"Oh! Susanna" is a song written by
Stephen FosterStephen Collins Foster , known as the "father of American music," was the pre-eminent songwriter in the United States of the 19th century...
. It was first published on February 25, 1848. Popularly associated with the
California Gold RushThe California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was discovered by James Wilson Marshall at Sutter's Mill, in Coloma, California. News of the discovery soon spread, resulting in some 300,000 men, women, and children coming to California from the rest of the United States and...
, the song is occasionally (incorrectly) called "Banjo on My Knee".
In 1843, the year Dan Emmett established The
Virginia MinstrelsThe Virginia Minstrels or Virginia Serenaders was a group of 19th century American entertainers known for helping to invent the entertainment form known as the minstrel show...
as the first
blackfaceBlackface, in the narrow sense, is a style of theatrical makeup that originated in the United States, used to take on the appearance of certain archetypes of American racism, especially those of the "happy-go-lucky darky on the plantation" or the "dandified coon "...
troupe in New York, Foster, 16, was working as a bookkeeper for his brother Morrison's business in Pittsburgh. Morrison was a friend of the early circus blackface clown,
Dan RiceDan Rice , was an American entertainer of many talents, most famously as a clown, who was pre-eminent before the American Civil War. During the height of his career, Rice was a household name...
, and the young Stephen came under his influence.
Foster also became aware of the new fad of "Ethiopian" songs.
"Oh! Susanna" is a song written by
Stephen FosterStephen Collins Foster , known as the "father of American music," was the pre-eminent songwriter in the United States of the 19th century...
. It was first published on February 25, 1848. Popularly associated with the
California Gold RushThe California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was discovered by James Wilson Marshall at Sutter's Mill, in Coloma, California. News of the discovery soon spread, resulting in some 300,000 men, women, and children coming to California from the rest of the United States and...
, the song is occasionally (incorrectly) called "Banjo on My Knee".
In 1843, the year Dan Emmett established The
Virginia MinstrelsThe Virginia Minstrels or Virginia Serenaders was a group of 19th century American entertainers known for helping to invent the entertainment form known as the minstrel show...
as the first
blackfaceBlackface, in the narrow sense, is a style of theatrical makeup that originated in the United States, used to take on the appearance of certain archetypes of American racism, especially those of the "happy-go-lucky darky on the plantation" or the "dandified coon "...
troupe in New York, Foster, 16, was working as a bookkeeper for his brother Morrison's business in Pittsburgh. Morrison was a friend of the early circus blackface clown,
Dan RiceDan Rice , was an American entertainer of many talents, most famously as a clown, who was pre-eminent before the American Civil War. During the height of his career, Rice was a household name...
, and the young Stephen came under his influence.
Foster also became aware of the new fad of "Ethiopian" songs. He also met a member of the minstrel troupe, The Sable Harmonists, who performed his first attempt, "Old Uncle Ned." A contest in 1847 given by The Eagle Saloon stimulated the song called "Away Down Souf." His next attempt was titled "Susanna" – advertised at "A Grand Gala Concert" as "A new song, never before given to the public."
A local music store, Peters & Field bought the song for $100, but before they could publish it, it was pirated by a New York publisher who printed it with the name of E. P. Christy as author. Christy's Minstrels were rapidly becoming the most popular group in the Bowery theater district of Manhattan, and were to be the chief performers of Foster's minstrel songs in the 1850s.
Probably by fortuitous coincidence rather than design, the song appeared in the public eye at the same time as the new
polkaThe polka is a lively Central European dance and also a genre of dance music familiar throughout Europe and the Americas. It originated in the middle of the 19th century in the Czech lands and is still a common genre in Lithuanian, Czech, Croatian, Slovenian, Polish, German, Hungarian, Austrian,...
fad was arriving from Europe. While minstrel songs prior to this time were considered uncouth, "Oh! Susanna!" thus provided an entry to the middle-class market.
