The earliest published version of "Darlin' Corey" occurs as verses within the song "The Gambling Man", collected from oral tradition by folklorist Cecil Sharp, as sung by Mrs. Clercy Deeton, at Mine Fork, Burnsville, N.C., on Sept. 19, 1918.
[7] In 1941, The Monroe Brothers' version was included in a landmark 5-disc compilation, Smoky Mountain Ballads, produced and annotated by noted folklorist John A. Lomax (Victor Records).
Smoky Mountain Ballads became a staple in the repertoires of 1940s and early '50s folk music revival singers such as Pete Seeger, who was meticulous in crediting his sources and urged that people copy them and not him.
[8] That same year on May 28, 1941, Burl Ives also recorded "Darlin' Cory" it in his debut album Okeh Presents the Wayfaring Stranger (issued August 1941 with liner notes by Alan Lomax).
Oh the last time I saw darlin cory She had a wine glass in her hand She was drinkin that sweet liquor With a low down gamblin man.