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Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)

02 Aug 00 - 09:21 PM (#270698)
Subject: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me"
From: GUEST,Ketil

Looking for the lyrics to an old song. Chorus went: You aint talkin to me , oh you aint talkin to me I may be crazy and stuff like that but I got good sense you see Oh you aint talkin to me, you aint talkin to me You take the gun I'd rather run , and you aint talkin to me Or something along those lines. Think it might be an old Uncle Dave Macon tune?

03 Aug 00 - 02:49 AM (#270847)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: The Shambles

Is it a Charlie Poole song?

05 Aug 00 - 10:31 AM (#271882)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: GUEST,Ketil

Could be, I heard it at a jam session and liked it , but can't find too much info on it. Ketil

05 Aug 00 - 12:33 PM (#271915)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: The Shambles

I do have it one a CD by the Highwoods String Band. If no one beats me to it I will post them.

05 Aug 00 - 12:47 PM (#271918)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: GUEST,jimm

It's on a Volo Bogtrotters CD. Steve Rosen I think sings it.

05 Aug 00 - 08:43 PM (#272076)
Subject: Lyr Add: YOU AIN'T TALKIN' TO ME (Charlie Poole)
From: Stewie

Here's Charlie Poole's version as transcribed by Kinney Rorrer "Life and Songs of Charlie Poole." Rorrer noted that the song was written as a Broadway show tune in 1909 by Mat Marshall and Shelton Brooks. The original song had 5 verses, but Poole used only the last two. Poole's tune also differs somewhat from the original.

YOU AIN'T TALKIN' TO ME
As recorded by Charlie Poole with the North Carolina Ramblers

I went up to a lady's house to bum a bite to eat.
She fed me on some pork and beans and pie. I called it sweet.
She says, "Now, Bill, I sure did feed you good.
Would you walk out in my backyard and chop a stick of wood?"

CHORUS: You ain't talkin' to me. No, you ain't a-talkin' to me.
I may be crazy and all like that, but I've got good sense, you see.
You ain't talkin' to me. No, you ain't a-talkin' to me.
You fed me good but I can't cut wood, and you ain't a-talkin' to me.

(Repeat above chorus)

Now, me and my wife has ups and downs all through our married life.
Said to me one day, "Bill, let's stop these scars and strife."
Then went out upon the lake one evening just about dusk,
Says, "Now We'll drown ourselves. No one to grieve for us."

CHORUS: You ain't a-talkin' to me. No, you ain't a-talkin' to me.
I may be crazy and all like that, but I got good sense, you see.
You ain't a-talkin' to me. No, you ain't a-talkin' to me.
When the lake goes dry, it's time to die, and you ain't a-talkin' to me.

(Repeat above chorus.)

Source: Charlie Poole with the North Carolina Ramblers "You Ain't Talkin' to Me" Co 15193-D, recorded 25 July 1927 in New York. Reissued on Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers "Old Time Song" County CO-CD-3501.

PS. I couldn't find the original song at the Levy site, but it could be at one of the other sheet music sites.

--Stewie.

05 Aug 00 - 08:47 PM (#272077)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: RWilhelm

Stewie,

I've seen references to the book about Charlie Poole but I haven't been able to find it. Is it still in print? Do you know where I can get a copy?

05 Aug 00 - 09:11 PM (#272085)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: Stewie

Earl,

It was published in 1982 in the Old Time Music Booklet series as booklet #3 in a subsidiary project by Tony Russell's Old Time Music magazine. The magazines and booklets are long gone. Your only hope would be to find a secondhand copy somewhere.

Cheers, Stewie.

05 Aug 00 - 09:13 PM (#272088)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: RWilhelm

Thanks Stewie, there are some good sources on the net, I'll keep looking.

05 Aug 00 - 09:14 PM (#272092)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: Stewie

Earl, I should have mentioned that the full title of the booklet is: 'Rambling Blues: The Life & Songs of Charlie Poole'.

--Stewie.

05 Aug 00 - 09:17 PM (#272098)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: RWilhelm

Thanks again.

07 Aug 00 - 07:19 PM (#273203)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: GUEST,Ketil

Thanks for the help,those are indeed two of the verses I have heard, there is another about bear hunting which has the chorus I posted. Its a start :) Cheers, Ketil

08 Aug 00 - 03:04 PM (#273694)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: Jim Krause

Mac Benford is credited on the old LP No. 3 Special by the Highwoods Stringband as having written the verse that goes:

Me and my buddy Jake Went huntin' on a sunny day.
We run into a big ol' bear And he would not go away.
Jake says to me "Now Bill, We'll need some help, it's clear.
So I'll run back and get the boys, and you just keep him here."

