what they sot before him." It is not as lofty in manner as the reply of an Iowa farmer asked about his first horse, a two-year-old given him by his father. "How was she? Well, she was stylish but she couldn't stand grief." The melody here is directly appropriated from the negro spiritual, 'The Old Gray Mare Came Tearin' Out the Wilderness.'I have to say that in this instance, the great Mr. Sandburg's words, while entertaining, are less than informative. anyboy know the real skivvy on this song? Apparently, the song isn't in our database. -Joe Offer- |
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24 May 99 - 06:49 PM (#81397) Subject: Lyr/Tune Add: THE OLD GRAY HORSE CAME TEARING ... From: Joe Offer Ah, now it's beginning to make sense: The Old Gray Horse Came Tearing Through The Wilderness The old gray horse came tearing through the wilderness Tearing through the wilderness Tearing through the wilderness The old gray horse came tearing through the wilderness Making for de road Ho, Dinah, ho, Ho, Dinah, ho, my gal, Ho, Dinah, ho! Oh, don't you hear him blow? (for 2) Ho, Dinah, ho, Ho, Dinah, ho, my gal, Ho, Dinah, ho! His bridle do rattle so! (for 3) Ho, Dinah, ho, Ho, Dinah, ho, my gal, Ho, Dinah, ho! Say, don't you want to go? Source: Thomas W. Talley's Negro Folk Rhymes, 1922, 1949, 1991 Talley says the song has been labeled, variously, as a Negro spiritual. A play-party song, and a lullaby. It was popular with white fiddlers in the 1920's. In other versions, "Down in Arkansas" or "Down in Alabam is used instead of "Making for de road." JRO
Click to playABC format: X:1
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25 May 99 - 12:21 AM (#81461) Subject: Lyr Add: THE OLD GREY HORSE CAME TROTTING DOWN ... From: rich r The Frank C Brown Collection of North Carolina Folklore lists a variant of the lyrics Joe posted, but not much in the way of explanation except that it was described as a lullaby by the source of this version.
The old grey horse came trotting down the wilderness
Roll, Riley, roll VAnce Randolph's "Ozark Folksongs" contains some other verses:
Little black bull come down in the wilderness....
Was an old mule and he come from Jerusalem.. Barnum caught him, put him in his museum....
Ain't you mighty glad to get out o' the wilderness... Fifteen cents to get out o' the wilderness.... Randolph also indicated that a related religious marching song called "Go in the Wilderness" appeared in the Atlantic Monthly in 1867. Then there is the version that goes :
The old grey mare went Ptthhft! down the Delaware ...
The old grey mare went Ptthhft! on the whiffletree... Parodies from WWI era: 1. The poor old Kaiser ain't what he used to be... Many long years ago.
2.Oh we don't have to hike like the infantry,
We're in the Q.M. C.
3. Oh Uncle Sammy, he pays the infantry
4. Oh, Uncle Sammy, he needs the signal corps, From the University of Minnesota:
I don't give a damn for the whole state of Iowa.... Finally (for now) there is the scholastic medley of "Row your boat" and "Old Grey Mare"
Row, row, row your boat
Five days later she couldn't find her underwear *could this refer to a blue clicky thing that she was lacking? rich r |
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25 May 99 - 01:47 PM (#81634) Subject: Lyr Add: THE OLD GRAY MARE CAME ... (parody) From: Jon W. I've posted this before but here goes again:
Looking for her underwear Couldn't find 'em anywhere The old gray mare she had to buy another pair Many long years ago. |
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25 Jun 99 - 10:34 AM (#89687) Subject: RE: Lyrics to Old Gray Mare From: Dick Wisan rich r's WWI version:
Oh we don't have to hike like the infantry,
looks like a re-work on a (Confederate) US Civil War version, parts of which go like this:
If you wanna have a good fight,
Oh, we are the boys who Stuart's people, no doubt. |
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25 Jun 99 - 10:41 AM (#89691) Subject: RE: Lyrics to Old Gray Mare From: Dick Wisan (erratum) Ooops!. Bungle. Should have been: If you wanna have a good fight,
THEN
Rally boys around [bis] If you wanna have a good fight
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26 May 05 - 12:46 AM (#1493395) Subject: Lyr Add: THE OLD GREY MARE (THE WHIFFLE TREE) From: Jim Dixon From Indiana University Sheet Music Collections: THE OLD GREY MARE (THE WHIFFLE TREE) Frank Panella, 1915. 1. Oh! the old grey mare was Fighting at the front, Fighting at the front, Fighting at the front. The old grey mare was Fighting at the front Many long years ago, Many long years ago, Many long years ago. The old grey mare was Fighting at the front, Fighting at the front, Fighting at the front. Oh! The old grey mare was Fighting at the front Many long years ago. 2. Oh! The old grey mare ain't What she use to be, What she use to be, What she use to be. The old grey mare ain't What she use to be Many long years ago, Many long years ago, Many long years ago. Oh! The old grey mare ain't What she use to be, What she use to be, What she use to be. Oh! The old grey mare ain't What she use to be Many long years ago. Similarly: 3. The old grey mare she Kicked at the whiffle tree.... 4. The old grey mare stood Under the apple tree.... 5. Oh! The old grey mare was Burning up the track.... 6. Oh! The old grey mare she Lost a tooth or two.... 7. Oh! The old grey mare she Carried Uncle Sam.... 8. Oh! The old grey mare she Liked her applejack.... 8. Oh! The old grey mare she Chewed tobacco too.... |
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26 May 05 - 02:11 AM (#1493412) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Goose Gander And then there's all this, courtesy of the Ballad Index.... Old Gray Mare, The (The Old Gray Horse; The Little Black Bull) DESCRIPTION: Concerning an old gray mare (old gray horse, little black bull) that came out of the wilderness (down the meadow, etc.) in Alabam/Arkansas/A long time ago/On to Galilee. Other animals may also be involved. May be used as a playparty AUTHOR: unknown EARLIEST DATE: 1858 (sheet music) KEYWORDS: horse animal nonballad FOUND IN: US(SE,So) REFERENCES (10 citations): Randolph 271, "The Old Gray Horse" (1 text plus 2 fragments, 1 tune); 559, "Out of the Wilderness" (1 short text, 1 tune); also possibly 429, "John the Boy, Hello!" (1 text, 1 tune, so short that one cannot tell whether it is the same piece or a different one) Randolph/Cohen, pp. 231-232, "The Old Gray Horse" (1 text, 1 tune -- Randolph's 271A) BrownIII 174, "The Old Grey Horse Came Tearing Through the Wilderness" (3 short texts; "A" adds an unusual chorus, "Roll, Riley, roll (x3), Oh, Lord, I'm bound to go") Sandburg, pp. 102-103, "Old Gray Mare"; 164-165, "Hoosen Johnny" (2 texts, 2 tunes) RJackson-19CPop, pp. 65-68, "Down in Alabam' or Ain't I Glad I Got Out de Wilderness"" (1 text, 1 tune) Lomax-FSNA 45, "In the Wilderness" (1 text, 1 tune) Lomax-ABFS, pp. 336-338, "Tearin' Out-a Wilderness" (2 texts plus a fragment, 2 tunes) Silber-FSWB, p. 397, "Hoosen Johnny"; p. 398, "The Old Gray Mare" (2 texts) Pankake-PHCFSB, p. 63, "The Old Grey Mare" (1 text, tune referenced) Fuld-WFM, pp. 