Remembrance of Charley Patton Songtext
von Bukka White

Always wanted to be like old Charlie Patton
Long ago when I was a kid, I hear him an′ play those numbers about
"I'll hitch up my buggy and saddle my black mare"

An′ I used to pick cotton an, come around in Clarksdale after them cafes, eatin' cheese an' cracker
None of the other boys they didn′t have an idea what I was thinkin′
I say, I wants to come to be a great man like Charlie Patton
But I didn't want to get killed like he did, the way he got killed, the way he had to go
I′ve always realized I knew I had to die but I didn't want one of those ol′ sand-foot woman, womens to come up and cut my throat or do somethin' to me that was unnecessary

And so I goes on down and got me old piece a-guitar
And I always wanted to play about
"Hitch up my buggy, saddle up my black mare
I wanna find my baby in this great big world, somewhere"

And I got chance before he was passed
So, he wasn′t even thinkin' about passing
And I shaked his hand once, his brother in Clarksdale
Have a brother that work at The Compress.
And I said, if I ever lived to get half way grown or grown, I would wanna be just like Charlie Patton was.


An after I heard about his death
After I got might' near grown
I would have liked at that time
To met the one that caused him to have that dead. ′Cause he was a great boy

And ah, he used to play-a, a number by
"Old blue jumped the rabbit and they runnin′ one solid mile
When the rabbit fell dead, he cried just like a child"
And you know I felt so good over that I quit eatin' rabbit
Cause them rabbit you know do holler when the dog catch up to ′em
He could bit in a newborn baby
And they was screamin' and cryin′
And ah, after I hear, Charlie Patton went on
An play that number, I 'cide I just stop eat rabbit
If had my dog catch ′em and I take away from 'em


And so as I went on to say, you know Clarksdale
Is a little old small town that-a-way
A lot of good boys been in there
But in traveling through them little small town like that
A good thing I found a good man can do is take it easy and take his time and don't fool with things that you don′t have
Ah, that′s not worthwhile
You don't have time even, to fool around with
Just take life easy
′Cause ev'rything shine like gold
And gold you know, they′s a lot of brass
You know, shine like gold.

And so Charlie Patton used to sing that song about
"Hitch up my buggy and saddle up my black mare"
And I hear, would just knock me off my feet
I was bare-feeted, little bare-feeted boy, too
And I like it so well after I growed up, the first record I put out when I was comin' up about
"Downtown women sicin′ them dogs on me"
I was one that kind-a compare with it
Ah, I think I made a pretty good hit on that!

But now, I done forgot, I don't play it so much
But at that time he was goin' so good, you know?
And ah, if he′s got any friends or relative
His mother or father wherever might be
To hear me sayin′ that I just wanna let 'em know that
Old remember, never do be forgotten
Things that then went on, you know

So, I ′gratulates to it
To all his friends, his cousins, to ev'rything
I tried to be the second behind old Big Charlie Patton

He really did
And to tell you the truth
The first drank of whiskey that I ever dranken
Charlie Patton give me a little in a spoon
He said, "You′re too young to drink too much whiskey"
But I'm ′onna give you enough to know what it's about
And I still think about that
I wish I'd aks him to gimme the spoon

And so, while we′re here
I rather thinkin′ of old time thing like that
We've got to take thing ′un of consideration
You know thing like that
Suppose to bring a man mind back

If you're goin′ too fast
You're suppose to take a consideration
An settle down, and think about
′Cause that's your best you can hardly get over

I just wish the day I could shake Charlie Patton hand