The group was initiated by Jon Langford (also of the Waco Brothers and The Mekons) as a covers group, with a constantly shifting repertory and cast of backing members. The name was first used for Langford's 1995 album of Johnny Cash cover songs. In 1998, Langford enlisted the help of a number of prominent alt-country musicians (including Neko Case, Alejandro Escovedo, and Robbie Fulks) for a full-length tribute album to Bob Wills. Their second LP, The Executioner's Last Songs, was released in 2002 and is a collection of songs about death. Following this record's success, the group recorded two more albums of songs about death as benefits for the Illinois Coalition Against the Death Penalty. These albums featured such guests as Steve Earle and Mark Eitzel. The group rarely performs live, though it occasionally does special performances in the Chicago area. In 2007 the group appeared as backing band on Chumbawamba member Danbert Nobacon's solo album The Library Book of the World, as well as playing live with Nobacon.
Drunkard's Blues
The Pine Valley Cosmonauts Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Now I've even lost my baby I guess I've got the drunkard's blues
It was down at Big Joe's barroom on the corner beyond the square
Everybody drinkin' good liquor the regular crowd was there
So I strolled out on the sidewalk began to look around
Looking everywhere for my baby but that sweet woman can't be found
It was down at St James infirmary I found my baby there
Stretched out on a long white table so cold so pale so fair
The next thing you know I'm reeling rocking and drunk again
Sixteen coal black horses all hitched up in a line
In that pretty buggy she's ridin' goodbye ol' gal of mine
Walking slow to the graveyard I've lost everything I could lose
Now I've even lost my baby I guess I've got the drunker's blues
The Pine Valley Cosmonauts' "Drunkard's Blues" is a melancholic ballad that tells the story of a man who has lost everything, a common theme in traditional blues music. The singer is walking towards the graveyard, having lost his lover and everything else that mattered in his life. He believes that he now has the "drunkard's blues," indicating that he has succumbed to excessive drinking due to his overwhelming sorrow.
The lyrics describe a scene where the singer goes to Big Joe's bar and finds that his lover is not there. He eventually discovers her at St. James Infirmary, but she has passed away. The singer returns to the bar and drinks gin until he becomes "reeling, rocking and drunk again." The piece closes with an image of the lover's funeral procession, where sixteen coal-black horses lead a buggy carrying her body of the singer's lover to her final resting place.
The song's lyrics express themes including love, loss, and alcoholism. It's a quintessential example of traditional blues music with its melancholic tone, simple chord progression, and repetitive lyrics. Furthermore, the funeral imagery in the lyrics is a common subject in traditional blues music. The song's structure is characterized by a narrative progression in which the singer finds himself in a bar, discovers his lover's death, and walks to the graveyard, reflecting on his life's events. The Pine Valley Cosmonauts' version of the song adds a haunting instrumental accompaniment to the lyrics, which elevates the mood of the song and enhances the melancholic tone.
Line by Line Meaning
Walking slow to the graveyard I've lost everything I could lose
I am walking slowly towards the graveyard because I have lost everything that I could have lost.
Now I've even lost my baby I guess I've got the drunkard's blues
I have lost my baby as well and now I am feeling the grief and pain of being a drunkard.
It was down at Big Joe's barroom on the corner beyond the square
I was at Big Joe's barroom on the corner beyond the square.
Everybody drinkin' good liquor the regular crowd was there
Everyone was drinking good liquor and the regular crowd was present.
So I strolled out on the sidewalk began to look around
I left the barroom and walked out onto the sidewalk, searching for something or someone.
Looking everywhere for my baby but that sweet woman can't be found
I searched everywhere for my baby, but I couldn't find her anywhere.
It was down at St James infirmary I found my baby there
I found my baby lying on a long white table in St James infirmary.
Stretched out on a long white table so cold so pale so fair
She was lying on the table, looking cold, pale and fair.
So I strolled back down to the barroom to get another drink of gin
I went back to the barroom to get another drink of gin.
The next thing you know I'm reeling rocking and drunk again
Soon after drinking gin, I became drunk and started reeling and rocking.
Sixteen coal black horses all hitched up in a line
There were sixteen coal black horses all hitched up in a line.
In that pretty buggy she's ridin' goodbye ol' gal of mine
She was riding in a pretty buggy and saying goodbye to me.
Walking slow to the graveyard I've lost everything I could lose
I am walking slowly towards the graveyard because I have lost everything that I could have lost.
Now I've even lost my baby I guess I've got the drunkard's blues
I have lost my baby as well and now I am feeling the grief and pain of being a drunkard.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: HANK THOMPSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind