Po' Lazarus

[Mrzombiedrummer]

my hair!



[RaceOfRock]

I'M A DAPPER DAN MAN DAMMIT!

[kylemartinnicholas]

song I wrote with friends inspired by this movie and song. search "oh poor lazarus" 2nd one down.

[jesussmokes1]

black

[MrBigred314]

Seen it for myself.... SC carry labor laws... Imagine what they would do to ya back then... SMH... But this is Mississippi... So that's a whole different subject..

[TheSlynightwolf]

this is a good song to work to i play it when i'm working in my shop.

[B1gg1el1ttle]

I LOVE this song....

But it is kind of funny if you picture them being in a choir, and only a few of them know all of the words... and the rest jump in on the parts they know ;p

[SpyderWebbedHawk]

I do believe however the Fairfield Four performed the song for the bluegrass concert tour that came about after the movie was released.

[bigtibseh]

man this makes me want to work on a road and sing blues songs wit my buddies lol

[krylonjukie]

Can anyone find more songs like this?

[someguy672]

I heard that this version of this song is a recording of an actual chain gang. Does anyone know if that's true?

[guitarhero2211]

@someguy672 no it's not. it's from the group fairfield four. they make older songs like this. chain gang songs, souther spirituals, etc....

[janiconjota]

@guitarhero2211 in this case it's actually a chain gang song, credit to James Carter and the Prisoners. you can find more info online, and a great account by T-Bone Burnett

[guitarhero2211]

@janiconjota yes you are correct =]

[janiconjota]

@guitarhero2211

[1793jb]

hey people! imagine being able to go back in time to this era and record a song written ten years later and put it in your own name and collect all the royalties to this day?

[MrJefdammit]

@1793jb Oh, I think about that more frequently than you can probably imagine. It's one of my favorite daydreams

[samEsam24]

i cant believe my grandfather grew up in this time...crazy but i always think of him when i see this movie

[circlebs1]

I woulda loved to live back in those days, but of course I'd have to have alot money, the work and depression woulda killed me.

[Bobbysmom1000]

great movie The Cohen brothers captured the spirit of America beautifully in this one. The music was well researched/ ideal for the period in American history that this movie takes place I truely brings you back to that time.

[TheMatthess]

Truly American.

:) 

[slimshadybaby313]

parchman farm inmates live.. its the real deal mark "muleman' massey 6625628223

[samEsam24]

this movie makes me think of my grandpa every time..weird

[RE4man101]

Good song, guys if you can't understand it look up the lyrics. It helps.

[evelinlusby84]

i wanna download this album again in downloadmusic .im

[tamaking86]

So why are thee 3 dislikes for this song? 

[scottishwar4]

i like how they lossely base this movie on the oddysy

[culturevulture123]

oh my god. So perfect.

[aberyjane]

This is an original recording. James Carter led a chain gang in singing and a man named Alan Lomax recorded this and donated it to a music archive. James Carter doesnt even remember leading the chain gang in song..... and this song won a grammy. Amazing huh?

[LycoValleyRRFan]

@aberyjane Yeah it is when was it recorded.

[TheBalvis]

Thank you so much for uploadin' this and givin' the lyrics to this great peace of music!

[Myakkachoppertube]

An interesting note about this song in particular as it was originally recorded was James Carter. in September 1959 carter was chopping wood with a mississippi road gang where he often led the men singing when he was incidentally recorded. he served his sentence became a shipping clerk and retired in 2002. The recording was archived and ended up on the O brother soundtrack which sold more than 5 million copies. It took about a year to track him down and start paying him royalty checks.

[briskhockey]

@Myakkachoppertube hahahha, i learned that from "uncle johns bathroom reader" :P

[Myakkachoppertube]

@briskhockey yep u got me there me too. I do believe it to be accurate tho. i tried to put that in there but i ran outtta word room as it was....

[briskhockey]

@Myakkachoppertube you pretty much got it summed it,, thats the best i can remember to

[InfiniteGrenades]

@Myakkachoppertube do you read uncle john's bathroom reader by chance?

[TheViolinKid]

@InfiniteGrenades You saw that too? That's how I found out about James Carter.

[InfiniteGrenades]

@TheViolinKid haha, are u talking about the book? cuz i read them all the time! i get the new one whenever it comes out haha

[gothgirl16]

this is a bad song to listen to in the car. you keep thinking you ran over or hit somthing! XD

[fatguyaaron]

@gothgirl16 That's fuckin funny.

