Eighth of January

This traditional American reel in D major is widely known throughout the South, and was originally titled “Jackson’s Victory” after Andrew Jackson’s victory at the Battle of New Orleans on January 8, 1815. After Jackson’s presidency, the title was changed to commemorate the battle rather than the man. The tune exists in numerous variants with parts often reversed and extra parts sometimes added. The tune was recorded for the Library of Congress from Ozark Mountain fiddlers in the early 1940s by Vance Randolph, and from Mississippi fiddlers including John Hatcher, W.E. Claunch, Enos Canoy, and Hardy Sharp in 1939 by Herbert Halpert. Early commercial recordings include the Arkansas Barefoot Boys with Cyrus Futrell on fiddle (1928), Dr. Humphrey Bate (1928), and the Texas Cowboy Trio (1930). In 1936, Arkansas schoolteacher Jimmy Driftwood added lyrics to create “The Battle of New Orleans,” later recorded by Johnny Horton in 1959, which became a hit.