Music Lovers & Songwriters:
"Red Wing" was written in 1907 with music by F.A Mills and lyrics by Thurland Chattaway.
Mills adapted the music of the verse from Robert Schumann's piano composition "The Happy
Farmer, Returning From Work" from his 1848 Album for the Young, Opus 68.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QLWkPlSekA
The song tells of a Indian girl's loss of her sweetheart, killed in battle. It was connected with
silent-era actress Princess Red Wing. It became a folk song and instrumental standard for
Native American, bluegrass and country fiddlers. The name refers to Red Wing, Minnesota,
named for Mdewakanton Dakota Chief Red Wing.
The song has been recorded numerous times in different styles. It was sung by John Wayne in
the 1943 film In Old Oklahoma and again by him with Lee Marvin in the 1961 film The
Comancheros, and finally by him and Lauren Bacall in the 1976 film The Shootist. In 1950,
Oscar Brand recorded a bawdy version in his Bawdy Songs & Backroom Ballads, Volume 3.
Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys recorded a Western swing cover in the 1940s. George Lewis
made it a standard of the traditional jazz revival era. An instrumental version, with Chet Atkins
on guitar, was released by Asleep at the Wheel in 1993. Country singer Slim Whitman also
recorded it.
Original Chorus:
Now the moon shines tonight on pretty Red Wing,
The breeze is sighing, the night bird's crying,
For afar 'neath his star her brave is sleeping,
While Red Wing's weeping her heart away.
In 1940 Woody Guthrie wrote new lyrics to the tune, retitled Union Maid:
Oh, you can't scare me, I'm sticking to the union,
I'm sticking to the union, I'm sticking to the union.
Oh, you can't scare me, I'm sticking to the union,
I'm sticking to the union 'til the day I die.
Musicians:
Keith Arneson Banjo
Ed Schaeffer Guitar & Vocal
Tom McLaughlin Mandolin
Barb Diederich Bass
To listen to this firebreather, click below:
http://rattlesnakehill.org/Web_Music/edsmusic.html
Enjoy!
Ed
PS: The “Yeah!” at the end is from chanteuse Anne McCabe
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