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Cripple Creek
Painting of Cripple Creek by Richard L. Matteson Jr. C 2009
Traditional Old-Time, Bluegrass; Breakdown. USA, Widely known.
ARTIST: Monkees’ Version
CATEGORY: Fiddle and Instrumental Tunes; DATE: Early 1900’s
RECORDING INFO: Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers, "Shootin' Creek" Columbia15286-D, 1928. Charlie Higgins, Wade Ward & Dale Poe, "Cripple Creek" instrumental, LomaxCD1701; American Heritage 515, Mark O'Conmner- "You Be the Judge." Columbia CL 2134l, Flat and Scruggs- "Live at Vanderbilt University." County 703, Vernon Solomon- "Texas Hoedown." Davis Unlimited 33015, Doc Roberts (Ky.) - "Classic Fiddle Tunes." Edison 51789 (78 RPM, 1925), and Victor (78 RPM, 1924) Fiddlin Cowan Powers (b. 1877, S.W. Va.). Folkways FA 2426, Doc Watson (N.C.) - "At Folk City." Gennett 5635B (78 RPM), 1925, Tweedy Brothers (W.Va.). Gennett 6336 (78 RPM), Doc Roberts (Ky.). Heritage XXIV, Tommy Jarrell - "Music of North Carolina" (Brandywine, 1978). Missouri State Old Time Fiddlers' Association, Cyril Stinnett - "Plain Old Time Fiddling." OKeh 40336 (78 RPM), The Hill Billies (1925). Rounder 0058, Albert Hash, Paul Spencer, Jones Baldwin (Va.) - "Old Originals, Vol. II" (1978). Rounder 1823, Jimmie Strothers - "Deep River of Song: Black Appalachia-String Bands, Songster and Hoedowns." Tradition Records TLP 1007, Hobart Smith- "Instrumental Music of the Southern Appalachians" (1956). Voyager 309, Benny and Jerry Thomasson (Texas) - "The Weiser Reunion: a Jam Session" (1993). Marie Rhines- "Tartan and Sagebrush." Addiss and Crofut. 400 Years of Folk Music, Folkways FA 2404, LP (1962), cut#B.02a ; Anderson, Bob; and the Country Ramblers. Indiana Hoedown, Puritan 5003, LP (1973), cut#A.05; Austen, Seth; and Madeline MacNeil. Ye Banks and Braes, Roots and Branches RBR 002, LP (1981), cut#B.03c; Austen, Seth. Appalachian Fiddle Tunes for Finger Style Guitar, Kicking Mule KM 174, LP (1982), cut# 15c; Baker, Etta. Third Annual Farewell Reunion, Rounder 0313, CD (1994), cut#12; Bird, Elmer. Elmer's Greatest Licks, Bird, Cas (1980), cut# 6; Blue Ridge Mountain Dancers. Folk Festival of the Smokies. Vol. 1, Traditional FFS-528, LP (197?), cut# 1a; Brower, Cecil; and his Square Dance Fiddlers. America's Favorite Square Dances, Smash MGS 27015, LP (196?), cut#A.03 (Going Up Brushy Fork); Buck Mountain Band. Southern Journey. Vol. 1: Voices from the American South, Rounder 1701, CD (1997), cut#11; Byrd, Robert (Senator). Mountain Fiddler, County 769, LP (1978), cut# 4; Carpenter, Ernie. Elk River Blues, Augusta Heritage AHR 003, LP (1986), cut# 10; Carson, Fiddlin' John. Fiddlin' John Carson. Vol 4, Document DOCD 8017, CD (1997), cut#22 (Going Down to Cripple Creek); Carwile, Daniel & John. Family Old Time Fiddling, Dande SLP 1002, Cas (198?), cut# 4; Cedar Point String Band. Cedar Point String Band, Roane, Cas (1993), cut# 14; Cheatwood, Billy. 5-String Banjo Greats, Liberty LST 7357, LP (196?), cut# 2; Cheatwood, Billy. Anthology of the Banjo, Tradition TR 2077, LP (196?), cut# 10; Clemmens, Ginni. Sing a Rainbow and Other Children Songs, Folkways FC 7637, LP (1967), cut#A.04c; Cline, Curly Ray. Curly Ray Cline and His Lonesome Pine Fiddle, Melody MLP-17, LP (1970?), cut#A.04; Cooney, Michael. Still Cooney After All These Years, Front Hall FRH 016, LP (1979), cut#B.04; Country Gentlemen. Yesterday and Today. Vol 2, Rebel SLP-1527, LP (1973), cut#A.05; Ensemble. Shivaree!, Esoteric ES-538, LP (1955), cut# 1; Feldmann, Peter. How to Play Clawhammer Banjo, Sonyatone STI-104, LP (1975), cut# 2; Flatt & Scruggs & the Foggy Mountain Boys. Foggy Mountain Banjo, Columbia LE 10043, LP (196?), cut# 6; Hicks, Buna. Traditional Music of Beech Mountain, NC, Vol II, Folk Legacy FSA-023, LP (1965), cut# 9 ; Hinkle, Hubert. Rackensack. Volume 1, Driftwood LP 278, LP (1972), cut#B.07; Holcomb, Roscoe. Mountain Music of Kentucky, Smithsonian/Folkways SF 40077, CD (1996), cut#1.13; Holt, David. Reel and Rock, Flying Fish FF 372, LP (1985), cut#B.03b; Homer and the Barnstormers. Blue Grass Banjos - Flaming Banjos, Alshire 2-120-1/2, LP (197?), cut#1B.02 (Goin' Up Cripple Creek); Jarrell, Tommy. More Clawhammer Banjo, County 717, LP (1969), cut# 8; Jarrell, Tommy. Music of North Carolina, Heritage (Galax) 024 (XXIV), LP (1979), cut#A.05; Jenkins, Oren. American Banjo, Folkways FA 2314, LP (1966), cut# 7; Kessinger Brothers. Kessinger Brothers, County 536, LP (1974), cut# 12 (Going Up Brushy Fork); Kottke, Leo. Mudlark, Capitol ST-682, LP (197?), cut# 1; Luxon, Benjamin; and Bill Crofut. Simple Gifts. British and American Folk Songs, Stolat SZM 0124, LP (1981), cut#B.04b; Mainer's Mountaineers (J. E. Mainer's Mountaineers). J. E. Mainer & the Mountaineers. Vol 20. 