Today I had the pleasure of meeting Erin and Amber Rogers of Scenic Roots, and joining them for a few tunes at their concert at Magnolia Music. Steve Eulberg produced the event, and joined them for a few tunes as well.
We had a lot of fun, and I got to learn a new fiddle tune for day 200 of Fiddle Tune a Day. Playing Fiddle Tune a Day in front of an audience really makes the experience even more fun.
Rock the Cradle Joe is a really fun old-timey tune, and I love the way it ends the phrase on a minor chord. It really gives it a cool flavor and keeps it interesting.
Rock the Cradle Joe according to Fiddler’s Companion
ROCK THE CRADLE JOE [1]. See also related part ‘B’ of “Sally Ann [2].” Old‑Time, Breakdown. USA; Patrick & Franklin Counties, Virginia; North Carolina, West Virginia. D Major. Standard tuning. AABB. Most modern “revival” versions of the tune come from the playing of J.W. “Babe” Spangler of Meadows of Dan, Virginia, who recorded it in the late 1940’s. The following ditty is sometimes sung to the tune in old-time tradition:
Rock the Cradle Joe Lyrics
(‘B’) Rock the cradle Lucy, rock the cradle low,
Rock the cradle Lucy, Rock the Cradle Joe.
***
Rock the cradle Lucy, rock the cradle high,
Rock the cradle Lucy, don’t let that baby cry. (Kuntz)
***
(‘A’) Can’t get up, can’t get up,
Can’t get up in the morning;
What we gonna do if the baby cries?
Rock the cradle Joe.
***
(‘B’) Rock the cradle, rock the cradle,
Rock the cradle Joe;
Rock the cradle, rock the cradle,
Rock it nice and slow. (Johnson)
***
What’ll we do when the baby cries
I don’t know;
What’ll we do when the baby cries
Rock that cradle Joe.
***
Variations of the words, however, were in tradition as “Uncle Joe Cut Off His Toe,” a nursery rhyme which has variants with verses which also resemble some of the “Old Joe Clark” verses:
***
Uncle Joe cut off his toe
And hung it up to dry;
The ladies began to laugh
And Joe began to cry.
***
Chorus:
Rock the cradle, rock the cradle,
Rock the cradle, Joe.
‘I will not rock, I shall not rock,
For the baby is not mine.’ (Version ‘C’, Number 97, The Frank C. Brown Collection Of North Carolina Folklore, Volume 3)
***
Lani Herrmann finds a similar verse in the biography of Jennie Devlin (1865-1952) by her granddaughter Katharine D. Newman (Urbana, IL: Univ of Illinois Press, 1995; “an Illini Book”). Allan Lomax recorded this version as a recitation by “Grandma Deb,” one of the names by which Jennie Devlin was known. It seems to echo the North Carolina version:
***
O, rock the cradle, John,
O, rock the cradle, John,
There’s many a man
Rocks another man’s child
When he thinks he’s rocking his own.
***
Apparently a “Rocke the Cradle, John” “was licensed by Laurence Price in 1631 in England, and there is an Irish song called “The Old Man Rocking the Cradle.” Sources for notated versions: Alan Block (N.H.) [Spandaro]; Jay Ungar (West Hurley, New York) [Kuntz]; Babe Sengler (Va.) [Phillips]. Brody (Fiddler’s Fakebook), 1983; pg. 232. Johnson (The Kitchen Musician No. 2: Occasional Collection of Old‑Timey Fiddle Tunes for Hammer Dulcimer, Fiddle, etc), 1982 (revised 1988 & 2003); pg. 10. Kuntz (Ragged but Right), 1987; pg. 333‑334. Silberberg (Tunes I Learned at Tractor Tavern), 2002; pg. 132. Sing Out, vol. 36, No. 2, August 1991; pg. 77. Songer (Portland Collection), 1997; pg. 169. Spandaro (10 Cents a Dance), 1980; pg. 16. Tennvale 004, James Leva and Bruce Molsky‑ “An Anthology.” County 201, The Old Virginia Fiddlers‑ “Rare Recordings 1948‑49.” June Appal 015, Plank Road String Band‑ “Vocal and Instrumental Blend.” Kicking Mule 213, David Winston‑ “Southern Clawhammer Banjo.”
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