Jack of Diamonds (song): Difference between revisions

'''Jack of Diamonds''' (a.k.a. '''Jack o' Diamonds''' and '''Jack of Diamonds (Is a Hard Card to Play)''') is a traditional [[folk music|folk]] [[song]]. It is a Texas [[Sporting song|gambling song]] that was popularized by [[Blind Lemon Jefferson]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Lomax|first=Alan|editor=John Avery Lomax, |editor2=Alan Lomax, |editor3=Ruth Crawford Seeger|title=Our singing country: folk songs and ballads|url=httphttps://books.google.com/books?id=i_J4Ii9oArsC&pg=PA303|year=1941|publisher=Courier Dover Publications|isbn=0-486-41089-7|page=303}}</ref> It was sung byfrom the point of view of a railroad menman who had lost money playing [[Conquian|Coon canconquian]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Urgo|first1=Joseph R.|last2=Abadie|first2=Ann J.|title=Faulkner's inheritance|url=httphttps://books.google.com/books?id=FVFi6H5seskC&pg=PA64|year=2007|publisher=Univ. Press of Mississippi|isbn=978-1-57806-953-X8|page=64}}</ref> At least twelve white artists recorded the tune before [[World War II]]. The songIt has been recorded under various titles such as "A Corn Licker Still in Georgia" ([[Riley Puckett]]) and "Rye Whiskey" ([[Tex Ritter]]).<ref>{{cite journal|last=Laird|first=Tracey E.|date=1 December 2003|title=Country Music Sources: A Biblio-Discography of Commercially Recorded Traditional Music|journal=Library and informationInformation scienceScience|url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Country+Music%3A+a+Biographical+Dictionary.-a0111306401}}</ref>

The song is related to "Drunkard's Hiccoughs",<ref>{{cite book|last1=Beisswenger|first1=Drew|last2=McCann|first2=Gordon|title=Ozarks Fiddle Music|url=httphttps://books.google.com/books?id=kMnty2cyRD4C&pg=PA94|year=2006|publisher=Mel Bay Publications|isbn=0-7866-7730-9|page=94}}</ref> "[[Johnnie Armstrong]]", "Todlen Hame", "Bacach", "Robi Donadh Gorrach", "The Wagoner's Lad", "Clinch Mountain", "[[The Cuckoo (song)|The Cuckoo]]", "Rye Whiskey", "Saints Bound for Heaven", "Separation", and "John Adkins' Farewell."<ref>Samuel Bayard, Dance to the Fiddle, March to the Fife (University Park & London: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1982), p.567</ref> This family of tunes originally comes from the British Isles, though it is most well known in North America.<ref>{{cite book|last=Matteson Jr.|first=Richard|title=Bluegrass Picker's Tune Book|url=httphttps://books.google.com/books?id=42bL-Ot-8gUC&pg=PA196|year=2006|publisher=Mel Bay Publications|isbn=0-7866-7160-2|page=196}}</ref> The lyrics may originate in the American Civil War song "The Rebel Soldier" and the melody from the Scottish song "Robie Donadh Gorrach", known by [[Nathaniel Gow]] as "An Old Highland Song".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bluegrassmessengers.com/jack-o-diamonds--version-8.aspx?skin=printerfriendly|title=Jack O' Diamonds|work=Bluegrass Messengers|accessdateaccess-date=1 June 2011}}</ref>

Among others, The following artists, among others, have included the song in their repertoire.

* [[Tex Ritter]] -(a Veryvery early recording, andfor awhich song that Ritterhe is famous for.)

* [[RuthBetty BrownJohnson]] releasedrecorded a version asfor a[[Atlantic singleRecords]] in 19591958.

*[[The_Charlatans_The Charlatans (American_bandAmerican band)|The Charlatans]]

*[[The Cuckoo (song)]], often titled "Coo Coo" or "Coo Coo Bird", was recorded by [[Clarence Ashley]] in 1929 and contains a similar reference to the Jack of Diamonds. A cover version was recorded by [[Big Brother and the Holding Company]] as "Coo Coo." <ref>{{cite book|last=Cohen|first=Norm|title=Folk music: a regional exploration|url=httphttps://books.google.com/books?id=DqN_-kyCJFcC&pg=PA55|year=2005|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=0-313-32872-2|page=55}}</ref>