Comments on: That Bad Man, That Cruel Stagger Lee

By: Judyth

Judyth — Thu, 06 May 2010 20:13:42 +0000

While I’m glad Morgan von Ancken’s post distracted me today (thanks to a tip from Galleycat) I really must point out a couple of problems the post raises. Firstly, though Lloyd Price did make raise the number of Lyons’ children and make his wife sickly, John Hurt’s version also has Billy’s plea for mercy. Secondly, his “subdued blues ballad” is more like a lilting folk ballad, of the kind that’s often used for story-songs. Thirdly, as with most folk ballads, some liberties have been taken with the incident that inspired the song — primarily in the interests of raising the level of emotion and providing the listener a more satisfying ending than journalistic accuracy would.

For an example of my second point, you need look no further than Tom Lehrer’s “Irish Ballad” parody of the well-known genre.

By: Matt

Matt — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 09:34:10 +0000

Theres a band by the name of Modern Life is War that made their own version of Stagger Lee, it’s a bit more alternative but definitely worth checking out.

By: Making a Bad Man Even Worse « Vol. 1 Brooklyn

Making a Bad Man Even Worse « Vol. 1 Brooklyn — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:59:59 +0000

[...] at Lit Drift, they discuss one of the greatest bad guys in American folklore: Stagger Lee. That nasty murderer who’s crimes have been documented for well over a century is, undeniably, [...]

By: Alex Lam

Alex Lam — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:23:07 +0000

I am absolutely in love with the song “The Gambler” by Fun. It’s the first one I could think of in terms of a recent release that isn’t rap or folk and tells a story. It works as a narrative song as well but for quite the opposite reasons. It’s a pretty cheery song and doesn’t quite focus on a single character – oh and the characters are all pretty normal people…

What slays me is how Nate Ruess describes the characters in the song… it’s written to fit in a four-minute song but a couple lines puts a very clear character in your mind. It’s just good writing (notable line: “It was love at second sight” – one of many gorgeously succinct sentences). I’m sure it probably helps that the song is about his family… but hey.

By: JK Evanczuk

JK Evanczuk — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:45:21 +0000

I’m trying to think of narrative songs that aren’t folk or rap. “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” comes first to mind.

The AV Club had an article up a few years ago about songs that were “just as good as short stories,” which was an interesting read: http://www.avclub.com/articles/inventory-26-songs-that-are-just-as-good-as-short,1816/

There’s some good stuff on the list–Johnny Cash, Simon & Garfunkel, Joni Mitchell, and uh Barry Manilow’s “Copacabana,” and as I am typing this I can already hear the chorus playing start to play over and over in my head.