Down in the Valley (folk song)
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"Down in the Valley", also known as "Birmingham Jail", is a traditional American folk song.[1] It has been recorded by many artists, and is included in the Songs of Expanding America recordings in the Burl Ives six-album set Historical America in Song.
It is a ballad played in the 3/4 time signature. Lyrics vary, as with most folk songs. For example, sometimes the line "Hang your head over, hear the wind blow" is replaced by "Late in the evening, hear the train blow".[2] In 1927, Darby and Tarlton sang "down in the levee" in place of "down in the valley"; the version sung by Lead Belly in 1934 substitutes "Shreveport jail" for "Birmingham jail".[3]
Selected recordings
- Darby and Tarleton (1927, Columbia 15212D) – sold over 200,000 copies, one of Columbia's best-sellers at the time[4]
- Solomon Burke (1962, Atlantic 2147) – made Billboard's not adult contemporary R&B, and Hot 100 charts (peaking at 19, 20, and 71, respectively)[5]
In other media
The song is the basis of the 1945 Kurt Weill and Arnold Sundgaard opera Down in the Valley.
The author/songwriter David M. Pierce used selected lyrics from the song as titles for a series of detective novels written between 1989 and 1996: Down In The Valley, Hear The Wind Blow, Dear, Roses Love Sunshine, Angels In Heaven, Write Me A Letter and As She Rides By. The first four verses are featured in Catherine Marshall's novel, Christy, before the prologue.
The song is sung in the movie Stir Crazy by the character Grossberger portrayed by Erland Van Lidth
References
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Further reading
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External links
- "Traditional Ballad Index of Folk Songs" at California State University, Fresno
- "Down in the Valley", Darby and Tarlton 1929 recording at the Internet Archive
