Old Billy Hell: A Song History
"Old Billy Hell" is a two-part Kentucky breakdown in G major, described as "slightly crooked."[1] Titon's book Old-Time Kentucky Fiddle Tunes (2001) names a single source for it: Estill Bingham (1899–1990) of Pineville in Bell County, whose version is dated to about 1986.[1] Bruce Greene also recorded Bingham playing the tune in 1989, and that field recording is held in Berea's digital archives.[1] The title phrase once served as a polite stand-in for the Devil or for hell, as in the threat to raise old Billy Hell.[1]
Ben Shahn, “Middlesboro, Kentucky, street scene,” photograph, October 1935. Library of Congress. No known restrictions.
Later recordings include one by Clare Milliner and Walt Koken on Just Tunes and one by Sheesham and Lotus on Everytime (2011).[1] Stephen Seifert arranged it for mountain dulcimer in his old-time jam collection Join the Jam II.[2]
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