“Goodbye to My Stepstone”
Description
The singer has stayed at home among loved ones for a long time, but now is leaving: "Goodbye to my stepstone, goodbye to my home, God bless the ones that I leave with a sigh; I'll cherish dear memory while I am away; Goodbye, dear old stepstone, goodbye."
Notes
I've seen this attributed to Woody Guthrie, but the texts in Randolph, and his references to 1890s songbooks, make it clear that the basic song predated him. - RBW
Recordings
- Floyd County Ramblers, "Step Stone" (Victor V-40331, 1930; Bluebird B-5107, 1933; on TimesAint05)
- Bascom Lamar Lunsford, "Stepstones" (Brunswick 231, 1928; Brunswick 314, 1929; on BLLunsford01)
- Peg Moreland, "The Old Step Stone" (Victor V-40008, 1929)
- E. R. Nance Singers, "Goodbye to My Stepstone" (Champion 16316, 1931)
- Three Muskateers, "Goodbye to the Step Stones" (Bluebird B-6525, 1936)
- Ernest V. Stoneman and His Dixie Mountaineers, "Goodbye Dear Old Stepstone" (Edison 52489, 1929); Ernest Stoneman and Eddie Stoneman, "Good-bye Dear Old Stepstone" (ARC, unissued, 1934)
References
- Randolph 853, "The Old Stepstone" (1 texts plus 2 fragments)
- DT, STEPSTON*
- Roud #7453
- BI, R853