20 Old-Time Favorites, Rural Rhythm RC-250, Cas (1988), cut#A.10; March, Bob. Chicago Mob Scene. A Folk Song Jam Session, Riverside RLP 12-641, LP (196?), cut# 13a; McCoy, Paul (B.). Allegheny Trails, Jewel LPS 504, LP (1975), cut#B.05; Miles, Paul, Vernon and Wade (Miles Brothers). Folk Music in America, Vol. 3, Dance Music, Breakdowns & Waltzes, Library of Congress LBC-03, LP (1976), cut#B.05b; Mountain Ramblers. Mountain Ramblers, County 720, LP (1969), cut# 1; Parmley, Don; and Billy Strange. Don Parmley and Billy Strange, GNP Crescendo GNP-98, LP (196?), cut# 10; Poole, Charlie; and the North Carolina Ramblers. Old Time Songs, County 505, LP (196?), cut# 3 (Shooting Creek); Reno, Don; Bill Harrell and the Tenn. Cutups. Rivers and Roads, King Bluegrass KB-528, LP (197?), cut# 10; Roan Mountain Hilltoppers. Down Home, Roan Mountain, CD (2000/1983), cut#25; Roberts, Fiddlin' Doc. Classic Fiddle Tunes, Davis Unlimited DU 33015, LP (197?), cut# 13; Robins, Butch. Fifth Child, Rounder 0130, LP (1980), cut# 8; Roylance, Dave. National Oldtime Fiddlers' Contest & Folk Music Festival. 1965, Century, LP (1966), cut# 24a; Sainte-Marie, Buffy. Best of Buffy Sainte-Marie, Vanguard VSD 3/4, LP (197?), cut# 18 ; Schilling, Jean. Old Traditions, Traditional JS-5117, LP (196?), cut#B.03; Seeger, Mike. Anthology of the Banjo, Tradition TR 2077, LP (196?), cut# 6 (Going Down There); Seeger, Mike. Feuding Banjos, Olympic 7105, LP (197?), cut#A.03; Seeger, Pete. How to Play the Five String Banjo, Folkways FTS 38303, LP (1974), cut# 4; Seeger, Pete. We Shall Overcome, Columbia C2K 45312, CD (1989), cut#1.02a; Shannon, Bookmiller. Music of the Ozarks, National Geographic Soc. 0703, LP (1972), cut# 15; Shannon, Bookmiller. Southern Journey. Vol. 7: Ozark Frontier, Rounder 1707, CD (1997), cut# 8 (Down in Arkansas Among the Sticks); Simmons Family. Wandering Through the Rackensack, Dancing Doll, LP (198?), cut#A.04; Smith, Hobart. Instrumental Music of the Southern Appalachians, Tradition TR 1007, LP (196?), cut# 1; Smith, Peggy Donaldson. Shady Grove, Shady Grove PDS 11-30-78, LP (1978), cut#B.05; Smoke, Herbert. Anglo-American Shanties, Lyric Songs, Dance Tunes & Spirituals, Library of Congress AAFS L 2, LP (195?), cut# 19; Solomon, Vernon. Texas Hoedown, County 703, LP (1965), cut# 6; Stanley Brothers. Stanley Brothers on the Air, Wango 115, LP (1976), cut#A.01; Stanley Brothers. Stanley Brothers on the Air, Wango 115, LP (1976), cut#B.05b; Stinnett, Cyril. Salty River Reel, MSOTFA 104, Cas (1992), cut# 19; Stinnett, Cyril. Plain Old Time Fiddling, Stinnett SLP 1013, LP (197?), cut#A.05; Stringbean (David Ackerman). Stringbean and His Banjo. A Salute to Uncle Dave Macon, Starday SLP 215, LP (196?), cut# 11; Sweeney, Ed. American Sampler, North Star NS0033, Cas (1991), cut# 10a; Tarriers. Tarriers at the "Bitter End", Decca DL 4342, LP (196?), cut#B.03b (Eric's Banjo); Thomasson, Benny & Jerry. Weiser Reunion, Voyager VRCS 309, Cas (1993), cut# 1; Upper Hamilton Gravediggers. Undertaking Bluegrass, Concord HRL-1657, LP (1964), cut# 1; Ward, Wade. Traditional Music From Grayson and Carroll Counties, Folkways FS 3811, LP (1962), cut# 21; Watson, Doc. Folk Box, Elektra EKL-9001, LP (1964), cut# 49; Watson, Doc. Traditional Music at Newport, 1964, Part 1, Vanguard VSD 79182, LP (1965), cut# 21; Watson, Doc; and David Holt. Young Fogies, Heritage (Galax) 056, LP (198?), cut# 18 (Raincrow Bill); Wood, Charlie. Appalachia, The Old Traditions, Home Made Music LP-001, LP (1982), cut# 13a;
OTHER NAMES: "Going Up/Down Cripple Creek," "Going Up/Down Shootin' Creek;" "Going Up/Down Brushy Fork," “Shootin' Creek;” “Buck Creek Girls (Gals).”
