Meaning of "Let the deal go down"
John Garst
deal go down." I mentioned having read that "Let the deal go down" is a
chant associated with the Georgia Skin Game, about which I knew nothing.
I read that Zora Neale Hurston had described the Skin Game in one of her
books. This past weekend, I picked up a paperback reprint of her "Mules
and Men," published originally in 1935. Sure enough, it contains (p 307)
a description of the game and the words and music for "Let the Deal Go
Down" (p 331). Here is Hurston's description.
"Any number of 'Pikers' can play at a time, but there are two 'principals'
who do the dealing. Both of them are not dealing at the same time,
however. But when the first one who deals 'falls' the other principal
takes the deal. If he in turn falls it goes back to the first dealer.
The principals draw the first two cards. The pikers draw from the third
card on. Unless a player or players want to 'scoop one in the rough,' he
can choose his own card which can be any card in the deck except the card
on top of the deck and that one goes to the dealer. The dealer charges
anything he pleases for the privilege of 'scooping,' the money being put
in sight. It is the player's bet. After the ones who wish to have
scooped, then the dealer begins to 'turn' the cards. That is, flipping
them off the deck face upwards and the pikers choose a card each from
among those turned off to bet on. Sometimes several pikers are on the
same card. When all have selected their cards and have their bets down,
they begin to chant 'Turn 'em' to the dealer. He turns them until a
player falls. That is, a card like the one he is holding falls. For
instance one hold the 10 of hearts. When another 10 falls he loses. Then
the players cry 'hold 'em' untilthe player selects another clean card, one
that has not fallen. The fresh side bets are down and the chant 'turn
'em' and the singing 'Let de deal go Down' [continue] until the deck is
run out."
Here is the text given for "Let the Deal Go Down." It appears to me that
the verses are prbably many in number and may be improvised.
"Soloist:
1 When your card gits lucky, oh partner,
You ought to be in a rolling game.
Chorus:
Let the deal go down, boys,
Let the deal go down.
Soloist:
2 I ain't had no money, Lawd, partner,
I ain't had no change.
Chorus:
Soloist:
3 I ain't had no trouble, Lawd, partner,
Till I stop by here.
Chorus:
Soloist:
4 I'm going back to de 'Bama, Lawd, partner,
Won't be worried with you."
The tune is very simple and bears no relationship that I see to the
old-time song "Don't Let the Deal Go Down." Still, this could be the
origin of the phrase.
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John Garst ga...@sunchem.chem.uga.edu
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Laws of Tradition: (1) Nothing is ever lost.
(2) Nothing ever stays the same.
David Sanderson
Will the following add or clear confusion? Don't know. Anyway, Peg Leg
Howell's "Skin Game Blues" stuck in my head a long time ago, and when I
found a CD reissue recently the notes call the card game referenced
there Coon-Can, and it's not clear whether it's the same game you
describe or not - not that the song title necessarily is likely to have
any relationship to what the words say, anyway. This is Document MBCD
2004, and includes wonderful blues fiddling by Eddie Anthony.
My cut at the phrase itself is that it is too appropriate for too many
situations not to have passed into general use, wherever it came from
originally, and retained enough of a raunchy odor to fit itself in to a
bunch of songs that are mainly floating lyrics. But the issue you raise
of the transmission of slang from card games is interesting in and of
itself (I hereby relinquish any claim to this dissertation topic and
bequeath it to someone with the time to do it).
Dave Sanderson
John Garst
In article <4m2obp$d...@dub-news-svc-1.compuserve.com>,
73770...@compuserve.com (David Sanderson) wrote:
> Will the following add or clear confusion? Don't know. Anyway, Peg Leg
> Howell's "Skin Game Blues" stuck in my head a long time ago, and when I
> found a CD reissue recently the notes call the card game referenced
> there Coon-Can, and it's not clear whether it's the same game you
> describe or not....
Coon-Can (corrupted, as I recall, from a more elegant French spelling) is
so well known as to be widely described. I'll have to check, however, to
see if its play matches that of the Skin Game.
John Garst
In article <4m2obp$d...@dub-news-svc-1.compuserve.com>,
73770...@compuserve.com (David Sanderson) wrote:
> Will the following add or clear confusion? Don't know. Anyway, Peg Leg
> Howell's "Skin Game Blues" stuck in my head a long time ago, and when I
> found a CD reissue recently the notes call the card game referenced
> there Coon-Can, and it's not clear whether it's the same game you
> describe or not - not that the song title necessarily is likely to have
> any relationship to what the words say, anyway....
The Peg Leg Howell cut is also on Yazoo 2016, Before the Blues, Vol 2.
There the notes say nothing about Coon-Can, although "Skin" could be just
another name for that game.
In any event, the chorus used by Howell runs
You better let the deal go down.
Skin game coming to a close,
And you better let the deal go down.
BILL ELLIS
And for the record (tho' this got said months ago before--sorry!)
Charlie Poole sings:
Don't let your deal go down (3x)
FOR MY last gold dollar is gone.
Which must mean in terms of Georgia Skin:
Count me out of this game
Because I'm busted.
Most versions that pick up on Poole read it the other way though:
Don't let your deal go down (3x)
TILL YOUR last gold dollar is gone.
Which I always assumed meant:
Don't stop trying to win
Until the bitter end.
Phrases like this need a Humpty Dumpty to tell them exactly what to mean.
The question is whether to be man or master to "the deal." If you're
master, who cares what it meant to Poole, Peg Leg Howells, Zora N. Hurston,
etc.?
Interesting to see it as a little path into a big field of lore that people
must have lived as thoroughly as they live Magic or D&D now.
BE
Gregory Harris
'Fore [=before = until] my last gold dollar is gone.