The Cremation of Sam McGee

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"The Cremation of Sam McGee" is one of the most famous of Robert W. Service's poems. It was published in 1907 in The Songs of a Sourdough. It concerns the cremation of a prospector who freezes to death in the Yukon Territory of Canada, as told by the man who cremates him.

After the death of the title character, who hails from the fictional town of Plumtree, Tennessee, the narrator realizes that "A pal's last need is a thing to heed" and hence hauls the body to the lake in his sleigh in order to perform the cremation. Robert Service based the poem on an experience of his roommate, Dr. Sugden, who found a corpse in the cabin of the steamer Alice May.

Johnny Cash's reading of the poem was NPR's song of the day on May 9, 2006. The Cremation of Sam McGee was released along with a vast collection of personal archive recordings of Johnny Cash on the 2 disc album, Personal File.[1] It should be noted that Cash misreads the occasional word and accidentally transposes a few lines.

The poem has also been performed by the musical group "The Streels" and appears on thir CD "A Night on the Marge".