Have you ever realized that some of your very favorite songs of all time are about gambling? From Rock n’ Roll, to Country and from Folk to Pop, lyrics about card games and dice are all over the place!
These are just a few examples of songs about gambling, but there are many, many more out there.
From Bob Dylan’s “Rambling, Gambling Willie”
When you played your cards with Willie, you never really knew
Whether he was bluffin' or whether he was true.
He won a fortune from a man who folded in his chair.
The man, he left a diamond flush, Willie didn't even have a pair.
And it's ride, Willie, ride,
Roll, Willie, roll,
Wherever you are a-gamblin' now, nobody really knows.
From Billy Joel’s “Easy Money”
You don't have to try too hard
I don't need a song and dance
I don't need an invitation
If you've got a game of chance
Take me to the tables
Take me to the fights
Run me like the numbers
Roll me like the dice
“Stewball,” by Peter, Paul, and Mary
Oh Stewball was a racehorse, and I wish he were mine.
He never drank water, he always drank wine.
His bridle was silver, his mane it was gold.
And the worth of his saddle has never been told.
Oh the fairgrounds were crowded, and Stewball was there
But the betting was heavy on the bay and the mare.
And a-way up yonder, ahead of them all,
Came a-prancin' and a-dancin' my noble Stewball.
I bet on the grey mare, I bet on the bay
If I'd have bet on ol' Stewball, I'd be a free man today.
From Bob Seeger’s “Still the Same”
You always won, everytime you placed a bet
You’re still damn good, no one’s gotten to you yet
Everytime they were sure they had you caught
You were quicker than they thought
You’d just turn your back and walk
You always said, the cards would never do you wrong
The trick you said was never piay the game too long
A gambler’s share, the only risk that you would take
The only loss you could forsake
From The Grateful Dead’s “Trucking”
Truckin', like the do-dah man once told me "You've got to play your hand"
Sometimes your cards ain't worth a dime, if you don't lay'em down |
