Jim & Jesse - 1976 - Knoxville Girl

[JMANsgtele]

Holy Shit is that Mitt Romney on the fiddle LOL 1:35



[TheRonnie63]

this is music!!! not American idol

[simonne234]

now this is harmonizing..God I love them

[meinLiebsterFeind]

This song has been sung by many people, but no others can make it sound like this!

[driverboots1]

My favorite song

[murphy2034]

what a great old song! Bluegrass rules

[Laurelstarlw]

my dad used to sing this all the time, among others like it, he is a bluegrass musician. I call them woman-killin' songs.

[skotxmeyerx9]

this song is fucked up. damn.

[buchananstreet]

these guys are simply< wonderful, and, by the way, they KNOW how to treat women , LOL !

[poochie571]

I way beyond like it. I did not know they had done this song. I met them in 1969 in Rome, GA. They let me and a friend of mine come backstage with them after their part of the show. They sang for us and were so nice. They gave me an autographed picture for my boyfriend who was in Viet Nam at that time. I have never forgotten them. I saved the water that I washed off my hands that night for a long time.(silly teenager) Are both of them dead?

[chinesecresteddoll]

Jesse McReynolds is my brother in law, and I am happy to state he is still performing regularly, though his brother, Jim, died a few years ago. Love this song, thanks so much for posting.

[BigBenFactor]

@chinesecresteddoll I actually forgot which is Jim and Jesse. I have their autograph from the late '70's ad a Bluegrass Festival in Adams County Fairgrounds. I love them.

Jim and Jesse and the Virgina Boys. uh? yes. I remember.

[chinesecresteddoll]

@BigBenFactor

Jesse is the shorter brother; he is performing tomorrow night at the Philadelphia Folk Festival.  He is worth seeing!

[poochie571]

@chinesecresteddoll Where does Jesse perform? How old is he? I hate to ask but which one is Jesse? I loved them both but have not kept up with them for years so I have forgotten a lot. 

[chinesecresteddoll]

@poochie571

Jesse is the shorter one, and he lives in Gallatin, TN (outside Nashville), and performs regularly at the Pick Inn, which they founded and own, and on the Grand Ole Opry. They are performing this Saturday night at the Philadelphia Folk Festival. Hope you get to see him!

[skotxmeyerx9]

wow. how disturbing haha

[whitney710]

My grandma Zelda sang this song to me as a little girl. She was just a good 'ol country woman with a tough up bringing. I am so happy to have found this song again. It reminds me of her.

[MOLLYryaiMOON]

Okay, one more comment - does it seem like Jim is having a lot of funsinging a song like this? ...more fun than usual?!?

[MOLLYryaiMOON]

I have so many comments about the sanity of this song...I won't get started, don't worry! ^_^

[MOLLYryaiMOON]

Good heavens, what a song! Jim's intro is pretty funny...the song kind of scares me!

[JazzyJ013]

I heard this song at school. It scared the ish outta me. Its intersesting though.... I guess.

[biquinetto]

I'ts funny how the american version HAD to bring the bad guy in jail ! Hooray, justice prevails ! :D

[illueia]

...This song has always disturbed me.... and oddly has also fascinated me... It's one of those things that it's so disturbing that you just have to keep listening to it... X3 But I do love the tune!

[d20g]

got here by looking for the nick cave version, where he sounds like he really just got back from beating a girl to death... interesting to hear it with cheery sounding bluegrass harmonies. never knew the song had so much history.

[SlideHound]

The wiki on this song is interesting

[SlideHound]

I'm strapped for song ideas.. I think I'll go bludgeon a floozie.

[500SmithandWesson]

Sucks to be me? LOL I don't think so. I hardly think I'm squeemish and I enjoy life more than most. It's just that unlike you I don't need to go around porking floozies then murdering them to enjoy life. As I said I am a big fan of Jim and Jesse and enjoy bluegrass overall but enjoying fanticies of murder is simply sick!

[SlideHound]

I think I love you.. watch your back

[dixielue25]

i love murder ballads my favorite unknown band The Pine Box Boys do them best they are great and its just part of bluegrass ...what i did not like lol is some one calling the bluegrass station and asking them to play this song for me

[vireogilvus]

I just love how he cracks up when he's explaining the plot. It is sooooo ridiculously violent and graphic. I suppose you'd better have a dark sense of humor if you're gonna sing murder-ballads.

