Frankie and Albert
Lead Belly Lyrics

Frankie was a good woman,
Frankie was known to be a virtuous and respectable woman.

As everybody knows,
This fact was widely known and acknowledged by everyone.

She did all the work around the house
Frankie took care of all the household chores and responsibilities.

And pressed her Albert's clothes.
Additionally, she even took the time to iron Albert's clothes.

He was her man, but he done her wrong.
Despite being in a relationship with Frankie, Albert betrayed her trust and committed wrongful actions.

Albert was a yeller man,
Albert had a fair complexion and had coal-black curly hair.

Coal-black curly hair.
His hair was dark and curly.

Everybody up in St. Louis
All the people in St. Louis, without exception, were aware of this information.

Thought he was a millionaire--
There was a widespread belief among the people in St. Louis that Albert was extremely wealthy, akin to being a millionaire.

He was my son, and the only one.
Moreover, Albert was my own son, and not only that, he was my one and only child.

Miss Frankie went to the barroom,
Frankie visited a drinking establishment, commonly referred to as a barroom.

Called for a bottle of beer,
She made a request to the bartender for a bottle of beer.

Says to the bartender:
She spoke to the bartender, addressing him directly.

"Has Mister Albert been here?
"Can you confirm whether Mister Albert has been present in this establishment?

He is my man, and he's doin' me wrong."
You see, he is my romantic partner, but he has been engaging in deceitful and hurtful behavior towards me.

Frankie and Albert were lovers,
Frankie and Albert were deeply in love with each other.

Oh, my God how they did love!
Their love for each other was so strong that it was awe-inspiring, my God, it was tremendous.

Just like sisters and brothers,
Their connection was akin to the bond between siblings, as if they were sisters and brothers.

The whore and her turtle dove,
Frankie, who is often referred to as a promiscuous woman, and Albert, who is symbolized as her loyal and affectionate partner.

For he was her man, but she shot him down.
Although he was her romantic partner, Frankie tragically took his life by shooting him.

The bartender says to Miss Frankie:
The bartender directed his words towards Frankie, addressing her specifically.

"I cannot tell a lie;
"I am incapable of providing you with false information;

Mister Albert was here about a minute ago
I can confirm that Mister Albert was present in this establishment approximately a minute ago

With a gal name Alkali,
Furthermore, he was in the company of a woman named Alkali.

He is your man, but he's doin' you wrong."
Indeed, he is your romantic partner, but he is engaged in actions that betray your trust and inflict harm upon you.

Little Frankie went down the Broadway
Frankie proceeded down the Broadway street.

With her razor in her hand,
She held a razor firmly within her grasp.

Says "Stand aside, you chippie.
Frankie uttered the words, "Please move out of my way, you promiscuous woman.

I'm lookin' for my man,
I am actively seeking the presence of my romantic partner.

He's a gamblin' man, won't treat me right."
You see, he is known for his inclination towards gambling and unfortunately, he fails to treat me in a respectful and just manner.

Miss Frankie went up the stairway,
Frankie ascended the staircase.

She didn't go for fun;
Her purpose for going upstairs was not solely for entertainment purposes.

Underneath the ruffles of her petticoat,
Concealed beneath the decorative fabric of her undergarment's ruffles,

She had a young Gatlin' gun.
Frankie clandestinely possessed a recently manufactured Gatlin' gun.

He was her man an' he was doin' her wrong.
You see, he was her romantic partner, and yet, he was engaging in behavior that caused her great distress and pain.

Miss Frankie opened the winder,
Frankie proceeded to open the window.

The gun she fired twice;
She discharged the firearm on two occasions in quick succession.

The second shot she fired,
As for the second round she fired,

She took Mister Albert's life--
Her actions resulted in the tragic death of Mister Albert.

He was her man, but he was doin' her wrong.
Indeed, he was her romantic partner, but his actions were causing her pain and suffering.

Well, when Frankie shot Albert,
Upon Frankie's act of shooting Albert,

First, he fell to his knees,
Initially, he collapsed and dropped to his knees,

Then he looked up in her face,
Subsequently, he fixed his gaze upon her face,

Says, "Frankie, please don't shoot me no mo',
He uttered with pleading desperation, "Frankie, I implore you, refrain from shooting me any longer,

Please, babe, don't shoot me no mo'."
I beseech you, my dear, refrain from inflicting further harm upon me through the use of your firearm."

She shot three bullets in him,
Disregarding his pleas, she proceeded to fire three additional shots into his body,

He staggered to the door,
As a result, he struggled to maintain his balance as he made his way towards the exit,

He gasped, "Oh, Frankie, you can't play 'round,
With his dying breath, he gasped and asserted, "Oh, Frankie, you cannot continue engaging in reckless and harmful behavior,

'Round this hop joint any more.
Within this establishment, which is a den of moral corruption and vice.

I was your man, but I done you wrong.
I will acknowledge that I was once your romantic partner, but I must accept responsibility for the wrongful actions I committed against you.

"Turn me over, Frankie,
"Frankie, I beseech you to turn my body over,

Turn me over slow,
Please perform this action with a gentle and unhurried manner,

Turn me over easy on my left side
Ensure that when you execute the task, you do so with care, and tilt my body towards the left side

So my heart won't overflow
In order to prevent an overflow of blood from my heart

And kill me dead, and kill me dead."
Which would inevitably result in my death, and allow me to pass away peacefully."

Took po' Albert to the graveyard,
They proceeded to transport poor Albert's lifeless body to the cemetery.

Stuck him in the ground,
His body was gently laid to rest within the earth.

Frankie, she was singin',
Meanwhile, Frankie expressed her emotions by singing in a mournful manner.