Chorus: You ain't talkin' to me. You ain't talkin' to me.
I may be crazy, and all like that, But I got good sense you see.
You ain't talkin' to me, No, you ain't talkin' to me.
You hold the gun, I'd rather run. You ain't talkin' to me.

I think that is one of the funniest verses in the song. Soddy

09 Aug 00 - 02:14 PM (#274386)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: GUEST,Scott B

I have heard a rumor that Rambling Blues has recently been reprinted, but I have yet to find it. Also, until August 15th County Records is offering all of its releases for $10 when you buy four or more. If you order by phone or from their website, countysales.com, and mention code 77 you can get this deal for 6 more days. I have found some excellent music on this label, especially the three volumes of Charlie Poole and the N.C. Ramblers. Boy, were they good. Scott B from VA.

21 Sep 01 - 12:55 PM (#555894)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: GutBucketeer

This is one of my favorite songs. I found an old recording of Wendell Hall singing it, and also the Highwoods String Band.

Does anyone have the chords?

JAB

P.S. Seems to me this would be a great Jug Band tune too.

20 Nov 02 - 10:54 AM (#830725)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: GutBucketeer

I'm still looking for the chords to "You Ain't Talking to Me". I'd really appreciate them.

Thanks

20 Nov 02 - 06:49 PM (#831120)
Subject: RE: Lyric request 'You ain't talkin to me
From: masato sakurai

"You Ain't Talkin' To Me" by Charlie Poole With The North Carolina Ramblers [recording] is here (at Honkingduck).

20 Nov 02 - 11:20 PM (#831319)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You ain't talkin to me
From: GutBucketeer

I have the recordings by Charlie Poole, Wendell Hall, and the Highwoods string band. I'm just not a good enough musician yet, to figure out the chords on my own, and be sure they are right.

JAB

21 Nov 02 - 10:43 AM (#831638)
Subject: Chords Add: YOU AIN'T TALKIN' TO ME
From: GUEST,Pete Peterson

Try this:
I went (I) up to a lady's house to bum (IV) a bite to eat (I)
She (I) fed me on pork and beans and pie (V) and coffee sweet,
She said (I) now Bill I sure (IV)did feed you good (I)
Will you (I) go out to my back yard and chop (V) a stick of wood (I)

YOU (I) ain't talking to me, no you (IV) ain't talking to me (I)
I may (I) be crazy and all like that but I got (II) good sense you see (V)
You (I) ain't talking to me, no you (IV) ain't talking to me (I)
You fed (IV) me good but I can't (I) chop wood
and you (V) ain't talking to me.

A long time ago I wrote this verse for my friend Kate Spencer, who started the Arthur E. Smith Banjo Company (don't ask) :

If you should buy a banjo with a maple leaf on top
And dog tooth marks all down the neck it could come from just one shop
But when it falls apart you'll find no guarantee exists
You'll call, they'll say "I'm sorry Sir there's no one here named Smith"

. . . if the neck's askew, the joke's on you and you ain't talking to me

21 Nov 02 - 01:16 PM (#831796)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You ain't talkin to me
From: GutBucketeer

Thank you, Thank You, Thank You !!!!

01 Jan 03 - 11:17 PM (#857007)
Subject: Lyr Add: YOU AIN'T TALKING TO ME (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GutBucketeer

At last, I found the original 1909 sheet music at the Smithsonian's American History Museum Archive Center. The tune is totally different from what Charlie Poole sings. The lyrics from the sheet music are shown below:


YOU AIN'T TALKING TO ME
Words by Mat Marshall, music by Shelton Brooks, 1909.

1. We all remember childhood days and the good times that we had,
The many jokes we used to play on Mother and sometimes on Dad.
When Dad sat down upon a tack, he jumped up with pain and cried:
"You're a bad, bad boy; now come straight to me." I tremblingly replied:

CHORUS: “You ain't talking to me; you ain't talking to me.
I may be foolish and all of that, but that's not my fault, you see.
You ain't talking to me; you ain't talking to me.”
To the woodshed we'd repair; Papa spanked me you know where.
“No, you ain't talking to me.”

2. Now I was sick December last; I had fierce pains in my head.
The doctor said: “You've got the grippe, and it's quite serious I'm 'fraid.”
He said the only cure would be to bathe in water cold.
Then I said to Doc: “I will not get well; I'll never be so bold.

CHORUS: “You ain't talking to me; you ain't talking to me.
I may be foolish and all of that, but I got good sense, you see.
You ain't talking to me; you ain't talking to me.
No doubt I got the grippe; no cold water will I dip.
Oh, you ain't talking to me.”

