# I am a man of constant sorrow.... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 8, 2001, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035 "2001-10-08T02:44:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/21 "2001-10-08T18:05:05Z")
Well, I know the version of “Po’ Lazarus” on the soundtrack (which is NOT the one on the film) is from the Lomax recordings from the 30s. Alan Lomax documented some GREAT stuff. I’ve just never been able to find what I consider a decent compilation. Off the top of my head I can’t remember the other one. But it’s teasing me. Someone guess. NOW! ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/22 "2001-10-08T18:09:58Z")
You want a good bluegrassy song that’ll tear your heart out, try **“There Is a Time”** by [The Dillards](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000000ECZ/qid=1002564290/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_3_1/104-4133933-2526301). I’m also partial to “Paradise” (a/k/a “Daddy Won’t You Take Me Back to Muhlenberg County”) by John Prine. There are some good bluegrass covers of this one out there as well. ---
**Author:** ![GraceTX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c4cdca/32.png) [@GraceTX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GraceTX)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2001, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/23 "2001-10-08T23:52:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by pharoah chromium \* > \*\*There’s a world of difference between bluegrass and country. (At least what passes for country these days – back when “country” included Hank Williams things were different.) The liner notes for the soundtrack mention how country radio stations were deluged with requests for “Constant Sorrow”, but they wouldn’t play it because it didn’t fit their mold. \*\* Don’t know where you are, but a couple of radio stations (KSCS and KHYI)in Dallas, Texas play the song quite a bit. KSCS is your typical country music station that plays commercial music. I listen to KHYI (95.3 The Range) and they play outlaw country, americana music, bluegrass, and more alternative-type country. They frequently play music from OBWAT and OBWAT musicians. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2001, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/24 "2001-10-09T03:13:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Jonathan Chance \* > **Alan Lomax documented some GREAT stuff. I’ve just never been able to find what I consider a decent compilation.** Isn’t the Library of Congress working on making it ALL available, even if you have to take a day off and listen there? ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2001, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/25 "2001-10-09T06:15:44Z")
Just my two cents but 1) I love Dwight Yoakam and his blend of bluegrass and rock and all that fun stuff. He’s got a good sound that’s not this “hot new country!” crud. And he looks durn sexay with that cowboy hat on. But without it, oh god, get the weasel killing machine out, ma! 2) If any of y’all live in the SF Bay area you should check out the Yonder Mountain String Band at the Fillmore coming up later this month. They are a lot of fun. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2001, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/26 "2001-10-09T16:17:59Z")
By the way, there is a second CD out, entitled [Down from the Mountain](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00005MJYJ/qid%3D1002643894/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F0%5F1/104-4133933-2526301), featuring live performances by the recording artists who appeared on the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack. There is also a documentary film of the concert currently in theaters in larger cities. Oh yeah, and check out [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=91696) for recommendations of good bluegrass music in the same vein as “Man of Constant Sorrow.” ---
**Author:** ![TruePisces](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/truepisces/32/13628_2.png) [@TruePisces](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruePisces)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/27 "2001-10-13T18:57:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Gadarene \* > \*\*Hell, I’ve been whistling “I’ll Fly Away” since May. Just ask **Pucette** , **Maeglin** , **vix** , **TruePisces** , and **Billdo**. 🙂 \*\* As have I… and I’d still love to find it at karaoke some time and get **Pucette** to sing it with me. 😃 :wanders out, finding the harmonies of the song again, just _incase_ she finds it somewhere: ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Angel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Johnny\_Angel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Angel)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/28 "2001-10-13T22:14:08Z")
When people say they hate country music, it’s usually because they think that garbage they’re cranking out in Nashville nowadays is country music. (Mind you, I think the quality of popular music of all genres took a nosedive sometime in the seventies) _Oh, Brother, Where Art Thou_ seems to have opened a lot of eyes. Unfortunately, I’m not hopeful that it’ll keep. I doubt that most of the people who ran out and bought the soundtrack will continue to explore country music any more than the people who gobbled up the _Dirty Dancing_ soundtrack went on to take a serious interest in oldies. ---
**Author:** ![Frank\_O.Pinion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/839c29/32.png) [@Frank\_O.Pinion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank_O.Pinion)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/29 "2001-10-13T23:38:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Johnny Angel \* > **When people say they hate country music, it’s usually because they think that garbage they’re cranking out in Nashville nowadays is country music. (Mind you, I think the quality of popular music of all genres took a nosedive sometime in the seventies)** You said it! There are a few real country singers on mainstream country radio( Alan Jackson, George Strait, Patty Loveless), but finding good REAL country music is getting harder. I live in the country, and I can’t get much good country music on the radio(I can get WSM at night). I think more people would like country music if they actually heard what real, honest-to-godness country music sounded like, instead of Shania Twain, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, etc. Even The Dixie Chicks are more country than they are! ---
**Author:** ![Labdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/439d5e/32.png) [@Labdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labdad)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2001, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/30 "2001-10-14T19:12:27Z")
Appropriate to this thread, we just saw Alison Krauss and Union Station last night. One of her guitar players, Dan Tyminski, was the “voice” of George Clooney when the Soggy Bottom Boys do “I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow” in OBWAT. Naturally, they performed the song last night. But an unexpected bonus was the encore, when Alison and her band gathered around one microphone to perform “Down to the River to Pray.” That’s the tune I’ve been humming all day today! ---
