Sunday, April 22, 2012

"Jambalaya on the Bayou"



It was the year of 1952 when Hank Williams released this song, "Jambalaya on the Bayou".  It would become one of his most popular songs and remained number one on the country charts for 14 non-consecutive weeks that year.  Since then, the song has been played by many more musicians, including Jerry Lee Lewis, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Brenda Lee, George Jones and Creedence Clearwater Revival among others.  

While listening to this song I imagine ordinary country folks gathered together in the late evening of a summer day.  They are laughing, dancing, telling jokes and stories, and dining on traditional cajun dishes like crawfish, seafood gumbo and etouffe.  *Wish I were there!*

Lyrics from the song:

Jambalaya On the Bayou.

Goodbye Joe me gotta go me oh my oh
Me gotta go pole the pirogue down the bayou
My Yvonne the sweetest one me oh my oh
Son of a gun we'll have big fun on the bayou
Jambalaya and a crawfish pie and file gumbo
Cause tonight I'm gonna see my ma cher amio
Pick guitar fill fruit jar and be gay-o
Son of a gun we'll have big fun on the bayou
[ fiddle ]
Thibodaux, Fontaineaux, the place is buzzin'
Kinfolk come to see Yvonne by the dozen
Dress in style and go hog wild me oh my oh
Son of a gun we'll have big fun on the bayou
Settle down far from town get me a pirogue
And I'll catch all the fish in the bayou
Jambalaya and a crawfish pie...
[ fiddle ]
Later on, swap my mon, get me a pirogue
and I'll catch all the fish on the bayou
Swap my mon, to buy Yvonne what she need-oh
Son of a gun we'll have big fun on the bayou
Jambalaya and a crawfish pie...


2 comments:

  1. Love this song - I also recommend Jo-El Sonnier's version.

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  2. I love this song and am happy it mentions the Thibodeaux name. Thanks for sharing!

    It's nice to see another blog with Cajun interests. My roots are in Acadia and St. Landry parishes (surnames Thibodeaux, Bourgaux and Menou).

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