Life on the road
Nobody quite seems to know
Where he exactly came from
Nor where next he planned to go
Happy to move
From town to town
Just travelling on
Living’ the blues
Clarksdale, Chicago
Memphis, Tennessee
Catching The Crescent
To New Orleans
Up and down the river
Always welcomed into bed
Night was never lonely
Where Robert Johnson slept
He traded his gospel singing talents
To oil his way through the four seasons
The devil didn’t have his soul
But whisky was his demon
When the industry came looking
To bottle up his gift
Johnson had already passed away
From poison he’d been slipped
~
n.b. Nobody really knows the full details about the life of Robert Johnson, other than he lived on the move, sang for a living, was well received and loved where ever he went, except by jealous husbands. He’s a man with three tombstones, but it has been suggested not one of them is rightly placed.
Only two photographs of the singer are thought to exist.
The fact that there are any recordings of him at all is remarkable.
NaPoWri 2025, Day 29
CLP 29/04/2025
Journey of Words 