This is a catchy melody that surfaced in the minstrel show context.
The Minstrel show which featured the banjo was developed as an American form of entertainment in the early 1800’s and by 1848 it was a very popular national art form. It lasted as a professional entertainment until about 1910 but by then vaudeville had for the most part replaced it.
Although minstrel shows were very popular from the very start until after the civil war, they were immediately controversial for at least two reasons. First the shows performed predominantly by whites in blackface mocked African-Americans and, secondly, they presented a set of stereotyped African American characters: the Mammy, The Dandy, and so forth.
Minstrels claimed that their music was of authentic black origin as was, of course, the banjo itself. I, myself, believe this to be the case, and this is the reason that I think we can appreciate the music and reject the minstrel show presentation of this music and the lyrics as vulgar and having no merit.
“Get Up in The Morning” is known from “Briggs’ Banjo Instructor” (1855) in notation and also appears in tablature form in Josheph Weidlich’s re-edited version of it called "Minstrel Banjo , Briggs Banjo Instruction". As mentioned in the Publisher's Preface in Briggs, "This book contains may choice melodies which the author learned when at the south from the negroes."
Timothy Twiss, an authority on minstrel music, plays it here. I am indebted to him for the lyrics.
Bob Flesher plays it here (see below). His reference to Billy Whitlock writing it in 1840 is controversial, particularly as Whitlock, himself, claimed that he often would “quietly steal off” to hear black musicians play.
And Richard, all you have to do to make your links clikable is to select the Rich Text option when posting, find the little icon that looks like a paper clip, and copy and past your url to the box provided. I know that you can manage this because even I can do it!
Thanks for an old minstrel tune, Richard. Tim Twiss sure knows his minstrelsy banjo. Bob Fletcher is a delightful performer, too. He mentioned that Bill Whitlock learned this tune from Joel Sweeney and apparently popularized it.
I also think it sounds like Blue Tail Fly with Jimmy crack corn lyrics -- another minstrel song I believe. I used Joe Weidlich's tab to make a clawhammer arrangement. And here's the entire Brigg's books on-line: Brigg's Banjo Instructor, 1855 which has our tune on page 14.
Listen to BHO members BD's great version. He says he got up before the kids to record this in 2013.
And here's Christopher Olson slow and pretty Get Up in the Morning:
I enjoyed every instrumental version posted here, but this is a song and it really comes alive when Tim Twiss plays AND sings it. His playing and singing complement each other really well, and the music just flows out of him here.
