Banks of The Old Tennessee
 J.W. "Peg" Hatcher 1939

Old-Time Song and Fiddle Solo; Southeast USA

ARTIST: Lyrics from J.W. "Peg" Hatcher 1939; Recorded by Herbert Halpert sponsored by a joint committee of the W.P.A. The original recordings are maintained in the Library of Congress Archive of Folk Culture: AFS 2740-41  

Listen: J.W. "Peg" Hatcher- Banks of the Old Tennessee 1939

Listen:  Mr. & Mrs J. W. Baker- On The Banks of the Old Tennessee 1927

CATEGORY: Fiddle and Instrumental Tunes DATE: 1800’s; First recorded in 1927

RECORDING INFO: Banks of the Old Tennessee

Pierce, Otis. Every Bush and Tree, Bay 102, LP (1975), trk# B.07

RECORDING INFO: On the Banks of the Old Tennessee [Me II-O39]

Rt - Kitty Cline
Uf - Kitty Cline

Baker, J. W.; Mr. & Mrs.. Gambler's Lament, Country Turtle 6001, LP (1970), trk# 2 [1927/08/02]
Duvall, Leone. Randolph, Vance / Ozark Folksongs. Volume IV, Religous Songs and Others, Univ. of Missouri, Bk (1980/1946), p155/#700A [1928/09/09]
Grayson and Whitter. Going Down Lee Highway, Davis Unlimited DU 33033, LP (1977), trk# 2 [1929/09/30]
Neaves, Glen; and the Virginia Mountain Boys. Country Bluegrass from Southwest Virginia, Folkways FA 3830, LP (1974), trk# B.04
Wasson, Laura. Randolph, Vance / Ozark Folksongs. Volume IV, Religous Songs and Others, Univ. of Missouri, Bk (1980/1946), p158/#700D [1942/01/28]
Watson, Doc; Clint Howard and Fred Price. Old Timey Concert, Vanguard 107/8, Cas (1987/1967), trk# B.06

OTHER NAMES: “On the Banks of the Old Tennessee,”

Related to: Kitty Kline; "Free Little Bird" "Take Me Home, Poor Julia"

SOURCES: Randolph; Folk Index; Mudcat; Traditional Ballad Index 

Ballad Index Notes: On the Banks of the Old Tennessee
DESCRIPTION: If the singer were a bird, he would fly to his love; if a fish, he would take her hook. But now she is dead and buried, and he is no longer willing to stay "on the banks of the old Tennessee."
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1928 (Randolph)
KEYWORDS: love courting animal death burial separation family
FOUND IN: US(So)
REFERENCES (3 citations):
Randolph 700, "On the Banks of the Old Tennessee" (4 texts, 1 tune)
Randolph/Cohen, pp. 515-516, "On the Banks of the Old Tennessee" (1 text, 1 tune -- Randolph's 700A)
MWheeler, p. 117, "On the Bank uv the Old Tennessee" (1 text, 1 tune)
Roud #7374
RECORDINGS:
[G. B.] Grayson & [Henry] Whitter, "On the Banks of Old Tennessee" (Victor V-40235/Bluebird 7072/Zonophone 4329, 1929; on GraysonWhitter01)
NOTES: Randolph's four texts are rather confused, and not one tells the full story. The only common element is the line "on the banks of the old Tennessee." The chorus varies (one even borrows lines from "My Sweet Sunny South"!), as do the presence of the floating-verse-like stanzas about being beast or bird. Cohen thinks the "A" and "D' texts are one song, and "B" and "C" another, probably related to "Free Little Bird."
The Grayson & Whitter recording doesn't help much; the verses are stereotyped: "I have no (brother/sister/true lover/mother) in this world (x2), (He's) sleeping tonight where the moon shines so bright, On the banks of old Tennesee (x3), He's sleeping tonight... On the banks..."
Wheeler's version is just a fragment, and adds nothing to the discussion.
In other words, it's possible that this is more than one song. But I think it all goes back to one piece, with a lot of importation and forgetfulness along the way. - RBW
 

NOTES: J.W. "Peg" Hatcher 1939 sangs this version of the song normally titled, "On The Banks of the Old Tennessee" for Herbert Halpert and his recording machine in Ferrum, Virginia. Hatcher comments that he learned the song a long time ago in Durham, NC dating this back to the early 1900s.

The only other version titled "Banks of the Old Tennessee" I know is Otis Pierce's 1975 version on Every Bush and Tree.

Vance Randolph collected three version of "On The Banks of the Old Tennessee" and Version C was taken from a fiddler who knew this primarily as a fiddle tune.
 
There appear to be two different versions:
 
VERSION 1) Related to Kitty Kline; Free Little Bird which originated from mid-1800s parlar song Kity Clyde. These versions including J.W. "Peg" Hatcher's sing about being a bird, then he would fly to his love; if a fish, he would take her hook. But now she is dead and buried, and he is no longer willing to stay "on the banks of the old Tennessee."

Allen Brothers, "Free Little Bird":

Now if I was a little fish
I would never swim in the sea
I would swim in the brook where poor Katie hung her hook
On the banks of the old Tennessee

VERSION 2) The VERSE is: My mother/father brother is dead and gone
My mother's dead and gone
She's buried beneath that weeping willow tree
On the banks of old Tennessee

CHORUS: On the banks of old Tennessee,
On the banks of old Tennessee
It's heaven alone where the moonlight is shone
On the banks of old Tennessee

This is from Fiddlin' John Carson. Version 2 doesn't take lyrics from Free little Bird. There is still a melodic resemblance with Kitty Kline.

 Banks of the Old Tennessee- J.W. "Peg" Hatcher 1939 

Poor li'l Ida is dead and now she is gone
She was buried beneath the willow tree.
God forgive the spot where my Ida rests,
On the banks of old Tennessee.

I was a little fish,
A little fishy I would be.
I would swim in the brook where poor li'l Ida cast her hook
On the banks of the old Tennessee.