![]() Fuson's version also mentions key historical events in the Cumberland Gap's pioneer period and the battle for control of the gap during the Civil War. Fuson published a lengthy version of "Cumberland Gap" in 1931, with the first three lines in the opening stanza reading "Lay down, boys, an' take a little nap" and the last line reading "They're all raisin' Hell in the Cumberland Gap," somewhat echoing the lyrics transcribed by Kephart a quarter-century earlier. Kephart simply wrote that the song was of "modern and local origin." Kentucky ballad collector H. Kephart transcribed the opening stanzas to several of these songs, including a version of "Cumberland Gap" sung by Hazel Creek bear hunter "Little John" Cable: While waiting for weather conditions to improve, members of the hunting party sang "ballets" to pass the time. Kephart recalled taking part in a bear hunt that took place circa 1904–1906 in the Great Smoky Mountains. ![]() One of the earliest references to "Cumberland Gap" (the song) was published by author Horace Kephart (1862–1931) in his 1913 book, Our Southern Highlanders. Lunsford recorded both songs on fiddle to show the similarities (although many folk tunes from the British Isles are very similar). North Carolina songster Bascom Lamar Lunsford (1882–1973), recording his "memory collection" for the Archive of American Folk Song in March 1949, suggested that "Cumberland Gap" may be a "sped up" version of the tune that once accompanied the ballad Bonnie George Campbell. Song history Origins and early references ![]() Civil War (1861–1865), Union and Confederate armies engaged in a year-long back-and-forth struggle for control of the gap. The gap was used in the latter half of the 18th century by westward-bound migrants travelling from the original 13 American colonies to the Trans-Appalachian frontier. The song's title refers to the Cumberland Gap, a mountain pass in the Appalachian Mountains at the juncture of the states of Tennessee, Virginia, and Kentucky. 1 UK hit with a skiffle version of "Cumberland Gap". In 1957, the British musician Lonnie Donegan had a No. Woody Guthrie recorded a version of the song at his Folkways sessions in the mid-1940s, and the song saw a resurgence in popularity with the rise of bluegrass and the American folk music revival in the 1950s. A version of the song appeared in the 1934 book, American Ballads and Folk Songs, by folk song collector John Lomax. The song is typically played on banjo or fiddle, and well-known versions of the song include instrumental versions as well as versions with lyrics. " Cumberland Gap" is an Appalachian folk song that likely dates to the latter half of the 19th century and was first recorded in 1924.
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