Walk Along John
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American
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Transcription: by Darryl D. Bush
"Walk Along John", also known as "Come Along John" is an American reel or song<br> in cut time and G Major. The parts are played AAB (Thede), AABB (Christeson,<br> Phillips) or AA’BB’ (Beisswenger & McCann).<br> The regionally very popular "Walk along John" was recorded for the Library of<br> Congress by musicologist/folklorist Vance Randolph from the playing of Ozarks<br> Mountains fiddlers in the early 1940's and it was commercially recorded in the<br> 78 RPM era by Luke Highnight and His Ozark Strutters (1928) and Bob Miller and his<br> Hinky Dinkers (1929).<br> "Walk Along John" is one of the '100 essential Missouri fiddle tunes' according<br> to Missouri fiddler Charlie Walden, although each fiddler seems to have his own<br> variant.<br> A minstrel song called “Walk Along John” or “Come Along, John” was published in<br> 1844 (music and words attributed to J.P. Carter of the Virginia Serenaders in<br> their published songbook, although it also states it is "an Old Sourthern Refrain"),<br> perhaps based on an African-American 'corn shucking song' called “Shuck Along John”.<br> It was popular enough to be employed in the 1844 Presidential race between<br> Henry Clay (Kentucky) and James K. Polk (Tennessee), with each side adapting the<br> lyric:<br> Walk along John, you can't stay,<br> The people's choice is Harry Clay ... [Whig]<br> or<br> Walk along John, you can't stay,<br> The people's choice is Jimmy K ... [Democrat]<br> According to Beisswenger & McCann (2008) this song was absorbed into play-party<br> tradition (collected in Indiana [Wolford, 1919]) and in the Ozarks in 1942<br> (where it had been learned in the 1880’s). It was not the same tune as<br> "Walk along John to Kansas".<br> The banjo tablature is by John Letscher.<br> It was printed in Beisswenger & McCann's Ozarks Fiddle Music (2008),<br> Thomas Briggs' Instructions for the Banjo (1855),<br> R.P. Christeson's Old Time Fiddler's Repertory, vol. 1 (1973),<br> Phillips' Traditional American Fiddle Tunes, vol. 1 (1994) (two versions),<br> Thede's The Fiddle Book (1967) and<br> Williams' Evergreen Fiddler vol. 2 (2006).<br> It was recorded by Lee Stoneking on Missouri Old Time Fiddlin' (c. 1970’s),<br> Bud Hunt on Music of the Ozarks (1984),<br> Lon Jordan (78 RPM)(1941),<br> Art Galbraith on Simple Pleasures: Old Time Fiddling From The Ozarks and<br> Bob Carlin on Banging and Sawing (1985).<br>
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