Statue of John Henry outside the town of Talcott in Summers County, West Virginia
A sign by the C&O railway line near Talcott, West Virginia.
This week's tune is the folk classic "John Henry," sometimes called "The Ballad of John Henry." Nobody really seems to agree if John Henry was a real person or just a "tall tale" like Paul Bunyan, and nobody seems to know who wrote the tune originally. But it tells the story of John Henry, a steel drivin' man who wouldn't let the steam drill beat him at his job. In the end, John beat the steam drill, but he "broke his po' heart" and died beating it. You can read more about the folklore behind this here.
This tune is traditionally played by Scruggs players in the key of D, in D tuning. But I've heard it performed in just about every key from F (Pete Seeger did it here at least once) up to D.
Note: this was actually the TOTW in the clawhammer forum last week (see the topic here)--funny how things work out! Visit that topic for more information and links to discussions of this tune.
Lyrics
There are many variations on the lyrics to this tune... here is one from toneway.com
When John Henry was a little baby
A sitting on his papa's knee
He picked up a hammer and a little piece of steel
Said, "Hammer's gonna be the death of me," Lord, Lord
"Hammer's gonna be the death of me."
Well, the captain said to John Henry
Gonna bring me a steam drill 'round
Gonna bring me a steel drill out on the job
Gonna whup that steel on down,...
John Henry said to his captain
"A man ain't nothin' but a man
And before I let that steel drill beat me down
I'll die with a hammer in my hand,...
John Henry was driving on the mountain
And his hammer was flashing fire
And the last words I heard that poor boy say
"Gimme cool drink of water 'fore I die,...
John Henry said to his shaker
"Shaker, why don't you sing?"
"I'm a throwin' nine pounds from my hips on down
Just listen to that cold steel ring,...
John Henry said to his shaker
"Shaker, why don't you pray?"
"'Cause if I miss this little piece of steel
Tomorrow be your burying day,...
John Henry, he drove fifteen feet
The steam drill only made nine
But he hammered so hard that he broke his po' heart
And he laid down his hammer and he died,...
They took John Henry to the graveyard
And they buried him in the sand
And every locomotive comes a roaring by, says
"There lies a steel driving man",...
Learn the Tune
Casey Henry's Murphy Method lesson is available for $6 through 2/22/14. Casey teaches you her own arrangement of the tune (since there isn't really a standard break for this) in the key of G. Get it here >
John Boulding has created a lesson for playing backup for this tune. Cost is $5, and you can get it here >
I've included a Grooveshark playlist of several versions.
BIAB backing tracks included below, along with a chord chart in D.
Eric, You are a very kind and generous individual, with mad computer skills, to collate all these great resources and backup tracks the way you do weekly. Believe me it does not go unnoticed and is much appreciated! Once again a wealth of material to learn a great old song! A HUGE thank you! Brian M
Eric, You are a very kind and generous individual, with mad computer skills, to collate all these great resources and backup tracks the way you do weekly. Believe me it does not go unnoticed and is much appreciated! Once again a wealth of material to learn a great old song! A HUGE thank you! Brian M
You're very welcome, Brian. I actually really enjoy putting these TOTW together, because it forces me to learn about a particular tune, and helps me to learn at least 1 new tune a week. Lots of other folks seem to find it useful as well, so it's a win-win!
John Boulding has created a lesson for playing backup for this tune. Cost is $5, and you can get it here >
If there's enough interest in these backup videos John will make one for each week's tune, which is great because learning the backup means you're that much closer to really learning the tune (see #5 on my list).
John Boulding has created a lesson for playing backup for this tune. Cost is $5, and you can get it here >
If there's enough interest in these backup videos John will make one for each week's tune, which is great because learning the backup means you're that much closer to really learning the tune (see #5 on my list).
The addition of John's backup video is great. I wonder if we can get a sample to see the difficulty level of what he covers? Inquiring minds want to know! Maybe John can chime in here himself when he reads this to let us know what's in the video. Thanks!
Not sure if I'm qualified to answer, gospelman and John will probably reply also but he goes from basic vamping to adding licks and how to pick spots to drop in licks and all spots in between.
Great video and something I'm very interested in learning.
Hey all you TOTW'ers, I am glad to be a part of this thread! My back up contribution will be a graduated approach. What I am doing is starting with some basic concepts, like vamping and rolling, then adding some cup,exits to that then moving into more advanced things like licks. Hopefully this will mean one video can serve lots of folks, who are at different skill levels, a far as backup goes.
It would take a massive video to explain each standard Scruggs lick, so the purpose of the vids won't be to explain each lick, each time, but to explain how, why and where to use any lick you know or will learn. Please feel free to offer some insight and feedback on them, or email me about them.
Casey does a great job on her videos,as does jack on his tablature. Hopefully my vids will add that third "punch" to help you knock out the song from all angles, lead and backup.
