Hellhound on My Trail
| "Hellhound on My Trail" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Robert Johnson | ||||
| B-side | "From Four Till Late" | |||
| Released | September 1937 | |||
| Format | 10" 78 rpm record | |||
| Recorded | Dallas, Texas, June 20, 1937 | |||
| Genre | Blues | |||
| Length | 2:35 | |||
| Label | Vocalion (Cat. no. 3623) | |||
| Writer(s) | Robert Johnson | |||
| Robert Johnson singles chronology | ||||
|
||||
"Hellhound on My Trail" is a blues song recorded by Mississippi Delta bluesman Robert Johnson in 1937. It was the first song recorded during Johnson's last recording session in Dallas, Texas on Sunday, June 20, 1937 and the first single released from that session.[1] Inspired by earlier blues songs,[2] it is considered one of Johnson's "best known and most admired performances—many would say it is his greatest".[1]
Contents |
[edit] Background
According to legend, Johnson sold his soul to the devil in a Faustian deal at the crossroads in return for his musical talent.[3] This song fuels the mystery and lore surrounding him as it suggests a man in the grip of evil, and his deal with the devil has become part of popular culture.[4]
Prior to Johnson's song, the phrase "hellhound on my trail" had been used in blues songs.[2] Sylvester Weaver's "Devil Blues", recorded in 1927 contains: "Hellhounds start to chase me man, I was a running fool, My ankles caught on fire, couldn't keep my puppies cool" and Funny Papa Smith in his 1931 "Howling Wolf Blues No. 3" sang: "I take time when I'm prowlin', an' wipe my tracks out with my tail ... Get home and get blue an' start howlin', an' the hellhound on my trail".
According to blues scholars, Johnson followed bluesmen Johnny Temple (1934 "Evil Woman Blues") and Joe McCoy (1935 "The Evil Devil Blues") in adapting Skip James's 1931 song "Devil Got My Woman".[2][5][6][7] The emotional intensity, guitar tuning and strained singing style of "Hellhound on My Trail" are also found in James' performance.[5]
[edit] Song
"Hellhound on My Trail" is a solo performance by Johnson with vocal and slide guitar. He used an open E minor guitar tuning with the lower strings providing a droning accompaniment, with "the bottleneck ... mak[ing] the treble strings of his guitar moan like wind through dead trees".[8]
Lyrically, the song "deals with the familiar blues theme of the rambling musician, but now the trip takes on darker tones, the traveler is pursued".[1] According to music historian Samuel Charters, the first and last verses may be the finest found in the blues.[9] The poetic imagery is brilliant and intense with a feeling of personal frenzy.[10] The song's lyrics reflect an agonized spirit for whom there is no escape.[11] The vision of the hounds of hell coming to catch sinners was prevalent in southern churches at that time, and this may have been the image in Johnson's mind.[9]
- I got to keep movin', I've got to keep movin'
- Blues fallin' down like hail, blues fallin' down like hail
- Umm-mm-mm-mm, blues fallin' down like hail, blues fallin' down like hail
- And the day keeps on worrin' me, there's a hellhound on my trail
- Hellhound on my trail, hellhound on my trail...
[edit] Legacy
In 1983, Robert Johnson's "Hellhound on My Trail" was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame in the "Classic of Blues Recording" category.[7] The song is listed as one of NPR's "100 most important American musical works of the 20th century".[12] Eric Clapton's tribute album to Johnson Me and Mr. Johnson includes a version of "Hellhound on My Trail".
[edit] Cover Versions
- Rory Block
- Jimmy Bowskill
- Canned Heat
- Eric Clapton
- John Fahey
- Fleetwood Mac
- Grateful Dead
- Peter Green Splinter Group
- Alvin Youngblood Hart
- The Mountain Goats
- Kelly Joe Phelps
- Todd Rundgren
- Chris Whitley
- Cassandra Wilson
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Gioia, Ted (2008). Delta Blues. W. W. Norton. pp. 181–82. ISBN 978-0-393-33750-1.
- ^ a b c Pearson, Barry Lee; McCulloch, Bill (2003). Robert Johnson: Lost and Found. University of Illinois Press. p. 82. ISBN 978-0252028359.
- ^ "Hellhound". npr.org. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1075057. Retrieved 2007-08-24.
- ^ "Robert Johnson". University of Mississippi. http://hermes.lib.olemiss.edu/mystery/exhibit.asp?display=7§ion=2. Retrieved 2007-08-24.
- ^ a b Wald, Elijah (2004). Escaping the Delta: Robert Johnson and the Invention of the Blues. Harper. p. 171. ISBN 9780060524272.
- ^ Calt, Stephen (1994). I'd Rather be the Devil: Skip James and the Blues. New York: Da Capa. p. 194. ISBN 0-306-80579-0.
- ^ a b "Blues Hall of Fame – 1983 Inductees". The Blues Foundation. 1983. http://www.blues.org/#ref=halloffame_inductees. Retrieved September 3, 2011.
- ^ Murray, Charles Shaar (1989). Crosstown Traffic. St. Martin's Press. p. 115. ISBN 0-312-06324-5.
- ^ a b Charters, Samuel (1973). Robert Johnson. New York: Oak Publications. pp. 15–17, 69. ISBN 0-8256-0059-6.
- ^ Shaw, Arnold (1978). Honkers and Shouters. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. pp. 38–39. ISBN 0-02-061740-2.
- ^ Oliver, Paul (1990). Blues Fell This Morning (2nd Ed ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 285–287. ISBN 0-521-37793-5.
- ^ "The 100 most important American musical works of the 20th century". npr.org. http://www.npr.org/programs/specials/vote/list100.html. Retrieved 2007-08-24.
|
|||||||||||
