Grateful Dead Family Discography: Pay Me My Money Down

Pay Me My Money Down

Composer: Traditional / Lydia Parrish

Pay Me My Money Down was played by an unnamed bluegrass band with Jerry Garcia on banjo at an unknown venue in Burlingame in January 1962. The lyrics from the tape of this performance are given at the bottom of this page.

The song is thought to have originated as a work song in the Georgia Sea Islands. It was collected there by Lydia Parrish and was included in her book, Slave Songs of the Georgia Sea Islands, in 1942. On recordings the song is listed as traditional or credited to Lydia Parrish.

Recordings

no info The Weavers At Carnegie Hall, The Weavers, 1956
no info Single (I Won't Go Until I Get Some / Pay Me My Money), The Neighbors, 1956
no info Single (Homing Bird / Pay Me My Money Down), The Vipers Skiffle Group, 1957
no info The Folk Singers, The Folk Singers, 1958
no info Georgia Sea Islands, Volume 2, Various Artists, 1962
no info Georgia Sea Island Songs, Various Artists, 1977
no info Stereo Concert Plus, The Kingston Trio, 1986?
no info With The Greatest Respect, Alex Campbell, 1987
no info Ho! Fat Wallet, Spaceheads, 1990
no info Wasn't That A Time, The Weavers, 1993
no info Blow, Ye Winds In The Morning, The Revel Players, 1994
The Capitol Years, The Kingston Trio, 1995
no info 10,000 Years Ago, Wally Whyton & The Vipers Skiffle Group, 1996
The Guard Years, The Kingston Trio, 1997
no info Southern Journey, Vol. 13: Earliest Times, Georgia Sea Island Singers, 1998
no info A Revels Celebration of Spring Summer & Fall, Revels Chorus, 1998
no info Lyve Behind Bars, The Pyrates Royale, 1999
no info As Good as It Gets: Skiffle, Vol. 2, Various Artists (The Vipers Skiffle Group), 2001
no info Night Time, Dan Zanes & Friends, 2002
no info The Very Best Of, The Vipers Skiffle Group, 2003
Gather Round: Songs for Kids and Other Folks, Various Artists (Dan Zanes), 2004
no info Outsider, Jim Glover, 2004
no info All Around the Kitchen!: Crazy Videos and Concerts (DVD), Dan Zanes, 2005
no info We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions, Bruce Springsteen, 2006
no info At Carnegie Hall: The Legendary 1955 Recording, The Weavers, 2006
no info The First Rays of Protest in the 20th Century, Various Artists (The Weavers), 2006
no info Live in Dublin, Bruce Springsteen With The Sessions Band, 2007
no info Old Town School of Folk Music Songbook 4, Various Artists (Freeze Dried), 2007
no info The Shantyman, Hank Cramer, 2008
no info See You When The Sun Goes Down, Kimber's Men, 2009
no info 20th Century Folk Selections, Todd Clouser's A Love Electric, 2012

Lyrics

The lyrics for this song as used by the unnamed bluegrass band with Garcia are as follows;

I though I heard the Captain say,
Pay me my money down,
Tomorrow is our sailing day,
Pay me my money down.
Oh pay me, oh pay me,
Pay me my money down,
Pay me or go to jail,
Pay me my money down.
As soon as the boat was clear of the bar,
Pay me my money down,
The captain knocked me down with a spar,
Pay me my money down.
Oh pay me, oh pay me,
Pay me my money down,
Pay me or go to jail,
Pay me my money down.
I wish I was Mr. Steven's son,
Pay me my money down,
Sit in the shade and watch the work done,
Pay me my money down.
Oh pay me, oh pay me,
Pay me my money down,
Pay me or go to jail,
Pay me my money down.
I wish I was Mr. Howard's son,
Pay me my money down,
Sit in the shade and drink good rum,
Pay me my money down.
Oh pay me, oh pay me,
Pay me my money down,
Pay me or go to jail,
Pay me my money down.
Oh pay me, oh pay me,
Pay me my money down,
Pay me or go to jail,
Pay me my money down