About "Barlow Knife"
THE TUNE
Played in G Major (also played in the key of D). Standard. AABB: AABBCC
Meter: 4/4, a 3-part tune (high-middle-low)
Barlow Knife is a Traditional Old-Time Breakdown and Song- from Virginia and West Virginia dated to the 1900s. From Miss Jewell Robbins, Peckin, Montgomery county with phonograph recording c. 1921-24 described as a "Negro ballad."
The two best known recordings by Henry Reed (Glen Lyn, Va., who had called the tune "Cabin Creek" and John Salyer (1941-1942). The lyrics are from Oscar Wright (Appalachia, W.Va.) via the Fuzzy Mountain String Band (N.C.)
LISTEN
Henry Reed- Cabin Creek
John Salyer, Salyersville, Magoffin County, Kentucky, 1941 or 1942
THE LYRICS
I've been workin' 'bout all my life
And all I've got is a Barlow knife.
Barlow handle and a Barlow blade.
Best durn knife that ever was made.
I worked in the cotton mill all my life
Nothin' to show but a barlow knife.
Barlow handle and a Barlow blade.
Best durn knife that ever was made.
The lyrics occasionally show up in other songs like "Cotton Mill Girls":
Worked in the cotton mill all my life
Ain't got nothing but a barlow knife
Hard times, cotton mill girls
Hard times, everywhere. (Georgia Mill Song)
THE KNIFE
The barlow knife is a type of folding pocket knife that features double or single blades that open at one end only. This pocket knife was first manufactured in Sheffield England by Luke Furnace of Stannington, specifically for export to the United States from the late eighteenth century to the early twentieth century. It was named "Barlow" after one of the earliest and most famous makers.
RECORDING INFO:
Ebenezer- "Tell It to Me." Rounder Records 0035,
The Fuzzy Mountain String Band - "Summer Oaks and Porch" (1973).
Elmer Bird - Bumble Bee Waltz, Hurricane, LP (1985), (Cabin Creek).
Ernie Carpenter - Old-Time Fiddling of Braxton County, Augusta Heritage AHR 012, Cas (1992), cut#B.05 (Cabin Creek)
Norman Edmonds - Train on the Island, Davis Unlimited DU 33002, LP (197?)
Fuzzy Mountain String Band. Summer Oaks and Porch, Rounder 0035, LP (197?)
Franklin George - Reflections of the Past, Roane RR 104, Cas (1995)
Hollow Rock String Band. Traditional Dance Tunes, Kanawha 311, LP (197?) (Cabin Creek)
Juggernaut String Band. Greasy Coat, Wildbeest WB004, LP (198?)
Eric Nagler - Fiddle Up a Tune, Elephant LFN 8206, LP (1982)
Ernest Rutherford and the Gold Hill Band - Old Cap'n Rabbit, Heritage (Galax) (1989)
David Schnaufer . Delcimore - Collecting Dust CD 0699001, CD (1999)
NOTES ON HENRY REED's VERSION (CABIN CREEK)
August 27, 1966 at the Reed family home, Glen Lyn, Virginia (Giles County).
Henry Reed said he learned this tune from Mr. Underwood, who had moved from Franklin County to Monroe County, and described it as an old Franklin County piece.
Cabin Creek is a creek that flows into the Kanawha River above Charleston, West Virginia that was the site of a famous West Virginia coal strike.
It is a variety of tune popular in West Virginia that descends downward by degrees, like a creek. Barlow Knife is often played as a banjo/vocal piece.
SOURCE
http://www.bluegrassmessengers.com/barlow-knife--version-1.aspx