**Author:** ![moodtobestewed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3ab097/32.png) [@moodtobestewed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moodtobestewed)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2001, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/31 "2001-10-15T13:51:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Quasimodem \* > **He’s In The Jailhouse Now that I keep singing.** You might want to check out Webb Pierce’s recording of this song. It’s a little more uptempo and catchy. Pierce seems to be mostly forgotten these days, though he had more #1 country hits in the 50s than Hank Williams, Eddy Arnold, Lefty Frizzell, and Ernest Tubb (at least according to the [http://www.allmusic.com](http://www.allmusic.com)). ---
**Author:** ![moodtobestewed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3ab097/32.png) [@moodtobestewed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moodtobestewed)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2001, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/32 "2001-10-15T13:57:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Quasimodem \* > **He’s In The Jailhouse Now that I keep singing.** You might want to check out Webb Pierce’s recording of this song. It’s a little more uptempo and catchy. Pierce seems to be mostly forgotten these days, though he had more #1 country hits in the 50s than Hank Williams, Eddy Arnold, Lefty Frizzell, and Ernest Tubb (at least according to the [http://www.allmusic.com](http://www.allmusic.com)). ---
**Author:** ![Guy\_Propski](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/5e9695/32.png) [@Guy\_Propski](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guy_Propski)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2001, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/33 "2001-10-15T17:18:06Z")
For you folks who keep saying they hate country music–keep in mind that the music you hear today that’s being called “country”, is not. It’s “country” in the same way the Backstreet Boys are “rock&roll.” Don’t get your music from popular radio. The OBWAT soundtrack is just incredible. I can listen to “Big Rock Candy Mountain” and “I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow” all day. ---
**Author:** ![caveman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/caveman/32/7242_2.png) [@caveman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caveman)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2001, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/34 "2001-10-15T20:50:56Z")
I love the _O Brother…_ soundtrack; bought it immediately after seeing the movie. Here in Austin, KVET plays songs from it now and then (KVET plays actual country; KASE, its sister station, plays new country, or, “kountry”). It’s great stuff. Now, if I could only figure out the words to _Po’ Lazarus_… ---
**Author:** ![diku](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4af34b/32.png) [@diku](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diku)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2001, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/35 "2001-10-15T22:38:54Z")
Here in Nashville, it was a big thing when the movie and soundtrack came out. We, of course, have a multitude of “country” stations that wouldn’t play anything off the soundtrack. Even the station that plays classic “country” wouldn’t play any of it. They shoot “Down from the Mountain” here at the Ryman, not that you would have know it from the lack of publicity here in town. Even when they were showing Down from the Mountain in local theaters, unless you went to the theater, you didn’t know about it. Of course, OBWAT was playing in a few local theaters up until September. ``` I'm not a country music fan of any stripe, though I do like bluegrass. The morons down on Music Row ignore traditional country and bluegrass music, then wonder why sales are down. Then the OBWAT soundtrack comes out and sells like crazy. Music Row considers in an abberation. We'll see. ``` ---
**Author:** ![Scotticher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Scotticher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scotticher)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2001, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/36 "2001-10-16T01:15:17Z")
I didn’t see that movie, but I LOVE the song. I also love “The American Trilogy,” which is “Battle Hymn of the Republic,” “All My Sorrows,” and “Dixie” sort of intertwined. I like the Elvis version the best. And Peter, Paul and Mary did an awesome rendition of “All My Sorrows” that I find playing in my mind often. Even though it makes me kind of choke up. For some reason, I associate both “Sorrow” songs with each other. Scotti ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2001, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/37 "2001-10-16T15:07:46Z")
I mentioned this over in the Bluegrass thread, but I want to mention it here too: If you are a fan of the O Brother soundtrack, do yourself a favor and pick up the [Blue Ribbon Bluegrass](http://music.barnesandnoble.com/search/product.asp?ean=11661851122) compilation. It is ridiculously cheap, and for my money it is one of the best bluegrass compilations around. Many great songs in the same traditionalist vein as that tapped by the Coen Brothers. It’s a good way to introduce yourself to some of the better acts that have been recording traditional music over the past few years. ---
**Author:** ![Kilt-wearin\_man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/82dd89/32.png) [@Kilt-wearin\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kilt-wearin_man)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2001, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035/38 "2001-10-16T16:55:48Z")
Hey Caveman - KGSR is pretty reliable for throwing out selections from the OBWAT? sountdtrack for your listening pleasure…trouble is you have to wade through a lot of crud while you wait (sometimes not such a bad thing - they’re where I discovered Lyle Lovett…). Every time my wife and I go to Austin I find KGSR and usually get to hear Man of Constant Sorrow within 15 minutes, if it isn’t already playing. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-a-man-of-constant-sorrow/86035.md?page=1)