St. James Infirmary／聖‧詹姆斯醫院

The interior of St James workhouse, London  (1809)

以城市、地標景點或建築物名稱來命名的歌曲不少，但美國知名民謠「St. James Infirmary」，卻是以「看似位於紐奧良」的「聖‧詹姆斯醫院」為歌名的經典歌曲。



追溯這首歌的來源，發現最早可回溯到18世紀的英國民謠「The Unfortunate Rake」，歌曲原意敘述一名水手因買春得到性病，住進了倫敦一家性病防治所「St. James workhouse」(當時還只稱為 workhouse，後改為 St. James' Hospital)，但最後仍逃不過病魔的摧殘而死亡：



The Unfortunate Rake  (1906)



As I was a-walking down by St. James' Hospital,

I was a-walking down by there one day,

What should I spy but one of my comrades

All wrapped up in flannel though warm was the day.



我走在聖‧詹姆斯醫院裡

這樣走了一整天

我看見了我的同事

在這溫暖的天氣卻裹著一件法蘭絨衣



I asked him what ailed him, I asked him what failed him,

I asked him the cause of all his complaint.

"It's all on account of some handsome young woman,

'Tis she that has caused me to weep and lament.



我問他生了什麼病  問他為何如此沮喪

他開始抱怨起導致他變成這樣的原因

"這一切都是因為那個標緻的美女引起的

都是她害我現在只得啜泣和哀嘆



"And had she but told me before she disordered me,

Had she but told me of it in time,

I might have got pills and salts of white mercury,

But now I'm cut down in the height of my prime.



在我染病之前她早已告訴我

就那麼地及時...

我當時應該立即服下藥物

但現在一切都來不及了



"Get six young soldiers to carry my coffin,

Six young girls to sing me a song,

And each of them carry a bunch of green laurel

So they don't smell me as they bear me along.



找六個士兵來搬運我的棺材

六個年輕女孩來為我唱頌吧

並要他們每個人都帶著一束綠色月桂

如此一來他們才不會聞到我的氣息而能一直向前走去



"Don't muffle your drums and play your fifes merrily,

Play a quick march as you carry me along,

And fire your bright muskets all over my coffin,

Saying: There goes an unfortunate lad to his home."



別蒙住你的鼓且吹奏你的笛子

奏一首進行曲如同你領著我向前

然後扣起你毛瑟槍的板機射向我的棺材

說：這不幸的傢伙回老家了"

這首歌後來流傳到美國成了極受歡迎的民謠歌曲，作者據稱為 Joe Primrose (藝名為 Irving Mills)，靈感為酒吧中一位不知名的人在醫院目睹心愛的女人過世後所敘述，也成為酒吧中那些終日酗酒、鬱鬱寡歡的酒客最愛哼唱「賭博與酗酒會致人於死」的反諷心情。



St. James Infirmary



I went down to St. James Infirmary,

To see my baby there,

She was lyin' on a long white table,

So sweet, so cool, so fair.



我去了聖‧詹姆斯醫院

探望我心愛的寶貝

她當時正躺在那白色的大床上

那麼清晰的甜美，那麼冰冷



Went up to see the doctor,

"She's very low," he said;

Went back to see my baby

Good God! She's lying there dead.



我去見了醫生

"她已經非常接近死亡邊緣了" 他說

於是我又回去看我的寶貝

我的天啊！她躺在那兒，已經死去了



I went down to old Joe's barroom,

On the corner by the square

They were serving the drinks as usual,

And the usual crowd was there.



我去了老喬的酒吧

就坐在方型的角落裡

那兒如常供應著小酒

也跟平時一樣吵雜



On my left stood old Joe McKennedy,

And his eyes were bloodshot red;

He turned to the crowd around him,

These are the words he said:



old Joe McKennedy 站在我左邊

他的眼睛佈滿了血絲

他對著吵雜的人們轉過身

就這麼說了幾句話：



Let her go, let her go, God bless her;

Wherever she may be

She may search the wide world over

And never find a better man than me



讓她去吧，讓她去吧，願上帝保佑她

無論她去哪裡

她也許能去探索這世界

但她絕對無法找到一個比我更好的男人



Oh, when I die, please bury me

In my ten dollar Stetson hat;

Put a twenty-dollar gold piece on my watch chain

So my friends'll know I died standin' pat.



啊，當我死的時候，請把我埋了

丟十塊錢在我的斯泰森氈帽

放個二十元金幣在我的錶鏈上

讓我的朋友知道我輕輕地走了



Get six gamblers to carry my coffin

Six chorus girls to sing me a song

Put a twenty-piece jazz band on my tail gate

To raise Hell as we go along



找六個賭徒來搬我的棺材

六個女孩來為我歌唱

後面跟個廉價的爵士樂隊

讓我們喧鬧地一路前行



Now that's the end of my story

Let's have another round of booze

And if anyone should ask you just tell them

I've got the St. James Infirmary blues.



