Mining Camp Blues

A coal miner’s child waits at the pithead as a workday turns to loss.

Status: Traditional repertoire · working songbook
Writer / source: Often associated with Trixie Smith / early blues repertory; exact Scrips source unresolved
Rights: Older song or tune family. The source of this particular working version and its arrangement is still being reviewed.
Related Scrips recording: No Scrips recording linked yet.

Source research

Documented lineage

Earliest evidence: 1920s blues recording/publication era
Aliases / index: No alternate title or index recorded.
Working arrangement: Key C · Capo 2 · Guitar - Standard · 4/4 time; The supplied chart labels the key C, uses D/G/A chord shapes, and includes a −2 transposition setting. Key and capo need the band’s confirmation.

Evidence 01 Evidence 02 Download full research note ↓

Working lyrics + chords

Working song sheet

Download text file ↓ Download ChordPro ↓

Verse:
Once I had a daddy and he worked down in a hole
Once I had a daddy and he worked down in a hole
Diggin' and a-haulin', haulin' that Birmingham Coal

Verse:
Many times, I wondered, when they took my daddy down
Many times, I wondered, when they took my daddy down
Will he come back to me? Will they leave him in the ground?

Yodel-lay-hee-hay-hay oh-hay-ee

Instrumental:
(instrumental break)

Instrumental:
(instrumental break)

Instrumental:
(instrumental break)

Verse:
Somethin' like a pitcher that they send down in a well
Somethin' like a pitcher that they send down in a well
Wondering, will they break it? Lordy, Lordy, who can tell?

Verse:
It was late one evening, I was standin' at that mine
It was late one evening, I was standin' at that mine
Foreman said my daddy had gone down for his last time

Yodel-lay-hee-hay-hay oh-hay-ee

Instrumental:
(instrumental break)

Instrumental:
(instrumental break)

Instrumental:
(instrumental break)

Verse:
He was a coal miner from his hat down to his shoes
He was a coal miner from his hat down to his shoes
And I know he's dying with these mining town blues

Archive note

This is a working band sheet. Lyrics, repeats, and chord placement remain subject to the band’s final review.

Chords

D · G · A