429. The Voodoo Man
White, who printed this text in ANFS 206-7 (without music), described it as "apparently of comparatively recent vaudeville
origin" and stated that he had a copy of it from Auburn, Alabama. No title. From James E. Lj^on. High Point. Guilford county, c. 1919, with music.
Chorus:
I've been hoodooed
I've been hoodooed,
Hoodooed by a nigger voodoo ;
I've been hoodooed, hoodooed,
Hooddooed by a big black coon.
1 Oh! coon for me had a great infatuation;
He wanted me to marry but he had no situation.
As soon as I refused.
That coon he got wild.
Says he. Tm bound for to hoodoo this child.'
He went out and got a rabbit's foot
And burned it with a frog
Down in the hollow of an old burnt log
Right by the road where I had to pass along.
Ever since that time my head's been wrong.
My bones began to ache
And my teeth began to chatter ;
Went to the doctor and he couldn't tell the matter.
Says he, 'You are a gone coon, gone up the spout.'
He looked at my head and my hair fell out.
Nobody knows how funny I feel —
Even the husk fell ofif mv heel.
Chorus:
2 That same black coon had an awful disposition;
He could do more tricks than Herman the magician.
My daddy went out for to kill this black moke.^
That coon only laughed for he throught- it was a joke.
He had all the other coons afraid to look him in the eve.
He had a lot of niggers that he taught to fly.
All the police for this coon had to search.
He robbed a nigger right at church.
He would grab up a chicken and it wouldn't even holler.
He would throw down his gopher, and 'most everything
would follow.
* Apparently an error for "smoke."
' Apparently an error for "thought."
BLACKFACE MINSTREL, N E C. R O SONGS 51/
It may seem strange but it ain't no lie.
I hope in my heart that coon will die.
For I can't sleep, walk. talk, nor cat ;
Guess I'm dead — my heart don't heat.
Chorus:
(Repeat the first five lines)
------------------------
429
The Voodoo Man
'The Voodoo Man.' Sung by James E. Lyon Jr., High Point, Guilford county,
about 1929. From the whole character of the song, not to mention the
structure, there is no doubt that musically also, the vaudeville origin is
certain. Note the irregular three-part form, and the fact that the refrain is
based on a pentachordal scale on e, whereas the stanza is simply based on the
G major scale.
F-398
Chorus
I've been hoo-dooed, hoo-dooed, Hoo-dooed by a ne - gro
doo; I've been hoo-dooed, hoo-dooed, Hoo-dooed by a
big black coon. A coon for me had a great in - fat - u -
tion;
Want - ed for to mar - ry me but had no sita - tion.
When I re - fused. That coon he got wild.
Says he, 'I'm bound for to hoo - doo this child.' He went
out and got a rab - bit's foot And burned it with a
frog Down in the hoi - low of an old burnt log
Right by the road where I had to pass long.
Ev - er since that time my head's been- wrong. My bones be
gan to ache And my teeth be - gan to chat - ter;
Went to the doc - tor and he could -n't tell the mat - ter.
Says he, 'You're a gone coon, gone up the spout.' He
looked at my head and my hair fell- out. No-bod - y knows
D. C. al Fine
how fun - ny I feel — E - ven the husk fell ofif my heel.
Scale: Heptachordal, plagal. Tonal Center: g. (See remarks above.)
Structure: aaibcdbceb^cefdaai 3,3,2,1,1,2,1,1,2,1,1,1,2,3,3) ^ abbib^ca (6,4,4,
4,3,6). Measures 11-12 are another proof that the "poetical" structure as well
as the rhyme do not always influence the music to follow the same pattern.
It seems that the third and fourth lines of the stanza should have been con-
tracted into one line. The music certainly bears this out.