"Darlin' Cory" (also "Darling Corey" or "Darling Cora") (

Roud The Roud Folk Song Index is a database of around 250,000 references to nearly 25,000 songs collected from oral tradition in the English language from all over the world. It is compiled by Steve Roud. Roud's Index is a combination of the Broadsid ...

5723) is a well-known American folk song about love, loss, and

moonshine Moonshine is alcohol proof, high-proof liquor, traditionally made or distributed alcohol law, illegally. The name was derived from a tradition of distilling the alcohol (drug), alcohol at night to avoid detection. In the first decades of the ...

. It is similar in theme to "Little Maggie" and "The Gambling Man" but is not considered the same as those songs.

Early printed versions

The earliest published version of "Darlin' Corey" occurs as verses within the song "The Gambling Man", collected from oral tradition by folklorist

Cecil Sharp Cecil James Sharp (22 November 1859 – 23 June 1924) was an English collector of folk songs, folk dances and instrumental music, as well as a lecturer, teacher, composer and musician. He was a key figure in the folk-song revival in England dur ...

, as sung by Mrs. Clercy Deeton, at Mine Fork, Burnsville, N.C., on Sept. 19, 1918. The text (without tune) was also published as "Little Cora" in Harvey H. Fuson's ''Ballads of the Kentucky Highlands'' (London, 1931). A version from the singing of Aunt Molly Jackson appears in the book ''Our Singing Country'' (1941) by John A. Lomax and Alan Lomax. It is also included in ''Folk Song, U.S.A.'' by John A. and Alan Lomax, Charles Seeger and Ruth Crawford Seeger (Duell, Sloan and Pearce, 1947), pp. 310–311.

Early recordings

The first known commercial audio recording was made by Clarence Gill as "Little Corey" on January 6, 1927, but was rejected by the record company and never released. A few months later, folk singer

Buell Kazee Buell Kazee (August 29, 1900 – August 31, 1976) was an American country and folk singer. He is considered one of the most successful folk musicians of the 1920s and experienced a career comeback during the American folk music revival of the 196 ...

recorded it as "Darling Cora" on April 20, 1927 (Brunswick 154). Later the same year, on July 29, 1927, at the famous

Bristol Sessions The Bristol Sessions were a series of recording sessions held in 1927 in Bristol, Tennessee, considered by some as the "Big Bang" of modern country music. The recordings were made by Victor Talking Machine Company producer Ralph Peer. Bristol ...

an influential version was recorded by B. F. Shelton as "Darlin' Cora" (Victor 35838). Other early recordings are "Little Lulie" by Dick Justice (1929) and "Darling Corey", released as a single by the Monroe Brothers in 1936. In 1941, The Monroe Brothers' version was included in a landmark 5-disc compilation, ''Smoky Mountain Ballads'', produced and annotated by noted folklorist John A. Lomax (

Victor Records The Victor Talking Machine Company was an American recording company and phonograph manufacturer, incorporated in 1901. Victor was an independent enterprise until 1929 when it was purchased by the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) and became ...

). Whereas the earlier, "hillybilly" records had been marketed regionally, "Smoky Mountain Ballads" was intended for broad, urban audiences. It comprised reissues of ten comparatively recent commercially issued hillbilly recordings from the 1930s, including, in addition to the performance of "Darlin' Cory" by the Monroe Brothers, songs by

the Carter Family The Carter Family was an American folk music group that recorded and performed between 1927 and 1956. Regarded as one of the most important music acts of the early 20th century, they had a profound influence on the development of bluegrass, c ...

Uncle Dave Macon David Harrison Macon (October 7, 1870 – March 22, 1952), known professionally as Uncle Dave Macon, was an American old-time banjo player, singer, songwriter, and comedian. Known as "The Dixie Dewdrop", Macon was known for his chin whiskers, ...

, Mainer's Mountaineers, and other Southeastern performers. ''Smoky Mountain Ballads'' became a staple in the repertoires of 1940s and early '50s folk music revival singers such as Pete Seeger, who was meticulous in crediting his sources and urged that people copy them and not him. That same year on May 28, 1941,

Burl Ives Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives (June 14, 1909 – April 14, 1995) was an American Folk music, folk singer and actor with a career that spanned more than six decades. Ives began his career as an itinerant singer and guitarist, eventually launching his o ...

also recorded "Darlin' Cory" it in his debut album ''

Okeh Presents the Wayfaring Stranger ''Okeh Presents the Wayfaring Stranger'' (Okeh K-3) is a 1941 album by Burl Ives consisting of four 10-inch records (78 rpm, 6315-6318). This set marked Ives' debut as a recording artist. He accompanies himself on the guitar as he sings 12 folk s ...