In 1927 Columbia 15000D series Records released the same song titled "O'Susannah" in April (also under Regal Zonphone G20240) recorded
Dan HornsbyIsaac Daniel Hornsby born 1 February 1900 in Atlanta, died 18 May 1951) - American singer, musician, music writer, producer and arranger.-Before career:His father Joseph Thomas Hornsby was a contractor and a part time Baptist minister....
(grandfather of
Nikki HornsbyNikki Hornsby is an American pop, Americana, country and blues singer-songwriter and guitarist.-Teenage years:...
) singing with Young Brothers Tennessee Band.
Chase, Gilbert.
America's Music. New York. McGraw-Hill, Revised second edition, 1966. (pp. 289–90)
Lyrics
The traditional lyrics are, more or less,
- I come from Alabama with a banjo on my knee,
- I'm going to Louisiana, my true love for to see
- It rained all night the day I left, the weather it was dry
- The sun so hot I froze to death; Susanna, don't you cry.
- Oh, Susanna, don't you cry for me
- I come from Alabama,
- With my banjo on my knee.
- I had a dream the other night when everything was still,
- I thought I saw Susanna coming up the hill,
- The red, red rose was in her hand, the tear was in her eye,
- I said I'm coming from Dixieland, Susanna don't you cry.
- I soon will be in New Orleans and then I'll look around
- And when I find my gal Susanne, I'll fall upon the ground
- But if I do not find you there, then I will surely die
- And when I'm dead and buried, Susanna don't you cry.
The
nonsense verseNonsense verse, technically termed amphigouri, is the poetic form of literary nonsense, normally composed for humorous effect, which isintentionally and overtly paradoxical, silly, witty, whimsical or otherwise strange. It is particularly common in English, due to the typically absurdist streak in...
that opens the song hints that the song is not intended to be taken too seriously. The coarse
http://www.npr.org/programs/atc/features/2004/aug/stevenfoster/ African-American dialect of the original lyrics reflects the
minstrel showThe minstrel show, or minstrelsy, was an American entertainment consisting of comic skits, variety acts, dancing, and music, performed by white people in blackface or, especially after the Civil War, black people in blackface....
tradition that Foster worked in:
- I came from Alabama wid my banjo on my knee,
- I'm g'wan to Louisiana, my true love for to see
- It raind all night the day I left, the weather it was dry
- The sun so hot I frose to death; Susanna, don't you cry.
- Oh! Susanna Oh! don't you cry for me
- I've come from Alabama
- Wid mi banjo on my knee.
- I had a dream de odder night, when ebery ting was still;
- I thought I saw Susana, a coming down de hill.
- The red, red rose war in her hand, the tear was in her eye,
- Says I, im coming from de South, Susana don't you cry.
- I soon will be in New Orleans,and den I'll look around
- And when I find Susana,I'll fall upon the ground.
- But if I do not find her, Dis darkie 'l surely die,
- And when I'm dead and buried,Susana, dont you cry.
Sheet music published by C. Holt Jr.. New York, [February] 1848.
Foster's version included another verse that is rarely sung today because of its content:
- I jump'd aboard the telegraph and trabbled down de ribber,
- De lectrick fluid magnified, and kill'd five hundred Nigga.
- De bulgine bust and de hoss ran off, I really thought I'd die;
- I shut my eyes to hold my bref -- Susanna don't you cry.http://www.npr.org/programs/atc/features/2004/aug/stevenfoster/
Instrumentation
Traditionally the song is sung by a
tenorThe tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
voice and accompanied by a
guitarThe guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that adapts readily to a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six strings, but four-, seven-, eight-, ten-, eleven-, twelve-, thirteen- and eighteen-string guitars also exist. The size and shape of the neck and the base of the guitar...
and a melody instrument, most often a
harmonicaThe harmonica is a free reed wind instrument which is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes. The pressure caused by blowing or drawing air into the reed chambers causes a reed or multiple reeds to vibrate up and down creating sound...
