Macon's music is considered the ultimate bridge between 19th-century American folk and vaudeville music and the phonograph and radio-based music of the early 20th-century. Music historian Charles Wolfe wrote, "If people call yodelling Jimmie Rodgers 'the father of country music,' then Uncle Dave must certainly be 'the grandfather of country music'." Macon's polished stage presence and lively personality have made him one of the most enduring figures of early country music.
Macon was born in Smartt Station (about five miles south of McMinnville), Tennessee, the son of Confederate Captain John Macon and his wife Martha Ramsey. In 1884, when David Macon was 13 years old, his family moved to Nashville, Tennessee to run the Old Broadway Hotel, which they had purchased. The hotel became a center for Macon and his growing musical interests, and was frequented by artists and troupers traveling along vaudeville circuit and circus acts. In 1885, he learned to play the banjo from a circus comedian called Joel Davidson. He attended Hume-Fogg High School in Nashville. Tragedy struck the family in 1886 when Macon's father was murdered outside the hotel. His widowed mother sold the hotel and the family moved to Readyville, Tennessee, where his mother ran a stagecoach inn. Macon began entertaining passengers at the rest stop, playing a banjo on a homemade stage.
In 1889, Macon married Matilda Richardson and moved to a farm near Kittrell, Tennessee, where they in time raised six sons. Around 1900, Macon opened a freight line between Murfreesboro and Woodbury, Tennessee. It was called The Macon Midway Mule and Mitchell Wagon Transportation Company. Often, when Macon was driving along with his mules, hauling freight and produce, he would entertain people by singing and playing the banjo at various stops along the way. In time, his sons became part of the company as they grew up. But the arrival of an automobile-based competitor threatened his mule company, and he was forced to close down in 1920.
Although Macon had long performed as an amateur and was well known for his showmanship, his first professional performance was in 1921 at a school in Morrison, Tennessee during a Methodist church benefit. In 1923, during a performance for the Shriners in Nashville, Macon was seen by Marcus Loew of Loews Theatres, who offered him fifteen dollars if he would perform at a theater in Alabama. Macon accepted and went to Alabama. After the show he was approached by the manager of Loews Theatres in Birmingham, who wanted to hire him to perform there. Macon's salary was several hundred dollars a week. This led to offers from other theaters in the Loew's Vaudeville circuit. At age fifty, Macon found himself a successful entertainer. A rival vaudeville circuit, the Keith-Albee-Orpheum Corporation, tried to hire him away from the Loew's circuit, but he refused.
In 1923 Macon began a tour of the south-eastern United States, joined by fiddler Sid Harkreader and five other acts. By now, the Sterchi Brothers Furniture Company, distributors of Vocalion Records, had noticed Macon and realised his potential as a recording artist. On July 8, 1924, Macon and Harkreader made their first recordings for Vocalion in New York. The session which extended over several days and eighteen songs were recorded. In 1925, Macon and Harkreader added "Dancing Bob" Bradford, a buck dancer to their act, Their tours on the Loew's circuit now included comedy, buck-dancing and old time music. In late 1925, Macon met guitarist Sam McGee, who was to become Macon's regular recording and performance partner. On November 6, 1925, Macon and Harkreader performed at the Ryman Auditorium—the future home of the Grand Ole Opry— in a benefit for the Nashville police force. The show was just three weeks before the WSM Grand Ole Opry was founded.
Macon was one of the first performers at the new WSM radio station. On December 26, 1925, Macon and fiddler Uncle Jimmy Thompson appeared together on the WSM Saturday night program. Macon's career with WSM lasted twenty-six years, but as he continued touring, he wasn't a regular performer in the years of the Grand Ole Opry. In early 1927, Macon formed the Fruit Jar Drinkers, composed of Macon, Sam McGee, Kirk McGee and Mazy Todd. The Fruit Jar Drinkers recorded for the first time on May 7, 1927. Although the group's repertoire was mainly traditional songs and fiddle numbers, they occasionally recorded religious songs, for which Macon would alter the group's name to the Dixie Sacred Singers.
In December 1930, Macon recorded for Okeh Records and later in 1934 for Gennett Records. On January 22, 1935, he began recording for Bluebird Records with the Delmore Brothers and a few years later in 1938 he recorded with Glenn "Smoky Mountain" Stagner. Between 1930 and 1952, Macon was often accompanied by his son Dorris who played the guitar. In 1940 Macon— together with Opry founder George D. Hay, rising Opry star Roy Acuff, and Dorris Macon— received an invitation from Hollywood to take part in the Republic Pictures movie Grand Ole Opry. The film contains rare footage of Macon performing, including a memorable duet of "Take Me Back to My Carolina Home" with Dorris in which the 69-year old Macon jumps out of his seat and dances throughout the second half of the song. Although Macon toured with Bill Monroe in the late 1940s, he was neither impressed by the new bluegrass style nor by the banjo picking of Monroe's bandmate Earl Scruggs.
Macon continued to perform until March 1, 1952. He died three weeks later on March 22, 1952 at Rutherford County Hospital in Murfreesboro. His funeral was visited by more than five thousand people and his pallbearers were George D. Hay, Kirk McGee, Roy Acuff, and Bill Monroe. He was inducted posthumously into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1966. A monument was erected near Woodbury. His son Dorris and several bandmates (often including Sam and Kirk McGee) made sporadic appearances on the Grand Ole Opry as the Fruit Jar Drinkers until the early 1980s.
During the second full weekend in July the city of Murfreesboro celebrates "Uncle Dave Macon Days." The event is held on the grounds of historic Cannonsburgh Village. This celebration hosts the national competitions for old-time clogging, buckdancing and old-time banjo.
