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Whoa Mule (Old Grey Mule)
Bluegrass and Old-time breakdown; Widely known.
ARTIST: from Pete Seeger's CD, Birds, Beasts, Bugs & Fishes
CATEGORY: Fiddle and Instrumental Tunes
DATE: 1880’s; Earliest recordings 1924 Bill Chitwood & Bud Landress, Sid Turner
RECORDING INFO: Ashley, Clarence (Thomas/Tom). Galax Virginia; Old Fiddler's Convention, Folkways FA 2435, LP (1964), trk# A.02 [1961-63] Barrett, Dick (Texas). National Oldtime Fiddlers Contest & Festival. 1974, Century, LP (1974), trk# B.05 Bell Spur String Band. Bell Spur String Band, Heritage (Galax) 047, LP (1984), trk# A.05 [1963/08/12] (Kickin'/Kicking Mule) Boarman, Andrew F. Mountain State Music, June Appal JA 0025, LP (1978), trk# 4 Bullard, Mrs. M. M.. Morris, Alton C. / Folksongs of Florida, Univ. Florida, Bk (1950), p190/#106 [1934-39] Collins, Max. Thede, Marion (ed.) / The Fiddle Book, Oak, Bk (1967), p130 [1930s] Fairchild, Raymond. Raymond Fairchild Plays "Little Zane", Skyline SR 003, LP (1981), trk# A.06 (Woah Mule) Forbes, Walter. Ballads and Bluegrass, RCA (Victor) LPM-2472, LP (1962), trk# 1 Franklin, Major. Devil's Box, Devil's Box, Ser, 28/4, p12(1994) Georgia Yellow Hammers. Moonshine Hollow Band, Rounder 1032, LP (1979), trk# A.02 [1924/11/21] Howard, Clint; and Fred Price. Ballad of Finley Preston, Rounder 0009, LP (1972), trk# 11 Kimble Family. Carroll County Pioneers, Marimac 9036, Cas (1992), trk# 20 [1973-77] Kimble Family. Pine Knots School Rowdies, Marimac 9037, Cas (1992), trk# 4 King, Henry; and Family. Lomax, Alan / Folksongs of North America, Doubleday Dolphin, Sof (1975/1960), p441/#231 (Kickin'/Kicking Mule) Mainer, J. E. (Joseph Emmet). Legendary J. E. Mainer. Vol 4, Rural Rhythm RRJE 208, LP (196?), trk# B.08 Mainer's Mountaineers (J. E. Mainer's Mountaineers). Sounds of the South, Atlantic 7-82496-2, CD( (1993), trk# 4.03 [1959/07ca] Maloy, Frank. Devil's Box, Devil's Box, Ser, 23/2, p23(1989) [1940s] Morrison, Fate. Rackensack. Volume 1, Driftwood LP 278, LP (1972), trk# B.03 New River Ramblers. Fiddler's Grove. Old Time Fiddler's & Bluegrass ... 1975. Vol. 6, Galaxie, LP (1975), trk# 30 Orchard, Keith. Christeson, R. P. / Old Time Fiddlers Reportory, Vol. 2, University of Missouri, Bk (1984), #139 [1971ca] Pine Ridge Boys and Patsy. Stringband Music from Mt. Airy, Heritage (Galax) 029 (XXIX), LP (1981), trk# B.01 Price, Fred. Old-Time Music at Clarence Ashley's, Part 2, Folkways FA 2359, LP (1963), trk# 5 [1962/04] (Humpbacked Mule) Rosenbaum, Art (Arthur). Art of the Mountain Banjo, Kicking Mule KM 203, LP (1975), trk# 2.09 (Kickin'/Kicking Mule) Rosenbaum, Art (Arthur). Rosenbaum, Art / Art of the Mountain Banjo, Centerstream, Fol (1981), p14 (Kickin'/Kicking Mule) Seeger, Peggy. Seeger, Peggy / Five String Banjo American Folk Styles, Hargail, sof (1960), n 5 (Kickin'/Kicking Mule) Sexton, Lee "Boy". Whoa Mule, June Appal JA 0051, LP (1987), trk# 20 Smith, Ralph Lee. Dulcimer. Old Time and Traditional Music, Skyline DD-102, LP (1975), trk# 7 (Old Mule) Smokey Valley Boys. Smokey Valley Boys, Rounder 0029, LP (1974), trk# 3 Thomas, Lois "Granny". In an Arizona Town, AFF AFF 33-3, LP (197?), trk# 14 [1960s?] (Kickin'/Kicking Mule) Yadkin County Ramblers. 37th Old-Time Fiddler's Convention, Folkways FA 2434, LP (1962), trk# 7 Roy Acuff, "Whoa Mule" (Capitol 2738, 1954) Clarence Ashley & Tex Isley, "Whoa Mule" (on Ashley01) Loman D. Cansler, "Kickin' Maud [or Kickin' Maude]" (on Cansler1) Bill Chitwood & Bud Landress, "Whoa Mule" (Silvertone 3050, 1924; Brunswick 2811, 1925) Al Clauser & his Oklahoma Outlaws, "Whoa, Mule, Whoa" (Melotone 7-08-63, 1937) Elisha Cox, "Whoa Mule" (AAFS 547 A2) J. D. Dillingham & O. J. Light, "Whoa, Maude, Whoa" (AAFS 899 B2) Samuel Clay Dixon, "Whoa, Mule, Whoa" (AAFS 1749 B3/1750 A1) Leonard C. Fulwinder, "Whoa Mule, Whoa" (Aurora [Canadian] 238, c. 1932) The Hillbillies, "Whoa! Mule" (OKeh 40376, 1925) Hinson, Pitts & Coley, "Whoa Mule Whoa" (Bluebird B-7438, 1938) Paul Holland, "Whoa, Mule, Whoa" (AAFS 3217 A1) Al Hopkins & his Buckle Busters [or John Hopkins], "Whoa, Mule" (Brunswick 179, 1927) Matilda Keene, "Whoa, Larry, Whoa" (AAFS 979 B1) Bert Martin, "Whoa, Mule" (AAFS 1479 B2) Chubby Parker, "Whoa Mule, Whoa" (Gennett 6120, 1927; Supertone 9189, 1928) (Conqueror 7892, 1927) Hobart Ricker, "Whoa, Mule, Whoa" (AAFS 3904 B4) Roba Stanley [or Stanley Trio] "Whoa! Mule" (OKeh 40271, 1925)
