Deep Elem Blues

Recorded 1997 at the Chamizal National Memorial
Zoomer Roberts: vocal
Buddy Winston: guitar
Steve Smith: mandolin
Glenn Leffler: bass
Eric Hutson: drums

Deep Elem (Elm) was a disreputable area in South Dallas. To my knowledge, this catchy song about the thrills and woes to be found there was first sung by the Shelton Brothers in the 1930s. The inspiration for this version was a Sun record by Jerry Lee Lewis. The last verse was borrowed from "Texas Hambone Blues":

Well I'm goin' down to Cowtown just to get my hambone boiled
Because them New York City women, they done let my hambone spoil!

I once knew an old warehouse hand who recalled walking through Deep Elem during the Depression. He heard a voice call out from a second-story window: "Hey, white boy! Fo' a dollah, I takes you on!" He kept walking -- or at least that's what he told me, thirty five years after the fact.

If you go down in Deep Elem, put your money in your socks
Them redheads in Deep Elem'll blow a man out on the rocks!

Somewhere between the original VHS tape and this link, the MP3 file got reduced to a really crummy bitrate. I'll upgrade it one of these days, but for now, this will have to do.

Look here, pretty baby, I said you sure look good to me
But when you go down in Deep Elem lit up like a Christmas tree
Lawdy, Mama! Your Daddy's got them Deep Elem Blues!
Why don't you listen to me, Sugar? Your Daddy's got them Deep Elem Blues!

We Could

The Lariat Cowboys
Zoomer Roberts: guitar & vocal
Jimmy Smith: fiddle
Tony Quero: bass
Mark Kays: drums

I always associate this song with Little Jimmy Dickens. Although he is primarily known for his novelty songs, Dickens was (and is) a fine ballad singer. "We Could" is somewhat of an oddity: it has the construction of a "weeper," but the lyrics are about love gone right. I used to sing this for couples who were celebrating their anniversary with a night of dancing.

Every Fool Has A Rainbow

The Lariat Cowboys
Zoomer Roberts: guitar & vocal
Jimmy Smith: fiddle
Tony Quero: bass
Mark Kays: drums