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This is the American Folk Songs Archive Page
- Down in the Valley (1)
- Spider's Web (1)
- Swing Low, Sweet Chariot (1)
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Contents
Posts
Songs from Right After the Slaves Were Freed in the US
Wednesday, May 27th, 2009The US government did a series of interviews with former slaves in the 1930’s. Project Gutenberg, has posted some of the interviews. They’re called “Slave Narratives – A Folk History of Slavery in the United States – From Interviews with Former Slaves”.
I found some songs in one of the the interviews that I thought were interesting. Below you can read excerpts from the interview, plus the songs. It was done in February 1937 with Mrs. Fannie Berry, Ex-slave from Petersburg, Virginia. The first part of the excerpt is about what happened to Mrs. Berry after the slaves were freed…
Now, Miss Sue, take up. I jes’ like to talk to you, honey ’bout dem days ob slavery; ’cause you look like you wan’ta hear all ’bout ‘em. All ’bout de ol’ rebels; an’ dem niggers who left wid de Yankees an’ were sat free, but, poor things, dey had no place to go after dey got freed. Baby, all us wuz helpless an’ ain’t had nothin’.
I wuz free a long time ‘fo’ I knew it. My Mistess still hired me out, ’til one day in talkin’ to de woman she hired me to, she, “God bless her soul”, she told me, “Fannie yo’ are free, an’ I don’t have to pay your Master for you now.” You stay with me. She didn’t give me no money, but let me stay there an’ work for vitals an’ clothes ’cause I ain’t had no where to go. Jesus, Jesus, God help us! Um, Um, Um! You Chillun don’t know. I didn’t say nothin’ when she wuz tellin’ me, but done ‘cided to leave her an’ go back to the white folks dat fus own me…
Here Mrs. Berry told some songs. The first one I found interesting because it has the “kemo kimo” sound that we find in some versions of Froggie Went a Courtin (which has Ki-Me-O in it)…
…here’s another one we use to sing. ‘Member de war done bin when we would sing dese songs. Listen now:
SONG
Kemo, Kimo, dar you are
Heh, ho rump to pume did’dle.
Set back pinkey wink,
Come Tom Nippecat
Sing song Kitty cat, can’t
You carry me o’er?(2)
Up de darkies head so bold
Sing song, Kitty, can’t you
Carry me O’er?
Sing Song, Kitty, can’t yo’
Carry me home?Here Mrs. Berry talked about the war and mentioned a song from the end when the slaves were finally free…
I wuz at Pamplin an’ de Yankees an’ Rebels were fightin’ an’ dey were wavin’ the bloody flag an’ a confederate soldier wuz upon a post an’ they were shootin’ terribly. Guns were firin’ everywhere.
All a sudden dey struck up Yankee Doodle Song. A soldier came along [and] called to me, “How far is it to the Rebels”, an I honey, wuz feared to tell him. So, I said, “I don’t know”. He called me again. Scared to death [I was]. I recollect gittin’ behind the house an’ pointed in the direction. You see, ef de Rebels knew dat I told the soldier, they would have killed me.
These were the Union men goin’ after Lee’s army which had don’ bin ‘fore dem to Appomattox.
The Colored regiment came up behind an’ when they saw the Colored regiment they put up the white flag. (Yo’ ‘member ‘fo’ dis red or bloody flag was up). Now, do you know why dey raised dat white flag? Well, honey, dat white flag wuz a token dat Lee, had surrendered. Glory! Glory! yes, child the Negroes are free, an’ when they knew dat dey were free dey, Oh! Baby! began to sing:
Mamy don’t yo’ cook no mo’,
Yo’ ar’ free, yo’ ar’ free.
Rooster don’t yo’ crow no mo’,
Yo’ ar’ free, yo’ ar’ free.
Ol’ hen, don’t yo’ lay no mo’ eggs,
Yo’ free, yo’ free.Sech rejoicing an’ shoutin’, you never he’rd in you’ life.
