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John Henry

from WomanChild by Cecile McLorin Salvant

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  • Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    2LP 180-gram vinyl in deluxe gatefold package. Vinyl contains 2 bonus tracks: "Take It Right Back" and "Mean to Me."

    Includes unlimited streaming of WomanChild via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 3 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      $35 USD

     

  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    CD in Jewel Case

    Includes unlimited streaming of WomanChild via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 3 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      $18 USD

     

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      $1.29 USD

     

  • Buy the Full Digital Album

lyrics

John Henry was a little baby sittin' on his Papa's knees
Well he picked up a hammer and a little piece of steel, said
“This hammer's gonna be the death of me
This hammer's gonna be the death of me”

John Henry said to his Captain
“Now a man ain't nothin' but a man
Before I let your steel drill bring me down
I will die with that hammer in my
I'll die with that hammer in my hand”

John Henry said to his shaker,
“Now shaker, why don't you sing?
Shakin’ twelve pounds from my hip bone down
Now don’t you hear that cold steel ring
Don’t you hear that cold steel ring”

John Henry hammered in the mountain
And the mountain it was so high
And the last words that I heard that poor man cry, he said
“Give me a cool drink of water before I die
Give me a cool drink of water before I die”

John Henry went down that railroad track
With a twelve pound hammer by his side
Yes he went down the track but he never came back
Because he laid down his hammer and he
He laid down his hammer and he
He laid down his hammer and he died

John Henry had a little woman
And the dress that she wore was red
And the last words that I heard that poor girl said, she says
“I’m going where John Henry fell dead
I’m going where John Henry fell dead”

credits

from WomanChild, released May 28, 2013
Traditional/Folk

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Cecile McLorin Salvant New York, New York

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