408-409, "The Old Gray Mare -- (Get Out of the Wilderness)" Roud #751 RECORDINGS: Gene Autry, "The Old Grey Mare" (Conqueror 8686, 1936) Milton Brown & his Brownies, "The Old Grey Mare" (Decca 5260, 1936) Fiddlin' John Carson & Moonshine Kate, "The Old Gray Horse Ain't What He Used to Be" (OKeh 45471, 1930) [Arthur] Collins & [Byron] Harlan "Old Grey Mare" (Victor 18387, 1917) (Emerson 7298, c. 1917) Vernon Dalhart, "The Old Grey Mare" (Perfect 12421/Conqueror 7071, 1928) Earl Johnson & his Dixie Entertainers, "Old Gray Mare Kicking Out of the Wilderness" (OKeh 45183, 1928; rec. 1927) [?] Jones and [Ernest] Hare "The Old Grey Mare" (Edison 51618, 1925) Elmo Newcomer, "Old Grey Mare" (Cromart 101, n.d. but prob. mid-1930s) Land Norris, "Old Grey Mare" (OKeh 45047, 1926) Gid Tanner & his Skillet Lickers, "The Old Gray Mare" (Columbia 15170-D, 1927) University Quartet, "The Old Gray Mare" (Pathe 20267, 1917) CROSS-REFERENCES: cf. "Old Abe Lincoln Came Out of the Wilderness" (tune) cf. "Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts" (tune) cf. "The Big Black Bull" cf. I Ain't a-Scared of Your Jail (tune, structure) cf. "Horsie, Keep Your Tail Up" (lyrics) cf. "Go in the Wilderness" (tune, structure) SAME TUNE: Old Abe Lincoln Came Out of the Wilderness (File: San168) Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts (File: PHCFS133) Flaotin' Down the Delaware (Pankake-PHCFSB, p. 157) I Don't Give a Darn for the Whole State of Iowa (Pankake-PHCFSB, p. 251) I Ain't A-Scared of Your Jail (on PeteSeeger35) Notes: The 1858 sheet music credits this to "J. Warner," but no information about Warner has been recovered, and there are indications that the song was in the Black traditional repertoire before the 1850s. A common bit of folklore claims that this is based on the exploits (?) of an animal that took fright during the Second Battle of Bull Run in 1862. The date of the sheet music, of course, proves this false. - RBW Sam Hinton traces this to an African-American spiritual, "I Wait Upon the Lord" ("If you want to get to heaven go in the wilderness... and wait upon the Lord"). - PJS [See now the Index entry for "Go Into the Wilderness." - RBW] Are you sure this is the same ballad as "Little black bull come down the meadow/Hoosen Johnny, Hoosen Johnny"? I think they're part of the same family, but maybe we should split them. By the way, there's a great bawdy version of "Hoosen Johnny" called "Houston, Sam Houston", with sound effects. - PJS It's another case of the extremes being different but the intermediate versions being too mixed to clearly distinguish. Easier to lump the whole family here. If we don't, we WILL mess up. Or, at least, I will. The versions of this song are so diverse that it gets to the point of parodying itself.... - RBW File: R271 The degree to which all of these are variants of the same song is open to debate, I suppose. |
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26 May 05 - 07:57 AM (#1493492) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: kendall The way I heard it as a boy, the old gray mare she "SHAT" on the wiffle tree. The wiffle tree of course was a part of the rigging for a wagom, the wooden cross piece that the stouters attached to. |
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26 May 05 - 08:50 AM (#1493531) Subject: Lyr Add: THE OLD GREY MARE (from Leroy Troy) From: GUEST leRoy Troy's version is as follows: The old spare tire ain't what it used to be, Ain't what it used to be, ain't what it used to be. Can't even tell where the retread used to be, Many long years ago. The old grey mare is back where she used to be, Back where she used to be, back where she used to be. The old grey mare is back where she used to be, Many long years ago. She might be old and lean, but she don't need no gasoline. Yes, the old grey mare is back where she used to be Many long years ago. The old grey mare is gettin' more attention, gettin' more attention, Gettin' more attention, than a widow with a pension. Yes, the old grey mare is getting more attention, Than she did long years ago. And, with all that attention, she's gettin' quite a temperament, Gettin' quite a temperament, gettin' quite a temperament, Why they bobbed her tail and gave her tail permanent, Like they did long years ago. The farmer hurries home, and grabs the curry comb. The kids all rush out to the barn, give her oats and hay, Didn't mean no harm. Yes, the old grey mare is gettin' more attention Than she did long years ago. The farmer and the old grey mare, They stand by the side of the thoroughfare, And they make more money standing there, than they did long years ago The cars a go a speeding right pass, going mighty fast As they go a whizzin' right past. A few more miles down, they a'run out a gas, And the farmer pulls them home. The farmer gets ten bucks, for towin' cars and trucks. He's the one they all called a boob, called him a hick, Called him a rube. But he ain't got no flat inner tube. He and the old grey mare. The garage of yesterday, is full of oats and hay, And, stead of talking about oil and gas, They're talking oats and hay, corn and grass. Yep. The old grey mare is back where she used to be, Many long years ago. |
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26 May 05 - 09:38 AM (#1493563) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Abby Sale Hmmm. I never connected Old Gray Mare and Little Black Bull (Sam Houston) until now. Obvious when it's pointed out to me! Thanks. For what it's worth, I'll post the version I learned from Cyril Tawney. He sang it in his "mock rustic" style and declared the version was collected in England - but didn't much into where/when. I was taken with the pronounciation of Houston as "hoos-ton." The all-but-the-same DigTrad version is at Click
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26 May 05 - 09:44 AM (#1493573) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: GUEST,Joe_F In Vermont, when I was little, she merely pissed on the whiffletree. --- Joe Fineman joe_f@verizon.net ||: If you are sitting 5 feet from me, you are seeing me as I was 5 nanoseconds ago. :|| |
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26 May 05 - 02:27 PM (#1493759) Subject: ADD: The Old Gray Mare (Perrow) From: Q (Frank Staplin) Many versions. Perrow collected this one in 1906 from Tennessee whites. Lyr. Add: The Old Gray Mare (Perrow) Ole Turkey-Buzzard come a-flyin' a-by, (3X) Says, "Ole man, yore mare's gon die." Ef she dies, I'll tan her skin; (3x) Ef she don't, by doggies!(1) I'll ride 'r agin'. She got so pore I couldn't ride; (3X) Bones stuck up right thoo her hide. Then I hooked 'r to the plough; (3X) Swore by doggies! she didn't know how. Then I skinned some pop-paw(2) lines; (3X) Swore by doggies! she'd take her time. Then I turned her daown the creek; (3X) For her to hunt some grass to eat. Then I follerd daown the track; (3X) Found 'r in a mudhole flat uv 'r back. Then I felt so devlish stout, (3X) Grabbed her by the tail en' puller 'r out. Then I thought it weren't no sin; (3x) Took out my knife en' begun to skin. Refrain Yankty doodle dum, yankty dee,(3) Yankty doodle dum, yankty dee. With music. (1) a common expression in East Tennessee. (2) paw-paw tree. (3) Imitation of the sound of a banjo-string. Collected from East Tennessee mountain whites; 1906. E. C. Perrow, 1911, "Songs and Rhymes from the South," II. Songs in which animals figure, 1., JAFL, vol. 25, pp. 137-155. On line, www.immortalia.com A related song from whites; "I Had a Little Mule and His Name Was Jack." |
