East Virginia Blues

Song composer(s)

Traditional

Grateful Dead Recordings

Not recorded by the Dead

Dead Related Recordings

No Dead related recordings entered

Other Recordings

East Virginia Blues
Ashley & Foster (193?) : Carter Family (193?)
Mountain Music Of Kentucky : Various Artists (Roscoe Holcomb) (1960)
Rusty York & the Kentucky Mountain Boys (1961)
The Swinging 12 String : Glen Campbell / Leon Russell (1963)
Smokey Mountain Ballads : The Carter Family (1964)
Earl Scruggs Performing With His Friends & Family : Earl Scruggs (1971)
419 West Main : Red Cravens & The Bray Brothers (1972)
Greatest Folksingers of 60s : Various Artists (Pete Seeger) (1972)
Live In Japan : The Country Gentlemen (1973)
Holiday in Japan : J. D Crowe & the New South: (1975)
Hard Travellin' : Ramblin' Jack Elliot (1977)
Essential : Pete Seeger (1978)
Live : Ralph Stanley (1992)
Darling Corey/Goofing Off Suite : Pete Seeger (1993)
Third Annual Farewell Reunion : Mike Seeger/Various Artists (1994)
Mountain Music of Kentucky : Various Artists (Roscoe Holcomb) (1996) (Expanded version of 1960 LP)
Long Journey Home : Stanley Brothers (199?)
Stanley Series, Vol 3 #4 : Stanley Brothers (19??)
The Legendary Carter Family : Carter Family (19??)
Collection of Mountain Ballads : Various Artists (Clarence Ashley) (19??)
The Original Carter Family From 1936 - Radio Transcripts : The Carter Family (19??)
Grass Strings (19??)
John Miracle, Virgil Joseph & the Tennessee Boys (19??)
Virginia Mountain Boys (19??)

East Virginia
Anthology of American Folk Music : Various Artists (Buell Kazee) (1952, reissue 1997)
Kentucky Folk Songs and Ballads : Logan English (1957)
New Lost City Ramblers, Vol. 1 : New Lost City Ramblers (1958)
Banjo Tunes & Songs : Pete Steele (1958)
Buell Kazee Sings and Plays : Buell Kazee (1958)
Mickey Miller Sings American Folk Songs : Mickey Miller (1959)
Cisco Houston Sings Songs of the Open Road : Cisco Houston (1960)
Joan Baez : Joan Baez (1960)
World Tour with Folk Songs : Addiss and Crofut (1962)
This Life I'm Living : Carolyn Hester (1963)
American Folk Ballads : Betty Garland (1964)
Greatest Folksingers of 60s : Various Artists (Joan Baez) (1972)
Walkin' in the Parlor - Old Time Music of the Southern Mountains : Iron Mountain String Band (1975)
Mandolin Instruction - Old Time, Country and Fiddle Tunes : Michael Holmes (1977)
Virginia Mountain Boys, Vol. 4 : Virginia Mountain Boys (1983)
Banjo Pickin' Girl : Lilly Mae Ledford (1983)
At Folk City : Jean Richie & Doc Watson (CD release only) (1990)
Diamonds - Best of the Vanguard Years : Joan Baez (1991)

Performance History

Played by an unnamed bluegrass band with Garcia on banjo at an unknown venue in Burlingame in January 1962.

Not performed by the Grateful Dead. Occurs only on pre-Dead tapes featuring future members of the dead.

Notes

On the Burlingame tape this usually is listed as Greenback Dollar. Greenback Dollar is a more recent song derived from the East Virginia Blues/Dark Holler family - using the "I don't want the greenback dollar" line . But the song performed at the show is East Virginia Blues.

The song also occurs as just East Virginia.

Here's the lyrics from the Burlingame 1962 tape;

I was born in East Virginia,
North Carolina I did go,
There I met the fairest maiden,
Her name and age I did not know.

Well her hair was dark in color,
And her cheeks were rosy red,
On her breast she wore a white lily,
Where I longed to lay my head.

I don't want the greenback dollar,
I don't want the big gold chain,
All I want is your love darling,
Won't you please come back again.

I wish I was in some dark holler,
Where the sun would never shine,
Than for you to be in some man's arms,
And to know you'll never be mine.