I Dreamed I Went to the U.N.

DESCRIPTION: "It was a dream, dream I had last night, I dream I went to the U.N. and set the whole nation right." The dreamer resolves the missile crisis. The President asks for his help, but the dreamer prefers to add black singers to help him run the Senate.
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1962 (recording, Louisiana Red)
KEYWORDS: dream political
HISTORICAL REFERENCES:
1962 - October Missile Crisis. Revelation at the United Nations that Russian missiles are in Fidel Castro's Cuba is followed by a confrontation between the Soviet Union -- whose leader was Nikita Krushchev -- and the United States.
FOUND IN: US(SE)
RECORDINGS:
Mississippi Fred McDowell and unidentified musician, "I Dreamed I Went to the U.N." (on USMississippi01)
Louisiana Red, "Red's Dream" (Roulette R-4469, 1962)
NOTES [172 words]: From David Evans's liner notes to USMississippi01: "'I Dreamed I Went to the U.N.' mentions several commercial blues recording artists of the 1960s and is based on a hit record of 1962 by Louisiana Red, but Red's own piece was based on an older recording by Big Bill Broonzy from the 1930s."
The description is based on the Louisiana Red and Fred McDowell tracks.
Evan's reference to a Broonzy recording is to "Big Bill Blues" (Paramount 12656, 1928): "My hair is rising my flesh begins to crawl, I had a dream last night another mule in my doggone stall; Some people said the Big Bill Blues ain't bad, Must not been them Big Bill Blues they had; I wonder what's the matter Papa Bill can't get no mail, The post office must be on fire mail man must undoubtedly be in jail; I can't be your wagon since you ain't going to be a mule, I can't fix up your black tradition I ain't going to be your doggone fool." That may be where Louisiana Red got the idea for "Red's Dream," but I think it's a stretch to make more of it than that. - BS
Last updated in version 5.1
File: RcDIWTUN

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