About The Song
On June 1, 1951 Lefty Frizzell arrived at Jim Beck’s studio on Ross Avenue in Dallas, Texas for a late-night session that stretched from 11:00 p.m. until 2:00 a.m. During those hours he recorded “Travellin’ Blues,” a faithful yet personal cover of Jimmie Rodgers’ 1931 original. Columbia Records paired the track with “Blue Yodel No. 6” and released the single (catalog 4-20842) in mid-August. The two-minute-and-fifty-seven-second recording soon became part of Frizzell’s growing tribute to the man widely regarded as the Father of Country Music. It later appeared on the 10-inch LP *Songs of Jimmie Rodgers*, issued the same month.
Rodgers and co-writer Shelly Lee Alley had created the song two decades earlier as a restless railroad blues. Frizzell, still only twenty-three and at the peak of his early stardom, approached the material with deep respect. He had grown up listening to Rodgers records, and this session formed part of a deliberate homage that also included “My Old Pal,” “Brakeman’s Blues,” and “Lullaby Yodel.” Producer Don Law kept the arrangement sparse and swinging, highlighting Lefty’s voice against steel guitar, fiddle, and a steady rhythm section that echoed the traveling-train feel of the original.
The lyrics tell the story of a wandering man haunted by dreams of the woman he left behind. He wakes from a restless sleep convinced she has gone, only to realize the ache is the price of life on the road. Frizzell sings with the same smooth, slightly slurred phrasing and signature vocal slides that had already made him famous. On the chorus he stretches the word “travellin’” in a way that feels both weary and unstoppable, turning a simple railroad lament into something deeply personal. The performance captured the loneliness that many honky-tonk audiences understood all too well.
Released at the height of Frizzell’s 1951 dominance, the single climbed the Billboard country chart and reached number six by October. It spent fourteen weeks on the national survey and added to an extraordinary year that saw him place multiple songs in the top ten simultaneously. While the A-side “Blue Yodel No. 6” also charted, “Travellin’ Blues” stood out as the side many disc jockeys and fans embraced most warmly, proving that Lefty could honor his hero without losing his own unmistakable sound.
The track later found a home on various compilations, including reissues of *Listen to Lefty* and comprehensive Bear Family box sets. It has remained a favorite among traditional country listeners who appreciate the direct line Frizzell drew between himself and Rodgers. George Jones and Merle Haggard, both vocal admirers of Lefty, kept the song alive in their own live sets, passing the traveling-blues tradition forward.
More than seventy years after that long Dallas night, “Travellin’ Blues” stands as one of the clearest examples of Lefty Frizzell’s ability to reinterpret classic material while making it entirely his own. What began as a late-night tribute during his breakout year became a lasting bridge between the old railroad songs and the modern honky-tonk sound he helped create. The record reminds listeners why Frizzell’s voice still feels like it belongs on any dusty highway or lonely stretch of track.
Video
Lyric
I had a dream last night
I thought my good gal had gone
Well, I woke up this morning
She really had done me wrong
I know it’s not fair
But my good gal has done caught air
I’m goin’ away
Leaving today
I’m gonna bring my baby back
If that eight wheel driver don’t jump the railroad track
I’ll take her from that man
Gonna bring her home if I can
My gal’s been triflin’ ’round
About a week I know
Several of my friends
Just told me so and so
She’s found new man
And now I can understand
So I’m goin’ away
Leaving today
I’m gonna bring my baby back
If that eight wheel driver don’t jump the railroad track
I’ll take her from that man
Gonna bring her home if I can
Well, it’s true, my baby’s gone
I know it won’t be long
We’ll both be on that train
My baby’s coming home again
She’s been triflin’ ’round
But now she has turned him down
Yeah I’m goin’ away
Leaving today
I’m gonna bring my baby back
If that eight wheel driver don’t jump the railroad track
I’ll take her from that man
Gonna bring her home if I can