Burnett may have tailored an already existing song to fit his blindness, and some claimed that he derived it from "The White Rose" and "Down in the Tennessee Valley" circa 1907.
[2] According to hymnologist John Garst, though, no song with this or a similar title had a tune that can be identified with "Constant Sorrow".
[5] Garst nevertheless noted that parts of the lyrics suggest a possible antecedent hymn, and that the term 'man of sorrows' is religious in nature and appears in Isaiah 53:3.
In a version from 1918 by Mrs Frances Richards, who probably learned it from her father, the first verse is nearly identical to Burnett and Arthur's lyrics, with minor changes like Virginia substituting for Kentucky.
[5] John Garst traced elements of the song back to the hymns of the early 1800s, suggesting similarity in its tune to "Tender-Hearted Christians" and "Judgment Hymn", and similarity in its lyrics to "Christ Suffering", which included the lines "He was a man of constant sorrow / He went a mourner all his days.
Most versions have the singer riding a train fleeing trouble, regretting not seeing his old love, and contemplating his future death, with the promise that he will meet his friends or lover again on the beautiful or golden shore.
[4] In most variants the first verse is very similar to Burnett's 1913 version, often modified to suit each singer's gender and home state, along with other minor changes:[12] I am a man of constant sorrow, I've seen trouble all of my days; I'll bid farewell to old Kentucky, The place where I was born and raised.
Gunning remembered the melody from a 78-rpm hillbilly record (Emry Arthur, 1928) she had heard some years before in the mountains, but after a first verse similar to the original, her lyrics are considerably different.
The song has since been covered by many singers, from the Norwegian girl-group Katzenjammer to the winner of the eighth season of The Voice Sawyer Fredericks.
[8] This recording, titled "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow", was released in May 1951 together with "The Lonesome River" as a single (Columbia 20816).
[21] On September 15, 1959, the Stanley Brothers re-recorded the song on King Records for their album Everybody's Country Favorite.
It led to a number of recordings of the song in the 1960s, most notably by Joan Baez (1960),[28] Bob Dylan (1961), Judy Collins (1961), and Peter, Paul and Mary (1962).
[29] In November 1961 Bob Dylan recorded the song, which was included as a track on his 1962 eponymous debut album as "Man of Constant Sorrow".
[31] Dylan's version of the song was used by other singers and bands of 1960s and 70s, such as Rod Stewart and Ginger Baker's Air Force.
[16] A performance was released in 2005 on the Martin Scorsese PBS television documentary on Dylan, No Direction Home, and on the accompanying soundtrack album, The Bootleg Series Vol.
The arrangement differed significantly, with violin, electric guitar, and saxophones, although it stayed mainly in the major scales of A, D and E. It was the band's only chart single.
A notable cover, titled "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow", was recorded by the fictional folk/bluegrass group The Soggy Bottom Boys from the film O Brother, Where Art Thou?.
[2][37] The initial plan was for the song to be sung by the film's lead actor, George Clooney; however, it was found that his recording was not up to the required standard.
[37] The song was recorded by Dan Tyminski (lead vocals), with Harley Allen and Pat Enright, based on the Stanleys' version.
Tyminski has performed the song at the Crossroads Guitar Festival with Ron Block and live with Alison Krauss.