現在我的故事說完了

讓我們痛快地暢飲下一輪烈酒

而如果有人問起你就告訴他們

我得了聖‧詹姆斯醫院憂鬱



這版本詞曲真正作者與時間的起源雖已不可考，但確定的是1928年由 Louis Armstrong (路易斯‧阿姆斯壯) 灌錄唱片發行，小喇叭悲淒的旋律哀鳴，Louis 年輕飽滿卻沙啞的聲音，使它受歡迎的程度更可見一般，甚至由於歌曲內容涉及死亡、棺材等等，還躋身成為當時出殯、送葬的首選歌曲，而許多知名歌手都不以為杵，趨之若鶩地翻唱(＊)，足見好歌魅力之盛，人人無法擋。


眾多各界歌手翻唱此歌，便不乏將其改編作品的手法，舉凡靈魂樂、聖歌、爵士、藍調到搖滾，都有人以自己的方式將之發揚光大......

Arlo Guthrie

弱水三千只取一瓢飲，雖然收藏的版本甚多，在此僅提供 Arlo Guthrie 改編得不錯的版本：

Arlo Guthrie - St. James Infirmary  (Talk Of The Nation radio show, 2001)

{###_markim/6/1644873353.mp3_###}


It was down in old Joe's bar room,

at the corner by the square

You know the drinks were served as usual,

and the usual crowd was there



在老喬的酒吧裡

那個方型的角落

你知道那酒照常供應著

而且跟往常一樣吵鬧



Now on my left stood big Joe McKennedy,

his eyes were bloodshot red

And as he looked at the gang around him,

these were the very words he said:



Joe McKennedy 正站在我的左邊

他的眼睛佈滿了血絲

他看著圍住他的一群人

同時認真地說了一番話：



I went down to the St. James Infirmary,

I saw my baby there

Stretched out on a long white table,

so young, so cold, so fair



我到過了聖‧詹姆斯醫院

我去看望我的寶貝

她平靜地躺在那又長又白的病床上

那麼清晰的年輕，那麼地冰冷...



Seventeen coal black horses,

hitched to a rubber-tired hack

Seven girls goin' to the graveyard,

only six of them are coming back



十七隻燒成炭黑的馬兒

蹣跚地拉著一台馬車

七個前往墓地的女孩

只有六個能回得來



Well let her go, let her go, God bless her,

wherever she may be

She may search this wide world over,

and never find another man like me



啊，讓她去，讓她去吧，願上帝保佑她

無論她去哪兒

她也許將探索全世界

但絕對找不到像我一樣的男人



Now when I die just bury me,

in my high top stetson hat

Place a twenty dollar gold piece on my watch chain,

to let the Lord know I died standing pat



而今當我死的時候請把我埋了

在我頭頂上的氈帽裡

投下二十元金幣在我的錶鏈

讓上帝知道我死亡的定點



I want six crap shooters for my pallbearers,

and a chorus girl to sing me a song

Place a jazz band on my hearse wagon,

just to raise hell as we roll along



我要六個爛人幫我抬棺

還要一個女孩為我唱歌

要安排一個爵士樂隊在我靈柩車前

要一路喧鬧地向地獄去



Well now that you've heard my story,

I'll take another shot of booze

And if anyone here should ask you,

I got the gamblers blues!



啊！現在你已經聽完我說的故事了

我要再來一杯烈酒

如果在場有人還要問你

就說我得了賭徒的憂鬱症吧

＊演唱過「St. James Infirmary (Blues)」的其他歌手：

Ramblin' Jack Elliott,

Cab Calloway,

King Oliver,

Big Mama Thornton,

"Spider" John Koerner,

Jack Teagarden,

Poor Wendy,

Billie Holiday,

Cassandra Wilson,

Josh White,

Stan Kenton (with rival Woody Herman's "Blue Flame"),

Lou Rawls,

The Limeliters,

Bobby Bland,

Danny Elfman Turk Murphy,

Janis Joplin,

The Doors (performed it in the middle of Light My Fire on occasion),

The Animals,

The Triffids,

Dr. John (both solo and with Eddie Bo),

Eric Clapton,

Graham Bond Organisation,

The Standells,

Blues Creation with Carmen Maki,

Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan,

Doc Watson,

The White Stripes,

The Stray Cats,

The Tarbox Ramblers,

Tom Jones with Jools Holland,

Van Morrison,

Joe Cocker,

Alec K. Redfearn,

Maria in the Shower,

Maciej Maleńczuk,

The Gutter Twins on their album "Adorata",

The Devil Makes Three.