3. I met a lady just last week, and her name was Lindy Lee.
To tell the truth, she was a dream; I tell you, she looked good to me.
She said: “It's leap year, and you know, you're the man I'd like to wed.”
But when I found out she had ten kids, to her I quickly said:

CHORUS: “You ain't talking to me; you ain't talking to me.
I may be foolish and all of that, but I’ve got good sense, you see.
You ain't talking to me; you ain't talking to me.”
I liked the lady's bids, but she had too many kids.
“Oh, you ain't talking to me.”

4. I went one day to a lady's house just to get a bite to eat.
She gave me lots of pork and beans and lots of pie, called "minsus" meat.
When I got through, said she to me: “Now I hope I've fed you good.
Won't you go, for me, out in our back yard and saw that cord of wood?”

CHORUS: “You ain't talking to me; you ain't talking to me.
I may look foolish and all of that, but I’ve got good sense, you see.
You ain't talking to me; you ain't talking to me.
Your food was very good, but I couldn't saw the wood,
So you ain't talking to me.”

5. My wife and I had ups and downs all through our married life
She said there was no use of us goin' through this toil and strife.
We took a walk along the lake one evening just 'bout dusk
When she said to me, "Let us drown ourselves; no one will grieve ‘bout us."

CHORUS: “You ain't talking to me; you ain't talking to me.
I may look foolish and all of that, but I’ve got good sense, you see.
You ain't talking to me; you ain't talking to me.
But when the lake gets dry, that's time enough to die,
So you ain't talking to me.”

Source: Will Rossiter Publishers, Chicago, Ill. 1909
The Sam DeVincent Collection of Illustrated American Sheet Music
Smithsonian Institution American History Museum Archive Center

06 Jun 17 - 02:37 AM (#3859156)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GUEST,Gerry

There's a three CD compilation called You Ain't Talkin' To Me. It's a bit more than half Charlie Poole, the rest puts Poole in a context of his predecessors and those who carried on his music after him.

Bob Dylan quotes the song in his Nobel Prize speech.

06 Jun 17 - 02:55 PM (#3859287)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GUEST,guesttev

Where is Dylan's quote found in Charlie Poole's singing?

06 Jun 17 - 03:23 PM (#3859293)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: Mrrzy

hee hee it's a cord of wood

I have this on Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers Vol II, can I send the mp3?

06 Jun 17 - 11:50 PM (#3859336)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GUEST,Gerry

guestlev, here's an excerpt from Dylan's speech:

Charlie Poole from North Carolina had a song that connected to all this. It's called "You Ain't Talkin' to Me," and the lyrics go like this:

I saw a sign in a window walking up town one day.
Join the army, see the world is what it had to say.
You'll see exciting places with a jolly crew,
You'll meet interesting people, and learn to kill them too.
Oh you ain't talkin' to me, you ain't talking to me.
I may be crazy and all that, but I got good sense you see.
You ain't talkin' to me, you ain't talkin' to me.
Killin' with a gun don't sound like fun.
You ain't talkin' to me.

Now, I have found various websites giving the lyrics of Poole's song, and they don't all give the same set of stanzas, but I don't think I found any that give this stanza. So maybe Dylan was confused, or maybe I just haven't found the right website, I don't know.

06 Jun 17 - 11:53 PM (#3859337)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GUEST,Gerry

Maybe this explains it, if you speak Italian:
https://www.antiwarsongs.org/canzone.php?id=8269&lang=en

07 Jun 17 - 03:10 AM (#3859352)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GUEST,Gerry

I've taken a closer look at that Italian website, and though I can't understand Italian, I can click on links, and they took me to ... wait for it ... Mudcat! Back in 2002, in a thread on Draft Dodging Songs, Jim Krause wrote, "Some verses I once penned to Charlie Poole's You Ain't Talkin' to Me" and there, lo and behold, are the verses Dylan included in his Nobel speech! So either Jim Krause was claiming to have written verses actually due to Poole, or else Dylan got fooled into thinking that Poole had sung the verses that were actually written many years later by Krause (I suppose there are other possibilities, but these seem the most likely).

It would be hilarious if some original lyrics posted to Mudcat made their way, misattributed, into a Nobel Prize speech. The Mudcat thread is here:
http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=54088

14 Jun 17 - 03:12 PM (#3860876)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GUEST

Hello,
I am the webmaster from antiwarsongs.org website.

You are right. We found the lyrics on mudcat and included them in the website and misattributed them to Charlie Poole without noticing that Jim Krause claimed to have written new lyrics to the tune of a song with completely different lyrics.