[takezomiyamoto9]

love this song

[Scribe603]

I just wanna sit with a big ol glass of sweet tee outside with a pinch of skoal when i hear this music,

[southpaw9125]

@Scribe603 got some straight LC in right now... no tea though unfortunately

[twiskins]

"Pete got a brother?"

"Not that I know of"

[NeoSirLeader]

My folks and I used to always joke about this song. We would try to guess what the banging was. Recently I've been told that that is the sound of the prisoners chopping wood. Anyway, I think this is the soul of American music.

[Scribe603]

@NeoSirLeader  its the chain gang with picks and sledges.

[culturevulture123]

I have no idea what the bangs in the background are, but in my head, this is a bunch of guys in a chain gang singing while they split rocks. Ohhhh yes.

[IOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO]

Percussion and human voices, what more do we need?

[IOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO]

I could bet music was first invented to spend time while people worked together, I like how this song appeals to everything that is intinctive about music.

[007mikeandike]

i went mining yester day and i thought of this song i was a cain boy i love this song thanks for putting it on po laraz

[StonyRC]

Even more remarkable than the incredible song itself is that it's a 1959 recording of a real Mississippi chain-gang.

[rfetrow]

love it, Cohen bros are brilliant, field hollers have always been one of my favorite type of music, I love how they start the pick stricks random and by the end they are almost in perfect time.

[xSavetex]

If you notice that in this movie, all the songs are about death! LOL it's kinda scary that people are so happy about death. Though <3 either way, they're amazing songs they need more music like this in the world

[busessuck1]

I was looking for an actual recording of "working songs"... i know one exists from the twenties it's in the US sound registry, but nowhere else on youtube

great film though, one of a kind

[mateopumba747]

@busessuck1 you should look for a cd called negro prison blues, its a collection of actual recordings of the worksongs sung in a Mississippi penitentiary. great stuff

[busessuck1]

@mateopumba747 I'll look into it thanks.

[AdamHatter]

love the movie and the soundtrack is just amazing. I especially love how they incorporate the sound of the hammers into this piece

[JustinPM]

This whole soundtrack is awesome.

[jojostudrock]

When this song was found by the producers of the movie they had to locate the ex-prisoner whch they found,and paid for the use of it in the movie.

[BUBBLESrevisited]

3:10 is a beautiful number.

[owsleyforkmusic]

this songe is awesome

[FitForFives]

Kayne West samples the version of this song sung by Buffy Sainte-Marie. Great beat.

[andoteyi]

great, this one got a "je ne sais quoi" .......great!!

[kissphantom05]

This is an awesome song, The Fairfield Four ( who sang "Lonesome Valley") have a video version on Youtube that is absolutely chilling because of its awesomeness!

[JMSturkey]

damn... were in a tight spot!!

[MarylandGurl]

I love music like this. I don't know why, but when I hear this I think "America." It was a sad time, yes, but this song is beautiful. The way the voices blend and the notes are amazing. Thank you for posting. =)

[HumbleAntagonist]

You're welcome :)

[Daemon420]

@HumbleAntagonist for saving them. As a Canadian, you American fucks.

[Riverboy1986]

@MarylandGurl Hard time because you're diggin ditches in a chain gang in prison.

[surrealismisabitch]

@MarylandGurl

i dont know about "america" because the australian convicts use to sing the same style songs

[AgentCarter]

im sure they sung songs but i doubt they sounded like this

[kbaugh19]

@MarylandGurl What do you mean by "sad time"?

[MarylandGurl]

@kbaugh19 By sad time, I'm talking about the African Americans and how they were persecuted, especially in this time and place. :-/ Its awful when people are treated that way, no matter what race or religion they are.

[Vectter]

@MarylandGurl: yes, a precious song indeed, but maybe when you hear this you may think about the United States of America (or USA) ´cause "America" is a hole continent ;)

[Postscript624]

@MarylandGurl Really? I just think "prison".

[MarylandGurl]

@Postscript624 And I definitely agree. Prison does come to mind when hearing a song like this.

[mistarcraw]

@MarylandGurl well sure am glad those sad times are over, and we don't have the largest prison population built by racist institutions, and a worldwide slave system

[babygrl961]

@MarylandGurl I think it's because it has so much...soul to it. And it sounds good. :)

[Mat2001uk]

Many thanks for the words also. "My hair!"

