The Deadwood Stage (Whip-Crack-Away!)

Album: Calamity Jane (1953)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "The Deadwood Stage" is the opening song from the 1953 Warner Brothers musical Calamity Jane. Written by Sammy Fain and Paul Francis Webster, it was performed by Doris Day (with chorus) in the lead role. The real Calamity Jane was poles apart from Day, whose wholesome screen image propelled her to box office super stardom.

    Martha Jane Cannary Burke (1852-1903) was a frontierswoman and scout, among her other claims to fame. She lived in Deadwood, South Dakota for a time, and the reference in the song to "Injun arrows" being thicker than porcupine quills is no invention. On one occasion, while she was riding the stage it was attacked by Indians, and when the driver was killed, she drove it to Deadwood.

    The last verse too is, sadly, grounded firmly in historical fact: "Set 'em up Joe, Set 'em up Joe, Set 'em up Joe"; Jane had a weakness for the demon drink, and this undoubtedly contributed to her early death. >>>
    Suggestion credit:
    Alexander Baron - London, England

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Frankie Valli

Frankie ValliSong Writing

An interview with Frankie Valli, who talks about why his songs - both solo and with The Four Seasons - have endured, and reflects on his time as Rusty Millio on The Sopranos.

The Girl in That Song

The Girl in That SongFact or Fiction

Billie Jean, Delilah, Sara, Laura and Sharona - do you know who the girls in the songs really are?

Michael Schenker

Michael SchenkerSongwriter Interviews

The Scorpions and UFO guitarist is also a very prolific songwriter - he explains how he writes with his various groups, and why he was so keen to get out of Germany and into England.

Actors With Hit Songs

Actors With Hit SongsMusic Quiz

Many actors have attempted music, but only a few have managed a hit. Do you know which of these thespians charted?

Charles Fox

Charles FoxSongwriter Interviews

After studying in Paris with a famous composition teacher, Charles became the most successful writer of TV theme songs.

Rock Revenge Songs

Rock Revenge SongsMusic Quiz

John Lennon, Paul Simon and Lynyrd Skynyrd are some of the artists who have written revenge songs. Do you know who they wrote them about?