“The Battle of New Orleans” is the title of a song written by Jimmy Driftwood. The song describes the 1815 Battle of New Orleans from the perspective of an American soldier; the lyrics are evidently intended to be comical. It has been recorded by many artists, but the singer most often associated with this song is Johnny Horton. His version scored number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1959.
In Billboard magazine’s rankings of the top songs in the first fifty years of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, “The Battle of New Orleans” was ranked as the twenty-eighth song overall and the number-one country music song to appear on the chart.
The melody is based on a well-known American fiddle tune “The 8th of January”, which was the date of the Battle of New Orleans. Jimmy Driftwood, a school principal in Arkansas with a passion for history, set an account of the battle to this music in an attempt to get students interested in learning history. It seemed to work, and Driftwood became well known in the region for his historical songs. He was “discovered” in the late 1950s by Don Warden, and eventually was given a recording contract by RCA, for whom he recorded 12 songs in 1958, including “The Battle of New Orleans”.
“The Battle of New Orleans” is often played during North American sporting events, and is commonly heard during home games of the NHL’s Calgary Flames Original Horton 45 r.p.m. discs of the song are now worth many times the original cost.
By Johnny Horton
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsRK3DNoa_Q
Lyrics
In eighteen-fourteen we took a little trip
Along with Colonel Jackson down the mighty Mississipp’
We took a little bacon and we took a little beans
And we caught the bloody British in the town of New Orleans.
Chorus:
We fired our guns and the British kept on comin’
There wasn’t neigh as many as there was a while ago
We fired once more and they began to runnin’
On down the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico.
We looked down the river and we seen the British come
And there must have been a hundred of ’em beatin on the drum
They stepped so high and they made their bugles ring
We stood behind our cotton bales and didn’t say a thing.
Chorus:
We fired our guns and the British kept on comin’
There wasn’t neigh as many as there was a while ago
We fired once more and they began to runnin’
On down the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico.
Ol’ Hickory said we could take ’em by surprise
If we didn’t fire our muskets ’til we looked ’em in the eyes
We held our fire ’til we seen their faces well
Then we opened up our squirrel guns and really gave em, well.
Chorus:
We fired our guns and the British kept on comin’
There wasn’t neigh as many as there was a while ago
We fired once more and they began to runnin’
On down the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico.
Yeah, they ran through the briars and they ran through the brambles
And they ran through the bushes where a rabbit couldn’t go.
They ran so fast that the hounds couldn’t catch ’em
Down the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico.
We fired our cannon ’til the barrel melted down
Then we grabbed an alligator and we fought another round
We filled his head with cannonballs and powered his behind
And when we touched the powder off the ‘gator lost his mind.
Chorus:
We fired our guns and the British kept on comin’
There wasn’t neigh as many as there was a while ago
We fired once more and they began to runnin’
On down the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico.
They ran through the briars and they ran through the brambles
And they ran through the bushes where a rabbit couldn’t go
They ran so fast that the hounds couldn’t catch ’em
A down the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico.
(Spoken)
Hut, two, three, four
Sound off, three, four
Hut, two, three, four
Sound off, three, four…