RELATED TO: Ida Red; Greasy String; Liza Jane (tune); If Hattie Wants to Lu, Let Her Lu Like a Man; Seven and A Half; Coming Thru the Rye (tune); Valley Forge; Half Past Four;
SOURCES: Lomax-FSNA 118, "Cripple Creek; J.S. Price (Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma, and Claude Keenan, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma) [Thede]; Benny Thomasson (Texas) [Phillips/1989]; Clark Kessinger & Benny Thomasson [Phillips/1994]. In the Mid-west it was recorded from Ozark Mountain fiddlers in the early 1940's by musicologist/folklorist Vance Randolph for the Library of Congress; Brody (Fiddler's Fakebook), 1983; pg. 79. Ford (Traditional Music in America), 1940; pg. 94. Phillips (Fiddlecase Tunebook), 1989; pg. 14. Phillips (Traditional American Fiddle Tunes), 1994; pg. 61 (two versions). Thede (The Fiddle Book), 1967; pg. 109-110; Traditional Music in America, Folklore Associates, Bk (1940/1965), p 94b; Blevins, Frank. Devil's Box, Devil's Box DB, Ser (196?), 32/2, p18a; Hash, Albert. Old Originals, Vol. 2, Rounder 0058, LP (1978), cut# 24 ; Hellman, Neal. Life Is Like a Mountain Dulcimer, TRO, sof (1974), p41; Bell, David. Learning the Fiddler's Ways, Penn State, Sof (1980), p 57; Keenan, Claude. Fiddle Book, Oak, Bk (1967), p110; MacNeil, Madeline. Dulcimer Player News, Dulcimer Player News DPN, Ser (1973-), 6/3, p20; Maloy, Frank. Devil's Box, Devil's Box DB, Ser (196?), 22/3, p52; Price, J. S.. Fiddle Book, Oak, Bk (1967), p109; Seeger, Pete. How to Play the Five String Banjo, Seeger, sof (1962), p30. Kuntz, Fiddler's Companion, http://www.ceolas.org/tunes/fc;
NOTES: "A Major (Brody, Phillips): C Major (second of Thede's versions): G Major (Ford). Standard, AEAE, ADAE, AEAC#. AABB (Brody, Phillips, Thede): AABBCC (Ford): AA'BBCC' (Phillips/1994). The tune had and still has wide currency throughout the South. There have been several suggestions about the origin of the title and tune, although no definitive information has been found. Folklorist Alan Jabbour, of the Library of Congress found that the oldest Appalachian fiddlers he collected from could recall the first time that they had heard "Cripple Creek," leading Jabbour to speculate that the title might have something to do with the Cripple Creek, Colorado, labor troubles. Gold had been discovered there in 1891 and the labor disputes date from 1903-1904. Many think the tune and title older however, and point out a likely candidate for the title origins include the Cripple Creek that flows through Grayson and Carroll Counties in Virginia, emptying into the New River." (Kuntz, Fiddler's Companion, http://www.ceolas.org/tunes/fc).
LYRICS:
Verse 1: Well I married a wife in the month of June,
Married her up by the light of the moon.
We live down on Cripple Creek.
We've been there about a week.
CHORUS: I'm a-goin' down to Cripple Creek, I'm goin' on a run.
Goin' down to Cripple Creek to have some fun.
Goin' down to Cripple Creek, I'm goin' on a run.
Goin' down to Cripple Creek to have some fun.
Verse 2: Now Cripple Creek girl's about half-grown,
Jump on a man like a dog on a bone.
Roll my pants up to my knees,
Cross on Cripple Creek a-when I please.
CHORUS: I'm a-goin' down to Cripple Creek, I'm goin' on a run,
Goin' down to Cripple Creek to have some fun.
Goin' down to Cripple Creek, I'm goin' on a run.
Goin' down to Cripple Creek to have some fun.
Repeat Chorus
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