His most famous work is Alice's Restaurant, a talking blues song that lasts eighteen minutes and twenty seconds (in its original recorded version; Guthrie has been known to spin the story out to forty-five minutes in concert). The song, a bitingly satirical protest against the Vietnam War draft, is based on a true incident. In the song, Guthrie was called up for a draft examination, and rejected as unfit for military service as a result of a criminal record consisting in its entirety of a single arrest, court appearance, fine and clean-up order for littering. In reality, Guthrie, though a carrier of the genetically inherited disease Huntington's chorea, was classified as fit (1A); however, his draft-lottery number did not come up.
Shenandoah
Arlo Guthrie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The red man's camp lies on her bordersAway, we're bound away across the wide
Missouri, a white man loved an Indian maidenAway you rolling river
With notions sweet his canoe was ladenAway, we're bound away across the wide
Missouri Shenandoah, I love your daughterAway you rolling river
I'll take her 'cross the rolling waterAway, we're bound away across the wide
Missouri, the chief disdained the trader's dollarsAway you rolling river
At last there came a Yankee skipperAway you rolling river
He winked his eye, and he tipped his flipper
Away, we're bound away across the wideMissouriHe sold the chief that fire-water
Away you rolling river and 'cross the river he stole his daughter
Away, we're bound away across the wideMissouriO Shenandoah, I long to hear you
Away you rolling riverAcross the wide and rolling water
Away, we're bound away across the wideMissouri
Arlo Guthrie's song Shenandoah tells a story about a white man who fell in love with an Indian maiden. The song describes the Missouri River as a mighty river, and how the red man's camp is situated on its borders, highlighting the deep history of the Native American people in the region. The song is rich in historical and cultural significance, as it showcases the cultural and societal differences between the white man and the Native American.
The lyrics further unravel how the white man's love of the Indian maiden was not accepted by her chief. The chief refused the white man's offer of trader's dollars and forbade his daughter from following him. However, a Yankee skipper came along, and the chief was sold fire-water, which led him to lose his daughter. The song touches on themes such as betrayal, heartbreak, and cultural clashes at the time, all of which were common in those days.
Line by Line Meaning
The Missouri, she's a might river
The Missouri River is powerful and strong
Away you rolling river
We are moving down the river
The red man's camp lies on her borders
Native American settlements are located along the river
Away, we're bound away across the wide Missouri
We are traveling along the Missouri River
A white man loved an Indian maiden
A Caucasian man fell in love with a Native American woman
With notions sweet his canoe was laden
He had good intentions and brought gifts
Missouri Shenandoah, I love your daughter
I love the daughter of Chief Shenandoah who lives near the Missouri River
I'll take her 'cross the rolling water
I will take her across the river
The chief disdained the trader's dollars
The chief did not want to trade his daughter for money
My daughter never you shall follow
The chief refused to allow his daughter to leave with the white man
At last there came a Yankee skipper
Finally, a Yankee ship captain came along
He winked his eye, and he tipped his flipper
He made a sly gesture and used his hand
He sold the chief that fire-water
He sold the chief alcohol
Away you rolling river and 'cross the river he stole his daughter
The white man and the chief's daughter left across the Missouri River with the help of the Yankee skipper
O Shenandoah, I long to hear you
I miss hearing the singing of Chief Shenandoah
Across the wide and rolling water
Across the vast and tumultuous river
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: D HOLMBERG
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
dukstuf
In this, it's earliest recorded form, dating from the 1840s, Shennandoah or Shanadore most likely originated with the fur trappers or flatboatmen who traveled the Missouri River in their canoes in this period. The song traveled down the Mississippi to to New Orleans to the coast, where it was picked up by sailors as a Sea Shanty, and was saved from oblivion in an article in 1876 written around sailor's songs.
I think it one of America's most beautiful and poignant songs in it's original form. It foreshadows what shortly befall Native Americans from the perspective of the white beaver trappers who saw what was coming.
Shennandoah is an Indian chief of the Oneida Iroquois tribe, and he has a lovely daughter. A white trader and she fall in love, and the trader wants to take her away, offering money, which the chief disdains. Afterwards, a Yankee skipper comes along and steals her away anyways. At the end of the song, she sings from afar of missing hearing her father's voice.
Shennandoah is wonderful in the way it portrays America's western advancing inevitability, and it's repercussions forever for those in our ancestor's path. It is interesting in the way it describes the events in a neutral way, not claiming the whites as superior nor the indians as inferior. The love affair levels the field, depicting all as people, and the love as doomed as the cutlure being run down by the advancement of the encroaching newcomers from the east.
With it's touching lyrics and soaring, rolling tune, it deserves to be remembered in it's original state. Through much of the 20th century, it has suffered from a lack of honesty- being dumbed down and whitewashed into a meaningless jumble of words which remove it's powerful message of humanity and suffering. America, and especially native Americans deserve better. This is a gem, one of our National Treasures that needs remembered for as long as our country stands.