"I shot the sucker down--
"I must acknowledge that I am the one responsible for shooting the detestable man down--

He was my man, but he done me wrong."
Despite the fact that he held the position of my romantic partner, he committed acts that brought harm and pain upon me."

The people says to Frankie,
The people around Frankie addressed her collectively

"Little Frankie, why don't you run?
"Dear Little Frankie, why do you not escape from this situation?

Yonder comes the Chief Police
Look, the Chief Police is approaching from that direction

With a smokeless 44 gun.
He carries a smokeless firearm, a .44 caliber weapon.

You killed your man, wouldn't treat you right."
You have caused the demise of your romantic partner, who failed to treat you with respect."

"Well," says Miss Frankie,
"Well," responded Miss Frankie

I don't care if I die,
I am utterly indifferent to the prospect of losing my life

Take and hang me to a telegraph pole,
Go ahead and execute me by hanging from a telegraph pole

Hang me good and high--
Please ensure that the hanging is carried out effectively and that I am positioned high above the ground--

He was my man but he done me wrong."
The justification for my request stems from his betrayal as my romantic partner."

Little Frankie went down Broadway
Frankie walked down Broadway

As far as she could see,
She continued walking until her vision reached its limit,

And all she could hear was a two-string bow,
Amidst her journey, all she could audibly perceive was the distinct sound of a two-string bow,

Playing, "Nearer, My God To Thee"--
Which was predominantly playing the tune of the hymn, "Nearer, My God, to Thee."

All over the town, little Albert's dead.
The news of little Albert's death spread throughout the entire town.

Frankie went to Albert's mother,
Frankie sought out Albert's mother,

Fell across her knees,
She collapsed and found herself leaning against her knees.

Said: "I'm sorry I killed your son,
She expressed remorse and apologized for her role in the death of her son,

Won't you excuse me please?
She earnestly requested that Albert's mother find forgiveness in her heart and grant her pardon.

He was my man, but he done me wrong."
It is true that he was my romantic partner, but he carried out actions that caused me immense pain and suffering."

"I will forgive you, Frankie,
"I have decided to forgive you, Frankie,

I will forgive you not.
However, I cannot genuinely extend my forgiveness to you.

You sho' shot Albert,
There is no denying that you were the one who shot Albert,

He's the only son I got,
Considering he was my only son,

He was my son, and the only one."
It is undeniably true that he was my son, and moreover, he was my sole child."

Frankie says to the sheriff,
Frankie directed her words towards the sheriff,

"Well, what do you think it'll be?
"So, I am curious, what do you believe the verdict will be?

The sheriff said: "It looks like a case
The sheriff responded by stating, "From what I can gather, it appears to be a situation

Of murder in the first degree;
In which the crime committed is categorized as first-degree murder;

He was your man, but you shot him down."
Undoubtedly, he held the position of your romantic partner, but unfortunately, you chose to end his life by shooting him."

It was not murder in the first degree,
Contrary to popular belief, it was not a case of first-degree murder,

It was not murder in the third,
Nor was it a case of third-degree murder,

A woman simply dropped her man
In reality, it was a situation where a woman chose to release her hold on her man,

Like a hunter drops a bird.
Just as a hunter releases a bird that they have captured.

He was her man, but she shot him down.
Indeed, he was her romantic partner, however, she made the choice to fatally shoot him.

Frankie said to the sheriff,
Frankie spoke directly to the sheriff,

"Oh, what do you think they'll do?
"Oh, I am curious as to what actions will be taken

Strap you in the 'lectric chair,
Perhaps they will restrain you in an electric chair,

'N' send thirty thousand volts through you.
And subsequently administer a potent discharge of thirty thousand volts to your body.

Albert was your man, but you shot him down."
It remains a fact that Albert was your romantic partner, but it was indeed you who chose to take his life through the act of shooting him."

Passin' through the jail house,
While passing through the vicinity of the jail house,

Went by Frankie's cell,
They happened to pass by the cell where Frankie was being held.

Asked her how she was feelin',
Someone inquired about Frankie's well-being,

She said, "Go to Hell.
In response, Frankie curtly instructed them to go to Hell.

He was her man, but she shot him down."
Even though he occupied the role of her romantic partner, she intentionally shot him, thus leading to his demise."

Once more I saw Frankie,
On another occasion, I had the opportunity to see Frankie,

She was sittin' in her chair,
During that time, she was seated in a chair,

Waitin' for to go an' meet her God,
Patiently awaiting the moment when she would depart from this life and encounter her God,

With the sweat drippin' out her hair.
In that moment, beads of sweat were continuously falling from her hair.

Albert was her man, but she shot him down.
Albert truly occupied the role of her romantic partner, yet she took his life by intentionally shooting him."

Took Frankie to the graveyard
Frankie was taken to the graveyard,

And stuck her in the ground,
Her lifeless body was laid to rest within the earth,

Now all that's left of Frankie
At present, all that remains of Frankie

Is a wooden cross and mound.
Is simply a wooden cross marking her grave along with a mound of dirt atop it.

He was her man- both dead and gone.
He truly occupied the role of her romantic partner, but he is now deceased and gone forever.

Two little pieces of crape,
Within the surroundings, there are now two small strips of black fabric, known as crape,

Hangin' on the door,
Which are suspended from the door's handle,

Show that lovin' Albert
These hanging pieces of crape serve as evidence of the fact that the affectionate Albert

Ain't lovin' Albert no more.
Is no longer alive to express his love and affection.

Frankie shot her man, who was doin' her wrong.
Frankie made the choice to shoot her romantic partner, who had been engaging in harmful and deceitful behavior towards her.