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Groundhog
Traditional Old-Time, Song Tune and Breakdown. USA, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia.
ARTIST: Unknown on-line source.
CATEGORY: Fiddle and Instrumental Tunes; DATE: Ca. 1850's (Meade);
OTHER NAMES: Groundhog; Groundhog Blues; The Ground-Hog Song;
RECORDING INFO: Jack Reedy & his Walker Mountain String Band, "Ground Hog" (Brunswick 221, 1928; on CrowTold02, LostProv1) Almanac Singers, "Ground Hog" (General 5018B, 1941; on Almanac01, Almanac03, AlmanacCD1)New Lost City Ramblers, "Groundhog" (on NLCR16). Pete Seeger, "Ground Hog" (on PeteSeeger07, PeteSeeger07b) (on PeteSeeger08, PeteSeegerCD02); Allen, Red;, Frank Wakefield & the Kentuckians. Bluegrass, Folkways FA 2408, LP (1964), cut# 8. Baker, Bob. American Banjo, Folkways FA 2314, LP (1966), cut# 27.Cockerham, Jarrell and Jenkins. Down to the Cider Mill, County 713, LP (1968), cut# 9. Collins, Mitzie. Sampler of Folk Music, Sampler aafm 7601, LP (1976), cut#A.02 . Dillards. Backporch Bluegrass, Elektra EKS-7232, LP (197?), cut# 7.Feldmann, Peter. Barnyard Dance, Hen Cackle HC 501, LP (1980), cut#B.02 Gainer, Patrick. Folk Songs of the Alleghenies, Folk Heritage, LP (1963), cut#B.08 . Gellert, Dan; and Shoofly. Forked Deer, Marimac 9000, Cas (1986), cut#A.07 (Ground Hog). Ginandes, Shep. Dogwood Soup, Pathways of Sound POS 1023, LP (196?), cut#B.07. Hammond, Lorraine Lee. Dulcimer Player News, Dulcimer Player News DPN, Ser (1973-), 14/1, p25 . Hesperus. Crossing Over, Greenhays GR 718, LP (1988), cut# 10a . Hinton, Sam. Whoever Shall Have Some Good Peanuts, Scholastic SC 7530, LP (1964), cut#B.01. Hinton, Sam. Singing Across the Land, Decca DL 8108, LP (196?), A.03b. Jarrell, Tommy. Brandywine '83. The 10th Anniversary Celebration of the Brand..., Heritage (Galax) 054, LP (1984), cut# 4 . Jones, Vester. Traditional Music From Grayson and Carroll Counties, Folkways FS 3811, LP (1962), cut# 16 . Mabus, Joel. Clawhammer, Fossil, Cas (198?), cut# 2. Matteson, Maurice. Sweet Bunch of Daisies, Colonial Press, Bk (1991), p 46. Reedy, Jack; & His Walker Mountain String Band. Mountain Songs, County 504, LP, cut# 3. Reese, Marion. That's My Rabbit, My Dog Caught It; Southern Trad. Instrument..., New1 World1 NW 226, LP (1978), cut# 1. Sainte-Marie, Buffy. Best of Buffy Sainte-Marie, Vanguard VSD 3/4, LP (197?), cut# 8 (Ground Hog) . Sainte-Marie, Buffy. Many a Mile, Vanguard VSD 79171, LP (196?), cut#A.03. Stamper, I.D.. Red Wing, June Appal JA 0010, LP (1977), cut# 2. Sundall, Jon. Eagle and the Sparrow, June Appal JA 008, LP (1976), cut# 1. Watson, Doc. Essential Doc Watson, Vanguard VCD 45/46, CD (1986), cut#17; Flying Fish 102, New Lost City Ramblers - "Twenty Years/Concert Performances" (1978). Folkways FA 2360, Frank Proffitt. Heritage 054, Tommy Jarrell - "Brandywine 83: Music of French America" (1984). Marimac 9000, Dan Gellert & Shoofly - "Forked Deer" (1986). Recorded Anthology of American Music (1978) - "Traditional Southern Instrumental Styles." Rounder Cd0278, Mike Seegar - "Solo-Old Time Country Music" (1991). The Whistlepigs- "Out of Their Hole."
SOURCES: Randolph 413, "The Ground-Hog Song" Wyman-Brockway I, p. 30, "The Ground Hog"; Warner 123, "Groundhog"; Lomax-FSUSA 8, "Ground Hog"; Lomax-FSNA 131, "Groundhog". American Ballads and Folk Songs, MacMillan, Bk (1934), p.271 (Ground Hog); Learned by Frank Proffitt (North Carolina) from his father [Warner]. Warner (Traditional American Folk Songs), 1984; pgs. 296-297; Kuntz, Fiddler's Companion, http://www.ceolas.org/tunes/fc;
NOTES: "A Major; Standard; One part. A well-known Appalachian folk song, nursery and fun song, and banjo tune. Brown says, "Its appearence in the Ozarks is doubtless due to immigration from Kentucky. It has not been found in the northern states, nor is it a Negro song." (Kuntz, Fiddler's Companion, http://www.ceolas.org/tunes/fc). First recorded in 1924 by Land Norris (Vocal with banjo) Groundhog is an Appalachian song. From Tommy Jarrell (solo fiddle) to Flatt and Scruggs “Groundhog” is a bluegrass/old-time standard.
February 2nd (Groundhog Day) is the date when farmers and other folk congregate to see if the groundhog casts a shadow. This forecasts an early/late spring.
LYRICS:
Get out your gun and call to your dog,
Get out your gun and call to your dog,
Away to the woods to catch a groundhog, groundhog, groundhog.
Children all around, they screamed and cried,
Children all around, they screamed and cried;
They love a groundhog stewed and fried, and fried, and fried.
Yonder comes Rhody with a very big pole,
Yonder comes Rhody with a very big pole,
To run these groundhogs into their hole, their hole, their hole.
I skin his hide and I tan his hide;
I skin his hide and I tan his hide;
Lordy, Lordy, Mammy, I got my pride, my pride, my pride.
Yonder comes sister with a twinkle and a grin,
Yonder comes sister with a twinkle and a grin,
Groundhog grease all o'er her chin, her chin, her chin.
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