"Mule Skinner Blues" is a classic country song written by Jimmie Rodgers and George Vaughan. The song was first recorded by Rodgers in 1930 and has been recorded by many artists since then, acquiring the de facto title "Mule Skinner Blues" after Rodgers named it "Blue Yodel #8". "George Vaughn", a pseudonym for George Vaughn Horton, is sometimes listed as co-author. Horton wrote the lyrics for "New Mule Skinner Blues", Bill Monroe's second recorded version of the song.
Structure
The song tells the tale of a down-on-his-luck mule skinner, approaching "the Captain", looking for work. He boasts of his skills: "I can pop my 'nitials on a mule's behind" and hopes for "a dollar and a half a day". He directs the water boy to "bring some water round". The term "Mule Skinner", slang for muleteer, is a driver of mules, and has nothing to do with removing the animal's hide.
Tom Dickson's "Labor Blues"
The first verse the song is similar to Tom Dickson's 1928 recording "Labor Blues" in which the exchange is clearly between a white boss and an African-American worker who is quitting the job, not applying for it: "Captain" was a traditional term for the white boss; "Shine" is a derogatory expression for "African-American". Dickson was black. After the narrator rebels and quits because he is not being paid, he turns his attention to his "Mississippi gal" and the remaining lyrics concern their romance. In this 12-bar blues recording, muleskinning is not mentioned, and the remaining Dickson lyrics differ from Rodgers', whose other Blue Yodels also used verses previously recorded by Blues musicians, such as Blind Lemon Jefferson.
Roy Acuff recorded the song in 1939; his version was released in 1940.
Bill Monroe performed the song for his November 25, 1939 debut on the Grand Ole Opry. The performance can be found on the MCA compilation Music of Bill Monroe From 1936-1994.
;1940s
The song was Monroe's first solo studio recording. Recorded on October 7, 1940 for RCA Victor, the song became a hit and one of Monroe's signature tunes.
Monroe re-recorded the song in 1950 as "New Mule Skinner Blues" in his first session for Decca, with new lyrics written by George Vaughn Horton. Monroe apparently never sang the song with Horton's lyrics in concert.
Joe D. Gibson recorded a souped up version titled "Good Morning Captain" on tetra Records which served as a model for The Fendermen.
;1960s
The Fendermen - Mule Skinner Blues
This Madison, Wisconsin-based duo reached #5 on the Billboard charts with their version, featuring abbreviated lyrics and strong Fender electric guitar instrumentation. This version is arguably the most widely circulated of recent versions of the song, due to its Billboard chart performance and its subsequent prolific appearances on novelty song collections.
Harry Belafonte performed his rendition as "Muleskinner" on track seven of his Midnight Special album released in 1962.
Bob Dylan made this song part of his live performance at the Finjan Club, Montreal, Canada in July 1962.
Grandpa Jones - "Muleskinner Blues" recorded some point in the 60's.
David Wiffen - David Wiffen At The Bunkhouse Coffeehouse, Vancouver BC
The Wildwood Boys, a bluegrass band featuring Jerry Garcia, Robert Hunter and David Nelson, played the song as part of their live repertoire in 1963.
Jose Feliciano - "Mule Skinner Blues"
The Streaplers - "Mule Skinner Blues" 1964
A novelty version of the song, "Batskinner" by Robin & The Batmen, was inspired by both The Fendermen version of "Mule Skinner Blues" and the popular Batman television series.
Rose Maddox w/Mark O'Connor & Jeff Thorn - http://picosong.com/4kF/
Levi's used a variation of this song for its blue jeans commercial using stop motion animation, around 1972. Lyrics included:
"Good Morning, World! Good Morning to you! I'm Wearing my Levi's, Le-hee-hee-hee-vis!"
Muleskinner - Muleskinner This bluegrass supergroup were named after and led off their only studio album with the song.
Old & In the Way - Breakdown
Dennis Bruderer - 45rpm on Little Richie #1032 b/w "Shake Hands With A Fool"
;1980s
Tony Rice - Cold On The Shoulder
The Cramps - Stay Sick
The Brothers Four - Released as "Muleskinner" on the compilation albumFolk Classics: Roots of American Folk Music. This version is arranged by Stuart Gotz; it primarily uses a western show tune style and includes some bluegrass-like elements.
