Grateful Dead Family Discography: True Life Blues

True Life Blues

Composer: Pete Pyle / Bill Monroe

Jerry Garcia performed True Life Blues with the Black Mountain Boys on March 7, 1964. A recording of this performance circulates and the lyrics are given at the bottom of this page. True Life Blues was rehearsed by Old & In The Way in 1973 but it is not known if they performed the song live.

Neil V Rosenburg in Bluegrass, A History (1985) says that True Life Blues was written by Pete Pyle, a member of the early 40's Bill Monroe band, but that the song was copyrighted by Bill Monroe.

Recordings

no info Single (True Life Blues / Footprints In The Snow), Bill Monroe & his Blue Grass Boys, 1946
Bill Monroe's Best, Bill Monroe & His Bluegrass Boys, 1964
Dreams, High Country, 1971
Bill and Doc Sing Country Songs, Bill Monroe and Doc Watson, 1975
Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard, Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard, 1976
Mountain Music, Carl Story & his Rambling Mountaineers, 1976
no info The Last Christmas Tree, Bill Grant, Delia Bell & the Kiamichi Mountain Boys, 1976
no info Classic Bluegrass Recordings, Vol. 1, Bill Monroe & his Blue Grass Boys, 1980
Bill Monroe & Stars Of The Bluegrass Hall Of Fame, Bill Monroe & his Blue Grass Boys, 1985
Stanley Series, Vol. 2 #4, Stanley Brothers, 1987
no info On Stage In Nashville, Bluegrass Cardinals, 1987
Home Is Where The Heart Is, David Grisman, 1988
no info Essential Bill Monroe: 1945-1949, Bill Monroe, 1992
Live Recordings 1956-1969, Bill Monroe, 1993
Hats Off! A Tribute to Bill Monroe, Various Artists (Carl Story), 1996
no info 16 Gems, Bill Monroe, 1996
True Life Blues: The Songs of Bill Monroe, Various Artists, 1996
no info 16 Gems, Bill Monroe, 1996
Tribute to Bill Monroe, Jim & Jesse, 1997
no info Everybody Digs Sammy Masters, Sammy Masters, 1998
The Legacy Continues, George Shuffler & James Alan Shelton, 2000
The Definitive Bluegrass Collection, Various Artists (Carl Story), 2001
no info Blue Grass Special, Bill Monroe, 2001
O Sister! The Women's Bluegrass Collection, Various Artists (Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard), 2001
Blue Moon of Kentucky 1936-1949, Bill Monroe, 2002
Only Time Knows, Bearfoot Bluegrass, 2002
no info Career Suicide: The Essential Skip Heller 1994-2001, Skip Heller, 2002
All the Classic Releases 1937-1949, Bill Monroe, 2003
no info The Legend Lives On: A Tribute to Bill Monroe, Various Artists (Del McCoury Band), 2003
Blazing Bluegrass, Various Artists (Bill Monroe), 2004
no info The Father Of Bluegrass: The Legend Lives On, Bill Monroe, 2005
Bluegrass 1981-1994: My Last Days on Earth, Bill Monroe, 2007
no info Heartbreak and Loneliness, Grizzly Peak, 2007
no info Country Music Legends, Bill Monroe, 2007
Bill Monroe Centennial Celebration: A Classic Bluegrass Tribute, Various Artists (Hazel Dickens), 2011

Lyrics

The lyrics on the Black Mountain Boys tape are fairly difficult to distinguish but are roughly as follows;

I hate to see the sun [set low]
Just for a song you ought to know
For it's true life I can't forget
All of my sorrows you'll soon regret
You promised me love that was true
I'm sorry to say I believed in you
But it all turned out just like a dream
Left me so sad in a world [? free]
[There's dishes to wash and] house to clean
There's [?], it seems so mean
In a million words I can't explain
[?] changed her name
They'll go away and leave you home
And never care if you're alone
They seem to forget they've got a wife
[It's a] story is sad, but it's the true life