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St. James Infirmary Blues Lyrics
(Oh, Koko!)
Well, folks, I'm going down to St.James Infirmary
To see... my little lady there
She's stretched on a long, white table
Well, she looks so good, so cold, so fair
Let her go, let her go, god bless her
Wherever she may be
You may search this whole wide world over
But you'll never find another sweetheart like me
(Yeah)
Take apart your bones and put 'em back together
Tell your mama that you're somebody new
Feel the breeze blowin', tell 'em all, "Look out, here it comes!"
Now, I can say whatever I feel like to you
Then give me six crap-shootin' pallbearers
Let a chorus girl sing me a song
Put a red hot [lyrics unknown*], we raised
Hallelujah, as we go along!
Well, folks, now that you have heard my story
Say, boy, hand me another shot of that rye!
And if anyone else should ask you...
Just tell 'em "I got some of those St. James Infirmary blues"
*see comments for interpretations.
To see... my little lady there
She's stretched on a long, white table
Well, she looks so good, so cold, so fair
Wherever she may be
You may search this whole wide world over
But you'll never find another sweetheart like me
Tell your mama that you're somebody new
Feel the breeze blowin', tell 'em all, "Look out, here it comes!"
Now, I can say whatever I feel like to you
Let a chorus girl sing me a song
Put a red hot [lyrics unknown*], we raised
Hallelujah, as we go along!
Say, boy, hand me another shot of that rye!
And if anyone else should ask you...
Just tell 'em "I got some of those St. James Infirmary blues"
Song Info
Submitted by
stoney On Apr 15, 2004
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What is everyone's problem? This song deserves a thousand comments. It's such a good song. I'm a bit confused though, because the lyrics posted here don't match up with what he says on the album. And I think these are the lyrics that they have on the site too. Is there another version or what? Nevertheless this song rocks. It deserves more recognition than this.
Although it's great to hear that so many people like this song as much as I do, would somebody perhaps take a shot at explaining the meaning of the lyrics because I haven't a clue. Did Jack White write the verses that arent included here?
this song kick-ass what i think they did was put the Louis Armstrong lyrics on here instead of the White Stipes version. Someone needs to change it.
preach it!this song is amazing and all the other versions of it ranging from the original cab calloway to bobby blue bland
The song traces it's way all the way back to Scotland where there are a couple of versions predating any American versions. At least one from the West Coast and another from Peterhead.
There are people who argue that the song is from Liverpool. However the oldest versions seam to come from Scotland.
The song is about a guy who finds his girlfriend has died of syphalis and that means that he is next. Some versions of the song talk of mercury which was a treatment for the disease (often the mercury killed before the syphalis).
A very dark story. BBC Radio Scotland had a program on the 4th of January called Songlines that looked at the 200+ uear history of the song.
This song is a perfect example of Jack White's brilliant blend of delta blues and unique indie rock. he pulls it off perfectly, i never get sick of hearing this song, or the entire first album.
the piano sounds like its from 1803, i love it
and yes, like everyone was saying, this isn't a white stripes penned song, it is traditional, and the lyrics are the Joe Primrose version
This is what I could understand after listening to the song a few times
Take apart your bones and put them back together Tell your momma that you’re somebody new Feel the breeze blow and tell them all to look out here it comes Now I can say whatever I feel like to you They give me six crap shooting Pallbearers Let a chorus girl sing me a song Put a lay can’t tell what he’s saying don’t miss me grace Hallelujah as we go along
thanks fairy i knew it was a cover but i didnt know all of that shit. the syphilis parts super interesting tho
this song is awesome, and is one of the best songs on the album