Archibald: Stack-A-Lee Parts 1 and 2, ca. 1950

Allow me to reveal myself for a moment as (if there was any doubt) a complete Stagger Lee geek.

When I was collecting different versions of Stagger/Stago/Stacker/Stack-A/ Stack O’ Lee for my compilation tape (mentioned here), the Holy Grail was the 1950 version by Archibald. I had read about it in different places and was very curious to hear it for myself, but it proved very difficult to find. So far as I could determine it had never been issued on CD and had been long out of print on vinyl before that. Research on the Internet proved fruitless and scouring of record stores proved hopeless. On a trip to New Orleans – this was in 2000, when the place still existed – I stopped in at a store specializing in R&B vinyl from the 1950s. The proprietor assured me that Archibald’s version of “Stack-A-Lee” was to be found only on 78s, and only for astronomical sums. I was obsessed, yes, but I was not possessed of astronomical sums. I resigned myself to never hearing that particular version.

Not long after, I was in Saturn Records in Oakland, scrounging through the vinyl for any obscure older versions I might come across. I was very happy to have found a Fats Domino album containing the atypically bouncy “Stack and Billy.” I thought I was hallucinating when I found myself face-to-cover with a copy of “The Complete New Orleans Sessions,” by Archibald. It was a British (I think) reissue from sometime in the early 80s, and it contained Stack-A-Lee Parts 1 and 2; like Ray Charles’ (later) “What’d I Say,” Archibald’s take on Stack-A-Lee was too big to be contained in a single song.

That in itself is a hint to what makes the Archibald version so special; it’s a veritable compendium of themes, motifs, and tropes from the Stagger Lee canon. Part 1: the bulldog barks; Stack-A-Lee and Billy gamble; Billy cheats and wins Stack’s Stetson; Stack gets his .44; Bill pleads, citing his children and his sickly wife; Stack shoots Billy and the bullet breaks the bartender’s glass. Part 2: Stack stumbles to his mother’s door, shot in the left side by the police; his funeral is attended by women dressed in orange and red; Stack meets the devil and enquires after Billy’s whereabouts; the devil hears a rumbling underground and surmises that Stack is abusing Billy; the devil sits down on his devil shelf and observes that anyone who wants Stack is welcome to go get him themselves. All of these elements had appeared in different versions of the song previously, but this was the first time they’d been pulled together into one comprehensive package and backed with an irresistible boogie woogie piano.

The influence of the Archibald version of Stack-A-Lee can be heard, in one way or another, in virtually every version that followed. Lloyd Price, like Archibald an Orleanian, was certainly influenced; the lyrics to his version are simply a reworking of Archibald’s Part 1 (he doesn’t follow Stack into hell; understandable, since he was seeking top 40 airplay in 1959). Dr. John’s magnificent version on his 1972 album, Gumbo, is essentially a cover of the Archibald version, starting a little later (skipping the bulldog and the argument and heading straight to the fatal bullet) and ending with a unique and charming denouement (“Now I told y’all my little story/and sang y’all my little song/About Stack-A-Lee and Billy Lyons/And they both dead and gone”).

In the years since I started looking for Archibald’s Stack-A-Lee, the Internet has moved on, and tracking down rarities has become easier. If you’d like to hear for yourself this seminal R&B version of the Stagger Lee myth, Froogle points the way to its inclusion on various collections: here and here and here (and, if you want to spring for the astronomical sums, on vinyl here).

In other news…we’re a bare two weeks away from our deadline to get pages to the printer. Shep has about ten pages to go, the letterer has a full plate, and we’re scrambling to lay out text pages. What we have lettered so far of the book is going out in galley form to various respected comics creators in hope that they may contribute a good word to the back cover. And an image of the cover is finally up on our Amazon page.

Comments

[Stagger Lee Pittman]

There seems to be alot of stuff about me that i dont know. If you would like to share stories or music with me please send it to Stagger Lee
1208 N. Kentucky
Roswell, NM 88201

[barbara sims]

I was in N. O when Archibald was playing and I heard him, but I can't recall where. Do you know where he worked? thanks. BS

[Amy Taras]

Is this Stagger from Ruidoso?? if it is im looking for ya!

[Jerry James]

I drove from my Home in Claremont, CA. to Los Angeles the summer of 1950 to buy the 78 as you could'nt get it except in stores that had "Sepia" recordings. Love it. A disc Jockey in So. Cal Bill Gardner has the original and I recorded Part one years ag. Bill has most all of the early R&B and played on a show on NPR twenty years ago.Sadly they replaced show with talk. The voice on that recording sounds different, but the piano the same. Thanks again Jerry

[Will Callahan]

do you have a full list of the lyrics for Archibald's version?
at least for part 2?

I'm a senior in high school, in a independent study class focused on blues, and for my semester project, i'm singing this song for the school along with our school's jazz band, who will be playing from my lead sheet/arrangement.

Thanks!

[Stack O']

The best are the oldest lyrics.

http://www.staggerlee.com

[Melvin Tharpe]

Att: Barbara Sims re: remember where he worked in N.O. He (Archibald AKA Leon) played as Leon at Ciro's Slave Bar in the Quarter in 1947. I used to sit in with him and tried to get him to cut Stack 0 Lee for me. He later went public with it. As far as I know, he was the FIRST to record it ! HOwever, his version (piano/vocal) was not a hit.

[Jeff Mason]

I'm very late to the party, but the proprietor in New Orleans either lied to you or was misinformed. I have Stack-A-Lee from Archibald (taken from the master tapes) on CD from a Dave Bartholomew compilation (since he produced the session) called "The Spirit Of New Orleans - The Genius of Dave Bartolamew". Of course this CD collection is now long out of print. The curious thing is while it claims to be "Stack-A-Lee Parts 1 & 2", it appears to only be part 2 followed by a fast instrumental boogie. No idea how this mistake was made but the instrumental is a great little track (I'm just missing part 1!).

[Russ]

With reference to the mystery instrumental boogie on the Bartholomew CD, I have an acetate/lacquer of Archibald's "Stack-a-Lee" pt 2. On the flip is an unrelated instrumental - I wonder if it's the same one that appears by accident on the CD. The track is called "Rennies Boogie" and is credited to the Count Boss Combo. I'll be adding it to my YouTube channel in the near future (user name: Loma Russ). If any reader is subsequently able to confirm that it is the same track on the CD, provide any insight into the combo or how the track came to be on the flip of the Archibald recording, that would be appreciated.