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26 May 05 - 10:51 PM (#1494037) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Franz S. Song I remember from sunday school about 57 years ago, to the same tune as "The Old Gray Mare" which we also sang 57 years ago: I may never march in the infantry, Ride in the cavalry, Shoot the artillery, I may never zoom o'er the enemy, But I'm in the Lord's army. I always chose to interpret this as a sort of pacifist song. |
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27 May 05 - 06:33 PM (#1494643) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Goose Gander I remember this from when I was about 10 years old.... Old Gray Man he... Ate all the gopher guts Ate all the gopher guts Ate all the gopher guts |
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27 May 05 - 09:25 PM (#1494731) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Stewie The ballad index entry above for Earl Johnson (OK 45183) should have read 'Earl Johnson & His Clodhoppers'. At this session Lee 'Red' Henderson had replaced Byrd Moore on guitar. The earlier Dixie Entertainers line-up was Johnson, Emmett Bankston (bjo) and Moore. The Clodhoppers line-up of Johnson, Bankston and Henderson also later recorded under the name 'Earl Johnson & His Dixie Entertainers'. Johnson's 'Old Grey Horse Kicking Out of the Wilderness' seems to be mainly the vehicle for some wildly exuberant dance music and manic fiddling. Apart from the 'Old grey horse kicking ...' chorus, it has a couple of floaters like: My wife died on Thursday evening Friday she was buried Done my courtin' on Saturday evening On Sunday I got married --Stewie. |
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27 May 05 - 09:37 PM (#1494735) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Stewie My apologies, the title of the Johnson side referred to in my previous post should read 'Old Grey MARE Kicking Out of the Wilderness'. I put 'horse' because I was listening to the side whilst typing. Although 'mare' is the word in the title, Johnson sings 'horse' all the way through - no mention of 'mare'! --Stewie. |
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27 May 05 - 11:10 PM (#1494776) Subject: Lyr Add: TEARIN' OUT-A WILDERNESS (from J&A Lomax) From: Goose Gander I don't think these have been posted: TEARIN' OUT-A WILDERNESS De old gray hoss come tearin' out-a wilderness Tearin' out-a wilderness Tearin' out-a wilderness De old gray hoss come tearin' out-a wilderness Down in Alabam' chorus: Hoe, boys, Hoe (4X) A little black bull come down from de mountain Down from de mountain Down from de mountain A little black bull come down from de mountain Long time ago He stuck his horn through a white oak sapling White oak sapling White oak sapling He stuck his horn through a white oak sapling Long time ago He threw dirt in de heifer's faces Heifer's faces Heifer's faces He threw dirt in de heifer's faces Long time ago Twenty more black bull calves come that season Come that season Come that season Twenty more black bull calves come that season Long time ago From John and Alan Lomax's American Ballads and Folk Songs (p.336-337). The Lomax's offer no source, but they note it is "A Cotton-Chopping Song," and it's certainly African-American. |
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28 May 05 - 12:30 AM (#1494802) Subject: Lyr Add: DOWN IN ALABAM From: Q (Frank Staplin) Lyr. Add: Down in Alabam (or: Ain't I Glad I Got Out de Wilderness) Melody by J. Warner, 1858 Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! My old massa he's got the dropser, um, he's got the dropser, um, he's got the dropser, um, He am sure to die 'kase he's got no doctor, um, Down in Alabam'. Chorus: Ain't I glad I got out de wilderness, Got out de wilderness, Got out de wilderness, Ain't I glad I got out de wilderness Down in Alabam'. Old blind horse come from Jerusalem, Come from Jerusalem, Come from Jerusalem He kicks so high dey put him in de museum, Down in Alabam'. Dis am a holiday, we hab assembled, um, We hab assembled, um, We hab assembled, um To dance and sing for de ladies and gentleum, Down in Alabam'. Far you well to de wild goose nation, Wild goose nation, Wild goose nation, I neber will leab de old plantation, Down in Alabam'. "Ethiopian Refrain as sung by Bryant's Minstrels. Melody by J. Warner harmonized and arranged by Walter Meadows." Published by Wm. Hall & Son, New York. 1858. This seems to be the original that spawned many parodies and folk variants, both black and white. |
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28 May 05 - 12:41 AM (#1494806) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: GUEST See thread 31024, post by Ebbie, "Brave Boys Died, Down in Alabam'; and "Old Abe Lincoln Came Out of the Wilderness," posted by Sorcha. In the same thread is the spiritual "Go in the Wilderness," from Slave Songs, 1867, posted by rich r. Brave Boys Died |
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28 May 05 - 12:57 AM (#1494813) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Q (Frank Staplin) Guest above, referring to thread 31024, is Q. |
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28 May 05 - 01:36 AM (#1494827) Subject: Lyr Add: IN THE WILDERNESS (play-party song) From: Goose Gander IN THE WILDERNESS First little lady in the wilderness, in the wilderness In the wilderness, in the wilderness First little lady in the wilderness On to Galilee Chorus: Hands up, round the lady, Round the lady, round the lady, Hands up, round the lady, On to Galilee Swing that lady out of the wilderness (etc.) Next married lady down the wilderness (etc.) Next old maid go down the wilderness (etc.) Swing all the ladies out of the wilderness (etc.) First old hobo in the wilderness (etc.) First old soapstick in the wilderness (etc.) (toothpick, slopbucket, gentleman) From B.A. Botkin's American Play Party Songs (Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1937), cited by Alan Lomax in Folk Songs of North America (p. 91-92). The various forms of this song run the gamut from sincere to parody, from sacred to secular. I like how this version combines secular and sacred themes and becomes progressively more ridiculous. |
