[Harp-L] Another Man Done Gone

[Aeskow@xxxxxxx]

Zombor,
 
"Another Man Done Gone," which is (musically) the same song as "Baby Please  
Don't Go," "Go Down Hannah," and "Parchman Farm" (among others), originated as 
a  prison worksong--call-and-answer songs that were chanted/sung in unison by 
 prisoners from Southern jails as they worked at various manual tasks (like  
laying down railroad track) that required clockwork timing.  The overseers  
found that the best way to insure the workers pulled together was to have them  
singing in time.  There is a wonderful book on this subject, though I  believe 
it's out of print, called "Wake Up Dead Man: Afro-American Worksongs  from 
Texas Prisons," collected and edited by Bruce Jackson.
 
Peace and Respect,
Johnny T