[SatansMullet]

amazing movie. love it love it love it!

[Shadowhunter187]

the hammer falls were actually recorded from a mississippi chain gang in the thirties

[moogamax]

Those weren't hammers; they were axes -- sharp ones. I wonder how many inmates killed each other in those days.

[BecidaJuggalo]

@moogamax it was a pick axe for digging the ditches they were a chain gang nobody was stupid enough to try to kill another inmate unless he wanted a slug in his back from the guard on the horse so unless you had a death wish i dought they tried killing each other

[whatwild]

not alot I would think they had a hard enough time then to worry about each other

[Jas0nH]

1959, although the movie was set in the thirties.

[ForTheEmperorsOwn]

@Jas0nH this song may have been recorded in 1959, but the song itself is one of a collection of songs that were popular songs to sing during work on prison farms. so this song could date all the way back to 1918

[RADanny]

Probably the most "American" music ever.

[chickenTaco456]

@RADanny i dont understand how this is "american"? dont take it the wrong way i just dont understand

[RADanny]

@chickenTaco456

It is the evolution of slave music from the American South. Read up on the songs sung to help Harriett Tubman on her way.

[chickenTaco456]

@RADanny but how can americans take credit for the music that slaves sang???

[RADanny]

@chickenTaco456 are they not considered Americans?

[NCsqrlkiller]

@chickenTaco456 This wasn't sung by slaves, it was sung by prisoners. This was originally a live recording by a chain gang in the South.

[pinkyush]

@RADanny I am from Nepal ( A south east asian country) and this song sounds very similar to songs that peasants and farmers sing when they sow rice paddy! I think it can be considered a universal Labour Song!! Really fantastic. Reminds me of olden muddy rice fields !

[johncashrocks221]

@pinkyush yes, very similar, my best friend is Cambodian, but this is music from the american south, I hope to god no one forgets that

[Isaiah42069]

@pinkyush yea because the guys singing it are working on a chain gang.

[Postscript624]

@RADanny Prison stuff? I don't know about that. This is a real recording of a chain gang from the 20's. These guys are legit murders and whatnot, I don't know if that's totally "American".

[RADanny]

@Postscript624 This country was founded by outlaws.

[Postscript624]

@RADanny Not really, there's a marked difference between revolution and rape, theft, and murder. If you wanna equate the two go ahead, but I feel like you're going to encounter some trouble down the line if that's what you believe.

[RADanny]

@Postscript624 Absolutely. First of all, the plight of the black man has been handed down through the years as music, from singing to Harriett Tubman to present day Blues. Secondly, we have the highest prison population on the planet. 737 out of every 100,000 Americans are presently incarcerated.

And I'm going to encounter some troubles? Is that some kind of thinly veiled threat? Look up the word "Pedantic" and see if your picture is next to the definition.

[Postscript624]

@RADanny Alllllright then, you're missing my point, whatever.

[RADanny]

@Postscript624 "Negro" music such as spirituals, blues, chain gang music and slave songs is as American as apple pie.

That is my point. What's yours?

[Postscript624]

@RADanny The music is all well and good, but in this particular case it's singers are perhaps not the best representatives of what America stands for.

[RADanny]

@Postscript624 Neither are guys in white hoods, but they are part of the makeup of this great nation. It is beyond me why someone would deny that this is American music.

[tranurse]

@Postscript624 but that being mississippi and the 1950's, how many of them had been railroaded??? i'm certainly not saying they all were innocent. but, i am southern. i know what went on down here back then.

[Postscript624]

@tranurse I remembered what I meant! I've got no problem at all with blues, but I was saying that music specifically sung by chain gangs wasn't really what came to mind when I thought "American music". Blues and folk definitely is american though. This is sort of one of those "it made sense in my head things".

[RACH11990]

@Postscript624 I must disagree; those these men are chained for one reason or another are we not all, in essence, chained? This song is exemplifying work-in-progress, just like America. Our history is composed of back-breaking labour and suffered hardships with harmonious serendipity-like moments tossed in. This song is a one of the many perfect examples of what America is. It is Beautiful.

[Postscript624]

@RACH11990 Uh-huh.

[jamesparsons08]

@RADanny Yet it was sung by prsioners... :D

[sweetiepie2675]

@RADanny actually, african american spirituals are the most "american" music

[RADanny]

@sweetiepie2675 I would respectfully submit that this is a descendant of those songs. 