Yes, I can recollect de blowin’ up of the Crater. We had fled, but I do know ’bout the shellin’ of Petersburg. We left Petersburg when de shellin’ commenced an’ went to Pamplin in box cars, gettin’ out of de way. Dem were scared times too, cause you looked to be kilt any minute by stray bullets. Just before the shellin’ of Petersburg, dey were sellin’ niggers for little nothin’ hardly.
Junius Broadie, a white man bought some niggers, but dey didn’t stay slave long, cause de Yankees came an’ set ‘em free.
If you’re interested in reading more interviews, go to Project Gutenberg and look up “Work Projects Administration”.
Mama Lisa
The Hearse Song Animation for Halloween
Saturday, October 18th, 2008I’ve talked in the past about how all the kids in my neighborhood loved The Hearse Song when I was growing up. (We called the song The Worms Crawl In the Worms Crawl Out.) Evidently, we weren’t the only ones who loved this song. I’ve gotten many people writing in about the different versions of The Hearse Song they sang as kids.
Here’s an animation of a vampire singing the song from YouTube, for you to enjoy for Halloween. It’s followed by the lyrics to read along with while watching…
The Hearse Song
Didn’t you ever think, as a hearse goes by,
That you may be the next to die?They wrap you up in a big white sheet,
And bury you down in the 6 feet deep.They put you in a big black box,
And cover you up with dirt and rocks.And all goes well for about a week,
And then the coffin begins to leak.The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out,
The worms play pinochle on your snout.They eat your eyes, they eat your nose,
They eat the jelly between your toes.A great big worm with rolling eyes,
Crawls in your stomach and out your eyes.Your stomach turns a slimy green,
And puss pours out like whipping cream.You spread it on a slice of bread,
And that’s what the worms eat, when you are dead.Have a spooky Halloween!
Mama Lisa
New Recordings of Some American Songs
Wednesday, October 8th, 2008Heather was nice enough to send me a few recordings of some American children’s songs that she did. She sent me mp3’s of the following songs:
I’m Popeye the Sailor Man (Spoof)
Don’t Put Your Trash in My Backyard/Fish and Chips and Vinegar
Animal Fair
Home on the Range/Oh Give Me a Home (the regular song and a spoof version)
Mmm mmm Went the Little Green Frog One Day
Eeny Meeny DesimeenyYou can click the link the links to access each song page.
We always welcome recordings of traditional songs to post on Mama Lisa’s World. Heather wrote about how she recorded her mp3’s:
“I recorded these on my iPod, edited them in Audacity, then exported them from Audacity as mp3’s.”
They sound really good! Thanks for sending these Heather!
Mama Lisa
PS If you’re interested in learning more, check out a blog post I wrote in the past for more on Recording onto the Computer.
“Spider’s Web” – An American Folk Song
Tuesday, July 24th, 2007One goal of the Mama Lisa’s World sites is to help preserve traditional songs around the world. Sometimes songs have been remembered by a group through unexpected means. This seems to be the case with Spider’s Web.
Margaret B. was taught this song by her mother, who learnt it from her mother, who learnt it from her mother. In Margaret’s family, they sing it as a lullaby to the children.
According to Margaret, Spider’s Web originates with 19th century Kentucky settlers. The Girl Scout’s sang it as a camp song back in the 1960’s and 1970’s, thus helping to preserve it in many peoples’ memories.
Margaret recorded Spider’s Web and posted it on YouTube. Happily, she contacted me and let me post it on Mama Lisa’s World. Now we can all hear the song. Just click on the bar below to hear Margaret’s haunting rendition of Spider’s Web. I’ll post the lyrics below the video.
Spider’s Web
Down in the valley,
There is a mission,
By the old oak tree.
By the mission,
There is a fountain,
Where my love told me:There’s a web like a spider’s web,
Made of silk and light and shadows,*
Spun by the moon in my room at night.
