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Johnson Gals
Old-Time, Breakdown. Arkansas, Mississippi, South-central Kentucky.
ARTIST: Transcription of Leake County Revelers 'Johnson Gal' recorded on April 13,1927 in New Orleans and issued as Co 15149-D in August 1927. [Fiddle and vocal by Will Gilmer w/gtr, mdln, bjo]. Reissued on Leake County Revelers 'Complete Recorded Works Vol I 1927-1928' Document DOCD-8029.
CATEGORY: Fiddle and Instrumental Tunes DATE: Early 1900’s; 1927- Leake County Revelers
RECORDING INFO: Columbia 15149 (78 RPM), The Leake County Revelers (1927). Living Folk LFR-104, Allan Block- "Alive and Well and Fiddling." Block, Allan. Alive and Well and Fiddling, Living Folk LFR 104, LP (197?), cut# 11. Gaster, Marvin. Uncle Henry's Favorites, Rounder 0382, CD (1996), cut#21. Leake County Revelers. Traditional Fiddle Music of Mississippi, Vol. 2, County 529, LP (1975), cut# 2. Plank Road String Band. Plank Road String Band, Carryon, LP (1976), cut#A.03
OTHER NAMES: Johnson Gal, Johnson Girls;
RELATED TO: “Want to go to Meeting and Got No Shoes,” “Calico,” “Citico,”
SOURCES: Allan Block, who learned it from the 1920's string band Mississippi's Leake County Revelers [Kuntz]; Wil Gilmer with the Leake County Revelers (Miss.) [Phillips]. Ford Traditional Music in America, Folklore Associates, Bk (1940/1965), p 34a. Kuntz (Ragged But Right), 1987; pg. 325-326. Phillips (Traditional American Fiddle Tunes, Vol.1), 1994; pg. 128.
NOTES: G Major. Standard. ABC (Kuntz): AABBCC (Phillips). The title appears in a list of traditional Ozark Mountain fiddle tunes compiled by musicologist/folklorist Vance Randolph, published in 1954. A tune by this name was in the repertoire of fiddler Archibald Alexander Shaw (Harnet County, N.C., located in the Sandhills section between the coastal plain and the piedmont), though Evelyn Shaw states it was not played in other parts of the state but was unique to Shaw's area.
Johnson Gal/Gals is not related to Johnson Boys. The prevalent lines are:
Johnson Gals, dressed so fine,
Ain't got Jesus on their minds.
No matter where in the world I go,
I can't get around for the calico.
The calico reference “can't get around for the calico/ can't get around with a calico or sometimes, “can't get around without the calico” (which make more sense) links “Johnson Gals” with “Calico” another old-time fiddle tune also called, “Want to go to Meeting and Got No Shoes.” The word ‘calico’ probably refers to a light skin African-American girl.
A tune named “Calico” was learned by south-central Kentucky African-American fiddler Jim Bowles (b. 1903) from local musicians, although his cross-tuned version was supposedly not widely known outside his area. The 'Calico' fiddle tuning, or AEAC#, was so-called because it is employed to play this piece.
The tune for Jim Bowles' version of 'Calico', is given as #21 in Jeff Todd Titon's recent 'Old-Time Kentucky Fiddle Tunes' Uni Press of Kentucky. No lyrics. Titon notes that a field recording of Bowles' version was made by D.K. Wilgus in 1959 and issued on Marimac 9060. Titon notes also that the melody is similar to 'Citico' as recorded (but unpublished) by fiddler Marcus Martin for the Library of Congress. Bowles was from Rock Bridge, Monroe County, Kentucky. (From Stewie)
Meade gives only one old-time recording of “Johnson Gal,” the Leake County Revelers. The earliest text reference he gives is to Ira Ford 'Traditional Music of America' [1940] which he says is probably a transcription of the Leake County Revelers' recording. Leake County Revelers 'Johnson Gal' recorded on 13 April 1927 in New Orleans and issued as Co 15149-D in August 1927. [Fiddle and vocal by Will Gilmer w/gtr, mdln, bjo]. Reissued on Leake County Revelers 'Complete Recorded Works Vol I 1927-1928' Document DOCD-8029.
The Johnson Gals appears to have crossed over and become a sea shanty with similar structure and lyrics:
Johnson Girls are mighty fine girls
Walk around honey walk around
Here are the lyrics to “Johnson Gals” from Leake County Revelers:
Don't care where in the world I go
Can't get around with the calico
Oh my honey can't you see
Never get to heaven 'less you do like me
Want to go to heaven, yes I do
Want to go to heaven with the Johnson crew
Want to go to heaven, want to go straight
I want to walk through them pearly gates
See those girls, dressed so fine
Ain't a-got Jesus on their mind
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