Worried man
It takes a worried man to sing a worried song
I'm worried now, I won't be worried long
I went beyond the river to lay me down to sleep
And when I woke these chains were on my feet
These shackles on my feet got twenty-one links of chain
And on each link, there is engraved my name
Oh judge judge judge tell me what's gonna be my fine
Says twenty-one years on that old Rock Island Line
It takes a worried man to sing a worried song
I'm worried now, I won't be worried long.
From Lonnie Donegan probably.
About
I feel that complaining is what my singing voice does best. I really put it to work here.
I have only the vaguest idea of what the song means, but I pictured it as a runawayblack slave crossing a state border - the river - and being punished by being forced to labour on building a railway. The chain gang, so called because they were chained together to prevent escape. See for example Oh brother where art thou.
Background
Traditional folk song first (?) recorded in 1930 by the Carter Family, also recorded 1940 by Woody Guthrie, and with revised lyrics in 1959 by the Kingston Trio.
Recorded by Donegan in his skiffle period, somewhere between 1953 and 1956. (Now reissued 2007! - "Just about as good as it gets").
Although there was a period (lasting until now in fact) where I was enthusiastic about the Carter family, it is from Lonnie Donegan's skiffle recording that I have it.