Jambalaya (On the Bayou)
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"Jambalaya (On the Bayou)" is a song credited to Hank Williams, released in 1952, which reached great popularity in two genres: country and popular music.
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[edit] Authorship
With a melody based on the Cajun song "Grand Texas", some sources, including All Music Guide, claim that the song was co-written by Williams and Moon Mullican, with Mullican un-credited but receiving ongoing royalties. Other sources [attribution needed] claim that this was one of several songs which Williams purchased from other writers; a practice that was relatively common in "show business" at the time.
Released in 1952, crediting Williams as the sole author, it was performed by Williams as a country song. It reached #1 on the U.S. country charts, and remains one of his most popular songs today.
[edit] Theme
Williams song resembles "Grand Texas" a Cajun French song, in melody only. "Grand Texas" is a song about a lost love, a woman who left the singer to go with another man to "Big Texas". Jambalaya, alternately, is about life, parties and stereotypical food of Cajun cuisine. The song has a Cajun theme, possibly inspired by Williams' time with the Louisiana Hayride, though Louisiana Hayride was recorded in Shreveport, a city with very little Cajun cultural influence. Referenced within the song are such Cajun dishes as jambalaya, crawfish pie, and filé gumbo. Williams sings of "Yvonne" in the song, referring to her as his ma cher amio, which is considered poor Cajun French for "my dear" (redundantly Williams uses the word "my" before the French "ma"), and has caused some confusion among listeners, particularly given his pronunciation. The refrain "son of a gun, we'll have big fun on the bayou" has become a well-recognized and often repeated phrase.
Williams composed a sequel to the song from the female perspective, "I'm Yvonne (Of the Bayou)", with Jimmy Rule. It was not as popular. As with "Jambalaya" there is speculation that Williams may have purchased this song from Rule.
[edit] Discography
- 1973 Album: Now And Then
- 1975 live album: Live In Japan
- 1976 live album: Live At The Palladium
- 1978 compilation: The Singles: 1974-1978
- 1980 compilation: Beautiful Moments
- 1989 compilation: Anthology
- 1997 compilation: Carpenters: Their Greatest Hits And Finest Performances
- 2002 Compilation The Essential Collection 1965-1997
- 2004 Demo Album: The Nervous Rex
[edit] Cover versions
Another, even more popular at the time, version of the song was the 1952 cover version recorded by Jo Stafford, reaching #3 on the Billboard pop charts (and making the song well known to people other than country music fans). It was further popularized in a Rock'n'Roll version by Fats Domino.
Other artists who have performed the song include Jerry Lee Lewis, Emmylou Harris, who included it in her 1976 album Elite Hotel, Moon Mullican, The Carpenters, John Fogerty, Brenda Lee, Fats Domino, Harry Connick, Jr., Lucinda Williams, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, The Residents, Dolly Parton, The White Stripes, and Tommy Funderburk (appearing in the film Steel Magnolias), among many others. International, translated or derived versions do exist at least in Dutch, Italian, Polish, German and Estonian. In 2005 two versions from Jambalaya surged in Mexican Folk Music one by Banda Limon and the other from Duranguense style group K-Paz de la Sierra.But in Mexican Banda the most famous cover version is by Los Felinos (Which was also the first Mexican interpretation). Both songs containg the same lyrics but make no reference to food, instead they refer to the classic themes in mexican folk music: Lost love, friends and the love for the land.