. Other instruments used include
pianoThe piano is a musical instrument which is played by means of a keyboard. Widely used in Western music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music, and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
,
saxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bored transposing musical instrument considered a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and are played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by Adolphe Sax in 1841...
and other
jazzJazz is a musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
and
dixielandDixieland music, sometimes referred to as Hot jazz or New Orleans jazz, is a style of jazz which developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century, and was spread to Chicago and New York City by New Orleans bands in the 1910s...
and bluegrass guitar instruments.
Cultural Reference
- The 1936 film Banjo on My Knee starring Barbara Stanwyck
Barbara Stanwyck was an American actress, a star of film and television, known during her 60-year career as a consummate and versatile professional with a strong screen presence, and a favorite of directors such as Cecil B. DeMille, Fritz Lang and Frank Capra...
and Joel McCreaJoel Albert McCrea, was an American actor and film star whose career spanned 50 years and appearances in over 90 films.-Early life:...
takes its title from the first line of the song (also the last line of the chorus).
- The Singing Dogs had a Top 40 hit in the U.S. with the song in 1955.
- The Byrds
The Byrds were an American rock and roll band. Formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964, The Byrds underwent several personnel changes, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973....
recorded the song on their 1965 album Turn! Turn! Turn!Turn! Turn! Turn! is the second album by the folk-rock band The Byrds, released in December 1965 on Columbia Records, catalogue item CL 2454 in mono, CS 9254 in stereo. It peaked at #17 on the Billboard Albums chart, and went to #11 in the United Kingdom...
.
- The tune of "Oh! Susanna" was used in the JibJab
JibJab is a digital entertainment studio based in Venice, California. Founded in 1999 by Evan and Gregg Spiridellis, the company achieved international acclaim during the 2004 US presidential election when their video of George Bush and John Kerry singing 'This Land is Your Land' became one of the...
flash parody "Big Box Mart" which spoofed and criticized the large retailer Wal-MartWal-Mart Stores, Inc. is an American public corporation that runs a chain of large, discount department stores. It is the world's largest public corporation by revenue, according to the 2008 Fortune Global 500. The company was founded by Sam Walton in 1962, incorporated on October 31, 1969, and...
.
- Snoopy
Snoopy is a fictional character in the long-running comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. He is Charlie Brown's pet beagle. Snoopy began his life in the strip as a fairly ordinary dog, but eventually evolved into perhaps the strip's most dynamic character — and among the most recognizable...
, while dressed up like Santa ClausSanta Claus is a folklore figure in various cultures who distributes gifts to children, normally on Christmas Eve. Each name is a variation of Saint Nicholas, but refers to Santa Claus...
, plays "Oh! Susanna" on the accordionThe accordion is a portable box-shaped musical instrument of the hand-held bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox...
to raise money for charity in Charlie Brown's Christmas TalesCharlie Brown's Christmas Tales is one of many prime-time animated TV specials, based on characters from the Charles M. Schulz comic strip Peanuts. It originally aired on the ABC network in 2002.-Synopsis:...
- In the movie Tombstone Doc Holliday is playing a piece of Chopin on the piano. Billy Clampton asks him if he is playing Oh Susanna, Campton Races by "Stephen stinkin' Foster"
- A soldier (played by Keith David
Keith David Williams , better known by the stage name Keith David, is an American film, television, and voice actor. He is perhaps most known for his live action roles in such films as Crash, There's Something About Mary, Barbershop and Men at Work...
) can be heard singing the song in the film PlatoonPlatoon is a 1986 war film written and directed by Oliver Stone and starring Charlie Sheen, Johnny Depp, Tom Berenger and Willem Dafoe. It is the first of Stone's Vietnam War trilogy, followed by 1989's Born on the Fourth of July and 1993's Heaven & Earth.The story is drawn from Stone's experiences...
.
- It has appeared in at least two video games: Konami
is a Japanese leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys, trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, slot machines, arcade cabinets and video games...
