Charlie was born in Spray, now part of Eden, Rockingham County, in the northern Piedmont region of North Carolina, near the Virginia border.
He learned banjo as a youth. Poole also played baseball, and his three-fingered playing technique was the result of a baseball accident. He bet that he could catch a baseball without a glove. Poole closed his hand too soon, the ball broke his thumb, and resulted in a permanent arch in his right hand.
Poole bought his first good banjo, an Orpheum No. 3 Special, with profits from his moonshine still. Later, he appeared in the 1929 catalog of the Gibson Company, promoting their banjo.
He spent much of his adult life working in textile mills.
Charlie Poole and his brother-in-law, fiddler Posey Rorer - whom he had met in West Virginia in 1917 and whose sister he married - formed a trio with guitarist Norman Woodlieff called the North Carolina Ramblers. The group auditioned in New York for Columbia Records. After landing a contract, they recorded the highly successful "Don't Let Your Deal Go Down Blues" on July 27, 1925. This song sold over 102,000 copies at a time when there were estimated to be only 600,000 phonographs in the Southern United States, according to Poole’s biographer and great nephew, Kinney Rorrer. The band was paid $75 for the session, which would be approximately $950.20 in 2011 dollars (Consumer Price Index).
Poole played the banjo. The guitar was played by Norman Woodlief, and later by former railroad engineer Roy Harvey from West Virginia. Fiddlers in various recording sessions were Posey Rorer, Lonnie Austin and Odell Smith.
The North Carolina Ramblers, a banjo-guitar-fiddle trio with Poole's plain-spoken tenor voice in the lead, in great part created the musical templates for two giants: the bluegrass of Bill Monroe and, by extension, the lyrical aspects of the modern country music of Hank Williams. Bill C. Malone, in his important history of country music, "Country Music, U.S.A." says, "The Rambler sound was predictable: a bluesy fiddle lead, backed up by long, flowing, melodic guitar runs and the finger-style banjo picking of Poole. Predictable as it may be, it was nonetheless outstanding. No string band in early country music equalled the Ramblers' controlled, clean, well-patterned sound."
For the next five years, Poole and the Ramblers were a very popular band. The band's distinctive sound remained consistent though several members came and left, including Posey Rorer and Norm Woodlieff. In all, the band recorded over 60 songs for Columbia Records during the 1920s. These hits included: "Sweet Sunny South", "White House Blues", “He Rambled”, and “Take a Drink on Me”.
Poole was essentially a cover artist, who composed few, if any, of his recordings. Nevertheless, his dynamic renditions were popular with a broad audience in the Southeast. He is considered a primary source for old-time music revivalists and aficionados. Songs like "Bill Morgan And His Gal", "Milwaukee Blues", and "Leavin' Home", have been resurrected by banjo players. Poole developed a unique fingerpicking style, a blend of melody, arpeggio, and rhythm (as distinct from clawhammer/frailing and Scruggs' variations).
In addition to being a talented musician, Poole was a fast living and hard drinking man. He packed several lifetimes of hard and fast living into his 39 years. Textile mill worker, semi-pro ballplayer, and hell-raiser supreme, Poole won his place among the giants of American roots music with his pathfinding work on the banjo, and for heading the innovative North Carolina Ramblers. The original Ramblers played around Spray and Leaksville, North Carolina beginning in 1917. In 1925, the recordings they made for Columbia allowed them to escape life in the textile mills.
Poole's life ended after a 13-week drinking bender. He had been invited to Hollywood to play background music for a film. According to some reports, he was disheartened by the slump in record sales due to the Depression. Poole never made it to Hollywood. He died of a heart attack in May 1931.
The ultimate cause of Poole's death is unknown. He suffered heart failure after excessive drinking. After his last bout with drinking, Poole was examined by a local doctor in Eden, who administered an injection of some kind -possibly to bring him down from the alcohol. Poole died after the injection on the table, and there is speculation that the injection may have been a factor in his death.
