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Ham Beats All Meat; See Also: Country Ham and Red Gravy (Uncle Dave Macon)
Old-time Breakdown and song; Tennessee, Appalchia;
ARTIST: African-American collector Thomas Talley (born c. 1870) printed a version, close to Humphrey Bates' in both music and lyrics, in his 1922 book Negro Folk Rhymes.
CATEGORY: Fiddle and Instrumental Tunes; DATE: Late 1800’s (Meade-1879) from minstrel stage;
RECORDING INFO: Bluebird 7951, Uncle Dave Macon (1938). County 531, Dr. Humphrey Bate & His Possum Hunters - "Old Time String Band Classics, 1927-1933" (1975)cut# 3 . Vocalion 5238 (78 RPM), Dr. Humphrey Bate & His Possum Hunters (1928). Whitewater String Band (1991). Harry van Lunenburg-Old Five String (Heritage Records, Route 3, Box 278, Galax, Virginia, U.S.A. 24333). Possum Hunters- Death on Lee Highway, Takoma A-1010, LP (196?), cut# 10; Hotmud Family. Live, As We Know It, Flying Fish FF-087, LP (1979), cut#A.04; Macon, Uncle Dave. Dixie Dewdrop (Vol. 1), Vetco LP 101, LP (197?), cut# 5; Flesher, Bob. Old Five String, Heritage (Galax) 039, LP, cut# 4; Heritage 060, Major Contay & the Canebreak Rattlers - "Music of the Ozarks" (Brandywine 1984). Marimac 9017, Vesta Johnson (Mo.) - "Down Home Rag." Yodel-ay-hee Records #108327, Critton Hollow Stringband - "Poor Boy" (1979).
OTHER NAMES: Country Ham and Red Gravy; Country Ham and Gravy
SOURCES: Negro Folk Rhymes by Thomas Talley; American and Country Tune Book- Mel Bay.
NOTES: The melody is from the late 19th century minstrel stage. Grand Old Opry pioneer Uncle Dave Macon adapted it as "Country Ham and Red Gravy." Uncle Dave Macon used the low part of the fiddle tune, Robinson County, for his song "Country Ham." Robinson County tune is similar to "New Five Cents," "Finger Ring" and "Ruffled Drawers." The melody is also a popular clawhammer banjo solo.
The following verse appears in the 1879 Minstrel song, "High Born Liver Daniel:"
Talk about good eating
Your oysters and your clams
If you want something good to eat
Just get hold of a sweet ham.
The chorus is found on a parody of the Shakers at Pleasant Hill, Ky., bulit around their 750 pound dinner bell:
Oh How the Shakers yell
When they hear the dinner bell.
Oh how them taters smell
Three times a day.
ROBINSON CO. SOURCES & RECORDINGS: Ted Sharp- Phillips (Traditional American Fiddle Tunes), Vol. 1, 1994; pg. 200. County 531, Ted Sharp - "Old Time String Band Classics" (1975). Heritage 060, Major Contay & the Canebreak Rattlers - "Music of the Ozarks" (Brandywine 1984). Marimac 9017, Vesta Johnson (Mo.) - "Down Home Rag." Yodel-ay-hee Records #108327, Critton Hollow Stringband - "Poor Boy" (1979).
LYRICS:
Dem white folks set up in a Dinin' Room
An' dey charve dat mutton an' lam'.
De black folk, he set 'hind de kitchen door,
An' he eat up de good sweet ham.
Dem white folks dey set up an' look so fine,
An' dey eats dat ole cow meat;
But de black folk grin an' he don't say much,
Still he know how to git what's sweet
Deir ginger cakes taste right good sometimes,
An' deir Cobblers an' deir jam.
But fer every day an' Sunday too,
Jest gimme de good sweet ham.
Ham beats all meat,
Always good an' sweet.
Ham beats all meat,
I'se always ready to eat.
You can bake it, bile it, fry it, stew it,
An' still it's de good sweet ham.
* Edited for racial content
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