's Pooyanis a classic arcade game manufactured by Stern Electronics under license from Konami in 1982. In it, the player controls "Mama", a pig whose babies have been kidnapped by a group of wolves.- Gameplay :...
(after clearing the second level for the second time), and MidwayMidway Games, Inc. is an American corporation in bankruptcy as of 2009. Founded as an amusement game manufacturer, it was a video game publisher and developer from 1973 to 2009. Midway published and developed titles such as Mortal Kombat, Ms...
's (Root Beer) TapperTapper, also known as Root Beer Tapper, is a 1983 arcade game released by Bally Midway. The goal of the game is to serve beer and collect empty mugs and tips.-Overview:...
as the background music of the first level.
- James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor is an American singer–songwriter and guitarist born in Boston, Massachusetts, and raised in Carrboro, North Carolina...
covered this song on his album Sweet Baby JamesSweet Baby James is singer-songwriter James Taylor's second album, and his first release on Warner Bros. Records. Released in February 1970, it showcased Taylor's talents and showed the direction he would take in the early 1970s with the expansion of his career. The album featured one of Taylor's...
. Apart from the intro and outro, it is played with vocals accompanied by solo guitar in a more jazzy feel, reminiscent of the solo guitar work of Bucky PizzarelliJohn Paul 'Bucky' Pizzarelli is an American Jazz guitarist and banjoist, and the father of jazz guitarist John Pizzarelli. Pizzarelli has also worked for NBC as a staffman for Dick Cavett and also ABC with Bobby Rosengarden in . The list of musicians Pizzarelli has collaborated with over his...
. He includes slight variations on the traditional lyrics.
The song is frequently parodied when an ersatz folk song is needed. For example:
- In the film Duck Soup, the Marx Brothers sing a quick verse, "Oh, Freedonia, oh don't you cry for me, 'cause I'm comin' round the mountain with a banjo on my knee."
- In the film Go West, Groucho Marx
Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx was an American comedian and film star famed as a master of wit.He made 13 feature films with his siblings the Marx Brothers, of which he was the third-born...
sings, "Oh Susanna, don't you cry for me, I need $10,000 'cause the Sheriff's after me."
- In the cartoon The Wacky Wabbit
The Wacky Wabbit is a Warner Bros. cartoon in the Merrie Melodies series. It was released on May 2,1942. It was directed by Robert Clampett. It stars Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd The Wacky Wabbit is a Warner Bros. cartoon in the Merrie Melodies series. It was released on May 2,1942. It was directed by...
, Elmer FuddElmer J. Fudd is a fictional cartoon character and one of the most famous Looney Tunes characters. He has one of the more disputed origins in the Warner Bros. cartoon pantheon . His aim is to shoot Bugs, but he usually ends up seriously injuring himself and other antagonizing characters. He has a...
and Bugs BunnyBugs Bunny is a fictional character who appears in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of animated films produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions, which became Warner Bros. Cartoons in 1945. In 2002, he was named by TV Guide as the greatest cartoon character of all time, an honor he shares...
sing a variation that ends, "Oh, Susanna, don't you cry for me, 'cause I'm going to dig up wots of gold, 'V for Victowy'!"
- In the film Paint Your Wagon
Paint Your Wagon is a musical film released in 1969, adapted by Paddy Chayefsky from the 1951 stage musical by Lerner and Loewe, set in a mining camp in Gold Rush-era California. Chayefsky provided a significantly changed storyline from the stage musical version. In the film "Rumson" is simply...
, part of the shivareeCharivari or shivaree or chivaree was originally a French folk custom, a noisy mock serenade for newlyweds. It was also sometimes used as a form of social coercion, to force an as-yet-unmarried couple to wed...
is the quick verse, "Oh, Susanna, he's happy as can be, for he's got him somethin' better than a banjo on his knee!"
- Carly Simon included a version of Oh! Susanna on her 2007 album Into White.
- In the novel, The Secret Life of Bees
The Secret Life of Bees is a 2002 historical novel by American author Sue Monk Kidd. It received much critical acclaim and was a New York Times bestseller...