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28 May 05 - 01:49 AM (#1494833) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Goose Gander "My old massa he's got the *dropner, um, he's got the dropner, um, he's got the dropner, um, He am sure to die 'kase he's got no doctor, um, Down in Alabam'." I wonder if this refers to dropsy.... DROPSY (contracted from the old word hydropisy, derived from the Gr. 6pw~ ii&op, water, and ~, appearance), the name given to a collection of simple serous fluid in all or any of the cavities of the body, or in the meshes of its tissues. Dropsy of the subcutaneous connective tissue is termed oedema when it is localized and limited in extent; when more diffuse it is termed anasarca; the term oedema is also applied to dropsies of some of the internal organs, notably to that of the lungs. Hydrocephalus signifies an accumulation of fluid within the ventricles of the brain or in the arachnoid cavity; hydrothorax, a collection of fluid in one or both pleural cavities; hydropericardium, ~in the pericardium; ascites, in the peritoneum; and, when anasarca is conjoined with the accumulation of fluid in one or more of the serous cavities, the dropsy is said to be general (see also PATHOLOGY). http://35.1911encyclopedia.org/D/DR/DROPSY.htm DROPSY SYLLABICATION: drop·sy PRONUNCIATION: drps NOUN: Edema. No longer in scientific use. ETYMOLOGY: Middle English dropesie, short for idropesie, from Old French ydropisie, from Medieval Latin ydrpisia, from Latin hydrpisis, from Greek hudrpisis, from hudrps, dropsy, a dropsical person : hudro-, water; see hydro– + ps, face; see okw- in Appendix I. OTHER FORMS: dropsi·cal (-s-kl) —ADJECTIVE dropsi·cal·ly —ADVERB http://www.bartleby.com/61/79/D0397900.html |
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28 May 05 - 01:34 PM (#1495052) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Q (Frank Staplin) "In the Wilderness" is an interesting one. Botkin, p. 288, say the game is also called "On to Galilee." He gives directions for the game: "The lady in the center. You keep going round her. Then hands up and go the other way. Then you swing her if it's your partner. Repeat until all the girls have been swung. Then the boys get in the center with- 'first old soapstick (toothpick, slopbucket, gentleman,'), etc." B. A. Botkin, 1937; 1963, "The American Play-Party Song," University Studies Univ. Nebraska vol. 38, no. 1-4; reprint Frederick Ungar Pub. Co., NY. Botkin refers to "Below Galilee" in Newell, but this is part of a game called "Swine-herders" or "Hog-drivers." Although possibly the verse is related, the game is quite different. Pp. 232-233, no. 164, North Carolina; with music, mountain whites. Come under, come under, My honey, my love, my heart's above- Come under, come under, Below Galilee. W. W. Newell, 1883, 1903; Dover reprint 1963, "Games and Songs of American Children," Harper & Bros.; Dover. "Dropner"- Could be dropsy, but minstrels used invented words and the composer may have had nothing specific in mind. |
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28 May 05 - 09:35 PM (#1495294) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Q (Frank Staplin) I have found two copies of "Down in Alabam'" in which the word is 'dropser,' not 'dropner.' The sheet music is difficult to read (Levy Sheet Music) and 'dropser' sounds better, so a correction is probably needed. This also is closer to 'dropsy.' |
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29 Jul 05 - 05:16 AM (#1531018) Subject: Lyr Add: AIN'T I GLAD I GOT OUT DE WILDERNESS From: chico
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31 Jul 05 - 11:43 PM (#1532382) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Jim Dixon The sheet music for DOWN IN ALABAM or AIN'T I GLAD I GOT OUT DE WILDERNESS can be found at The Lester S. Levy Collection of Sheet Music. |
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08 Nov 08 - 04:51 PM (#2488655) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Q (Frank Staplin) Lyr. Add: THE OLD GRAY HORSE Three old verses from Perrow A Went to the river at break uv day, Couldn't get across, en' uh had to stay; Paid five dollars fer un ole gray horse, Wouldn't go erlong, en' 'e wouldn't stand still, But jumped up en' daown like un ole flutter-mill. (TN, mountain whites, 1908) B I went to the river and couldn't get across; Paid five dollars for an old gray horse, Horse wouldn't ride, horse wouldn't swim, And I'll never see my five dollars agin. (MS, country whites, MS of Miss Reedy; 1909) C I went to the river and couldn't get across; Jumped on a toad-frog and thought he was a horse* VA, mountain whites, 1912) *In college song books, included in "Polly Wolly Doodle." From E. C. Perrow, Songs in which Animals Figure. E. C. Perrow, 1911, "Songs and Rhymes from the South," JAFL, vol. 25, pp. 137-155. A version of "Old Gray Mare, 1906, Perrow, was posted above, 26 May 05. From mountain whites. |
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09 Nov 08 - 12:32 PM (#2489093) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Jim Carroll On the other hand: Good fellows all that's straight and tall, Take counsel and be wise Attention pay to what I say, My lecture don't despise— Let patience guide you on ev'ryside Of traitors now beware There's none but men would glory win Can ride my old Grey Mare. In Erin's Isle in ancient times, She was rode by Brian Boru, Phelim O'Neill with sword of steel, Owen Roe and Sarsfield, too, Brave Michael Dwyer not long ago Ranged Wicklow and Kildare Tone, Tandy, Sheares, and other peers Rode on my old grey mare. Brave Bonaparte on her did start He rode too fast, 'tis true. She lost a shoe at Moscow fair And fell lame at Waterloo. When she comes o'er to Erin's shore, She'll have good farriers' care At the very next 'chase she'll win the race, My sporting old grey mare. Here's to the man that's six foot one, And more then if you choose, That stands up straight without deceit, In Spanish leather shoes. Likewise the youth that tells the truth That he may have Liberty fair And to every man in Ireland That rides my old grey mare. Seems far more interesting to me. Jim Carroll |
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09 Nov 08 - 02:36 PM (#2489190) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Q (Frank Staplin) Not bad for a furrin nag. But she didn't carry General Washington or Lee or Grant or Crazy Horse or Oñate or Villa or me. |
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10 Nov 08 - 06:18 PM (#2490295) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Jim Dixon On Leroy Troy's album, THE OLD GREY MARE is attributed to Carson Robison. However, I can't find any evidence that Carson Robison recorded it. The Online 78 rpm Discographical Project lists recordings called (THE) OLD GRAY/GREY MARE, by Arthur Collins and Byron Harlan, 1917. Earl Fuller's Famous Jazz Band, 1917. Prince's Band, 1917. University Quartet, around 1917. Carl Fenton & His Orch, 1925. Land Norris (banjo), 1926. Al Bernard, around 1927. Gid Tanner's Skillet Lickers, 1927. Vernon Dalhart, 1927 (attrib J Warner) & '28 (attrib Frank Panella) Lew Childre, 1930. Gene Autry, 1936. Milton Brown & His Brownies, 1936. Freddie Fisher & His Orch, 1941. Bob Gregory and his Cactus Cowboys, date unknown. and other songs called: OLD GREY MARE KICKING OUT OF THE WILDERNESS by Earl Johnson & His Clodhoppers, 1927. TIM KELLYS OLD GREY MARE by Jack Murphy, 1927. OUR OLD GREY MARE by Johnny Marvin, 1932 HARNESS THE OLD GREY MARE by Gillis Serenaders, 1934. |
