SKIP JAMES - CROW JANE

CROW JANE

SKIP JAMES

SONGWRITER: SKIP JAMES

COUNTRY: U.S.A.

ALBUM: TODAY

LABEL: VAGUARD

GENRE: BLUES

YEAR: 1966

Nehemiah Curtis "Skip" James (June 9, 1902 – October 3, 1969) was an American Delta blues singer, guitarist, pianist and songwriter.

His guitar playing is noted for its dark, minor-key sound, played in an open D-minor tuning with an intricate fingerpicking technique. James first recorded for Paramount Records in 1931, but these recordings sold poorly, having been released during the Great Depression, and he drifted into obscurity. After a long absence from the public eye, James was "rediscovered" in 1964 by three blues enthusiasts, helping further the blues and folk music revival of the 1950s and early 1960s. During this period, James appeared at folk and blues festivals, gave concerts around the country and recorded several albums for various record labels.

His songs have influenced generations of musicians, having been adapted or covered by Kansas Joe McCoy, Robert Johnson, Alan Wilson, Cream, Deep Purple, Chris Thomas King, Alvin Youngblood Hart, the Derek Trucks Band, Beck, Big Sugar, Eric Clapton, John Martyn, Lucinda Williams and Rory Block. He has been hailed as "one of the seminal figures of the blues.

Today! is the third studio album by Delta blues musician Skip James, released in 1966.

Crow Janie, Crow Janie, Crow Jane, don't you hold your head high,

Someday, Baby, you know you got to die.

You got to lay down, and. . ., you got to die, you got to. . .

And I want to buy me a pistol, "wolf me forty rounds of ball",

Shoot Crow Jane just to see her fall.

She got to fall, she got to. . ., she got to fall, she got to. . .,

REFRÃO

"You know I begged Crow Jane, not to hold her head too high,

Someday, Baby, you know you got to die.

You got to lay down, and. . ., you got to die, you got to. . ."

And I dug her a grave, with a silver spade,

Ain't nobody going to take my Crow Jane's place.

no you can't take her, . . . no you can't take her. . .

REFRÃO

You know I let her down, with a golden chain,

And every link I would call my Crow Jane's name.

Crow Jane, . . .Crow, . . . Crow Jane, . . .Crow

You know I never missin' my water, til my well ran dry,

Didn't miss Crow jane until the day she died.

til the day,she, . . . til the day, she, . . .

REFRÃO

You know I dug her grave, eight feet in the ground,

Didn't feel sorry til they let her down.

they had, . . . to let her down, they had, . . . to let her down,

REFRÃO