Poole’s music enjoyed a revival in the 1960s, and his renditions have been rerecorded by numerous artists, such as John Mellencamp with "White House Blues", The Chieftains and Grateful Dead with "Don’t Let the Deal Go Down", Holy Modal Rounders and Hot Tuna with "Hesitation Blues", and Joan Baez with "Sweet Sunny South". His recordings have also appeared on numerous compilations of old-time music. Since 1995, Poole's legacy has been carried on every year in Eden, North Carolina during the month of June when the Piedmont Folk Legacies, Inc, a non-profit organization, hosts the Charlie Poole Music Festival.
Columbia issued a three-CD box set of his music, entitled You Ain't Talkin' to Me: Charlie Poole and the Roots of Country Music in 2005. The album, produced by Henry "Hank" Sapoznik, was nominated for three Grammy awards. It chronicles the stompin' sides made for Columbia by Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers between 1925 and 1931, including such important songs as "Don't Let Your Deal Go Down" (the first country mega-hit), "Can I Sleep In Your Barn Tonight, Mister?", "Old and Only In the Way" (the title of which was used by Jerry Garcia to name his 1970s bluegrass band with David Grisman, Old and In the Way), and "White House Blues", adapted by John Mellencamp, who in 2004 updated the politically charged lyrics and changed the title to "To Washington". In addition to 43 of Poole's original recordings, the package features performances by other early roots music players and singers, including Fred Van Eps, Arthur Collins, Billy Murray, Floyd Country Ramblers, Uncle Dave Macon and The Red Fox Chasers.
The original liner notes, by Peter Stampfel, state, "Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers recorded an incredible number of songs that are personal favorites of mine. Poole is, in fact, one of the great musicians of the century. No doubt about it." The album's cover art was created by Robert Crumb, the celebrated illustrator and an old-time music afficiando.
Kinney Rorrer penned a biography of Charlie Poole, entitled Ramblin’ Blues: The Life and Songs of Charlie Poole in 1982. Rorrer, a descendant of Poole's fiddler Posey Rorer, is the banjo player for the old-time music group The New North Carolina Ramblers.
Production of a documentary on Poole's life, tentatively titled North Carolina Rambler, was announced in 2007 by producer-director-cinematographer George Goehl. However, no word on the film's progress is available.
A double-CD album paying tribute to Poole was released by singer-songwriter Loudon Wainwright III in August 2009. The album, entitled High Wide & Handsome: The Charlie Poole Project, features 30 tracks, including new versions of songs originally recorded by Poole, as well as tunes composed by Wainwright and producer Dick Connette on the artist's life and times; it was awarded the Grammy for 'Best Traditional Folk Album' at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards.
Take A Drink On Me
Charlie Poole & The North Carolina Ramblers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
C
You give it to a rounder and he shot a good man,
D7 G
Oh, Lord, honey, take a drink on me.
Chorus:
Take a drink on me, take a drink on me,
C
All you rounders, take a drink on me,
D7 G
Oh, Lord, honey, take a drink on me.
If you keep on stalling, you'll make me think
Your daddy was a monkey and mama was an ape,
Oh, Lord, honey, take a drink on me.
You see that gal with a hobble on,
She's good looking just as sure as you're born.
Oh, Lord, honey, take a drink on me.
In Charlie Poole's song "Take a Drink On Me," the singer is addressing a group of "rounders" or rowdy individuals and urging them to take a drink. The song tells the story of a man who had a gun in his hand and passed it off to one of the rounders who ended up shooting someone. The chorus repeats the phrase "take a drink on me," suggesting that the singer is trying to distract the rounders from their misdeeds and encourage them to drink instead.
The second verse is a threat, implying that if the rounders don't start drinking, the singer will start to insult them. The lyrics suggest that the singer thinks the rounders come from uncivilized backgrounds, as he says, "If you keep on stalling, you'll make me think your daddy was a monkey and mama was an ape."
The final verse introduces a new character, a woman with a hobble (a limp or difficulty walking). The singer describes her as attractive and urges the rounders to take a drink on him in her honor. Overall, the lyrics present a picture of a rowdy group of people who have done something wrong but are being distracted by the offer of a drink.
Line by Line Meaning
Now, what did you do with the gun in your hand,
What did you do with the weapon that you held in your possession
You give it to a rounder and he shot a good man,
You handed it over to a notorious person who killed an innocent individual
Oh, Lord, honey, take a drink on me.