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10 Nov 08 - 08:49 PM (#2490398) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Q (Frank Staplin) Are the 1917 recordings similar to each other? It would be interesting to see the lyrics of one or more of them. OLD GRAY HOSS Old gray hoss come a-tearin' out o' the wilderness, Tearin' out o' the wilderness, tearin' out o' the wilderness, Old gray hoss come a-tearin' out o' the wilderness, Down in Alabam'. Verse, with the usual score, "The Missouri Play-Party," Mrs. L. D. Ames, p. 311. JAFL, 1911, vol. 24, no. 93, pp. 295-318. ------------------------------------ Fuld says the phrase "ain't what she used to be" appeared in a 'song' version published Oct. 4, 1917 by Morris Music Co., the arranger Frank Panella(?); pp. 408-409, James J. Fuld, 1966, "The Book of World-Famous Music," (Dover reprint). Fuld also says claims have been made that the words of "The Old Gray Mare" were written by Gus Bailey about an animal at the Second Battle of Bull Run (Manassas). Bailey was a soldier in Gen. Hood's Texas Brigade and later became a circus showman and musician. |
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10 Nov 08 - 10:32 PM (#2490445) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Jim Dixon THE OLD GREY MARE as recorded by Earl Fuller's Famous Jazz Band, is purely instrumental—no lyrics. You can hear it at The Red Hot Jazz Archive. |
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11 Nov 08 - 02:55 PM (#2490998) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Azizi I'm curious about what was "the wild goose nation" as found in the song "The Old Gray Mare". I seem to vaguely remember reading somewhere that "wild goose nation" was either a nation of Indians {Native Americans} or maroons {runaway slaves}which might have also included some Native Americans}. I've read that some enslaved people would run away from the plantation but might come back there {perhaps because loved ones were there, or because of the scarcity of food in the maroon camps etc}. If "the wild goose nation" meant the Indian and or runaway slave camp, does this verse mean that the person singing it has rejected the idea of permanently leaving the plantation? "Far you well to de wild goose nation, Wild goose nation, Wild goose nation, I neber will leab de old plantation, Down in Alabam'." -snip- It should be noted that I googled "the wild goose nation" and found a wikipedia page on "De Wild Goose Nation" that included this information: "De Wild Goose-Nation" is an American song composed by blackface minstrel performer Dan Emmett. The song is a parody (or possibly an adaptation) of "Gumbo Chaff", a blackface minstrel song dating to the 1830s; the music of most closely resembles an 1844 version of that song.[1] Musicologist Hans Nathan sees similarities in the introduction of the song to the later "Dixie".[2]" -snip- I suppose that it's possible that this phrase could have more than one meaning. Does anyone have any information or documentation about what this phrase or referent means? If so, thanks in advance for posting it. |
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11 Nov 08 - 04:05 PM (#2491064) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Q (Frank Staplin) No significance can be attached to 'wild goose nation.' It also appears in sea chanteys, esp. "We'll Ranzo Way." Hugill commented- "Most versions (the chantey) refer to the "Wild Goose Nation." This mysterious race of people often crops up in shantydom and also in nigger minstreldom, and many theories have been put forward regarding the origin, none, I'm afraid, very convincing. Doerflinger maintains that in minstreldom the phrase refers to Southern or Indian-inhabited country. Miss Colcord rather fancies Ireland as the source, since she has discovered that the phrase 'Wild Goose Nation' was used as a poetical name for the Irish, in particular for the Irish Guards who fought for the French in the wars of 1748." See Kipling's poem, "The Irish Guards." In history, Irish who refused to fight for the British crown or deserted to opposing forces, went into exile, and are often referred to as "wild geese." But all this is speculation. See Stan Hugill, "Shanties from the Seven Seas," pp. 181-182; reprint edition (2003 printing) by Mystic Seaport (Museum), Mystic CT. |
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11 Nov 08 - 04:50 PM (#2491110) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Azizi Thanks for that information, Q, though I flinched when I read your that "n word" in that quote. It seems certain that in the "Old Gray Mare" song, "Wild Goose Nation" wasn't a referent for the Irish Guards. It may not matter what it originally meant for it does seem likely {to me} that in that "Old Gray Mare" song, at least, "Wild Goose Nation" referred to an area where Indians lived to which formerly enslaved Black people would run for santuary. |
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11 Nov 08 - 04:51 PM (#2491112) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Azizi Sorry for that poor cut and paste job. The word "your" in that first sentence should have been deleted. |
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11 Nov 08 - 05:29 PM (#2491144) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Q (Frank Staplin) The 'old gray mare' didn't enter the verses of the minstrel song until half a century later. Tying the two together like that to make a supposition is a stretch too far. |
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13 Nov 08 - 12:04 PM (#2492839) Subject: Lyr Add: WILD GOOSE NATION From: Jim Dixon From Marsh's Selection, or, Singing for the Million. New York: Richard Marsh, 1854: WILD GOOSE NATION. Here I am, as you diskiver, All de way from Roaring River; Here I cum, as you must know, For to play de ole banjo. CHORUS: Oh Lord, gals, gib me chaw tobacco. Oh Lord, fetch on de whiskey, Makes a man glad to get a little boosey. Way down in de Indian nation, Pretty little gals from de wild goose nation My wife's dead, an' I'm a widow, All de way from Roaring River. Ole Massa Miller goes out a preachin', 'Bout de world coming to pieces, An' if you want to do what's right, Go an' join de Millerite. No, den, if dis should happen, Den good bye to Arthur Tappen; But if it should fail, We'll ride ole Miller on a rail. Time draws near, it does by Job, So now get ready your ascension robes; Farewell, ladies, I must go, To git some strings for my ole banjo. Uncle Samel, and Massa Jess, Dey buy a bully cider press, De hoops flew off, de barrel buss, An' blew 'em up in a thunder guss. [William Miller, preacher, prophesied the end of the world in 1843. Arthur Tappen was an abolitionist. Roaring River is both a river and a town in North Carolina.] |
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13 Nov 08 - 12:07 PM (#2492845) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Jim Dixon From Roger D. Abrahams, "Singing the Master: The Emergence of African American Culture in the Plantation South" (New York: Pantheon Books, ©1992), page 190:
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13 Nov 08 - 12:44 PM (#2492897) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Jim Dixon This implies that "Wild Goose Nation" referred an actual place (although that might not have been its official name): From Joseph H. Wenger, History of the Descendants of J. Conrad Geil and His Son Jacob Geil (Elgin, IL: [author], 1914): [Re: Jacob Beery (1806-1885) and Catharine Stalter (1803-1890), married 1832.] "Later they moved to Wyandot Co., Ohio, in what was called 'Wild Goose Nation.' Brethren in Christ. Nevada, Ohio." [Brethren in Christ," a Mennonite sect, is evidently the name of the religious denomination they belonged to. Nevada is a village in Wyandot County.] |
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13 Nov 08 - 01:20 PM (#2492935) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Azizi Thanks, Jim! |
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13 Nov 08 - 02:05 PM (#2492984) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Azizi Thanks to the information noted by Jim Dixon, I believe more strongly than ever that "wild goose nation" in the "Old Gray Goose" song and perhaps other songs was a referent for Indian land. I think that this referent became one for more than one place, meaning any place where Indians lived who would accept runaway slaves. It's possible that the African Americans of those times used the term "wild geese" as a "totem" for those places which would bring to mind the song about the unconquerable gray goose. There are a number of online references about Black people who were enslaved living with Native Americans. See, for example, this excerpt from this Wikepedia page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Indians "...In South Carolina, colonists became so concerned about the possible threat posed by the mixed African and Native American population that was arising as runaway Africans escaped to the Native Americans that they passed a new law in 1725. This law stipulated a fine of 200 pounds on anyone who brought a slave to the frontier regions of the colony. In 1751 the colony of South Carolina found it necessary to issue another law, warning that having Africans in proximity to Native Americans was deemed detrimental to the security of the colony. In 1726 the British governor of colonial New York exacted a promise from the Iroquois Confederacy to return all runaway slaves who had joined up with them. This same promise was extracted from the Huron tribe in 1764 and from the Delaware tribe in 1765.[10] Despite their promises, the tribes never returned any escaped slaves..[10] They continued to provide a safe refuge for escaped slaves. In 1763 during Pontiac's Native American uprising a Detriot resident reported that Native Americans killed whites but were "saving and caressing all the Negroes they take." He worried lest this might "produce an insurrection." Chief Joseph Brant's Mohawks in New York welcomed runaway slaves and encouraged intermarriage.[10] Native American adoption systems knew no color line and accepted the breathless fugitives as sisters and brothers.[10] Woodson's notion of an escape hatch notion proved correct: Native American villages welcomed fugitives, and even served as stations on the Underground Railroad.[10]" |
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13 Nov 08 - 02:10 PM (#2492989) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Azizi Here is a repost from thread.cfm?threadid=81179#1485725 that provides the lyrics to the "Old Gray Goose" song that is mentioned above: Subject: ADD Version: THE OLD GRAY GOOSE From: Azizi - PM Date: 15 May 05 - 09:04 PM ADD: THE OLD GRAY GOOSE Here is another version of The Old Gray Goose from Margaret Taylor Burroughs's "Did You Feed My Cow? Street Games, Chants, Rhymes" revised edition {Chicago,1969; Follett Publishing Company;p. 27-29} {presented as found in that book} The leader sings or chants the verse while the group gives response, keeping a definite rhythm. it may also be done with two groups. They may change roles and repeat. Children may be assigned roles of preacher, gray goose, and feather pickers. Call: It was on a Sunday morning, Response: Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! The preacher went ahunting. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! He carried 'long his shotgun Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! When along came the gray goose. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! The gun went off booloo! Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! And down came the gray goose. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! He was six weeks afalling. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! He was six weeks afalling. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! And my wife and your wife Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! They gave a feather picking. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! They were six weeks picking. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! And they put him on to parboil. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! He was six weeks aboiling. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! And they put him on the table. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! Well, the knife wouldn't cut him, Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! And the fork wouldn't stick him. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! They put him in the hogpen, Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! And he broke the hog's teeth out. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! They took him to the sawmill, Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! And the saw couldn't cut him. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! They took him to the sawmill, Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! And the saw couldn't cut him. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! And the last time I saw him, Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! He was flying 'cross the ocean. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! With a long string of goslings, Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! And they all going quack, quack! Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! -snip- My thanks to Mudcat Cafe member, Hollowfox, for the gift of this book. |
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13 Nov 08 - 02:13 PM (#2492991) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Azizi Correction: Thanks to the information noted by Jim Dixon, I believe more strongly than ever that "wild goose nation" in the "Old Gray Mare" song and perhaps other songs was a referent for Indian land. |