It’s a web made to catch a dream,
Hold it tight ‘til I awaken,
As if to tell me, my dream is all right.In the evening,
I was leaving,
My love dreamt of me.
I was sleeping,
She was weeping,
When she said to me:There’s a web like a spider’s web,
Made of silk and light and shadows,
Spun by the moon in my room at night.
It’s a web made to catch a dream,
Hold it tight ‘til I awaken,
As if to tell me, my dream is all right.I met a stranger,
His name was Danger,
We rode side by side.
Down in Santa Fe,
I killed a man they say
Danger told me, “Ride!”There’s a web like a spider’s web,
Made of silk and light and shadows,
Spun by the moon in my room at night.
It’s a web made to catch a dream,
Hold it tight ‘til I awaken,
As if to tell me, my dream is all right.Now if I return,
They will hang me,
By the old oak tree,
Down by the mission,
Down by the fountain,
Where my love told me:There’s a web like a spider’s web,
Made of silk and light and shadows,
Spun by the moon in my room at night.
It’s a web made to catch a dream,
Hold it tight ‘til I awaken,
As if to tell me, my dream is all right.*This line can alternately be sung as, “Made of silver light and shadows”.
Many thanks to Margaret B. for sharing this song with us. You can see other YouTube videos by Margaret on her YouTube Home Page. Thanks also to Patsi for pointing out this song to me – which she remembered from Girl Scouts.
-Mama Lisa
Can Anyone Help with Lyrics to Where’s the Parson’s Cow?
Monday, February 5th, 2007I received this email just the other day:
I am new to looking into the internet but saw your site. I did not find the song I am looking for. It goes something like this, and I would love to have the words to the whole song.
Do you know the latest song, latest song, latest song?
All the village sings it wrong,
Where’s the Parson’s cow.Sing it now, sing it now,
Tell me where’s the Parson’s cow,
Sing it now, sing it now,
Oh where’s the Parson’s cow?(And the rest tells how the villagers use or have T-bone steaks, leather pouches, etc.)
Thank you for your creative site. I hope you can assist me with these words.
If anyone can help out with the lyrics to this song, please comment below.
Thanks!
Lisa
“There Was a Woman All Skin and Bone” Song with MP3
Sunday, October 29th, 2006I’ve been discussing the origin of the phrase “The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out”.
Yesterday, I posted the old nursery rhyme “There Was a Woman All Skin and Bone”, which contains the phrase.
Here’s another version of There Was a Woman All Skin and Bone, this one a song, (sung by me!). In this case the phrase is “The grubs crawled in, the grubs crawled out”. How and when it changed is a bit of a mystery.
MP3 of There Was a Woman All Skin and Bone
There Was a Woman All Skin and Bone
There was a woman all skin and bone
Oo-oo-oo!
Who lived in a cottage all on her own,
Oo-oo-oo!She thought she’d go to church one day
Oo-oo-oo!
To hear the parson preach and pray,
Oo-oo-oo!When she got to the wooden stile
Oo-oo-oo!
She thought she’d stay and rest a while
Oo-oo-oo!When she reached the old church door
Oo-oo-oo!
A ghastly ghost lay on the floor,
Oo-oo-oo!The grubs crawled in, the grubs crawled out,
Oo-oo-oo!
Of its ears, eyes, nose, and mouth.
Oo-oo-oo!Oh you ghastly ghost, she said,
Oo-oo-oo!
Shall I be like you when I am dead ?
YES!If anyone out there sings it differently, and would like to send other lyrics or a different rendition, I’d be happy to post it.
Happy Halloween Everybody!
Lisa
“Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” with an MP3 Recording
Wednesday, January 18th, 2006Swing Low, Sweet Chariot was created by Sarah Hannah Sheppard around 1847.
Sarah Hannah Sheppard, a slave in the south, sang this lullaby to her daughter Ella.
Around 1855, the woman who was Sarah’s slaveholder tricked 3 year old Ella into spying on Sarah. When Sarah found out, she was so distraught, that she decided to go down to the river to drown her daughter and herself. On the way, she came across an old slave women who told her not to do it. That God had need of the child. Touched by this, Sarah went back home with her daughter.
