Carter Family Page

A fairly complete collection of their songs.

The Carter Family have been hugely influential in shaping country music. Although many of their songs have earlier origins in folk music, they were the first to bring this type of music to public attention in any major way. Since their first recordings more than 70 years ago, several generations of musicians, particularly those in the bluegrass and oldtimey fields have been fondly performed their songs.
Today, to some, the lyrics may seem quaint and over sentimental, harking back, as they do, to what many argue, was an idealized time when life was simpler and better. Some may question the validity of such music today, but to me, and I'm sure many others, the world would be a better place if much of what passes for current popular music were replaced by material from our musical traditions.

See here for a biography of the Carter Family

The following list is, as far as I know, a pretty much complete list of the Carter family song repertoire. The song titles marked with an asterisk are available as lyrics with chords, those unmarked have just the lyrics.Some songs are also marked with an "A" also have an audio file (mp3) converted from the original early 78rpm record of the song by the Carter family. Click on the "A" to play or download the file. I hope eventually to provide chords for all these songs as transcriptions become available and I would like to thank all those who have helped so far with this page by providing many of the chord transcriptions here. Also copies of original out out copyright 78's (not later re-recordings) could also help to complete this page. Please note that the chords provided may not be the same as those used by the Carter Family, but ones chosen by the transcriber.

If anyone has chords for any songs that I don't already have or you have corrections for what is here it would be greatly appreciated, email below.

(sorry about the anti-spammer graphic format ) Rod

In case the chords provided are not in your preferred key, I have provided a conversion chart HERE which will allow you to transpose to any required key. For chord fingering patterns for various instruments check the Chords Page.

These lyrics & chords, these are provided for personal, educational and study purposes only, and are the authors interpretation of the work and are not intended to represent any particular version or performance.

Carter Family Song Repertoire (* = with chords A= with audio file)

A Distant Land To Roam *
Amber Tresses *
Anchored In Love * A
Answer To Weeping Willow *
Are You Lonesome Tonight *
Are You Tired Of Me, My Darling *
Away Out on the Saint Sabbath *
Bear Creek Blues *
Beautiful Brown Eyes A *
Beautiful Home *
Beautiful Isle O'er The Sea *
Behind Those Stone Walls * A
Birds Were Singing Of You *
Black Jack David *
Blackie's Gunman *
Bonnie Blue Eyes
Bring Back My Blue Eyed Boy *
Bring Back My Wandering Boy
Buddies In The Saddle *
Bury Me Under The Weeping Willow * A
By The Touch Of Her Hand *
Can The Circle Be Unbroken *
Cannon Ball Blues *
Carter's Blues *
Charlie & Nellie *
Chewing Gum*
Charming Beauty Bright
Church In The Wildwood A
Coal Miner's Blues *
Columbus Stokade Blues *
Cowboy Jack *
Cowboy's Wild Song To His Herd *
Cuban Soldier
Cyclone of Rye Cove *
Dark And Stormy Weather *
Dark Haired True Lover *
Darling Daisies *
Darling Little Joe
Darling Nellie Across The Sea *
Dear Companion
Diamonds in the Rough *
Don't Forget Me Little Darling * A
Don't Forget This Song *
East Virginia Blues *
East Virginia Blues #2
Engine 143 *
Evening Bells Are Ringing A
Far Side Banks Of Jordan *
Faded Coat Of Blue *
Faded Flowers *
Fifty Miles Of Elbow Room *
Foggy Mountain Top *
Fond Affection *
Forsaken Love *
Funny When You Feel That Way *
Gathering flowers from the hillside *
Girl On The Greenbriar Shore *
Give Him One More As He Goes
Give Me Roses While I Live *
Glory To The Lamb *
God Gave Noah the Rainbow Sign * A
Gold Watch and Chain *
Goodbye to the plains *
Grave on the Green Hillside *
Happy in prison *
Happy Or Lonesome *
He Took White Roses From Her Hair
He never came back *
Heaven's Radio *
Hello Central, Give Me Heaven * A
Hello Stranger *
Hold Fast To The Right *
Home By The Sea *
Home In Tennessee
Homestead on the Farm *
Honey in the rock *
I Ain't Going To Work Tomorrow *
I Cannot Be Your Sweetheart *
I Can't Feel At Home In This World Anymore *
I Found You Among The Roses
I Have An Aged Mother
I Have No One to Love Me *
I Loved This Better Than You Knew
I Never Loved But One
I Never Will Marry *
I Wouldn't Mind Dying
If One Won't Another Will
I'll Be All Smiles Tonight *
I'll Be Home Someday *
I'll Never Forsake You
I'm Thinking Tonight of My Blue Eyes * A
I'm Working On A Building
In The Highways *
In The Shadow Of Clinch Mountain *
In The Valley Of The Shenandoah *
It'll Aggravate Your Soul
It's A Long, Long Road To Travel Alone
Jealous Hearted Me
Jim Blake's Message
Jimmy Brown The Newsboy*
John Hardy Was A Desperate Little Man* A
Just A Few More Days
Just Another Broken Heart *
Keep On The Firing Line *
Keep On The Sunny Side * A
Kissing Is Crime *
Kitty Waltz *
Leaning on the Everlasting Arms *
Let The Church Roll On *
Little Darling Pal Of Mine
Little girl that played upon my knee *
Little Joe
Little Log Cabin By The Sea *
Little Log Hut In The Lane *
Little Moses *
Little Poplar Log House On The Hill
Lonesome For You
Lonesome For You Darling
Lonesome Homesick Blues
Lonesome Pine Special *
Lonesome Valley *
Longing For Old Virginia *

