Lyrics to
John Henry

This version of John Henry was released by Van Morrison in 1998.

Our Decade Lyrics Van Morrison profile has all of the John Henry lyrics from 1998 and many more songs from the Van Morrison discography that we have on file.

Here's more interesting things in songs and lyrics tied to Van Morrison or about the 1990s in general.

When John Henry was a little baby
Sittin’ on his mama’s knee
Well he picked up a feather and a piece of steel
And said that’s gonna be the death of me
Lord, lord, lord that’s gonna be the death of me
Well John Henry had a little woman
Name of Polly Ann
Well John got sick had to lay down on the bed
Polly drove steel like a man
Lord, lord, lord, Polly drove steel like a man

Well John Henry went up on the mountain
Well the mountain was sinkin’ in
He said come on captain I know what I’m doin’
It ain’t nothin’ but my hammer suckin’ wind
Lord, lord, lord, It ain’t nothin’ but my hammer suckin’ wind

Well john Henry went up on the mountain
Lord the mountain was so high
He said we’re gonna shake this steel drivin’ down
Give me a cool drink of water before I die
Give me a cool drink of water before I die

Some say he came from England
Some say he came from Spain
But John Henry was nothin’ but a Louisiana man
And he died with his hammer in his hand
Lord, lord, lord, he died with his hammer in his hand
Steel drivin’ man, he died with his hammer in his hand
Lord ain’t nothin’ but my hammer suckin’ wind etc. etc.

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Van Morrison has released many songs over the years besides John Henry. Van Morrison released songs from 1967 to 2005 spanning across albums like Blowin' Your Mind!, Astral Weeks, Moondance, His Band And The Street Choir, Tupelo Honey, Saint Dominic's Preview, Hard Nose The Highway, It's Too Late To Stop Now, Veedon Fleece, A Period Of Transition, Wavelength, Into The Music, Common One, Beautiful Vision, Inarticulate Speech Of The Heart, A Sense Of Wonder, No Guru, No Method, No Teacher, Poetic Champions Compose, Irish Heartbeat, Avalon Sunset, Enlightenment, Hymns To The Silence, Too Long In Exile, Days Like This, How Long Has This Been Going On, Tell Me Something: The Songs Of Mose Allison, The Healing Game, The Philosopher's Stone, Back On Top, The Skiffle Sessions - Live In Belfast, You Win Again, Down The Road, What's Wrong With This Picture?, and Magic Time. Decade Lyrics has over lyrics & songs by Van Morrison.

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