Man of Constant Sorrow
"Man of Constant Sorrow" (also known as "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow") is a traditional American folk song that expresses themes of hardship, farewell, and enduring sorrow, first published in 1913 by Dick Burnett, a partially blind fiddler and songwriter from eastern Kentucky.[1][2][3] The song's origins likely trace back to earlier 19th-century Baptist hymns and oral folk traditions in the American South, with Burnett's version titled "Farewell Song" appearing in a collection of his fiddle tunes and lyrics sold as a chapbook.[4][5] One of the earliest commercial recordings was made by singer Emry Arthur in 1928, which helped spread the tune through the burgeoning country music scene.[6] It gained widespread popularity in 1951 through a bluegrass rendition by the Stanley Brothers on Columbia Records, featuring the harmonious vocals of Ralph and Carter Stanley, which became a cornerstone of the genre.[6][1] Bob Dylan further elevated its profile with his 1961 cover on his debut album, adapting the lyrics to reflect personal introspection in the folk revival era.[7] The song achieved mainstream cultural prominence in 2000 as part of the Coen Brothers' film O Brother, Where Art Thou?, where it was performed by the fictional Soggy Bottom Boys with lead vocals provided by bluegrass artist Dan Tyminski, propelling the soundtrack to commercial success and reviving interest in traditional Americana music.[6][3]Origins
Authorship and First Publication
"Man of Constant Sorrow" is primarily credited to Dick Burnett, a partially blind fiddler and folk musician born in 1883 near Monticello, Kentucky. Burnett, who lost vision in one eye after being shot during a 1907 robbery, composed the song possibly as early as that year and published its lyrics in 1913 under the title "Farewell Song" in his self-printed collection Songs Sung by R. D. Burnett, The Blind Man. This six-song folk songster, produced in Monticello, represents the earliest documented appearance of the tune and marks Burnett as its attributed originator in the historical record.[7] The lyrics in Burnett's 1913 publication open with the iconic lines: "I am a man of constant sorrow / I've seen trouble on my brow," establishing the song's core narrative of hardship and exile. No prior melodic or lyrical precedents have been identified before this printing, supporting Burnett's claim of authorship despite the oral folk traditions prevalent in Appalachia at the time. The songster itself, a modest pamphlet circulated among communities, helped preserve the piece in written form amid a largely unwritten musical heritage.[7][8] Debate persists over whether Burnett originated the song independently or drew from preexisting ballads, as he expressed uncertainty in later accounts. In a 1973 interview, the then-90-year-old Burnett reflected, "No, I think I got that ballad from somebody—I dunno. It may be my song," suggesting possible adaptation from unnamed sources within Kentucky's oral repertoire. Scholars generally attribute primary authorship to Burnett due to the absence of earlier versions and his direct documentation, though the folk process inherently blurs lines between creation and variation.[7][9]Historical and Cultural Context
The song "Man of Constant Sorrow" emerged in the early 1900s in the Appalachian region, particularly in southern Kentucky, during a period of profound rural poverty and the initial waves of out-migration that foreshadowed larger population shifts. Appalachia's isolated mountain communities relied heavily on subsistence farming and small-scale logging or mining, but economic stagnation, soil depletion, and limited access to markets left many families in dire straits. This hardship prompted early movement to industrial cities like Cincinnati, Detroit, and Chicago for factory work, a trend accelerating after World War I.[10][11] The song's roots connect to older British and Irish ballad traditions, adapted through transatlantic oral transmission into American folk forms, with Burnett reportedly basing its melody on the 19th-century Baptist hymn "The Wandering Boy," a lament of loss and exile common in Appalachian religious singing. Similar motifs appear in variants like "Girl of Constant Sorrow," recorded by Kentucky singer Sarah Ogan Gunning in the 1930s, which drew from the same sorrowful archetype to voice the struggles of coal miners' families during the Harlan County strikes. These connections highlight how European ballads, such as those collected by Cecil Sharp in the early 1900s, evolved in Appalachia through communal singing, blending Celtic wandering themes with local narratives of displacement.[1] Blind itinerant musicians played a crucial role in preserving and spreading such folk songs across Appalachia, traveling by foot or rail to perform at house parties, fairs, and crossroads, often compiling personal songsters to share repertoires. Dick Burnett, blinded in a 1907 robbery and thereafter a full-time performer, exemplified this tradition, partnering with fiddler Leonard Rutherford to tour Kentucky and Tennessee, exchanging tunes with other locals and disseminating material through printed broadsides and live shows that reached remote hollows. These wandering artists, numbering in the hundreds in the region, served as vital cultural conduits, adapting and reviving songs amid the oral culture that dominated pre-recording era music transmission.[12]Lyrics and Variations
Core Lyrics and Themes
The core lyrics of "Man of Constant Sorrow," originally titled "Farewell Song" and published by Dick Burnett in his 1913 self-printed songbook Songs Sung by R. D. Burnett, The Blind Man, consist of five verses that depict a life marked by unending hardship and inevitable parting.[13] These lyrics establish the song's foundational narrative, structured in an AABB rhyme scheme across quatrains, progressing from self-introduction and reflection on troubles to farewells and a contemplation of death and afterlife reunion.[7] The full lyrics as reproduced from Burnett's version are as follows:I am a man of constant sorrowThe refrain lines in parentheses represent a narrative shift to third-person perspective, emphasizing the singer's isolation and objectification of his own plight.[7] At the heart of these lyrics lies the portrayal of the narrator as a perpetual wanderer enduring betrayal by fate, profound loss of home and relationships, and stoic resignation to a joyless existence, embodying the blues-folk archetype of the "hard-luck man" who roams without respite.[7] The phrase "man of constant sorrow" serves as a central metaphor for an inescapable, lifelong affliction akin to a predestined burden, underscoring themes of unrelenting adversity and emotional desolation.[14] Religious undertones permeate the text, particularly in the final verse's promise of reunion "on God’s golden shore," evoking Christian motifs of trial, death as release, and divine salvation as the only solace for earthly suffering.[7] This blend of fatalism and faint hope reflects broader Appalachian folk traditions of migration and endurance amid poverty and displacement.
I’ve seen trouble all my days
I bid farewell to old Kentucky
The place where I was borned and raised
(The place where he was borned and raised) For six long years I’ve been in trouble
No pleasure here on earth I find
For in this world I’m bound to ramble
I have no friends to help me now
(He has no friends to help him now) It’s fare thee well my own true lover
I never expect to see you again
For I’m bound to ride that northern railroad
Perhaps I’ll die upon this train
(Perhaps he’ll die upon this train) You can bury me in some deep valley
For many years where I may lay
Then you may learn to love another
While I am sleeping in my grave
(While he is sleeping in my grave) Maybe your friends think I’m just a stranger
My face you’ll never will see no more
But there is one promise that is given
I’ll meet you on God’s golden shore
(He’ll meet you on God’s golden shore)[13]