The House of the Rising Sun Song
Released November 22, 2025
About This Track
The House of the Rising Sun is one of the oldest surviving American folk ballads a wandering story that has traveled through front-porch singers, dusty road musicians, New Orleans storytellers, and early field recordings long before it ever hit radio. Its roots stretch deep into the 19th century, passed mouth-to-mouth by people who lived the kind of lives the song warns about.
The story centers on a person reflecting on their fall into ruin after spending time in a mysterious place known only as “the Rising Sun.” For some singers, it was a gambling house. For others, a brothel, a bar, or a trap disguised as a thrill. Every version changes the details, but the heart stays the same: regret, warning, and the haunting pull of choices that reshaped a life.
Because this was a true folk song nobody owned it, everyone shaped it the emotion built with each retelling. It became a vessel for pain, redemption, and confession. That’s why even today, the melody hits like a memory you’ve never lived, and the lyrics feel like a story you already know in your bones.
When It First Appeared
There is no single “first release” because the song existed long before recorded music.
Most historians agree:
⚫ Earliest known origin: early 1800s (19th century American folk tradition)
⚫ First collected/printed version: 1930s folk song archives
⚫ First well-known commercial version: early 1940s by various folk artists
It is public domain because its authorship is unknown and it predates modern copyright.
Lyrics
[Chorus]
There is a house in New Orleans
They call the Rising Sun
And it's been the ruin of many a poor boy
Dear God, I know I was one
[Verse 1]
My mother was a tailor
She sewed my new blue jeans
And my father was a gamblin' man
Way down in New Orleans
[Verse 2]
And the only thing a gambler needs
Is a suitcase and a trunk
And the only time he's satisfied
Is when he's a drunk
[Verse 3]
Oh, mother, tell your children
Not to do what I have done
To spend your lives in sin and misery
In the house of the rising sun
[Bridge]
I got one foot on the platform
And another on the train
And I'm going back to New Orleans
To wear that ball and chain
[Final Chorus]
There is a house in New Orleans
They call the Rising Sun
And it's been the ruin of many a poor boy
Dear God, I know I was one
Dear God, I know I was the one
[Outro]
There is a house in New Orleans
They call the Rising Sun
And it's been the ruin of many a poor boy
Dear God, I know I was one
Dear God, I know I was the one