Goran Babić
The Missouri, she's a might river
Away you rolling river
The red man's camp lies on her borders
Away, we're bound away across the wide
Missouri
A white man loved an Indian maiden
Away you rolling river
With notions sweet his canoe was laden
Away, we're bound away across the wide
Missouri
O Shenandoah, I love your daughter
Away you rolling river
I'll take her 'cross the rolling water
Away, we're bound away across the wide
Missouri
The chief disdained the trader's dollars
Away you rolling river
My daughter never you shall follow
Away, we're bound away across the wide
Missouri
At last there came a Yankee skipper
Away you rolling river
He winked his eye, and he tipped his flipper
Away, we're bound away across the wide
Missouri
He sold the chief that fire-water
Away you rolling river
And 'cross the river he stole his daughter
Away, we're bound away across the wide
Missouri
O Shenandoah, I long to hear you
Away you rolling river
Across the wide and rolling water
Away, we're bound away across the wide
Missouri
Jacqueline Devonshire
I've been on a quest for many years to find this version put to record. It was the version sung to me by my father and my grandfather. A story between a mountain man a Native American, daughter of Shenandoah. Thank you for the upload. My grandfather and father are both long gone but now I have this.
Jacqueline Devonshire
@Catmom2004
What a lovely comment. I have many ancestors and sadly distant relations in New York, Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia,Texas and San Francisco. As a child growing up in 1950's England going to the Cinema / Movies then was a weekly Saturday morning threat. Three films, the first, always a Western. My Cousin Bernadette and I played our favourite make believe game every day. Cowboys and Indians! My father made me a Wig Wam in the garden, bolted a small chair to my rocking horse ( western saddle ) and Grandma made us both Indian Squaw and Cowboy dressing up outfits. When I was about 10 years old my Uncle Jerry ( a Priest in San Francisco ) came over to England for 3 weeks, and to our joy and utter amazement he brought his friend 'Terry' a 6 foot 6 inch real Indian ? Cherokee we think. We are 3rd generation Irish Italian Brits who loved music and any excuse for crackling open the whisky, lemonade for us children. Grandpa on the Saxophone, Uncle Jim on the accordion, my Fathers brother Ray on the piano, my Father the banjo and Great Grandma Rosie Bryan on the Spoons or Bones ! There was lots of singing over those 3 weeks. Priest yJerry sang the old Spirituals, Bernadette and I sang from the Burl Ives song book . The best was newly Adopted Uncle Terry with his deep rich bass voice. 'Hang down your head Tom Duly and of course Shenandoah'. 🇬🇧❤🙏🇺🇸 for everyone in the US and Afghanistan.
Catmom2004
That is beautiful. May your memories comfort you in the months and years ahead.
Sean Misael
Instablaster.
dukstuf
In this, it's earliest recorded form, dating from the 1840s, Shennandoah or Shanadore most likely originated with the fur trappers or flatboatmen who traveled the Missouri River in their canoes in this period. The song traveled down the Mississippi to to New Orleans to the coast, where it was picked up by sailors as a Sea Shanty, and was saved from oblivion in an article in 1876 written around sailor's songs.
I think it one of America's most beautiful and poignant songs in it's original form. It foreshadows what shortly befall Native Americans from the perspective of the white beaver trappers who saw what was coming.
Shennandoah is an Indian chief of the Oneida Iroquois tribe, and he has a lovely daughter. A white trader and she fall in love, and the trader wants to take her away, offering money, which the chief disdains. Afterwards, a Yankee skipper comes along and steals her away anyways. At the end of the song, she sings from afar of missing hearing her father's voice.
Shennandoah is wonderful in the way it portrays America's western advancing inevitability, and it's repercussions forever for those in our ancestor's path. It is interesting in the way it describes the events in a neutral way, not claiming the whites as superior nor the indians as inferior. The love affair levels the field, depicting all as people, and the love as doomed as the cutlure being run down by the advancement of the encroaching newcomers from the east.
With it's touching lyrics and soaring, rolling tune, it deserves to be remembered in it's original state. Through much of the 20th century, it has suffered from a lack of honesty- being dumbed down and whitewashed into a meaningless jumble of words which remove it's powerful message of humanity and suffering. America, and especially native Americans deserve better. This is a gem, one of our National Treasures that needs remembered for as long as our country stands.
BrickPa
@Peter Don't forget every place an American Mountain Man went a Frenchman or Spaniard had already been.
Eileen Rouhani
I love the tune, and the longing, homesick lyrics, but I don't see anything in it about the woman loving the man. For me that makes it very one-sided and a bit predatory.
Reb Col
Thank you for the history of this song and thoughtful insight into its meaning and message.
Peter
@William Vance It may even have been earlier, brought down by the French-Canadians
William Vance
Thank you for your words.