Mister Charlie

Lyrics: Robert Hunter
Music: Ron McKernan

I take a little powder
I take a little salt
I put it in my shotgun
And I go walking out

Chorus
Chooba chooba (chooba chooba)
Wooly Bully (wooly bully) (note 1)
Looking high (looking high)
Looking low (looking low)
Gonna scare you up and shoot ya
'Cause Mister Charlie told me so

I won't even take your life
Won't even take a limb
Just unload my shotgun (note 2)
And take a little skin

[chorus]

Well you take a silver dollar
Take a silver dime
Mix it up together (note 3)
In some alligator wine

I can hear the drums
Voodoo all night long
Mister Charlie telling me
I can't do nothing wrong

[chorus]

Mister Charlie told me (note 4)
Thought you'd like to know
Give you a little warning
Before I let you go

[chorus]
Gonna scare you up and shoot you
Mister Charlie told me, Mister Charlie told me so
Notes
(1) Hunter spells this "Wooley-booley" in his book "Box Of Rain"
(2) in solo performances, Robert Hunter sings "Just unpack my switchblade"
(3) Hunter sang "Put them both together" in his studio demo
(4) in his 1970 studio demo, Hunter sang a different final verse (thanks to Michael Goetz for sending me the tape):
You collect your dollar
You collect your dime
You pack yourself a suitcase
And head on down the line
Grateful Dead Recordings
     Date Album
      6 Aug 1971 Road Trips Number 1, Volume 3 (bonus disc)
      7 Aug 1971 Dick's Picks Vol 35
      6 Dec 1971 Dave's Picks Volume 22 (bonus disc)
      7 Dec 1971 Dave's Picks Volume 22
      9 Dec 1971 Listen To The River: St Louis '71 '72 73
     10 Dec 1971 Listen To The River: St Louis '71 '72 73
     14 Dec 1971 Dave's Picks Volume 26
     26 Mar 1972 Dave's Picks Vol 14
     28 Mar 1972 Dick's Picks Vol 30
      7 Apr 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
      8 Apr 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     11 Apr 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     14 Apr 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     16 Apr 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     17 Apr 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     21 Apr 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     24 Apr 1972 Rockin' The Rhein (note 5)
     26 Apr 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     29 Apr 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
      3 May 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
      4 May 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
      7 May 1972 Steppin' Out with the Grateful Dead: England '72 (note 5) (note 6)
     10 May 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     11 May 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     13 May 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     16 May 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     18 May 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     23 May 1972 Europe '72 (note 5)
     24 May 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     25 May 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
     26 May 1972 Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings

Notes
(5) also on the box set Europe '72 - The Complete Recordings
(6) also released as the Grateful Dead 7" single volume 7.
 
Phil Lesh and Friends Recordings
      5 Jun 1999 Love Will See You Through
     18 May 2006 Live At The Warfield
 
(Plus live recordings by The Dead, Furthur, Dead & Company, Ratdog, Phil Lesh & Friends etc not listed here. See Grateful Dead Family Discography for a full list.)
 
Other Recordings
     Date Album Recorded By
     1991 Knot Live Slipknot
     1998 3-13-98 Big Wu
     20 Jun 2004 Live: Morrison, CO Robert Hunter (note 7)
     2005 Live At Berkner Hall Great Caesar's Ghost with G.E.Smith
     2005 Greatest Hits Of The Smoke-In, Vol.1 Tom Constanten
     2007 Blue Light Cheap Hotel Wake The Dead
     2008 South-Bound Freight Train The Biscuit Rollers
     2008 30 Years Jake's Leg
     30 Mar 2011 Live: Visalia, CA Chris Robinson Brotherhood (note 7)
     2012 Good Time The Mike Lucci Band
     2012 Double Down Dead EP Band Of Heathens
     2013 Live Dizzy Whoosh
     2015 Songs Of Their Own Leftover Salmon (note 7)
      2 Jul 2015 Live: Chicago, IL Infamous Stringdusters (note 7)
     11 Sep 2015 Live: Pittsburg, PA Greensky Bluegrass
     2015 Grateful Jazz Jazz Is Dead
     2019 Phantom Ships With Phantom Sails Live Dead '69

Notes
(7) The list above includes only one illustrative example of the series of live recordings by these bands. For a full list see the Grateful Dead Family Discography.


Further Information
For an online discussion of the lyrics to this song see the deadsongs.vue conference on The Well.
For more information on recordings see Matt Schofield's Grateful Dead Family Discography
For information on references in the lyrics see David Dodd's Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics
For online chords and TAB see www.rukind.com
For sheet music, see:
          Grateful Dead Anthology Volume 2 (piano arrangement)

 


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