While Uncle Dave Macon recorded over 170 songs between 1924 and 1938, in his day he was most notable for his polished and lively stage presence. Bandmate Kirk McGee later described Macon's personality as a never-ending performance— "All day long, from morning till midnight, it was a show." While playing, Macon would often kick and stomp, and shout sporadically, taxing the skills of WSM's early volume-control engineers. His performance style can be discerned to some extent from his early recordings, in which he whoops and hollers amidst relatively aggressive vocal deliveries.
Macon played an open-backed Gibson banjo on most of his recordings, and while contemporary musicians didn't consider him a particularly skillful banjo player, modern musicologists have identified no less than 19 picking styles on Macon's recordings. Macon's favorite tunes included "A Soldier's Joy", "Bully of the Town", The Arkansas Traveler, and "Sail Away, Ladies". Macon claimed to have learned the song "Rock About My Saro Jane" from black stevedores working along the Cumberland River in the 1880s. The song "Buddy Won't You Roll Down the Line" was inspired by the Coal Creek War, an East Tennessee labor uprising in the 1890s. In the song "From Earth to Heaven", Macon describes his days hauling goods between Woodbury and Murfreesboro for his shipping company. Macon's favorite hymn was "How Beautiful Heaven Must Be", which is inscribed on his monument near Woodbury.
Down By The River
Uncle Dave Macon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Down by the river
Sweetest little girl in this world
Down by the riverside
Come my love and go with me
Down by the river
We'll go back to Tennessee
Oh lover, love me
Down by the river
Oh lover, love me
Down by the riverside
She dressed so neat and she looked so sweet
Down by the river
Shoes and hat and dressed complete
Down by the riverside
Talk about a pretty girl you oughta see mine
Down by the river
She ain't so good looking but she dress so fine
Down by the riverside
Oh lover, love me
Down by the river
Oh love tell me
Down by the riverside
She walked out late and she walked out sooner
Down by the river
You just ought to see her dressed in bloomers
Down by the riverside
I've been all around this whole round world
Down by the river
I hate the old man, but I love that girl
Down by the riverside
Oh lover, love me
Down by the river
Oh lover, love me
Down by the riverside
She walked so cute, she walked so stout
Down by the river
She walked so fast that she came plumb out
Down by the riverside
She sat down on a bumblebee
Down by the river
It raised a blister on her sister
Down by the riverside
Oh lover, love me
Down by the river
Oh lover, love me
Down by the riverside
Chew my tobacco, sip my juice
Down by the river
Love my?? but it ain't no use
Down by the riverside
I have a letter from the Shiloh town
Down by the river
Big St Louis was a burning down
Down by the river
Oh lover, love me
Down by the river
Oh lover, love me
Down by the riverside
Uncle Dave Macon's song "Down By the River" is a simple, upbeat tune that mainly focuses on the singer's affection for his beloved girl. The repetitive chorus "Oh lover, love me, down by the river" emphasizes the setting of the river, which becomes symbolic of their relationship. The song's opening verse introduces the girl as the "sweetest little girl in this world," and the singer promises to sing about her. The invitation is extended to the girl to join him by the river in Tennessee, which symbolizes their idyllic relationship. The singer admires the girl's fashion sense and appearance, noting that she looks neat, sweet, and dressed to impress.
The song goes beyond admiration, however, to include a humorous and bawdy element. The singer shares an amusing anecdote of his love's misfortunes as she walks by the river. She walks so fast that she came "plumb out" and even sat down on a bumblebee, which raised a blister on her sister. They also mention the burning down of St. Louis as a warning. The song's repetition and use of the river's setting emphasize the singer's infatuation and desire to be with his girl.
In terms of historical context, "Down By the River" was recorded in 1927 by Uncle Dave Macon, who is considered one of the pioneers of country music. The song is a prime example of the old-time music that was popular in the early 20th century. Uncle Dave Macon's performance style is noted for his distinctive banjo playing, energetic strumming, and his humorous and entertaining renditions. The song's simplicity and upbeat nature provided a diversion from the struggles and hardships of life during the Great Depression.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm gonna sing you about my girl
I'm going to tell you about my lover
Down by the river
By the banks of the river
Sweetest little girl in this world
The cutest girl in the world
Come my love and go with me
Will you come with me, my love
We'll go back to Tennessee
Let's go back to Tennessee
Oh lover, love me
Oh love, love me
She dressed so neat and she looked so sweet
She dressed perfectly and looked beautiful
Shoes and hat and dressed complete
She was wearing stylish shoes, hat and attire
Talk about a pretty girl you oughta see mine
If you talk about pretty girls, you should see mine
She ain't so good looking but she dress so fine
Although she isn't good looking, she dresses very well
She walked out late and she walked out sooner
She walked out both late and at an earlier time
You just ought to see her dressed in bloomers
You should see her dressed in bloomers
I've been all around this whole round world
I've traveled around the whole world
I hate the old man, but I love that girl
I dislike the old man but I love my girl
She walked so cute, she walked so stout
She walked adorably and strongly
She walked so fast that she came plumb out
She walked so quickly that she ran out of breath
She sat down on a bumblebee
She accidentally sat on a bumblebee
It raised a blister on her sister
It caused a blister on her sister
Chew my tobacco, sip my juice
I'm chewing tobacco and drinking juice
Love my?? but it ain't no use
I love my partner but it doesn't matter
I have a letter from the Shiloh town
I received a letter from Shiloh town
Big St Louis was a burning down
St Louis was burning down
Oh lover, love me
Oh love, love me
Down by the river
By the banks of the river
Writer(s): dave macon
Contributed by Cole O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.