, by Sue Monk KiddAuthor, Sue Monk Kidd, was raised in the tiny town of Sylvester, Georgia, a place that deeply influenced the writing of her first novel The Secret Life of Bees. She graduated from Texas Christian University, married Sanford Kidd, and they had two children, Bob and Ann...
, May regularly hums the song to herself when feeling troubled.
- In Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen, the finale of M*A*S*H on TV, the Chinese musicians who meet Major Winchester play "Oh! Susanna" as they follow him back into the 4077th; when they approach Colonel Potter they finish.
- In the video game Curse of Blackmoor Manor by Her Interactive
Her Interactive Inc. is a computer game developer and publisher located in Bellevue, Washington, United States. Their games are geared towards young and teenage girls. The company, which was spun off from American Laser Games in 1995, is best known for their popular Nancy Drew adventure-mystery...
gaining the easter egg then pressing the bottom number on the phone results in the chorus of this song being sung to music.
- The popular Cantonese folk song, 有酒今朝醉 (If I had wine I would be drunk tonight), uses the same melody with Cantonese lyrics of a different meaning.
- In theTwilight Zone
-Television series and spinoffs:*The Twilight Zone, the anthology television series and its franchise:**The Twilight Zone , the 1959–1964 original television series***Twilight Zone: The Movie, a 1983 film based on the original series...
episode A Stop at Willoughby"A Stop at Willoughby" is an episode of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone. Rod Serling cited this as his favorite story from the first season of the series.-Opening narration:-Synopsis:...
the song can be heard when the protagonist of the story is getting off the train for the last time and entering the town of Willoughby.
- In Army of Darkness
Army of Darkness is a comedy horror/adventure film and the third installment in the Evil Dead series. Bruce Campbell stars as protagonist Ash Williams who finds himself in the Middle Ages where he must battle the undead in his quest to return home...
when "Bad Ash" begins physically dividing from "Good Ash" and forcing the both to run into the forest, "Good Ash" asks "where are you taking me?!" and "Bad Ash" begins singing the second verse.
- In the 2007 film "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford", on the day Jesse is shot, he is returning home with his son, and in the background a women is singing the song "Oh! Susanna". It is not identified who is singing it, but it may be presumed it might be someone on the street, but it's of undetermined origin.
- The Be Good Tanyas
The Be Good Tanyas are a Canadian traditional music group, whose influences include folk, country, and bluegrass. The style of music they perform can be referred to as alt-country or Americana.-Career:...
recorded a version of this song on their album Blue Horse.
- The Counting Crows have sung "Oh Susannah" in the middle of their song Rain King.
- German Power/speed metal band "Gamma Ray
Gamma Ray is a power metal band from northern Germany, founded and fronted by Kai Hansen after his departure from Helloween. Hansen is the current lead vocalist, guitarist as well as the chief songwriter...
" have used the music in the middle section of the song "Lost in the future" from their album "Somewhere Out in SpaceSomewhere Out in Space is an album by German power metal band, Gamma Ray. It was released in 1997 and is the band's fifth studio album. Continuing in the tradition of the previous four albums, it contained yet another different lineup, and featured Dirk Schlächter on bass for the first time since...
".
Trivia
- The melody of this song is so simple that it can be played on a touch-tone telephone
The telephone is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sound, most commonly the human voice. It is one of the most common household appliances in the developed world, and has long been considered indispensable to business, industry and government...
. It is sufficient to use the following keys: 1, 2, 3, 6, 9 and #.
- It can be played with one hand on a tin whistle, by taping closed the top three holes and overblowing.
- There are also at least two Pennsylvania Dutch
The Pennsylvania Dutch are the descendants of Germanic peoples who emigrated to the U.S. , from Germany and The Low Countries prior to 1800. The Dutch are generally regarded as one of several Germanic peoples...
versions of "Oh, Susanna" - one faithful translation and a variation. (See External Links)
External links