Old Folks

About Old Folks

Old Folks is a 1938 popular song and jazz standard composed by Willard Robison with lyrics by Dedette Lee Hill, the wife and occasional colleague of Billy Hill. The lyrics tell of an old man nicknamed "Old Folks" and reference his service in the American Civil War, his habit of smoking with a "yellow cob pipe", and the prospect of his death. A 1938 version by Larry Clinton and His Orchestra and vocalist Bea Wain charted at No. 4; around this time it was also recorded by Mildred Bailey and Bing Crosby and performed on radio by Benny Goodman and Fats Waller. It was recorded on saxophone by Don Byas in 1946 and saxophonist Ben Webster, who made more than a dozen recordings of the song and often performed it in concert as a ballad, first recorded it in 1951. Its most famous jazz version is by trumpeter Miles Davis on Someday My Prince Will Come (1961). more »

Year:

1997

3:00

16 Views

Playlists:

#2

 The easy, fast & fun way to learn how to sing: 30DaySinger.com

I don't know I'm born, I'm only young
I don't have a choice, you know I'm only young
I'm getting older, I'm getting smaller
Everybody tells you, "you've got to walk taller"
You did a war, and now you're poor
And like your friends, you're gonna get it in the end 

You've heard it all before
You can't go on much more
It's not like I think
The old folks are losers
They can't work computers
They die in December time 

Can't put it off, you put it on
Don't ever stop, it doesn't last long
The younger folk, they
Don't understand, they
Back in the day, they
You're gonna get it in the end 

You heard it all before
You can't go on much more
Its not like I think
The old folks are losers
They can't work computers
They die in December time 

Fall down for no reason
The churches are heaving
The old folks, they live the life 

I'm down on the floor, I'll settle down, do what I tell ya.
You're gonna get it in the end,
You're gonna get it in the end 

The old folks are losers, they can't work computers
The old folks are losers, they can't work computers 

The old folks are losers
They can't work computers
They die in December time 

Fall down for no reason
The churches are heaving
The old folks remember why 

The old folks are losers
They can't work computers
They die in December time

 Struggling with Old Folks? Become a better singer in 30 days with these videos!

Don Byas

Carlos Wesley "Don" Byas (October 21, 1912 – August 24, 1972) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, most associated with Bebop. He played with Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Art Blakey, and Dizzy Gillespie, among others, and also led his own band. He lived in Europe for the last 26 years of his life. more »

Follow 0 fans