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Saint James Infirmary

from Layer After Layer (SB010) by Zoe Heselton

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I still do not know what first drew me, and draws me still, to this song. Our first real encounter goes back to early 2015 if my memory makes no mistake. It took a few weeks to work it down, and a year and a half of performing it live for it to turn into what it is here. The melody and words I use owe most to Louis Armstrong and His Orchestra’s 1928 performance of the tune. The song supposedly goes back to 18th century England, and has since gone through many changes, and still is. As with many traditional songs (I found out recently that the word “traditional” is etymologically related to “translate”, “betray” and “abandon”, what a beautiful enigma !), verses are added, or taken away, or mysteriously make their way into other songs. The final verses, wherein the narrator states his requests concerning his funeral, seem to be a recurring motif in many folk songs. Odetta sings a similar verse in her 2005 version of House of the Rising Sun (there’s another song I’d like to sing…).There used to be a final section in which the guitar theme returns after the silence at the end, leading up to the chords and a crescendo. It was only when I recorded it in the studio that the final part of the arrangement seemed over the top and I felt it had to be cut. It felt more appropriate to end with a whimper than a bang.

lyrics

It was down in old Joe’s barroom—
On the corner of a square—
They were serving drinks as usual,
And the usual crowd was there.

He was standing at my shoulder,
And his eyes were bloodshot red—
He turned to the crowd around him,
And these were the words he said :

“I went down Saint James Infirmary,
Saw my baby there…
She was laid out on a cold, white table,
So cold, so white and fair…

“Let her go ! Let her go ! God bless her !
Wherever she may be…
She can search this whole wide world around,
She’ll never find a man as sweet as me.

“When I go to my grave,
Bury me in a high top Stetson hat !
Put a twenty dollar gold piece on my watch chain
So God knows I died standing pat.

I want six crapshooters as my pallbearers,
And a chorus to sing me a song !
Put a jazz band on my hearse wagon,
Raise hell as I roll along.

For twelve men are going to the graveyard,
And eleven are coming back
Twelve men are going to the graveyard,
And eleven are coming back…”

credits

from Layer After Layer (SB010), released September 30, 2017
Of anonymous origin, arranged and performed by Ross Heselton after Louis Armstrong and so many others.

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