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08 May 20 - 08:48 PM (#4051341) Subject: Lyr Req: Jeff Davis From: GUEST,Matty I was wondering if anyone has the words for a song apparently entitled "Jeff Davis." Grandpa Jones mentions it his autobiography and gives the opening lines "Jeff Davis knew when the cruel war began That he wouldn't be a Union man Or carry the Union gun" and attributes it to the Carter Family. He also mentions using the tune for his song "Going Down the Country." I was unable to find the Carter Family or anyone else doing it. I also contacted his nephew, Philip Steinmetz, who remembered the song but couldn't provide any more words or another source. |
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09 May 20 - 01:43 PM (#4051468) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Jeff Davis From: cnd This is really intriguing to me but I can't find anything about it. I really have my doubts the Carter Family did it -- they tended to be a lot more apolitical than that. Plus, like you said, I couldn't find the Carter Family singing it. I did also find this in a PDF about Merle Travis: As a kid, he absorbed the rich musical culture of his region. “There was music in the home, of course...then there was a fellow named Colie Addison who played the fiddle and he played the guitar and the old ‘tater bug’ mandolin, and that just sounded the purtiest that I ever heard, to me. And of course in home, whymy dad was a five string banjer picker. But he didn’t have a banjer and he talked about the old time banjer players... I remember he used to talk about a guy named Jim Winders who was a great banjo player. So finally my dad’s brother, named John, Uncle Johnny Travis, he got a five string banjo and Dad traded him out of it and brought it home and Dad, he’d play... pick it, you know, had two different ways, he called it knockin’ the banjer and then pickin’ the banjer. He’d sing songs... he’d sing ‘Jenny Weaver,’ and a song about Jeff Davis swore when the cruel war begun, I wouldn’t be the Union man and carry the Union gun, But I’d rather be the Union man and carry the Union gun than to be the rebel, the rebel had to run. “That was the words to the song he sung. And of course he sung some little old verses to ‘Ida Red’ and a bunch of stuff. Source (PDF will download on click) |
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09 May 20 - 02:33 PM (#4051485) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Jeff Davis From: GUEST,Starship That stanza shows up here also on P.136 https://books.google.ca/books?id=t3S4NAPF5KgC&pg=PA136&lpg=PA136&dq=But+I%E2%80%99d+rather+be+the+Union+man+and+carry+the+Union+ |
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09 May 20 - 04:01 PM (#4051500) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Jeff Davis From: GUEST,Starship Incidentally, the writers of the song for which we seem to have but one stanza were Moriah and Mintie Anthony according to the link in my last post. |
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09 May 20 - 04:54 PM (#4051509) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Jeff Davis From: cnd So, as was common in the Civil War, it's starting to look like this song drifted from person to person and side to side and changed a bit with their personal vantage points. I found here a reference to a song called "Lincoln Was a Union Man" by Dee Hicks, from the album Five Miles Out of Town: Traditional Music from the Cumberland Plateau. The lyrics from there were: Honor boys, honor, honor don’t you know War is ragin’, you’re all a-bound to go I’d rather be a Union man and carry a wooden gun Than to be a Rebel and always have to run Unfortunately, I can't find Hicks' recording online, but I found a cover of it from the folks over at banjohangout. I'll transcribe the lyrics and add them in a separate post, but from listening to the recording, you can tell it's the same rhythm. |
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09 May 20 - 04:56 PM (#4051510) Subject: Lyr Add: Lincoln Was a Union Man From: cnd From a recording made by banjohangout user hektic - cover of Dee Hicks Listen to the recording here A (little) more context here Lincoln was a Union man, Union man was he He was president and set the slaves all free Honor boys, honor, honor, don't you know War is raging and we all have to go Rather be a Union man, carry a wooden gun Than always be a rebel and always have to run |
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09 May 20 - 05:03 PM (#4051513) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Jeff Davis From: cnd Incidentally, I've just found the text to Dee Hicks' version, which isn't super different, also on banjohangout. Lincoln was a Union man, a Union man was he He was determined to set the darkies free Honor boys, honor, honor don't you know War is ragin', you're all a bound to go I'd rather be a Union man and carry a [wooden]? gun Than to be a Rebel and always have to run source: https://www.banjohangout.org/archive/160252 |