Three men’s lives, told through the story of one song. Jerry Jeff Walker, the singer and writer behind the classic hit “Mr. Bojangles,” never would have expected that his song, inspired by an experience in a New Orleans jail cell, would make Richard Nixon cry, or that it would be covered by Sammy Davis, Jr., the entertainment giant and, controversially, a supporter of Nixon.
This work, told through the perspective of writer, performer and listener, traces these three men’s overlapping journeys through the American consciousness. Chapters discuss the history of Walker’s song, Davis’s rise from rags to riches, Nixon’s journey from grocer’s son to president, and more.

Ryan B. Case is a writer and musician, and was the leader of the Americana band The Victrolas from 2005 to 2011. He lives in Nashville, Tennessee.

Ryan B. Case
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 256
Bibliographic Info: 19 photos, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2024
pISBN: 978-1-4766-9288-3
eISBN: 978-1-4766-5055-5
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments ix

Preface: Looking for Bojangles 1

Part 1

 1. “Love at first sight” 5

 2. Who Is Uncle Will Mastin? 7

 3. Holiday in Dixieland 11

 4. “An honest lawyer” 16

 5. “That’s my actor!” 22

 6. Rufus Jones for President 27

 7. “Dancing down the barriers” 33

 8. “A quiet game” 36

 9. “Are you a registered voter in California?” 44

10. “A time of pocket change” 52

Part 2

11. “Drifting, poor, and searching” 61

12. “How can I follow this guy?” 67

13. “When your star is up” 73

14. “A blind song-and-dance man” 78

15. “The most dangerous man in America” 84

16. Don’t You Have Enough Problems? 90

17. “A call from Chicago” 96

18. “God is on our side” 104

19. “We gotta have laughs” 109

20. “Too many words … strange words” 114

Part 3

21. “The folk process” 117

22. “Would you buy a used car from this man?” 120

23. “Get Sammy” 126

24. “A real clown’s act” 135

25. “I’ll buy the night” 142

26. “As long as you win” 148

27. “Weirdest day so far” 158

28. My Own Worst Nightmare 166

29. “Folkies born in a new age” 174

Part 4

30. “Like some song you can’t unlearn” 177

31. “They’re not colorblind” 185

32. “How did that happen?” 191

33. What Were They Doing? 198

34. “As far uptown as I’m ever going to get” 202

35. “All kinds of prisons” 209

36. The Party of the Century 216

37. “Foolish in her eyes” 224

Chapter Notes 229

Bibliography 239

Index 243