Kelly Joe Phelps (born in Sumner, Washington, on 5 October 1959; died 31 Ma… Read Full Bio ↴Kelly Joe Phelps (born in Sumner, Washington, on 5 October 1959; died 31 May 2022) was an American musician and songwriter. His music was characterized as a mixture of delta blues and jazz.

Phelps grew up in a blue-collar and farming town. He learned country and folk songs, as well as drums and piano, from his father. He began playing guitar at 12.

Phelps concentrated on free jazz and took his cues from musicians like Ornette Coleman, Miles Davis, and John Coltrane. He spent 10 years playing jazz, mostly as a bass player. He refers to his "conversion" to a blues musician when he began listening to acoustic blues masters like Fred McDowell and Robert Pete Williams.

Initially gaining notice for his solo lap-style slide guitar playing, which he played by laying the instrument flat and fretting it with a heavy steel bar, he has incorporated more ensemble work in his later albums. Inspired by the birth of his daughter Rachel in 1990, Phelps began writing songs. He began singing and released his critically praised debut, Lead Me On, in 1995. This album showcased Phelps' craft, and as well as his own songs, he tackled traditional numbers such as "Motherless Children" and "Fare Thee Well."

He released his second album, Roll Away the Stone (1997) and followed it up with 1999's, Shine Eyed Mister Zen.

His fourth record, Sky Like a Broken Clock, appeared in 2001. This time he was joined by a bassist and a drummer - its companion piece, "Beggar's Oil" EP, was a critic's favourite in 2002.

His sound was further added to on his fifth album in late 2002. In order to achieve a richer, orchestrated sound, he collected guitarist Bill Frisell and bassists Keith Lowe, Steve Dawson, Jesse Zubot, and Andrew Downing for the recording of Slingshot Professionals (2003).

In 2005, Phelps released a live album, Tap the Red Cane Whirlwind, which was followed a year later by the studio album Tunesmith Retrofit.

Discography
Lead Me On, 1994 (Burnside Records)
Roll Away the Stone, 1997 (Rykodisc Records)
Shine Eyed Mister Zen, 1999 (Rykodisc Records)
Sky Like a Broken Clock, 2001 (Rykodisc Records)
Beggar's Oil (EP), 2002 (Rykodisc Records)
Slingshot Professionals, 2003 (Rykodisc Records)
Tap the Red Cane Whirlwind, 2005 (Rykodisc / True North Records)
Tunesmith Retrofit, August 1, 2006 (Rounder)
Western Bell, (Black Hen, 2009)
Magnetic Skyline with Corinne West (Make, 2010)
Brother Sinner and the Whale, (Black Hen, 2012)

Fare Thee Well
Kelly Joe Phelps Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

They told me on the phone
They don't have no man at all
Fare thee well
Bade Fare thee well
They told me on the phone
They don't have no man
They no more man
And a two-ton truck at home

Come tell me to my face
You got another guy at my place
Fare thee well
Come on tell me to my face
Another guy standing in place
Goodbye baby I'm going away
Goodbye Baby I'm going away

Get you knife
Don't' forget your gun
Fare thee well
Get your knife
Nighttime but I feel like lying round
Not so tired, but I feel like laying round
Fare thee well

What are you gonna do
When your trouble gets like mine
Fare thee well
What are you gonna do
When your trouble gets like mine
Get a big spade
And dig down in your mind
Get a big spade
And dig down in your mind
Fare thee well

Goodbye baby I'm leaving
Ain't coming back again
Fare thee well
I'm leaving
It's your last chance
To shake it up with me

It's your last chance
To shake it up with me

Overall Meaning

In this song, Kelly Joe Phelps sings about a conversation he had over the phone with someone who tells him that she is seeing someone else. This news makes him want to leave and move on. He asks her to tell him to his face that she has someone else standing in his place. Phelps suggests that he has a knife and gun, but he is not going to use them; instead, he feels like lying around. Ultimately he asks what the listener is going to do when they are in his situation, and suggests they should dig deep inside themselves to find an answer. He ends the song by saying goodbye to the listener, indicating that he is not coming back.

Line by Line Meaning

They told me on the phone
The singer received news over the phone

They don't have no man at all
The person on the phone said they do not have any men

Fare thee well
Goodbye

Bade Fare thee well
Farewell

They told me on the phone
The artist received news over the phone

They don't have no man
The person on the phone said they do not have a man

They no more man
The person on the phone no longer has a man for the singer

And a two-ton truck at home
The artist has a two-ton truck at home

Come tell me to my face
The artist wants someone to tell them in person

You got another guy at my place
The artist believes there is another man at their place

Goodbye baby I'm going away
The singer is leaving and saying goodbye to their partner