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John Henry

from Ballads and the Blues by T.C. Elliott

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about

John Henry’s story is a fable, a tall tale. It starts when he was three years old and ends when he single handedly beats a steam drill driving a train rail but dies from the exertion. It has all the elements of a Mark Twain story like ‘The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.’ It has a bet and a test (in this case a feat of strength.) It has exaggerated details and it is entertaining. Unlike the celebrated frog, John Henry seems to be based on a real life man who worked as a steel-driver in the early 1870’s. And he’s a hero, although a doomed one.
Why did John Henry die? Was it the evils of racism punishing minorities in poor working conditions? Was it the loyalty of a worker to his captain taken to an extreme? Was it bravado or a form of toxic masculinity that pushed a man to work himself to death? Was it simply pride? Or could it be some combination of all of these things? Whatever it was, it seems to be popular. There are many different versions from Mississippi John Hurt and Big Bill Broonzy to the Foggy Mountain Boys and Tennessee Ernie Ford, from Pete Seeger to a recent version by Billy Strings. This song seems to stand the weathering of time and continue to stay in popular (or semi-popular) culture. There is just something about this song that seems to strike a chord in the many performers and listeners throughout the past one hundred plus years.
My telling of the tale is taken loosely from the Pete Seeger version from the 1960’s. I’ve reworked the stanzas a bit and, of course, reduced it to something that I can perform.

lyrics

John Henry was about three days old
When he was sitting on his pappy’s knee
He picked up a hammer and a little piece of steel
Said, ‘This hammer’s gonna be the death of me, oh lord!
This hammer’s gonna be the death of me.’

John Henry went up on the mountain top
And he came down the other side
The mountain was so tall and John Henry was so small
That he laid down his hammer and he cried, oh, lord
He laid down his hammer and he cried

John Henry said to his Captain, ‘Go
Send some boys on into town.
Have them bring me back a twelve pound hammer, boss
And I’ll beat that steam drill on down, oh, lord.
I’ll beat that steam drill on down’

They placed John Henry on the right hand side
The steam drill to the left of that man
Said, “Before I let that steam drill beat me down
I’ll die with this hammer in my hand, oh, lord
I’ll die with this hammer in my hand.’

John Henry had a pretty little wife
She went by the name of Polly Ann
John Henry took sick and went to his bed
Polly Ann drove that steel like a man, oh, lord.
She drove that steel like a man

John Henry had a little baby boy
You could hold him in the palm of your hand
The last words I heard that poor boy say,
‘My daddy was a steel driving man, oh, lord
My daddy was a steel driving man.’

If you go to the mountains where he died
And you wait for the bluebirds to sing
You can hear John Henry a mile or more
You can hear John Henry’s hammer ring, oh, lord
You can hear John Henry’s hammer ring

credits

from Ballads and the Blues, released May 6, 2022
Traditional
Arranged by T.C. Elliott

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T.C. Elliott Columbia, Missouri

If Neil Young and The Holy Modal Rounders had a litter of baby songwriters then T.C. Elliott would be the runt of the litter.

T.C. has written over 1100 songs and at least one of them doesn't suck.

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