[justinjedlawton]

@sweetiepie2675

damn you pretty far out is there any one group that deserves the exclusive right it would be American Indians just cuz the "????" devils killed most of them don't mean the don't or didn't exist

[lamontlewis]

@RADanny By all accounts, the only art form to ever originate here in America, is the product of this music. Of course, some people might think otherwise. But they don't count.

[ArtCrimeLog]

@lamontlewis THE ONLY art form? Somebody needs a course in American Art and Music history. Ignorance is a bliss.

[lamontlewis]

@ArtCrimeLog The only Original art form. Everything else is an extension of another culture. I'll have to take your word on ignorance being 'a bliss' (?) Only the ignorant would know that for a fact. However, the people who make such a statement are the ones who teach in our universities. They're the ones who profess this fact.

[MaulqasmPK]

@lamontlewis Graffiti, blues, jazz, rock n roll, the "Andy Warhol Style" The list goes on.

[mafiadabest]

so aparantly (and idk how true this is) but apparently this song was really sung by a group of men in the 30's and they adapted it and....like...made it cleaner? or somethin haha and yea...so this is like the original. its just been....remastered! thats the word haha

[jnapeahi]

well the high sheriff

told his deputy......

go out and bring me old lazarus

Well the deputy told the high sheriff

I aint gonna mess with old lazarus

he's a dangerous man...

lawd,lawd, he;'s a dangerous man...

[XDAfroHeadXD]

Hei Irene!

[EspTheWar]

yeww

[dimitrimyers]

they are on a chain gang stupid. you need to get a life

[thewhakka]

i used to be out there hittin on it with one of them aggies.

[welshperson123]

i love thier voices

[TheYTPooper]

We learned about this in English class. :/

[MAJiCProductions]

O lawdy mastuh

[StarFire00]

thats right.

[shaxincat]

by no one man! LAWD, lawd, by no one man!

[MehefinHeulog]

Lawd! lawd! he a dang'ous man

[beattyhavok]

the guy barely remembers singing this song. he was unknowingly recorded and then like 50 years later the producers give him a check for $20k. he's like what is this for?

[usmcpost]

thats fucking awesome haha

[Postscript624]

Haha, that must have been a bit of a shock.

[xSisterxGrimmx]

Po' Lazarus was a dangerous man.

[crohns4life]

from the Mississippi State Penetentiary, 1959 James Carter and Prisoners cutting some wood. this songs on one of my exams

[POOPONJP]

AMEN to that man

[jessebrade]

i knew dat coz i watched the movie

[MysteryHunterz]

this song lets you hear, where it all began.. ;)

[pvtrand]

o brother where art thou is a more modern version the Odessey by Homer, i think at least

[USMCthedevildog]

you sir are correct

[beattyhavok]

it says that in the opening credits lol

[COWLICKPATTIES]

The pounding you hear in the song is an actual recording of a chain gang working on the railroad, bet cha didnt know that :D

[CherryTripping]

wow... thats heavy.

[conrailcliff]

I love this song

[MagicalLuckyCharms]

this is one of my favorite movies. i love it so much, and all the music. we have the soundtrack. :)

[grenzman]

Wow, I didn't know the story behind this song til now. Incredible.

[kam11122]

two thumbs up!

[kam11122]

yes, im the first to leave a comment.

[HumbleAntagonist]

wow, you sure are, and your coolpoints have gone up by over 9,000. Next time you leave a comment on someone's video, maybe you should actually make it worthwhile for them, and everyone else, to read it.

[kam11122]

Im sorry my friends are dicks, they dont appreciate this kind of music.

[HumbleAntagonist]

Then, your friends don't appreciate any kind of music, as this type of music evolved into everything which we have today. Your friends should definitely broaden your horizons, there is more to life than what is readily available and convenient.

[Barattino69Ultra]

AMEN to that man

[nibede]

@HumbleAntagonist I have to disagree, I don't think this evolved into everything at all. This is a recording from 1959, already influenced by the emerging commercial music scene at the time, not some idealized anscestor of all that is good musically. And even though the song and genre both date back to earlier than the conceptualized versions of Rock, Blues and even Country, they still represent only evolving 'western' musical traditions, and are but a step in a long history.

[nibede]

@HumbleAntagonist maybe you should look into that "there is more to life than what is readily available" comment?

[autiger1976gd]

damn buddy....chill out....

[kam11122]

im sorry, it wasnt me that left the comment, im not that stupid.