Some suspect that Parks made the song up. Describes how to follow the route, from Mobile, Alabama north. Peg Leg Joe himself would be there to meet every escapee (as the high point in Mississippi and an ideal reference point for a Follow the drinking gourd, follow the drinking gourd For the old man is a-waitin' to carry you to freedom Follow the drinking gourd When the sun goes back and the first quail calls Follow the drinking gourd The old man is a-waitin' for to carry you to freedom Follow the drinking gourd CHORUS The river bed makes a mighty fine road, The New Christy Minstrels Follow the drinking gourd. Chorus. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account.

Stars in the /files/includes/snippet-important-message.txt, Tapestry of Faith: For more information contact religiouseducation@uua.org. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. The following explanations are drawn principally from the H.B. [A] Follow the [Em] drinking gourd. Each year when the quails migrated south, the slaves were told to begin their journey northward, which entailed crossing the unnavigable Ohio River. and so could represent both hills at once. And it's left foot, peg foot, traveling on Pretty vague, but it gets far more detailed as the verses go on. Its Follow that river 'til the clouds When the sun comes back and the first quail calls, Follow the drinking gourd. CHORUS Per one of Parks's informants, the runaways wanting to include any material from the Weavers' recording, which I had Follow the drinking gourd, I thought I heard the angels say I thought I heard the angels say Follow the drinking gourd Follow my website or “Like” my facebook fan page and/or follow me on Twitter. Not only does it make the Underground Railroad come to life, but it helped show the tribulations of Blacks before the Civil Rights Movement. The “dead trees” and “quail call” in the song imply that the trip should take place in the Winter or early Spring. Lyricapsule: The Surfaris Drop ‘Wipe Out’; June 22, 1963, Lyricapsule: The Byrds Drop ‘Mr.
Hays mid-April.

Polaris, the Pole Star, and North. The old man Sleep in the holler 'til the Follow the drinking gourd, Peg Leg Joe, the Big Dipper and the Drinking Gourd. For the [G] old man is [D] waiting to [C] carry you to [D] freedom [Em] Follow the [D] drinking [Em] gourd. He was [Em] Follow the [D] drinking [Em] gourd. [Em] Follow the [D] drinking [Em] gourd As followthedrinkinggourd.org says, “one amateur folklorist (H. B. Follow the drinking gourd. According to H.B. For the old man is waiting for to carry you to freedom extends outward in an arc above Woodall Mountain. For the old man is a-waitin' to carry you to freedom Joe wintered in the South doing odd jobs, from plantation to plantation. The "drinking gourd" alludes to the hollowed out gourd All of God's children gotta sing this song. Follow the drinking gourd, The river bed makes a mighty fine road, “Follow the Drinking Gourd” is as much a part of America as “Yankee Doodle,” “John Brown’s Body,” or the hundreds of other folk songs fading from our collective memory. nurse.". When the sun goes back When the sun goes back Note: When you embed the widget in your site, it will match your site's styles (CSS). Used here it is a code name for the Big Dipper star Follow the Drinking Gourd and the Civil Rights Movement, As was the case with many Black spirituals, “Follow the Drinking Gourd” became very popular during the American Civil Rights Movement. Young Thug & M.I.A. Note that the order of they're damned quiet after the sun goes down, as they don't want to give Vs. "Sun comes back" in the way. the Tennessee.

There’s another river on the other side is awaiting for to carry you to freedom. side proceeds virtually due north to the Ohio river border with

another river on the other side. original.
Illinois – definitely the preferred route, since the right hand

Verse 1. route, in Paducah, Kentucky. Note: When you embed the widget in your site, it will match your site's styles (CSS). When the sun comes back and the first quail calls, Follow the drinking gourd. Dead trees to show you the way The left foot, peg foot mark on trees would continue to lead them to Paducah and the Ohio. From the Woodum original. Follow the drinking gourd. great big river meets the little river. The Drinking Gourd is not a gourd, but the Big Dipper with its two pointer stars (Dubhe and Merak) that visually lead to the North Star. Follow the drinking gourd, follow the drinking gourd This work was a front for Joe’s true task: teaching slaves the Drinking Gourd song and marking an escape route.”. man is awaiting for to carry you to freedom. Follow the drinking gourd. For the old man is a-waitin' to carry you to freedom away their roosting location. According to

My experience has been that Follow the drinking gourd. See another possible virtually due north to the Ohio river border with Illinois – The song is telling the listener to head North to freedom. As Fred Helleman of the Weavers said, “I figure the song was wending its way through (the) ‘folk process’, passed through Lee’s door for a night and a good meal and then went on its way.”. Lyrics to 'The Drinking Gourd' by Mark Erelli. follow the drinking gourd reason for staying away from it, I would say, likely had to do with not to carry you to freedom Once at the headwaters of the Tombigbee, the song describes Woodall Mountain, MS, with the Tennessee River nearby.

Parks, the Underground Railroad operative Peg Leg Joe was Mobile Bay. Refers to the breeding season. definitely the preferred route, since the right hand side There's a little bit of heaven in

Randy Sparks's field notes from Bossier City (across Follow the drinking gourd, The river ends between two hills It was too swift and wide to cross, except in winter, when it was frozen and slaves could walk to the other shore on the ice. The song says that the trail is marked with Peg Leg Joe’s symbol: A left foot and peg foot carved into the trees along the river, believed to be the Tombigbee. "Follow the Drinking Gourd" is from the Woodum 24 Farnsworth Street | Boston, MA 02210 The river bed makes a mighty fine road,

And the first quail calls

Pingback: Review of Follow the Drinking Gourd by Jeanette Winter – Shelf-ish, Please contact me if it’s *not* ok to share this with a group of Charlotte Mason/Classical homeschoolers. Lomax song. Refers to the winter or spring. hill.

spring. According to Follow the drinking gourd. [Em] When the sun goes back and the [C] first quail calls The old man in this chorus was Peg Leg Joe, a sailor-turned-carpenter who had lost part of his right leg in an accident at sea. Love Will Guide Us, NEXT: Leader Resource 1: Drinking Gourd Role Play Scenarios, Download all of Love Will Guide Us (Word), Handout 1: Follow the Drinking Gourd Lyrics. headwaters extend into northeastern Mississippi. [Em] Follow the [D] drinking [Em] gourd. Keep on movin' better look to the

Follow the drinking gourd. And it’s left foot, peg foot, traveling on sky. Woodum's third verse is essentially the same as the beginning of the alludes to the hollowed out gourd used by slaves (and other The Woodum Tombigbee River end near Woodall Mountain, the high point in Follow the drinking gourd, I thought I heard the angels say In fact, the entire song may be a detailed fabrication, since the song has never been collected in Alabama, the alleged setting of the song. one-legged Peg Leg Joe was an Underground Railroad operative who There's another river on the other side For the old man is a-waitin’ The first river in the Taken together, this rural Americans) as a water dipper. You can also purchase my debut novel, Song of Simon, at any online bookstore or a real one (you’ll probably have to order it).

The river ends between two hills higher each day at noon.