RELATED TO: "Fortune" “Goin' down to Cairo” Floating lyrics “Huckleberry Picnic” by Frank Dumont 1877; “Slim Gal”
OTHER NAMES: “Whoa Mule, Whoa;” "The Kicking Mule;" “Hold onto the Sleigh;” “I know an Old Canaller;” “Simon Slick;” “Good bye Miss Liza Jane” (Floating title from African-American sources); “Buckin' Mule;” “My Old Coon Dog;” “Greenback”
SOURCES: Ford, Ira W. / Traditional Music in America, Folklore Associates, Bk (1965/1940), p295; Ford, Ira W. / Traditional Music in America, Folklore Associates, Bk (1965/1940), p440b BrownIII 513, "The Kicking Mule" (1 text); Scarborough-NegroFS, p. 186, "Whoa, Mule!" (1 text, 1 tune); Brewster 84, "Simon Slick" (2 texts, longer than most, 1 tune); Lomax-FSNA 231, "The Kickin' Mule" (1 text, 1 tune); Pankake-PHCFSB, pp. 62-63, "Whoa, Mule, Whoa" (1 text, tune referenced) Christeson (Old Time Fiddlers Repertory, Vol. 2), 1984; pg. 87. The Devil's Box, pg. 23. Thede (The Fiddle Book), 1967; pg. 130. From Ceolas: This "band" tune and tune title was characteristic of Patrick County, southwestern Va. (Tom Carter & Blanton Owen, 1976), and Surry County, North Carolina (Kerry Blech). Sources for notated versions: Bill Katon (Tebbetts, Missouri) [Christeson]: Max Collins (Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma) In the repertoire of Phil Reeve of the Georgia Yellow Hammers (north Ga.). Bluebird 5591B (78 RPM), Gid Tanner and His Skillet Lickers (north Ga.) {1934}. In the repertoire of the Kimble Family, Patrick County, Va., and Benton Flippen, Surry County, North Carolina.
NOTES: Whoa Mule/Kickin’ Mule originated from minstrel sources. William Shakespeare Hays "Whoa! I Tell You!" published in 1879 is the one of the original sources and earliest printings. The “Hold onto the sleigh” verse comes from Hays and was later adapted by Uncle Dave Macon (Hold on to the Sleigh) and appears in many different versions.
Some other early printed versions are entitled Simon Slick. John M. Turney's The Coons Around Our Block Songster, was issued in New York in 1879. Other printings include George S. Knight's Songs and Recitations (1880), Andy Collum's Latest and Best Banjo Songs (1881), John Walsh's Gems of the Emerald Isle Songster (188), and Murphy and Mack's Jolly Sailor's Songster (1883).
In most Whoa Mule songs the singer describes courting and the dangers of a kicking mule which "kicked the feathers off a goose," etc. The stubborn mule Simon Slick is often mentioned. The chorus will generally contain the instruction "Whoa, mule." The first printed African-American versions appeared in 1909 by Howard Odum. He talks about and gives the lyrics to a version entitled "De Band played On" which has the Whoa Mule text.
Whoa Mule is not the “Johnson’s/Thompson’s Old Grey Mule” songs which is a different song. Some versions have elements of both songs but they should be categorized separately. John Carson’s fiddle piece, "The Kickin' Mule" is a different melody. One Lomax version has floating lyrics from “Huckleberry Picnic” Frank Dumont in 1877.
Here are the lyrics to "Whoa Mule" by Pete Seeger
OLD GREY MULE
My uncle had a old grey mule,
His name was Simon Slick,
About anything you ever did see
Was how that mule could kick.
Refrain: Whoa! Mule, whoa!
Whoa that mule I say,
Keep your seat, Miss Liza
Ain't got long to stay.
I went to feed that mule one day,
He met me with a smile,
He backed one ear, winked one eye
And kicked me half a mile.
Now this mule was a big one,
He weighed ten thousand pounds,
Every tooth he had in his head,
Was eighteen inches round.
I took him to the blacksmith shop
To get his mouth made small,
He opened his mouth, took a yawn
Swallowed blacksmith shop and all.
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