Look Away From The Cross
Lover's Farewell *
Lover's Lane
Lover's Return
Lulu Walls *
Maple on the hill *
March Winds Gonna Blow My Blues All Away *
Meet Me By The Moonlight Alone
Meeting In The Air *
Mid The Green Fields Of Virginia
Motherless Children *
My Clinch Mountain Home * A
My Dixie Darling *
My Heart's Tonight In Texas *
My Home Among The Hills
My Home's Across the Blue Ridge Mountain *
My Little Home In Tennessee
My Native Home
My Old Cottage Home *
My Old Virginia Home
My Texas Girl
Never Let the Devil Get The Upper Hand Of You *
No Depression *
No More The Moon Shines On Lorena *
No Other's Bride I'll Be *
No Telephone In Heaven * A
Oh Take Me Back
Old gospel ship *
On A Hill Lone And Gray
On My Way To Canaan's Land *
On The Rock Where Moses Stood *
On The Sea Of Galilee *
One Little Word *
Over the Garden Wall *
Picture On The Wall
Poor Little Orphaned Boy *
Prisoner’s Song *
Railroading on the Great Divide
Rambling Boy *
Reckless Motorman *
River Of Jordan *
Room In Heaven For Me *
Sad And Lonesome Day *
Sailor Boy
Sailor On The Deep Blue Sea *
School House on the Hill
See That My Grave is Kept Green
Single Girl, Married Girl *
Sinking In The Lonesome Sea *
Something Got A Hold Of Me
Sow 'Em On The Mountain *
St. Regis Girl *
Stern Old Bachelor
Sunshine In The Shadows
Sweet As The Flowers In Maytime
Sweet Fern * A
Sweet Heaven In My View
Tell Me That You Love Me
The Birds Were Singing *
The Broken Hearted Lover *
The Cannonball - see Cannonball Blues
The Church In The Wildwood *
The Church In The Wildwood 2*
The Dying Mother
The Dying Soldier *
The Happiest Days Of Them All
The Last Letter
The Little Black Train
The Little Gypsy Girl *
The Mountains Of Tennessee *
The Poor Orphan Child A
The Spirit Of Love Watches Over Me *
The Storms Are On The Ocean*
The Sun Of The Soul
The Wandering Boy *
The Wayworn Traveler *
The Western Hobo *
The Winding Stream *
The Wonderful City
There'll Be Joy, Joy, Joy *
There'll Be No Distinction
There's No Hiding Place Down There
There's Someone Awaiting For Me
This is Heaven to Me *
Two Sweethearts *
Wabash Cannonball *
Walking the King's Highway *
Waves On The Sea *
We Shall Rise *
We Will March Through The Streets Of The City *
Weary Prodigal Son *
When I'm Gone *
When The Roses Bloom In Dixieland * A
When the Roses Come Again
When The Springtime Comes Again
When The World's On Fire
When This Evening Sun Goes Down *
Where Shall I Be? *
Where We'll Never Grow Old *
Why Do You Cry Little Darling
Why There's A Tear In My Eye
Wildwood Flower * A
Will My Mother Know Me There
Will The Circle Be Unbroken *
Will The Roses Bloom In Heaven
Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone *
Worried Man Blues *
Wreck On The C & O
You Are My Flower *
You Better Let That Liar Alone *
You Denied Your Love
You Tied A Love Knot In My Heart
Your mother still prays for you, Jack
You've Been A Friend To Me
Young Freda Bolt
You're Gonna Be Sorry You Let Me Down
You're Nothing More To Me
You've Been Fooling Me Baby
You've Got To Righten That Wrong *

Check out other Old-Time music on this site:

American Old time Sheet Music & Tabs collection (includes the tunes for many of the old time songs in this section) 800 items, fiddle music, old songs, dance music etc, sheet-music scores with chords, guitar & mandolin tabs and downloadable midi tracks and PDF versions.
Common Session Tunes - Guitar & Mandolin Tabs - a collection of 1600+ guitar & mandolin tabs with sheet music scores and midi tracks, includes many old-time tunes, also with downloadable PDF versions.
Traditional American Old-time (Oldtimey) tune-book and songbook - 300+ tunes & songs with lyrics, chords, sheet music & midis,
Old-time song lyrics - more than 900 old-time or oldtimey song lyrics with downloadable pdf versions.