Ella went on to become one of the Fisk Jubilee Singers at Fisk University. One of the songs they sang was Swing Low, Sweet Chariot, which contributed greatly to the song’s popularity.
MP3 of Swing Low Sweet Chariot as performed by the Southern Four in 1924 and recorded by Thomas Edison.
Swing Low, Sweet Chariot
By Sarah Hannah SheppardSwing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.I looked over Jordan, and I what did I see
Coming for to carry me home?
A band of angels coming after me
Coming for to carry me home.Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.If you get there before I do
Coming for to carry me home
Tell all my friends I coming too
Coming for to carry me home.Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.I’m sometimes up, I’m sometimes down
Coming for to carry me home
But still my soul feels heavenly bound
Coming for to carry me home.Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.Sheet Music for Swing Low, Sweet Chariot
Come visit the Mama Lisa’s Folk Song Page for more Folk Songs from Around the World
“Turkey in the Straw” Lyrics
Thursday, November 17th, 2005Here’s another traditional song for Thanksgiving…
Turkey in the Straw
As I was a-goin’
On down the road
With a tired team
And a heavy load
I cracked my whip
And the leader sprung
I says day-day
To the wagon tongueTurkey in the straw
(Whistle)
Turkey in the straw
(Whistle)
Roll ‘em up and twist ‘em up
A high tuck a-haw
And hit ‘em up a tune called
Turkey in the StrawWent out to milk
And I didn’t know how
I milked the goat
Instead of the cow
A monkey sittin’
On a pile of straw
A-winkin’ at
His mother-in-lawTurkey in the straw
(Whistle)
Turkey in the straw
(Whistle)
Roll ‘em up and twist ‘em up
A high tuck a-haw
And hit ‘em up a tune called
Turkey in the StrawI came to the river
And I couldn’t get across
So I paid five dollars
For a big bay hoss
Well, he wouldn’t go ahead
And he wouldn’t stand still
So he went up and down
Like an old saw millTurkey in the straw
(Whistle)
Turkey in the straw
(Whistle)
Roll ‘em up and twist ‘em up
A high tuck a-haw
And hit ‘em up a tune called
Turkey in the StrawDid you ever go fishin’
On a warm summer day
When all the fish
Were swimmin’ in the bay
With their hands in their pockets
And their pockets in their pants
Did you ever see a fishie
Do the Hootchy-Kootchy Dance?Turkey in the straw
(Whistle)
Turkey in the straw
(Whistle)
Roll ‘em up and twist ‘em up
A high tuck a-haw
And hit ‘em up a tune called
Turkey in the StrawCome visit Mama Lisa’s Thanksgiving Pages for more Thanksgiving Songs, Poems, Nursery Rhymes and Recipes.
A Thanksgiving Poem
Thursday, November 3rd, 2005Thanksgiving Poem, which later became the song Over the River and Through the Woods, plus how the writer of the poem was a real-life heroine
When November comes, life becomes a whirlwind of activity. In the middle of it all, we start thinking about what we have to be thankful for. I’m thankful we have role models like Lydia Maria Child (1802 – 1880), who wrote the Thanksgiving Poem, best known as the song Over the River and Through the Woods.
Child was a well known author during the time leading up to the Civil War. She wrote a periodical for kids and popular books for housewives with tips to help manage their households. In 1835 she wrote The History of the Condition of Women in Various Ages and Nations that was later an inspiration to women suffragists.
In 1833 she published An Appeal in Favor of that Class of Americans Called Africans, which called for the immediate emancipation of all slaves. This hurt her career. However, she continued to write in favor of emancipation, in favor of the rights of Native Americans, and in favor of equal rights for women.
Lydia Maria Child truly was someone who stood by what she believed was right, regardless of the consequences to herself. She’s a wonderful role model for children today.