Oh God, my dear acquaintance, have a sip of alcohol on my behalf
Take a drink on me, take a drink on me,
Have a gulp of alcohol as a tribute to me, have a gulp of alcohol as a tribute to me
All you rounders, take a drink on me,
All you gambling enthusiasts, have a sip of alcohol on my behalf
If you keep on stalling, you'll make me think
If you continue to delay, I'll be suspicious
Your daddy was a monkey and mama was an ape,
Your parents were inferior and less evolved beings
Oh, Lord, honey, take a drink on me.
Oh God, my dear acquaintance, have a sip of alcohol on my behalf
You see that gal with a hobble on,
Do you observe the lady with a limp
She's good looking just as sure as you're born.
She's incredibly attractive without a doubt.
Oh, Lord, honey, take a drink on me.
Oh God, my dear acquaintance, have a sip of alcohol on my behalf
Lyrics © Bluewater Music Corp.
Written by: CHARLIE POOLE, NORMAN WOODLIEFF
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
The Brazilian Atlantis
The "Hop Joint" family of songs was related to the "Take A One On Me" family of songs.
L.J. Farmington recalled hearing this three-lines-per-stanza, first-person song in Arkansas in about 1900:
"Oh, rubber-tired buggy and a rubber-tired hack,
Going to the graveyard to bring my baby back,
Ah, baby, take your leg off mine!
Went up Ellum, come down Main,
Beggin' for a dime to buy cocaine,
Ah, baby, take your leg off mine.
Went in the drugstore, store full of smoke,
Seen a sign hung up: There's No More Coke.
Ah, baby, take your leg off mine...."
John Hurt recorded (studio and live) three-lines-per-stanza, first-person lyrics to "Hop Joint," a song that he well recalled he learned in right about 1901 or 1902:
"I went down to the hop joint, hop joint raising sand
Said 'Stroll back your gangway, looking for my man.'
Oh my babe, why don't you come home.
I got a brand new razor, and a 44 gun
Oughta cut you if you stay here, gonna shoot you if you run
Oh my babe, Why don't you come home...."
"Rubber-tire buggy, rubber-tire hack..."
F. Le Tellier recalled hearing this three-lines-per-stanza, first-person song in 1905:
"I went down to the depot to get my baby's trunk;
I stuck my head in the bar-room door, and I left that city drunk.
My darling baby, why don't you come home?
I went down on the Bowery with a 44 in my hand;
I said, 'Look out, you roustabout! I'm looking for my man.
'My darlin' baby, why don't you come home? ..."
Gates Thomas recalled hearing this three-lines-per-stanza, first-person song before about 1906:
"Went to the hop-point [typo for hop-joint], went in a lope;
Sign on the 'scription case, 'NO MORE DOPE.'
Ho, lo, Baby, take a look at me.
Old Crow Whiskey, Devil's Island Gin,
Doctor said it would kill him, but didn't tell him when.
Ho, lo, Baby, take a look at me...."
Howard Odum heard this by 1908:
"Comin' down State Street, comin' down Main,
Lookin' for de woman dat use cocaine,
Honey, take a one on me!"
The Banjo Joe Show
Charlie Poole was a pioneer in the music industry and a forefather to the profession of playing this kind of music. He recorded the music that was normally only heard on back porches as a past time and dressed fancy too.
try_me_guy
Gib tanner and Riley Puckett the "skillet lickers"
JeriLyn Becker-Nager
I thought I was depressed today..then I listened to a couple of the Rounders' tunes..and a couple of more..and a Charlie Poole, and before I knew it I was up and dancing, laughing, clapping and singing along. When I finally slowed down I discovered the day was gone, I'd got nothing much done..but I sure was feeling good!!! Thanks for posting
Allan Price
The blues are the best cure for depression.
Avinash Dhakad
It,s good
Guy Sharwood
Allan Price
More uplifting than a lot of people think. If I wanted to be depressed I'd listen to hip hop.
Squarerig Two
+Jeri Nager I know the feeling only too well!Great stuff is it not?
John Denver
Can't have your Blues without your booze.
Lisa Merritt
Thank you for making this available!! You rock!!
Tom Frost
If you were to take a drink each time Charlie said take a drink on me, you'd be plastered by the end of the tune.