Originally from New York, Elliott grew up in a Jewish family and had always wanted to be a cowboy. Pressured by his parents to follow in his father's footsteps and become a doctor, Elliott resisted and inspired by the rodeos he attended at Madison Square Garden, he ran away from home at the age of 15 and joined the J.E. Ranch Rodeo. Although he was only with the rodeo for three months (before his parents tracked him down and he was sent home), Elliott was exposed to his first singing cowboy, a rodeo clown who played guitar and banjo and sang songs.
Returning home, Elliott taught himself to play guitar and started busking for a living. Eventually he hooked up with Woody Guthrie and lived with him as a kind of student.
With banjo player Derroll Adams, he later toured Great Britain and Europe and had a lasting effect on the music scene there. By 1960, he had made three folk albums for the British label, Topic. Playing in the small clubs and pubs of London by day, he would then take his act to the smart, west end night clubs. Upon arriving back in the U.S., Elliott discovered he had become well-known within the folk scene.
Elliott's greatest influence was Woody Guthrie. Guthrie's son, Arlo, has said that because of his dad's illness and early death, he never really got to know him. Arlo acknowledged that he learned his dad's songs and musical style through Elliott.
Elliott's musical style influenced Bob Dylan so heavily that Dylan's first gig in New York City was billed as "Son of Jack Elliott." While Dylan rose to prominence through his compositions, Elliott continued as an interpretive troubadour, bringing old songs to new audiences in an idiosyncratic manner.
Elliott appeared on Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue and played Longheno de Castro in Dylan's Renaldo and Clara.
Jack Elliott's style is distinctive in its use of excellent guitar technique matched with laconic, humorous storytelling and an emotional intensity in the singing.
Elliott's nickname is due not to his travel habits, but rather to the countless stories he would relate before answering the simplest of questions. Folk singer Odetta claims that it was her mother who gave him the name by remarking, "Oh Jack Elliott, yeah, he can sure ramble on!"
He was famously parodied in on the BBC in the 1960s by Kenneth Williams as Rambling Syd Rumpo who was a recurring character on Round the Horne. His claims of authenticity as a folk artist (despite being a Jewish doctor's son from New York City) and disparagement of other folk artists were also parodied by the Folksmen (Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer) in A Mighty Wind both in the name of their "hit" Ramblin' and in their claims that their version was more authentic than the New Main Street Singers's version.
Jack Elliott's first recording in 20 years, "South Coast", earned him his first Grammy in 1995. He was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 1998. Ramblin' Jack's long career and strained relationship with his daughter Aiyana were chronicled in her 2000 documentary, "The Ballad of Ramblin' Jack".
At 75, he has recently changed labels and released "I Stand Alone" on the Anti- label, with an assortment of guest backup players including members of the Red Hot Chili Peppers; again, an idiosyncratic collection of little-known music delivered with humor and intensity. He is on record as saying his intention was to title the album "Not For The Tourists" because it was recorded in response to his daughter's request for songs he loved but never played in concert. When she asked why he did not play them in public, he replied "These songs are not for the tourists".
I Ride An Old Paint
Ramblin' Jack Elliott Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm goin' to Montana to throw the houlihan
Feed them in the coulees, then water in the draw
Their tails are all matted and their backs are all raw
Ride around, them dogies, ride around them slow
They're fiery and they're snuffy are raring to go
One went to college the other went wrong
His wife she got killed in a poolroom fight
Still he keeps singing from morning 'til night
Ride around, them dogies, ride around them slow
They're fiery and they're snuffy are raring to go
When I die take my saddle from the wall
Place it on my old pony, lead him out of his stall
Tie my bones to the saddle face my pony to the west
We'll both ride the country that we love the best
Ride around, them dogies, ride around them slow
They're fiery and they're snuffy are raring to go
In Ramblin' Jack Elliott's song "I Ride An Old Paint," the lyrics describe a cowboy's journey through Montana with his old horse and a companion named Dan. He plans to feed them in the coulees and water them in the draw, describing their matted tails and raw backs. The cowboy is then instructed to ride around the dogies ("young cattle") slowly, as they are fiery and ready to go.
The song takes a personal turn as it shifts to the story of Old Bill Jones, a man with two daughters and a son. One daughter went to college while the other "went wrong." Old Bill's wife was killed in a poolroom fight, but he continued to sing from morning 'til night.
The song comes full circle as it returns to the cowboy's own journey. He longs for his old pony to carry him into the country he loves the best, and for his bones to be tied to the saddle facing west. The song ends with the cowboy once again being told to ride around the dogies slowly, highlighting the cycle of life and the importance of taking things at a measured pace.
Line by Line Meaning
I ride an old Paint, I lead an old Dan
I ride a horse named Paint and lead a mule named Dan.
I'm goin' to Montana to throw the houlihan
I'm traveling to Montana to participate in the houlihan, a ranch competition involving roping and branding cattle.
Feed them in the coulees, then water in the draw
I'll feed the animals in the coulees, then get them water from the draw, a small stream that has formed in a natural basin.
Their tails are all matted and their backs are all raw
The animals' tails are tangled and their backs are covered in sores or other physical injuries.
Ride around, them dogies, ride around them slow
I'll ride around the dogies, or young cattle, and do it slowly.
They're fiery and they're snuffy are raring to go
The dogies are energetic and ready to move.
Old Bill Jones had two daughters and a son
Bill Jones had two daughters and a son.
One went to college the other went wrong
One daughter pursued higher education while the other made negative choices in life.
His wife she got killed in a poolroom fight
Bill's wife died in a violent altercation at a pool hall.
Still he keeps singing from morning 'til night
Despite the tragedy and adversity he faced, Bill continues to sing throughout the day and night.
When I die take my saddle from the wall
When I die, retrieve my saddle from where it hangs on the wall.
Place it on my old pony, lead him out of his stall
Put the saddle on my old pony and lead the horse out of the stall.
Tie my bones to the saddle face my pony to the west
Secure my remains to the saddle and orient the horse to face the western horizon.
We'll both ride the country that we love the best
The horse and my remains will travel across the land we both cherish.
Contributed by Jason R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.