The Ballad of John Henry
John Henry was a little baby,
Sittin' on his papa's knee
He picked up a hammer and a little piece of steel
Said, "Hammer's gonna be the death of me, Lord, Lord!
Hammer's gonna be the death of me."
Some says John Henry was born in Texas,
Some people thinks he was born in Maine,
John Henry was born down in Tennessee,
He was a leader of a steel-driving-gang, Lord, Lord,
Leader of a steel-driving-gang.
John Henry drove steel on the Southern,
He drove steel on the C&O,
He drove steel for that Big Ben Tunnel,
Well, now steel drivin' kill John you know, Lord, Lord,
Steel drivin' kill John you know.
John Henry had a little woman,
Her name was Polly Ann,
John Henry got sick and had to go to bed,
You know Polly, she drove steel like a man, Lord, Lord,
Polly, she drove steel like a man.
Well, the captain loved to see John Henry,
One of all loved to hear him sing,
But most of all that the paymaster loved,
He just loved to get John Henry's hammer ring, Lord, Lord,
Loved to get John Henry's hammer ring.
The Captain said to John Henry,
'Gonna bring that steam drill 'round,
Gonna bring that steam drill out on the job,
Gonna whop that steel on down, Lord, Lord!
Whop that steel on down.
John Henry told his captain
"A man ain't nothin' but a man
But before I let your steam drill beat me down
I'll die with a hammer in my hand, Lord, Lord!
I'll die with a hammer in my hand.
John Henry started out on de right hand,
De steam drill started on de lef',
"Cap'n, bet yo' las' red cent on me,
Fo' I'll beat it to the bottom or I'll die, Lord, Lord,
Fo' I'll beat it to the bottom or I'll die.
John Henry said to his shaker,
"Boy, why don't you sing,
I'm throwin' twelve poun'd from my hips on down,
Jes' listen to that cold steel ring, Lord, Lord,
Jes' listen to that cold steel ring.
John Henry tol' his shaker,
"Shaker you better pray,
For if I miss dis six-foot steel,
Tomorrow'll be your buryin' day, Lord, Lord,
Tomorrow'll be your buryin' day.
Oh, de Captain said to John Henry,
"I b'leve this mountain's sinkin' in,"
John Henry said to his Captain,
"Oh, my, Ain't nothin' but my hammer suckin' wind,Lord, Lord,
Ain't nothin' but my hammer suckin' wind.
John Henry tol' his Captain,
"Looka yonder what I see -
Yo' drill's done broke an' yo' hole's done choke,
H'it cain't drive steel like me, Lord, Lord,
H'it cain't drive steel like me.
The man that invented the steam drill,
Thought he was mighty fine,
But John Henry made fifteen feet,
The steam drill only made nine, Lord, Lord!
The steam drill only made nine.
Sun shine was hot an' burnin',
Wer'n't no breeze a-tall,
Sweat ran down like water down a hill,
Dat day John Henry let his hammer fall, Lord, Lord,
Dat day John Henry let his hammer fall.
John Henry hammered in the mountain,
His hammer was strikin' fire,
But he worked so hard, he broke his poor heart,
He laid down his hammer and he died, Lord, Lord!
He laid down his hammer and he died.
They took John Henry to a hillside,
He looked to the heavens above;
He said, "Take my hammer and wrap it in gold,
And give it the girl I love, Lord, Lord,
Give it to the girl I love.
They carried John Henry on the mountain,
Upon a mountain so high,
Last words I heard that poor boy say:
"Give me a cool drink of water 'fore I die, Lord, Lord,
Give me a cool drink of water 'fore I die.
Well, they carried John Henry's body to the White-house,
And they laid it in the sand,
Everytime a locomotive follows go rollin' by,
They say "yonder lays a steel-drivin' man," Lord, Lord,
Yonder lays a steel-drivin' man.
Well, every Monday mornin',
When the bluebirds begin to sing,
You can hear John Henry a mile or more,
You can hear his hammer ring, Lord, Lord,
You can hear his hammer ring.
Traditional Folk Song
I have never heard anyone sing all the verses I list above (in a single rendition), but at one time or another I have heard or read them all. The order of the verses is often rearranged as well.
John Henry is, perhaps, the most captivating american folk hero. He was an African American steel driver in West Virginia in the 1870's. A steel driver swung the hammer that drove the drill into the rock face during the excavation of railroad cuts and tunnels. The poor sod that held the drill, and turned it between each hammer blow, was the shaker. The rest of the story is self-explanatory.
Interestingly, there is growing (circumstantial) evidence that John Henry may be based on an actual individual. The Big Ben Tunnel does actually exist in West Virginia and was on the Chesapeake & Ohio railway. Historian Scott Nelson of William and Mary College, believes that John Henry may have been an African American convict at the Virginia State Penitentiary in the 1870's. This august institution provided convict labor to the railroads, was know as "The White House", and in fact has a sandy graveyard. During this period, Mr. Nelson reports that mortality on the rail gangs ran to 10%.