The Battle of New Orleans
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legacy / ballad
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Standard Notation
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Song Sheet
Jimmy Driftwood
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Transcription: by Darryl D. Bush
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Lyrics:
In 1814 we took a little trip
Along with Colonel Jackson down the mighty Mississip.
We took a little bacon and we took a little beans
And we caught the bloody British in the town of New Orleans.
Chorus:
We fired our guns and the British kept a'comin.
There wasn't nigh as many as there was a while ago.
We fired once more and they began to runnin' on
Down the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico.
We looked down the river and we see'd the British come.
And there must have been a hundred of 'em beatin' on the drum.
They stepped so high and they made their bugles ring.
We stood behind our cotton bales and didn't say a thing.
[Chorus]
Old Hickory said we could take 'em by surprise
If we didn't fire our muskets 'til we looked 'em in the eyes
We held our fire 'til we see'd their faces well
Then we opened up with squirrel guns and really gave 'em hell.
[Chorus]
We fired our cannon 'til the barrel melted down.
So we grabbed an alligator and we fought another round.
We filled his head with cannon balls, and powdered his behind
And when we touched the powder off, the gator lost his mind.
[Chorus]
Yeah, they ran through the briars and they ran through the brambles
And they ran through the bushes where a rabbit couldn't go.
They ran so fast that the hounds couldn't catch 'em
Down the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico.
[Chorus]
This tune commemorates the date of the Battle of New Orleans in the<br> War of 1812. The battle was fought from December 23rd, 1814 to<br> January 8th, 1815, after the Treaty of Ghent had been signed by the<br> British but before the signing by the Americans.<br> There are no lyrics for the original fiddle tune but the song<br> "The Battle of New Orleans" written by Jimmy Driftwood used this<br> melody. Jimmy Driftwood was a school principal in Arkansas and set<br> an account of the battle to this music in an attempt to get students<br> interested in learning history. It has been recorded many times,<br> particularly by Johnny Horton whose version scored number 1 on the<br> Billboard Hot 100 in 1959.<br> <br> I play this tune in medleys with:<br> Bonaparte Crossing the Rhine<br> Come Dance and Sing<br> Kitchen Girl<br> Green Willis<br> The Richmond Cotillion<br> The Snouts and Ears of America<br> <br> All of them are in this section.<br>
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