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13 Nov 08 - 06:13 PM (#2493175) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Q (Frank Staplin) It seems likely that 'wild goose nation' was simply a slang term for the boondocks, whether 'injun' country or backwoods South or wherever. There are many versions of the song, variously versed and titled. Some mention a horse, one mentions 40 horses. "Here I Am as You Diskiver" was used on song sheets issued by De Marsan, and by Andrews. The De Marsan sheet has the same text as that of "Wild Goose Nation," posted by Jim Dixon. The Andrews sheet dropped the verse about Arthur Tappen, and substituted these: Summer time has come at last, Old cold winter's gone and past; Fourth July we'll have a lark, And see de sojers in de Park. Fourth July, without any flattery, Is a great day down on de battery; De coannon roar, and so loudly clatter, Get your eye put out wid a fire cracker. A song sheet from Andrews, "Way Down South in de Alabama," probably fairly close to the original "Down in Alabam." WAY DOWN SOUTH IN DE ALABAM 'Way down South, in de Alabama, 'Twas there I left my ole Aunt Hannah; Ole Miss Squankum she whar dere, She wanted a lock ob dis child's hair! Chorus. 'Way down South, in de Alabama, Ou, auh! ou, ah! 'Way down South in de Alabama, Ou ah! faddle um de day! 2 Before I left, we danc'd two reels, (De holler ob her foot war back ob her heels!) I play'd on de banjo 'till dey all begin to sweat; Knock'd on de jaw-bone, and bust de claronet! 3 Vinegar shoes and paper stockings, Set to me, Miss Polly Hopkins; My missus is dead and I'm a widder, All de way from Ravin river. 4 Dandy Jim an' ole Peter Dare, Two best men in human natur; De puttiest ting in all creation, Is a little yalley gal in de wild goose nation. 5 Blow away, ye gentle breezes, All among the cimmon tresses! Dare I'll set 'long wid de Muses, Mendin' my ole boots and shoeses. These from song sheets at American Memory. A version from Christy's Panorama Songster (1850s): SKIDDY, IDDY, DI DO Here we are as you diskiver, All de way from Ole Tar River, Here we come as you must know. All ready for to play on de old banjo. Chorus. Den, oh lord gals, gib us a chaw tobacco, Oh lord gals fotch along de whisky Skiddy iddy iddy di dr di do, My heasd swims when I get a little tipsy. Father Miller goes out preachin', About de world a comin' to pieces, Den if you want to do what's right, Just go and join de Millerite. Forty horses in de stable, Pretty gals in de wild goose nation, My wife's dead an' I'm a sinner, Go down to Johnny's and get my dinner. Uncle Pete and Aunty Jess, Dey went to buy a cider press, De hoops flew off an' de hogshead bust, And dey boff went up in a thunder gust. http://www.archive.org/details/panoramasongster00chririch As mentioned previously, 'the old gray mare' did not appear until long after the original songs had been much changed. "Down in Alabam," music and words by J. Warner, was copyrighted Feb. 17,1858. Subtitle, "Ain't I Glad I Got Out de Wilderness." Variant, "Go in the Wilderness," appeared in 1867 in "Slave Songs of the United States," probably the first connection with Black culture. |
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13 Nov 08 - 06:37 PM (#2493205) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Azizi To switch to other lyrics from that song, I'm wondering if the phrase "Roll, Riley, roll" as found in the exrich r s - PM Date: 25 May 99 - 12:21 AM The Frank C Brown Collection of North Carolina Folklore lists a variant of the lyrics Joe posted, but not much in the way of explanation except that it was described as a lullaby by the source of this version. The old grey horse came trotting down the wilderness Trotting down the wilderness Trotting down the wilderness The old grey horse came trotting down the wilderness Down in Alabam. Roll, Riley, roll Roll, Riley, roll Roll, Riley, roll Oh, Lord, I'm bound to go |
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13 Nov 08 - 06:47 PM (#2493222) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Azizi Sorry, my fingers slipped. Let me try that again= I'm wondering if the phrase "roll Riley roll" {as found in the example that rich r posted} was originally the words "rally boys around" as posted by Dick Wisan on 25 Jun 99 - 10:34 AM |
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13 Nov 08 - 09:25 PM (#2493349) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Q (Frank Staplin) Riley- The editor appended a footnote: "The word Riley is not capitalized in the manuscript, but one supposes that it is a man's name." Not much point in speculating on a word in a barely remembered fragment (contributed by a Miss Mamie E. Cheek of Durham in 1923). richr posted the spiritual "Go in the Wilderness" in thread 31024: Brave boys |
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04 Dec 11 - 09:57 PM (#3268589) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: GUEST,Lisa Ritchey (Fred Ritchey) My father used to sing this song in the car on road trips when we were children. Here are his lyrics... After the initial refrain... Now the farmer takes the old gray mare, sits by the side of a thoroughfare, he can make more dough just a waitin there, than he did long years ago. Well the farmer makes five bucks, for towing in cars & trucks Yeah, he's the old boy they all call a rube, they give him a kick, naw, but he's got the boot, Aw cuz he's not stuck with a flat inner tube, him or the old gray mare. Refrain... |
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11 Apr 20 - 04:15 PM (#4045400) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: GUEST,Lighter Just as a matter of interest, the words Earl Robinson sang in 1927 are not those of the indicated title, "Old Gray Mare Kicking Out of the Wilderness." Robinson is clearly singing, "Old gray horse, git out the wilderness! ... Down in Allo-bam!" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NWRSnLvpZQ |
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12 Apr 20 - 11:01 AM (#4045581) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: GUEST,Lighter As every Civil War buff here must know, some of the Confederates before the battle of Chancellorsville (1863) sang, "Old Joe Hooker, get out of the Wilderness...Get out as fast you can!" The battle of the Wilderness (in the same locale) took place a year later. The following first-person recollection is in a similar vein: Daniel Hartnett, “The Battle of the Wilderness,” Democratic Northwest (Napoleon, O.) (Feb. 6, 1890), p. 2: “On the morning of [May 7, 1864]…we started for Spotsylvania C[ourt] H[ouse] and sang… O, hain’t I glad to get out of the wilderness, Out of the wilderness, down in old Virginia.” Hartnett wasn't alone. The very next day, recalled Lt. Col. Horace Porter in "Campaigning with Grant," 1897, p. 83: “A drum corps in passing caught sight of the general [Grant], and at once struck up a then popular negro camp-meeting air. Every one began to laugh, and Rawlins cried, ‘Good for the drummers!’ ‘What’s the fun?’ inquired the general. ‘Why,’ was the reply, ‘they are playing, “Ain’t I glad to get out ob de wilderness!”’ The general smiled at the ready wit of the musicians, and said, ‘Well, with me a musical joke always requires explanation. I know only two tunes: one is ‘Yankee Doodle,’ and the other is n’t.’” |
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12 Apr 20 - 11:14 AM (#4045585) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: gillymor My sisters and their friends use to sing this when skipping rope- The old grey mare sat in the 'lectric chair, Burnt off her underwear couldn't get another pair, The old grey mare sat in the 'lectric chair, Many long year ago. |