Here’s a short version of the song, followed by the full poem…
Over the River and Through the Woods
Over the river and through the woods
To grandmother’s house we go!
The horse knows the way
To carry the sleigh,
Through bright and drifting snow, oh!
Over the river and through the woods
Oh, how the wind doth blow!
It stings the toes and bites the nose,
As over the hills we go.The New England Boy’s Thanksgiving Poem
(Over the River and Through the Woods)
by Lydia Maria ChildOver the river, and through the wood,
To grandfather’s house we go!
The horse knows the way,
To carry the sleigh,
Through the white and drifted snow.Over the river, and through the wood,
To Grandfather’s house away!
We would not stop for doll or top,
For this is Thanksgiving Day.Over the river, and through the wood,
Oh, how the wind does blow!
It stings the toes,
And bites the nose,
As over the ground we go.Over the river, and through the wood,
With a clear blue winter sky,
The dogs do bark,
And children hark,
As we go jingling by.Over the river, and through the wood,
To have a first-rate play.
Hear the bells ring, “Ting-a-ling-ling!”
Hurray for Thanksgiving Day!Over the river, and through the wood,
No matter for winds that blow,
Or if we get
The sleigh upset,
Into a bank of snow.Over the river, and through the wood,
To see little John and Ann.
We will kiss them all,
And play snow-ball,
And stay as long as we can.Over the river, and through the wood,
Trot fast, my dapple grey!
Spring over the ground,
Like a hunting hound!
For this is Thanksgiving day!Over the river, and through the wood,
And straight through the barn-yard gate,
We seem to go
Extremely slow,
It is so hard to wait!Over the river, and through the wood,
Old Jowler hears our bells,
He shakes his pow,
With a loud bow-wow,
And thus the news he tells.Over the river, and through the wood,
When Grandmother sees us come,
She will say, “Oh, dear,
The children are here,
bring a pie for every one.”Over the river, and through the wood,
Now grandmother’s cap I spy!
Hurrah for the fun!
Is the pudding done?
Hurrah for the pumpkin pie!Happy Thanksgiving!
-Lisa
Here’s Mama Lisa’s Thanksgiving Page with more Thanksgiving Songs, Poems, Nursery Rhymes and Recipes.
Lyrics to Down in the Valley aka Spider’s Web – An American Folk Song
Monday, October 3rd, 2005Patsi wrote me,
I used to sing this a long time ago but I only remember the chorus. We sang this at Girl Scout Camp…
Down in the Valley
Down in the valley,
There is a mission
Down by the old oak tree
Down by the mission,
There is a fountain
Where my love told me:There’s a web like a spider’s web
Made of silver light and shadows
Spun by the moon in my room at night
It’s a web made to catch a dream
Hold it tight ’til I awaken
As if to tell me my dream is all rightOn the evening
I was leaving
My love dreamed of me
I was sleeping,
She was weeping
When she said to me:There’s a web like a spider’s web
Made of silver light and shadows
Spun by the moon in my room at night
It’s a web made to catch a dream
Hold it tight ‘til I awaken
As if to tell me my dream is all rightI met a stranger,
His name was Danger
We rode side by side
Way down in Santa Fe,
I killed a man they say
Danger told me, “Ride!”There’s a web like a spider’s web
Made of silver light and shadows
Spun by the moon in my room at night
It’s a web made to catch a dream
Hold it tight ‘til I awaken
As if to tell me my dream is all rightAnd now if I return,
They will hang me
High from the old oak tree
Down by the mission,
Down by the fountain
Where my love told me:There’s a web like a spider’s web
Made of silver light and shadows
Spun by the moon in my room at night
It’s a web made to catch a dream
Hold it tight ‘til I awaken
As if to tell me my dream is all right.Enjoy!
Lisa
UPDATE: I’ve learnt that the song above is most commonly called Spider’s Web. Down in the Valley is a different American Folk Song.
Please go to Mama Lisa’s World’s USA Page for more American songs.
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