The Late, Great, Sam Shepard in Blackthorn

Well, my name it is Sam Hall, Sam Hall.
Yes, my name it is Sam Hall, it is Sam Hall.
My name it is Sam Hall an’ I hate you, one and all.
An’ I hate you, one and all
Damn your eyes.

I killed a man, they said, so they said.
I killed a man, they said, so they said.
I killed a man, they said an’ I smashed in his head.
An’ I left him laying dead,
Damn his eyes.

But a-swinging, I must go, I must go.
A-swinging, I must go, I must go.
A-swinging, I must go while you critters down below,
Yell up, “Sam, I told you so.”
Well, damn your eyes!

I saw Molly in the crowd, in the crowd.
I saw Molly in the crowd, in the crowd.
I saw Molly in the crowd an’ I hollered, right out loud
“Hey there Molly, ain’t you proud?
“Damn your eyes.”

Then the Sheriff, he came to, he came to.
Ah, yeah, the Sheriff, he came to, he came to.
The Sheriff, he come to an he said, “Sam, how are you?”
An I said, “Well, Sheriff, how are you?”
“Damn your eyes.”

My name is Samuel, Samuel.
My name is Samuel, Samuel.
My name is Samuel, an’ I’ll see you all in hell.
An’ I’ll see you all in hell,
Damn your eyes.

“Sam Hall” is an old English folk song about a bitterly unrepentant criminal condemned to death (Roud #369). Prior to the mid-19th century it was called “Jack Hall”, after an infamous English thief, who was hanged in 1707 at Tyburn. Jack Hall’s parents sold him as a climbing boy for one guinea, which is why most versions of the song identify Sam or Jack Hall as a chimney sweep.

History

Prior to 1988, the song had been collected from about 18 singers in the oral tradition, limited to Ireland, England and the USA, and there had been only six sound recordings made.   Comic Minstrel W.G. Ross adapted one version probably in the 1840s, and changed the name from “Jack Hall” to “Sam Hall”. The song also appears to have been adapted to fit the region in which it was sung; some versions refer to Sam Hall being hanged at Tyburn, some at Cootehill. Also it is unclear what, if any, uncouth language was original to the song. Various versions have Sam Hall call his executioners “muckers”, “fuckers”, “buggers”, “muggers”, “critters” or “bastards”.

To add to the confusion, the song is associated with the song “Captain Kidd”, aka “Robert Kidd”, as William Kidd was executed in the same year. The songs have similar metre and style, and it is unknown which came first.

A more vulgar variant has become an enduring cultural phenomenon among United States Air Force pilots. Known as “Sammy Small”, this may be the best known drinking song among American fighter pilots. Covered by Dos Gringos in 2006 on their album “2”, the lyrics have remained consistent at least since the Vietnam War.

See also “Samuel Hall’s Family Tree” an article by Bertrand H. Bronson in California Folklore Quarterly, Vol. 1, No. 1 (Jan., 1942), pp. 47–64, Published by: Western States Folklore Society Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1495727. Bronson explores the use to which the particular song form has been put over a long period.

Regarding the metrics and the melody, the version common in the British Isles (“Oh my name it is Sam Hall, chimney sweep…”) appeared to be based on the tune “Ye Jacobites by Name” (Roud # 5517), whereas the version more common in the USA (“My name it is Sam Hall, T’is Sam Hall…”) is a variant of the tune to “Frog Went A-Courting” (Roud # 16).