I Truly Understand

Jerry Garcia

Shady Grove, Jerry Garcia and David Grisman, 1996

Others

G. Roark, Library of Congress, 1938
The New Lost City Ramblers, The New Lost City Ramblers, 1958
Folk Songs With The Seegers, Seeger Family, 1965
Strange Creek Singers, Strange Creek Singers, 1972
Going Down The Valley; Vocal and Instrumental Music From The South, Various Artists (Shortbuckle Roark), 1977
Deadheads and Suckers, Roundtown Boys, 1978
Kentucky Country; Old Time Music From Kentucky, Various Artists, 1983
Our Own, Jeff Winegar & Fred Meyer, 1985
New Lost City Ramblers: The Early Years: 1958-1962, The New Lost City Ramblers, 1991
Warring Cats, Bruce Molsky, 1993
The Rose Grew Round the Briar, Vol. 1: Early American Rural Love Songs, Various Artists (Shortbuckle Roark and his Family), 1997
Live At The Laurelthirst, Golden Delicious, 1999
Gambler's Lament, Various Artists (Shortbuckle Roark and his Family), 19??
Kentucky Mountain Music, Various Artists (Shortbuckle Roark and his Family), 2003

Notes

I Truly Understand sometimes occurs as I Truly Understand (That You Love Another Man).

Also played by Garcia and Nelson at the College of San Mateo in San Mateo on November 10th 1962 and by Jerry and Sarah Garcia at the Tangent in Palo Alto in May 1963 - both performance circulate on tape.

The lyrics as performed by Garcia and Nelson on 11/10/62 are;

I wish to the lord I'd never been born,
Or died when I was young,
Before I'd seen your two brown eyes,
Or heard your flattering tongue, my love,
Or heard your flattering tongue.

(Chorus)
I truly understand you love another man,
And your heart shall no longer be mine,
I truly understand you love another man,
And your heart shall no longer be mine.

Oh who's going to show your pretty little foot,
And who's going to glove your hand,
And who's going to be your own true love,
When I'm in a foreign land, my love,
I'm in a foreign land.

Chorus ...

My momma's going to shoe my pretty little foot,
My pappa's going to glove my hand,
And you will be my own true love,
When you're in a foreign land, my love,
You're in a foreign land.

Chorus ...

I'll never listen to what another woman says,
Let her hair be black or brown,
Rather be on the top of some hill,
The rain come pouring down, my love,
Rain a-pouring down.

Chorus ...

The chorus of I Truly Understand is unique to the song. The melody of the verse is very similar to that of Old Joe Clark. The lyrics of the verses also occur in other traditional songs.

The 'wish to the lord I'd never been born' text occurs in Look Up, Look Down That Lonesome Road, My Last Gold Dollar and other songs.

The 'shoe your pretty little foot' verse occurs in a number of songs including Who's Going To Shoe Your Pretty Little Foot and The Storms Are On The Ocean, but is thought to derive from a Scottish song The Lass Of Loch Royal (or The Lass Of Roch Royal). This song is collected in Herd (1776) as The Bonny Lass Of Loch Royal where the verse is given as;

O wha will shoe thy bonny feet,
O wha will glove thy ha,
O wha will lace thy middle-jimp,
With a lang, lang, whang.

It was also published in the Scots Musical Museum in 1787. It was collected by Child (Child No. 76) and subsequently in many collections of ballads.

More recent version of the song Who's Going To Shoe Your Pretty Little Foot can be found on the following;

Who's Going To Shoe Your Pretty Little Foot
McGee Brothers and Arthur Smith (192?)
To You with Love: American Folk Songs for Women : Herta Marshall (1957)
Songs Our Daddy Taught Us : Everely Brothers (1959)
Our Singing Heritage : Lee Charles (195?)
Folk Songs : Everly Brothers (1962)
When I Was A Young Girl : Barbara Dane (1962)
Presenting The Blue Sky Boys : The Blue Sky Boys (1965)
Carl and Harty With The Cumberland Ridge Runners (197?)
Comin' Round The Mountain : Fred McFalls and Ben Bryson (197?)
Wilma Lee Cooper : Wilma Lee Cooper (1981)
Been Riding with Old Mosby : Frank Bode (1986)
Reflections Of Love : Paul Adkins and The Borderline Band (1991)
Early Years (1958-1962) : New Lost City Ramblers (1991)
In The Pines : Todd Phillips (1995)