'' (issued August 1941 with liner notes by

Alan Lomax Alan Lomax (; January 31, 1915 – July 19, 2002) was an American ethnomusicologist, best known for his numerous field recordings of folk music during the 20th century. He was a musician, folklorist, archivist, writer, scholar, political activ ...

Lyrics

Other recordings

Numerous artists have recorded versions of "Darlin' Cory", including: *

Flatt and Scruggs Flatt and Scruggs were an American bluegrass duo. Singer and guitarist Lester Flatt and banjo player Earl Scruggs, both of whom had been members of Bill Monroe's band, the Bluegrass Boys, from 1945 to 1948, formed the duo in 1948. Flatt and Scr ...

(as "Dig A Hole In The Meadow") on ''Flatt and Scruggs at Carnegie Hall'', 1963 *

Mike Seeger Mike Seeger (August 15, 1933August 7, 2009) was an American folk musician and folklorist. He was a distinctive singer and an accomplished musician who mainly played autoharp, banjo, fiddle, dulcimer, guitar, harmonica, mandolin, dobro, jaw harp, ...

Roscoe Holcomb Roscoe Holcomb (born Roscoe Halcomb; September 5, 1912 – February 1, 1981) was an American singer, banjo player, and guitarist from Daisy, Kentucky. A prominent figure in Appalachian folk music, Holcomb was the inspiration for the term "high, ...

John Hartford John Cowan Hartford (December 30, 1937 – June 4, 2001) was an American folk, country, and bluegrass composer and musician known for his mastery of the fiddle and banjo, as well as for his witty lyrics, unique vocal style, and extensive kn ...

(as "Dig a Hole") on ''

Steam Powered Aereo-Takes ''Steam Powered Aereo-Takes'' is a collection of outtakes, demos and jam-sessions from John Hartford's groundbreaking 1971 album ''Aereo-Plain'', released in 2002. The music is a blend of traditional bluegrass musicianship, and the hippie spirit ...

'', 1971 *

Doc Watson Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (March 3, 1923 – May 29, 2012) was an American guitarist, songwriter, and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues, and gospel music. He won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. His ...

Bruce Hornsby Bruce Randall Hornsby (born November 23, 1954) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. His music draws from folk rock, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, folk music, folk, Southern rock, country rock, jam band, rock music, rock, heartland r ...

The Weavers The Weavers were an American folk music quartet based in the Greenwich Village area of New York City originally consisting of Lee Hays, Pete Seeger, Ronnie Gilbert, and Fred Hellerman. Founded in 1948, the group sang traditional folk songs from ...

Crooked Still Crooked Still is an American band consisting of vocalist Aoife O'Donovan, banjo player Gregory Liszt, bassist Corey DiMario, cellist Tristan Clarridge and fiddle player Brittany Haas. They are known for their high energy, technical skill, unusu ...

Bill Monroe William Smith Monroe ( ; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass". The genre takes its n ...

Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte ( ; born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927 – April 25, 2023) was an American singer, actor, and civil rights activist who popularized calypso music with international audiences in the 1950s and 1960s. Belafonte ...

(as "Darlin' Cora," attributed to Fred Brooks, a pseudonym used by

Fred Hellerman Fred Hellerman (May 13, 1927 – September 1, 2016) was an American folk singer, guitarist, producer, and songwriter. Hellerman was an original member of the seminal American folk group The Weavers, together with Pete Seeger, Lee Hays, and Ron ...

), * Holly Golightly & The Brokeoffs (as "Cora") *

Lonnie Donegan Anthony James "Lonnie" Donegan (29 April 1931 – 3 November 2002) was a British skiffle singer, songwriter and musician, referred to as the " King of Skiffle", who influenced 1960s British pop and rock musicians. Born in Scotland and brought ...

Buddy Greene Buddy Greene (born October 30, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter, guitar player and harmonica player. Most of his recordings consist of gospel music with a distinctly Southern gospel flavor. Much of his music is influenced by country musi ...

Eileen Ivers Eileen Ivers (born July 13, 1965) is an American fiddler. Ivers was born in New York City of Irish-born parents, grew up in the Bronx and attended St. Barnabas High School. She spent summers in Ireland and took up the fiddle at the age of nin ...

Pete Seeger Peter Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and social activist. He was a fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s and had a string of hit records in the early 1950s as a member of The Weav ...

Old Crow Medicine Show Old Crow Medicine Show is an Americana (music), Americana string band based in Nashville, Tennessee, that has been recording since 1998. They were inducted into the Grand Ole Opry on September 17, 2013. Their ninth album, ''Remedy (Old Crow Med ...