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12 Apr 20 - 11:18 AM (#4045587) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Jim Carroll A horse of a different colour Jim Carroll From Georges- Denis Zimmermann,s Songs of Irish Rebellion Allen Figgis, Dublin - 1967 TEXT B: Broadside in Cambridge University Library; « The Sporting Old Grey Mare». All you young men both great and small take counsel and be wise, Attention pay to what I say, my lectures don’t despise, Let patience guide you on every side, of traitors now beware, There is none but men that’s sound within can ride my Old Grey Mare. Granuia’s sons great wonder done, they set olid Ireland free, Joshua and Diavid’s sons, likewise M.cAbee, Constant the Great will ever shine and be our standard rear, There’s none but men chat’s sound within can ride my Old Grey Mare. Buonaparte on her did sitant, he rode full fast, it’s true, At Moscow plain she got lame and was beat at Waterloo, She sailed o’er to' the Shamrock shore where Dan he did her care, The very next chase, she won the race, my sporting Old Grey Mare. In Erin’s Isle, when fortune smiled, there lived Brian Borue, Phelan O’Neil, Carlinton Miles, Sarsfieild and Munroe; Bold Roderick you know, not long ago, ranged Wexford aod Kildare, Tandy, Sheares and other peers, they rode on my Grey Mare. In mutual love, as pure as a dove, when we do each other greet, Beware of scrapes., broils and spars, or quarrels when you meet, Don’t probe old sores, nor conquer Job, let patience guide you there, Lest in a fog that you might bog and drown my Old Grey Mare. [cankered jobs] These three hundred years, as it appears, no steady statesman did her ride, ’Til Providence had gave due sense and reared the people’s guide, Brave noble Dan, ,he now rides on, Erin’s right’s his only care, The Parliament for to be sent -back on my Old Grey Mare. VARIANTS: A shorter version of Text A is in a garland printed by Goggin, Limerick. Another garland printed by Grace, Dublin, has «The Adven¬tures of ithe Grey Mare, or the Answer to the Grey Hor.se»; both are in the British Museum. A broadside printed by Haly, Cork, gives a variant with the line: At the Curragh of Kildare she was crossed1 by Dooley there ... (cif. song 14.) TUNE: Texts A and B are in fact two distinct songs with a similar theme, suggesting different tunes. Colm O Lochlainn gives a variant of Joyce (19-09) No. 3/03 with a more recent version of Text B. NOTE: O’Donovan Rossa, who remembered the first lines of Text A learnt in his chidhood, was certain that the wonderful horse meant Ireland (Rossa’s Recollections, p. 40), but this does not stand the reading of the whole song. The different texts would rather evoke confused ideas of glory, victory, perhaps justice or liberty. In fact, the song has probably no emblematic meaning. Text B, sit. 4. Phelim O’Neill was a rebel leader executed in 1653; Rode¬rick is probably Rory O’More, a rebel chieftain killed in 1578; James Napper Tandy, John and Henry Sheares were leaders of the United Irishmen. |
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12 Apr 20 - 03:38 PM (#4045679) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Steve Gardham Can't find anything in the thread re 'Down in Demerara' which seems to be a relative somewhere in the mix. There was a man who had a horselum, had a horselum, had a horselum Was a man who had a horselum, Down in Demerara And here we sits like birds in the wilderness, birds in the wilderness, birds in the wilderness, Here we sits like birds in the wilderness Down etc. Now that poor horse he fell a-sickalum Now that poor horse he broke his legalum Now that poor horse he went and diedalum Any thoughts on this? |
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12 Apr 20 - 06:45 PM (#4045694) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: GUEST,Lighter Steve, news to me. |
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13 Apr 20 - 05:25 AM (#4045758) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Susan of DT I added a verse for when we play at our retirement community: You and me, sister, ain't what we used to be ain't what we used to be, ain't what we used to be You and me, brother, ain't what we used to be many long years ago, many long years ago You and me, sister, ain't what we used to be many long years ago. It's the 70 and 80 year olds singing and playing ukuleles to the 90 year olds |
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13 Apr 20 - 01:52 PM (#4045862) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: keberoxu Azizi's Grey Goose song is familiar to me from a Pete Seeger solo album: Lawd, Lawd, Lawd! with the banjo in full cry. I believe the album notes name-check Leadbelly for this song. Is there a separate thread, I wonder, for 'I've got an old gray mare, but she won't let me ride ... ' it's an old blues song and Peter Green recorded with his version of Fleetwood Mac. |
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13 Apr 20 - 01:53 PM (#4045863) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: keberoxu My mistake, my bad, I'm wrong, I'm sorry: Long Gray Mare, that's the title that Peter Green sang. Can't find a Mudcat thread for it either. |
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13 Apr 20 - 02:42 PM (#4045876) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: GUEST,John Greaves My father born 1885 used to sing of the old grey not being what she used to be, but only a snatch of it. He worked in the States during WW1 so may have picked it up there. He tried to join up at the embassy in Washington but was turned down due to an enlarged heart. He had many bits of songs some of which I have never tracked down. Grey mares seem to be ubiquitous in folk song! |
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14 Apr 20 - 06:34 PM (#4046139) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: GUEST,Lighter FWIW, Panella's 1915 vaudeville lyrics (above) seem to be the earliest about the old gray "mare" not being "what she used to be" as well as having the first reference to the whiffletree. |
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10 May 23 - 12:05 PM (#4171939) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Lighter Panella published the song in 1915, but the familiar "ain't what she used to be" lines don't appear anywhere one can find until the 1917 edition. The tune was popular during the Civil War. Panella's words (whether he originated them or not) were frequently sung on the march during World War I. |
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10 May 23 - 12:45 PM (#4171943) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Old Gray Mare From: Lighter "Farmer and Mechanic" (Raleigh, N.C.) (March 22, 1882): "There is a good deal of talk about the Democratic ballot to 'Retire' Grant. Some of us tried mighty hard to retire him with a bullet, while he was making his little trip from 'the Wilderness' to the [sic] Appomattox - like a 'great big bear done come out de wilderness.'" |