Mandolin tablatures for Eighth Of January
Traditional
Recomended level: Intermediate
This is a traditional fiddle tune that was recorded to commemorate the event that is known as “Jackson’s Victory” or what some other people prefer to call it – “Eight of January.” The original version was Performed by Jesse Robinson, guitar and Bill Robinson, fiddle. The tune was recorded at Visalia FSA Camp, August 30, 1941. There is also an amazing version that was played on the fiddled and finessed by bill and Kassie Robinson. You can listen to it on their collection of voices from the dust bowl. Also, there are several versions collected from the dust bowl by Charles L. Todd and Robert Sonkin. The dust bowl was a time when musicians came together to try to help people who have been displaced by the severe dust storms that destroyed homes and agricultural products around the 1930s. It was a terrible time, and most people left Oklahoma to work in California. The tune is a favorite for those that love to do square dancing. There are also some versions of the song, and James Morris even composed lyrics to it in 1958 and called it “The Battle of The New Orleans.” The version that Johnny Horton composed in1959 rose to the top of the hit parade that very year.