[TruegrassBoy]

What did Jim die of anyway? I never heard. Same with Garland Shuping, I heard he was dead, too. Way too bad. What did he die of?

[500SmithandWesson]

I am a great fan of Jim and Jesse, but I despise this song. It's positively sick and depressing.

[SlideHound]

Sucks to be you. If you're that squeemish, 1/4 of bluegrass is ruined for you. Dudes kill chicks and throw them in the river all the time; it's a beautiful thing; and it's an actuality you'll have to cope with.

[bluegrassman776]

bluegrass forever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!­!!

[connybear69]

ggo job guys

[wilmaohman]

They missed the verse, I called for me a candle to light myself to bed. I called for me a hankercheif to bind my aching head I tossed and tumbled the whole night through. my dreams were living hell. Then they came from Knoxville and carried me off to jail. MY friends etc etc

[zackdman123]

this was my grandfathers favorite song. it is about a man who thought his girl was going to leave him(as the story goes) so he killed her.

[Koel21]

So why does the guy kill the Knoxville Girl?

[5thcorps]

She became pregant

[captainarchernx01]

WRONG! She was talkative. She wouldn't shut up, so she became beated to deef wit a skeet!

[deckstar24]

this version souns good but i prefer the nick cave version

[mosrite60]

J&J played the best bluegrass music ever. Harmonies superb

[Skitzobilly]

No! This is American song! Knoxville is city in Tennessee!

[HillbillyJ]

Actually it really was from england, only it went by a different name. It was originally the "Oxford Girl" (for a town in england). Then its name was changed to the "Wexford Girl" by Irish folk then "Knoxville Girl" when brought to Tenn.

[briartlaw]

Thanks for the right version ..

[wilmaohman]

the louvin's and the wilburn's both put this out around the same time in the mid 50s.

[tsilimon]

It's from the Osborne Brothers on WNOX's Mid-Day Merry-Go-Round and The Cas Walker Show in the 50's.

[Massey207]

Yes, he is right. It originate from England.

[99matt99]

If it happend in tennessee why does it say at the start this song is from england ?

[jazzamk]

The song is based on an old English ballad, with the town setting sometimes being Oxford. To my knowledge, it is not a true story. Hope I helped!

[99matt99]

your lying

[jazzamk]

Are you being serious?? I am right! Idiot.

[nicholasbhicks]

i grew up hearing this song being sung by my family when they would sit around playing there guitars and singing

[goldnglitter]

im from Gatlinburg Tn. and this is a true story ... so i have been told all my life...

[454chieftain]

great song i have that on tape somewhere thanks 4 sharing.....

[BenHallove]

I don't even know this Jim & Jesse band, i found them here on youtube while searching for other singers. but i'm so glad i found out about them, this is for sure such a great band :)

[matpaulnicholas3]

plan b remix to this is quality

[WheelofTime]

I am very glad that I found this. I was looking up the story behind another murder ballad, Omie Wise, when I found the title of this song. Very nice harmony.

[rll1954]

He killed her because she was untrue. Note the words, "dark and rolling (or roving) eyes."

[kenworthman93]

I havent figured out why he killed her. This is the second time ive this song

[BanjoBoyMatteo]

Am I the only one who can't get enough of their harmonies? RIP Jim.

[Evilimber]

Believe it or not, This really did happen! It happened in Clinton, Tennessee. He threw her off the bridge into the Clinton River, that flows thru Knoxville. How do I know, you ask? I am from LaFollette, TN.

[dreadnought45]

I first heard this song when it was recorded by the Louvin Bros. around 1957 when I was growing up in Toronto. Also, first heard 'In The Pines' by the Louvin's as well. Jim and Jesse were always great when they were members of the WWVA Wheeling Jamboree in the 50's.

Ken, Toronto

[imaStonesGirl]

I remember my grandmother had this record too.

when i was a kid i didn`t like it so she would never play it when i was over her house cause if she did i would pitch a fit and cry.

as a kid i just didn`t understand y a song would say such cruel things!! But now i love this song im glad i found it !Thanks for the post!! 5*****

it`s a A chilling story they tell in that song!!

[bodinerockhill]

my best friend's grandmother gave me the orginial 45 rpm to this song. she told me not to listen to it too many times in a row or i would get into a fight...guess what i did...but ill never let go of that old 45...

[dewman6496]

I love this song, my mom sang some of it for as long as I can remember and I wanted to listen to it. Great song.

[bcg911]

It don't get much better than that!

[patsycrowley]

this is one of the best