Hand Me Down My Walking Cane
"Hand Me Down My Walking Cane" is a song written by African-American James A. Bland in 1880.[1] It has acquired the status of a folk song, and is cataloged as Roud Folk Song Index No. 11,733.
Recordings
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The song has been recorded many times, in a variety of styles including country, cajun, jazz, mountain, bluegrass, rock and roll, and acoustic and electric blues. Recordings by artists having Wikipedia articles include:
- Gid Tanner and His Skillet Lickers with Riley Puckett (1926)
- Kelly Harrell (1926), Victor 20103
- Earl Johnson (1927) (unreleased)
- Ernest V. Stoneman (1927) Edison Record 11481
- Karl Radlach and His Orchestra (directed by Bernie Cummins) (1930)
- Cléoma Breaux (1937), Decca 17059
- Jerry Lee Lewis (1956), Sun Records
- Bing Crosby included the song in a medley on his album 101 Gang Songs (1961)
- Vern Williams and Ray Parks (1966), The Cabale, Berkeley, CA
- Norman Blake, Whiskey Before Breakfast (1976)
- The Knitters, Poor Little Critter on the Road (1985)
- On The Skillet Lickers Vol. 1 (1926–27), Document Records[2]
- Robert Earl Keen, Gravitational Forces (2001), Lost Highway Records
- Michael Knott (2003), Spring 2003 Tour CD #2, independent
- Lavay Smith and Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers (2005)
- Junior Wells and Pistol Pete (bluesman), Chicago Blues Jam Vol. 5 (DVD) (2005)
- Charlie Byrd and the Charlie Byrd Ensemble (2008), Great Chefs. Great Music
- Jack Rose and the Black Twig Pickers (2009), Jack Rose and the Black Twig Pickers, Klang Industries
- Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup
- Tex Morton
- Carson Robison
References in other songs
- The 1945 song "Look on Yonder Wall" includes the line "Look on yonder wall, hand me down my walkin' cane".
- "Please Don't Bury Me", on John Prine's 1973 album Sweet Revenge, has the line "Hand me down my walking cane / It's a sin to tell a lie", which also references the 1936 song "It's a Sin to Tell a Lie"
- The opening line of the 1976 song "The Rubberband Man" from the album "Happiness Is Being with the Spinners" is "Hand me down my walking cane / Hand me down my hat" (lyrics Linda Creed, music Thom Bell).
- Bob Dylan sings the line "Hand Me Down My Walking Cane" in his song "Ain't Talkin'" on his 2006 album Modern Times.
References
- ^ "Bland, James A. (1854-1911)". blackpast.org. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
- ^ https://www.amazon.com/Skillet-Lickers-Vol-1-1926-1927/dp/B001W4GCAK
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