Tear It Down

     "Tear It Down" is another ragtime song that dates back to at least the 1920s.  Among the early artists who played this song are Clyde McCoy (from the infamous McCoys that were always feuding with the Hatfields), Samuel Jones, Jack Kelly & the Memphis Jug Band, and  the King David Jug Band  Despite the bright tempo and classic ragtime sound, the lyrics tell the story of an unfaithful wife.  "Another mule kicking in your stall is a metaphor for another man having relationships with the unfaithful Eve, who is apparently "cooking biscuits" for others besides her husband.  Tsk tsk!

      This song is a syncopated rag, like Ragtime Annie.  To me syncopation is kind of like Swing Dance, where you learn steps based on six counts, even the though the song is based on four counts per measure.  So you start over every twelfth beat.  Ragtime riffs often consist of three note patterns, which are overlaid on a four beat pattern, sort of like this:

a  b  c  a  b  c  a  b  c  a  b  c   
1  2  3  4  1  2  3  4  1  2  3  4   

     Old Crow Medicine Show does a version of this song, in which lyrics talk about the husband actually striking the unfaithful woman.  But good grief, do we really need that?  Don't we have enough violence on TV, never mind singing about it too??   It's still a great song, but face it, sometimes the lyrics really suck.  Nevertheless this tradition dates back to the 1930 version, in which the lyrics indicate that Eve was regularly beaten and called the police.   It's musically a fair arrangement, but I'm not posting it in my blog. In this instance at least, OCMS can go pound sand as far as I'm concerned.  

   The lyrics below are copped from the early King David Jug Band version, with a few tweaks, courtesy of Keith McManus.  The Morgantown version eliminates the unacceptable reference to hitting a woman, and adds some additional verses, some of which might be credited to the Juggernaut Jug Band out Indiana way.  

    Some of the old versions have a stovepipe solo.  Now what in the world is a stovepipe and how was it played?    I'm not exactly sure, but it probably is a large diameter pipe with a small opening and an open back. It was played by buzzing the lips, sort of like a kazoo.  You can hear it in the recording below from 1927:   

  Tear It Down  

(A)I had a girl and her name was Eve
(D)Every time I kissed her she'd holler for police
(A)She cooked them biscuits, she cooked them brown
(D) Started workin' when I turned around
(G) When you catch another mule kicking (D) in your stall
you gotta (A) go and tear it (D) down
Oh (A) tear it down (bed slats and all)
Oh  (D) tear it down (bed slats and all)
Oh (A) tear it down (bed slats and all)
Keep (D) tearin' it down (bed slats and all)
When you (G) catch another mule kicking (D) in your stall
you gotta (A) go and tear it (D) down

Solo (stovepipe)

Me and my gal took a little walk , 
Stood on the corner had a little talk, 
She bent down to tie her shoe, 
And the wind blew up 5th avenue.