Deep Elem Blues

[Steven]

O.K. so can anyone tell me what this word (Elem) means in this great tune?

[doublestop]

I believe it's Elm. Anyone else care to chime in?

[Steven]

Hmmm,The Folkways Years 1964-1983/Red Allen/Frank Wakefield,it is spelled Elem.Wish I new what this means.

[fredfrank]

Also known as Deep Elm Blues from Elm Street which was the red light district in Dallas. Some versions have it as Deep Ellum.

[BrazAd]

Had a friend who was originally from Arkansas, and he always pronounced "elm", "elum". He used "elum stakes" to mark off his property. Naturally, he put them in the ground with a "elum club."

So those Deep Elum Blues are nothing more than Deep Elm Blues, at their core! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Gary Collier
Atlanta

[jim simpson]

I wrote a song "Little Girl From Elm Grove" and sing it "Elem Grove" in honor of the way my late father-in-law would say it.

[hellindc]

Fredfrank is right -- it was the rough and tumble section of Dallas, with a reputation for music similar to Beale Street. Now its a trendy street full of cafes, restaurants, etc.

[ShaneJ]

If what I hear about the Deep Elum section of Dallas has anything to do with the definition, it has something to do with gay druggies. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

[dan@kins]

Fredfrank nailed it!

[Wesley]

Deep Ellum nowadays is full of rock and roll bars, food joints some trendy art gallerys ect. Probably a great place to get pierced if you like that kind of thing. It's not the gay part of town. That's the Oak Lawn district. They do have the Sons Of Hermann Hall in Deep Ellum - I've senn Peter Rowan and Guy Clark there from time to time. Robert Johnson also recorded there. It's not a place I would want to be after dark. Too crowded.

[Steven]

Thanks to all for your help!Now the song is understandable.

[Jon Hall]

In addition to Robert Johnson, Blnd Lemon Jefferson and Huddie (Leadbelly) "busked" on the streets of Deep Elum long enough to be noticed. In the 20's & 30's, Deep Elum was a unique mixing bowl of Black culture and Jewish merchants that apparently got along very well.

My son's rock band LOSA played there every weekend for years. It's crowded but there is astrong police presence and not nearly as scarey at night as some might believe.

[hellindc]

Yes, and I think Blind Lemon was actually from Dallas, wasn't he?

[Moose]

I too belive "fredfrank nailed it." http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[TeleMark]

I drove thru here on Tuesday, when I was in town giving a training in downtown Dallas. I had the tune in my head the rest of the day!

[ira]

hope you had your ten dollars ready, when that policeman come!

[JeffD]

Yes its Deep Ellum, where you can find Club DaDa (if its still there) and pick a few tunes.

[mandopete]

...oh, I thought you meant Cle Elem...

[The Old Sarge]

Yes its Deep Ellum, where you can find Club DaDa (if its still there) and pick a few tunes.
I joined the Dallas Police Department in '68, long after the true hayday of deep Ellum. But I did make friends with Honest Joe, the biggest pawnshop owner in the area. When the bars started coming back, with Club Clearview and Club DaDa being a couple of the early ones, I was nearing the end of my career with Dallas (still in law enforcement though). I was single and worked a lot of part time jobs and one of them was on the parking lot of Clearview and we often would walk down to DaDa where I made friends with the bouncer, Beard. Heard a lot of good music there. One of my personal favorites was Killbilly. Lot of good times in that area and because of my age the young folks would treat me more like an uncle than just a cop.

[ira]

as a non-bg player (not adverse- just don't seem to do it), its so interesting when i read threads on certain tunes regardless of query (tab, chords, history,etc...) that i know of, not because of listening to the genre, but through the grateful dead/garcia- this is one of my favs that they did both electric and acoustic.

[Skin it Back]

It is Deep Elem Blues but I don't know what is means or where it comes from. Check out the website http://www.rukind.com/ which has lyrics and tabs for every Dead song--the title is on there.

[The Old Sarge]

It is Deep Elem Blues but I don't know what is means or where it comes from. Check out the website http://www.rukind.com/ which has lyrics and tabs for every Dead song--the title is on there.
From http://www3.clearlight.com/~acsa....LEM.HTM (http://www3.clearlight.com/~acsa/introjs.htm?/~acsa/songfile/DEEPELEM.HTM)



The first recording of this song is normally credited to the Shelton Brothers in the early 1930s. They started as the Attlesey Brothers, and recorded "Deep Elm Blues" under the name "Lone Star Cowboys" in 1933. They then changed their name to the Shelton Brothers (after their mother's maiden name) and recorded several further versions under the title "Deep Elem Blues." It was subsequently covered by a variety of other artists, including the Prairie Ramblers in 1935, Jerry Lee Lewis in the 1950s, and Frank Wakefield in the early 1960s. I'm not sure whose version Jerry Garcia learnt the song from.

The title "Deep Elem" originates from Elm Street, which was the red-light district in Dallas. The song is known variously as "Deep Elm Blues", "Deep Elem Blues" and "Deep Ellum" blues.

Several early blues luminaries spent time in and around Deep Ellum. Blind Lemon Jefferson moved there as a street musician around 1917, and met and played with Leadbelly there. Lightning Hopkins also played with Blind Lemon there. But it doesn't seem that any of them had a hand in writing this song (even though Blind Lemon Jefferson is sometimes cited as the author).

Having worked the area I have heard it pronounced as Elm, Elem, Ellum, and probably a couple of more ways. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[Strange1]

Glad to see your post Old Sarge. I knew it was older then The Dead. My brother-in law used to sing it in the 40's (and maybe before). The earliest recoding I can find of that song was in 1927 by the Cofer Bros. All the hillbilly bands in the 40's and 50's did it and also the bonifide bluegrass bands..

CC

[Skin it Back]

Thanks, I stand corrected. That is very interesting.