Do you know if these lyrics are actually written by Jim Krause. Is there any way to contact him?

It would be really hilarious if Dylan took the lyrics from his speech on mudcat or on our website!

14 Jun 17 - 11:04 PM (#3860954)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GUEST,Gerry

Guest from antiwarsongs.org, there is a musician named Jim Krause who has a website, http://jimkrausemusic.com – I don't know whether this is the same Jim Krause who posted to mudcat in 2002, but I reckon it's worth a try. I hope that if you find anything out, you'll come back here to tell the rest of us about it.

15 Jun 17 - 02:10 AM (#3860956)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GUEST

It is the very same Jim Krause indeed, and I was able to contact him through his website. Here's his mail address: And yes, he did record these lyrics way back in the 80s with the Alferd Packer Memorial String Band, on their first album "Friends For Lunch". Will somebody please post this recording on Youtube, please!

Cheers from Basel, Switzerland

Martin Schaefer

15 Jun 17 - 03:26 PM (#3861073)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GUEST,Lorenzo Masetti

Please check the news on our website,
https://www.antiwarsongs.org/canzone.php?id=8269&lang=en

The lyrics that Dylan quotes were recorded by Jim Krause with The Alferd Packer Memorial String Band in 1985 and published in the LP "Friends for Lunch". ‎
https://www.discogs.com/Alferd-Packer-Memorial-String-Band-Friends-For-Lunch/release/5967221

17 Jun 17 - 09:00 PM (#3861503)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GUEST,Jim Krause

Yup. It's all true. And I'm the culprit. I used to post here quite regularly. And that was long, long ago. So I hope that clears everything up.

18 Jun 17 - 08:32 AM (#3861563)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GUEST,Gerry

The only things that aren't clear to me are how Dylan came to hear or see those two verses, and how he didn't know they weren't in Charlie Poole's version.

19 Jun 17 - 06:08 PM (#3861804)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GUEST,Lorenzo Masetti

Dear Gerry, I would not be surprised if Dylan knew perfectly that the verses he was quoting are not by Charlie Poole but a parody. It's not the first time that Dylan misquotes on purpose. Do you remember his speech at the Grammy Awards in 1991? The quote that he attributed to his father was actually a commentary of Rabbi Shimshon Rafael Hirsch (the spiritual leader of traditional Jewry in Germany in the mid 19th century) to the Psalm 27
http://www.radiohazak.com/Dylgramm.html

30 Jun 18 - 06:22 PM (#3934465)
Subject: Lyr Add: YOU AIN'T TALKIN' TO ME (Highwoods String
From: GUEST,Peter

Here is a version from The Highwoods String Band, very similar to other versions posted.

YOU AIN'T TALKIN' TO ME
As recorded by The Highwoods String Band on "Feed Your Babies Onions" (1994)

I went up to a lady's house to beg a bite to eat.
She fed me on some pork and beans and pie and coffee sweet.
She says: "Now Bill, I sure did feed you good.
Will you step out in my backyard and chop a stack of wood?"

(Oh) You ain't talkin' to me; you ain't talkin' to me.
I may be crazy and all like that, but I got good sense you see.
You ain't talkin' to me; you ain't talkin' to me.
You fed me good but I can't chop wood; you ain't talkin' to me.

(Oh) Me and my wife had ups and downs all through our married life.
She says to me one day: "Bill, let's stop this sorrow and strife."
We went upon the lake one evening just about dusk.
She says: "Now Bill, We'll drown ourselves. No one will grieve for us."

(Oh) You ain't talkin' to me; you ain't talkin' to me.
I may be crazy and all like that, but I got good sense you see.
You ain't talkin' to me; you ain't talkin' to me.
When the lake runs dry, it's time to die; you ain't talkin' to me.

Out hunting with my buddy Jake on a bright and sunny day,
I run into a big ol' bear and he would not go away.
Jake says: "He's powerful big. We'll need some help, its clear.
I'll run back and get the boys and you just keep him here."

(Oh) You ain't talkin' to me; you ain't talkin' to me.
I may be crazy and all like that, but I got the good sense you see.
You ain't talkin' to me; you ain't talkin' to me.
You hold the gun; I'd rather run. You ain't talkin' to me.

15 Oct 18 - 04:44 PM (#3956801)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: You Ain't Talkin' to Me (Marshall/Brooks)
From: GUEST,Lorenzo

On the official website of The Alferd Packer Memorial String Band you can listen to the original recording from the LP “Friends for Dinner”.

http://www.alferdpackerband.com/?p=361