Artist & Tune
Version by Goebel Reeves
Version by Woody Guthrie
Version by Cisco Houston
Version by Pete Seeger
Version by Joan Baez
Version by Emmylou Harris
Version by Bill Staines
Version by The Wainwright Sisters
Version by John McCutcheon
Version by Bruce Springsteen
Reference
About the Song
This was the most widely known and sung song by the American songwriter Goebel Reeves, which he first recorded in 1937. It is still in copyright, reportedly until 2030.
It has been widely covered: https://secondhandsongs.com/work/122269/all
Notable recordings:
- Goebel Reeves 1937
- Woody Guthrie on the Moe Asch recordings between 1944 and 1949 at Moe's studion in NYC.
- Pete Seeger on his "Rainbow Race" in 1971
- Joan Baez at a 1972 Tribute Concert to Woody Guthrie
- Emmylou Harris on the 1988 Folkways: A Vision Shared album
- Billy Bragg & Joe Henry (b. 1960 - not the IWW organizer resurrected!) on an album they made during a cross country train ride of train songs in 2016 (see below)
Here's the Traditional Ballad Index entry on this song:
Hobo's Lullabye
DESCRIPTION: "Go to sleep you weary hobo, Let the town drift slowly by. Listen to the steel rails humming, That's the hobo's lullabye." The hobo is urged not to think about tomorrow, to ignore the police (who will not be found in heaven), and to remember mother's love
AUTHOR: Goebel Reeves
EARLIEST DATE: 1934 (recording, Goebel Reeves)
KEYWORDS: hobo rambling lullaby
FOUND IN: US
REFERENCES (2 citations):
Silber/Silber-FolksingersWordbook, p. 410, "Hobo's Lullabye" (1 text)
DT, HOBOLULL*
Roud #16629
RECORDINGS:
Billy Cox & Cliff Hobbs, "The Hobo's Lullaby" (Vocalion 04924/Conqueror 9221, 1939; Conqueror 9352, 1940)
Goebel Reeves, "Hobo's Lullabye" (Champion 45181, 1936); (Vocalion 02828, 1934)
NOTES [34 words]: Although composed, this has become so popular that I think it qualifies as a genuine folk song. Woody Guthrie, for instance, was very fond of it, and many people must have learned it from his singing. - RBW
In March 2016 Billy Bragg and Joe Henry, guitars in hand, boarded a Los Angeles-bound train at Chicago’s Union Station looking to reconnect with the culture of American railroad travel and the music it inspired. Winding along 2,728 miles of track over four days, the pair recorded classic railroad songs in waiting rooms and at trackside while the train paused to pick up passengers. "Hobo's Lullaby" was included on their album “Shine A Light: Field Recordings From The Great American Railroad”.