The Kingston Trio The Kingston Trio is an American folk and pop music group that helped launch the folk revival of the late 1950s to the late 1960s. The group started as a San Francisco Bay Area nightclub act with an original lineup of Dave Guard, Bob Shane, ...

, on ''At Large'', 1959 *

Tao Rodríguez-Seeger Tao Rodríguez-Seeger (born 1972) is an American contemporary folk musician. A founder of the Mammals, he is the grandson of folk musician Pete Seeger. He plays banjo, guitar, harmonica and sings in English and Spanish. Biography Rodríguez-See ...

(grandson of

) *

Bill Clifton Bill Clifton (born William August Marburg; April 5, 1931) is an American Bluegrass music, bluegrass musician and singer who is credited with having organized one of the first bluegrass festivals in the United States in 1961.Wolff, Duane 2000, p. ...

Rio en Medio Danielle Stech-Homsy, known by her pseudonym Rio en Medio (Spanish for ''river in between''), is an American singer and baritone ukulelist. Career Stech-Homsy was born in New Mexico, and was raised in California and Arizona. Later, she moved to ...

The Seldom Scene The Seldom Scene is an American bluegrass band that formed in 1971 in Bethesda, Maryland. The band's original line-up comprised John Starling on lead vocals and guitar, Mike Auldridge on Dobro and baritone vocals, Ben Eldridge on banjo, Tom ...

* Chris Jones *

Chuck Ragan Charles Allen Ragan (born October 30, 1974) is an American singing, singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He is the guitarist and vocalist of the band Hot Water Music. Ragan has also released a variety of solo material, including a series of 7-inch ...

and Austin Lucas, on '' Bristle Ridge'', 2008 *

Red Molly Red Molly is a folk trio consisting of Laurie MacAllister (vocals, bass), Abbie Gardner (vocals, guitar, Dobro, lap steel guitar), and Molly Venter (vocals, guitar). They perform original works composed by each of the group members as well as o ...

* Dan Levenson *

Bryn Haworth Bryn Haworth (born 29 July 1948) is a British Christian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and pioneer of Jesus music in mainstream rock. Born in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, he has released some twenty-two albums and several singles since the ...

, on '' Sunny Side of the Street'', 1975 *

Maddox Brothers and Rose The Maddox Brothers and Rose were an American country music group active from the 1930s to 1950s, consisting of four brothers, Fred, Cal, Cliff, and Don Maddox, along with their sister Rose; Cliff died in 1949 and was replaced by brother Henry. Or ...

(as "Dig a Hole") *

Bob Weir Robert Hall Weir ( ; né Parber, born October 16, 1947) is an American musician and songwriter best known as a founding member of the Grateful Dead. After the group disbanded in 1995, Weir performed with the Other Ones, later known as the Dead ...

, as " Lay My Lily Down", on his 2016 '' Blue Mountain'' *

Maxida Märak Ida Amanda "Maxida" Märak (born 17 September 1988) is a Swedish-Sámi joik singer, hip hop musician, actress and activist. Märak is a human rights activist with a special interest in the rights of the Sámi people. She has taken part in protest ...

, (as "Darling Corey" with Downhill Bluegrass Band) on ''Mountain Songs and Other Stories'', 2014 * Amythyst Kiah (In her 2013 album "Dig") * Joe Brown, as "Darling Corrie" *

Blood Oranges Blood orange is a variety of orange with crimson, blood-colored flesh. Blood orange may also refer to: Film * Blood Orange (1953 film), ''Blood Orange'' (1953 film), starring Tom Conway, U.S. title ''Three Stops to Murder'' * Blood Orange (2016 f ...

, as "Dig a Hole" *

Jean Ritchie Jean Ruth Ritchie (December 8, 1922 – June 1, 2015) was an American folk singer, songwriter, and Appalachian dulcimer player, called by some the "Mother of Folk". In her youth she learned hundreds of folk songs in the traditional way (orally, ...

Notes

References

External links

Traditional Ballad Index at California State University, FresnoThe Deadlists Project

— contains mp3 of Shelton's 1927 version

— version of the song by banjoist Lily May Ledford, recorded live on the

Renfro Valley Barn Dance ''Renfro Valley Barn Dance'' was an American country music stage and radio show originally carried by WLW-AM in Cincinnati, Ohio on Saturday nights. It debuted on October 9, 1937, from the Cincinnati Music Hall and moved to the Memorial Auditoriu ...

in 1951 {{authority control Burl Ives songs American folk songs Year of song unknown Songs with unknown songwriters 1918 songs