"See That My Grave Is Kept Clean" is a song recorded by American

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

musician

Blind Lemon Jefferson Lemon Henry "Blind Lemon" Jefferson (September 24, 1893 – December 19, 1929)Some sources indicate Jefferson was born on October 26, 1894. was an American blues and gospel singer-songwriter and musician. He was one of the most popular blues sing ...

in two slightly differing versions in October 1927 and February 1928, that became "one of his most famous compositions".

Son House Edward James "Son" House Jr. (March 21, 1902His date of birth is a matter of some debate. House alleged that he was middle-aged during World War I and that he was 79 in 1965, which would make his date of birth around 1886. However, all legal re ...

used the melody on his 1930 recording of " Mississippi County Farm Blues".

Versions

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

recorded the song for his 1962 debut album ''

''. He recorded it again with the Band, which is included on ''

The Basement Tapes ''The Basement Tapes'' is the sixteenth album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan and his second with the Band. It was released on June 26, 1975, by Columbia Records. Two-thirds of the album's 24 tracks feature Dylan on lead vocals backed b ...

''. Other artists to cover the song include

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shimm ...

Peter, Paul and Mary Peter, Paul and Mary was an American folk group formed in New York City in 1961 during the American folk music revival phenomenon. The trio consisted of tenor Peter Yarrow, baritone Paul Stookey, and contralto Mary Travers. The group's repertoir ...

(as "One Kind Favor"),

Lightnin' Hopkins Samuel John "Lightnin" Hopkins (March 15, 1912 – January 30, 1982) was an American country blues singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional pianist from Centerville, Texas. In 2010, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine ranked him No. 71 on its list o ...

(as "One Kind Favor"),

Canned Heat Canned Heat is an American band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1965. The group is noted for its efforts to promote interest in blues music and its original artists and rock music. It was founded by two blues enthusiasts Alan Wilson and Bob ...

(as "One Kind Favor" on ''

Living the Blues ''Living the Blues'' is the third album by Canned Heat, a double album released in late 1968. It was one of the first double albums to place well on album charts. It features Canned Heat's signature song, "Going Up the Country", which would late ...

''), the

Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, Folk music, folk, country music, country, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, ...

(as "One Kind Favor"),

Mike Bloomfield Michael Bernard Bloomfield (July 28, 1943 – February 15, 1981) was an American guitarist and composer, born in Chicago, Illinois, who became one of the first popular music superstars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his ...

Keiji Haino Keiji Haino ( ''Haino Keiji''; born May 3, 1952) is a Japanese musician and singer-songwriter whose work has included rock, free improvisation, noise music, percussion, psychedelic music, minimalism and drone music. He has been active since the ...

Diamanda Galás Diamanda Galás (born August 29, 1955) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, visual artist, and soprano. She has campaigned for AIDS education and the rights of the infected. Galás's commitment to addressing social issues and her involve ...

Meindert Talma & the Negroes Meindert Talma (born 2 November 1968 in Surhuisterveen) is a Dutch lo-fi singer and keyboardist whose backing band goes by the name of "the Negroes." He sings in Dutch as well as Frisian and English and has released seven albums . Musical care ...

Laibach Laibach () is a Slovenian avant-garde music group associated with the industrial, martial, and neo-classical genres. Formed in the mining town of Trbovlje (at the time in Yugoslavia) in 1980, Laibach represents the musical wing of the Neue Slo ...

Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician, songwriter, and poet. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. ...

Furry Lewis Walter E. "Furry" Lewis (March 6, 1893 or 1899 – September 14, 1981) was an American country blues guitarist and songwriter from Memphis, Tennessee. He was one of the first of the blues musicians active in the 1920s to be brought out of retirem ...

Chrome Cranks Chrome may refer to: Materials * Chrome plating, a process of surfacing with chromium * Chrome alum, a chemical used in mordanting and photographic film Computing * Google Chrome, a web browser developed by Google ** ChromeOS, a Google Chrome- ...

the Dream Syndicate The Dream Syndicate is an American alternative rock band from Los Angeles, California, originally active from 1981 to 1989, and reunited since 2012. The band is associated with neo-psychedelia and the Paisley Underground music movement; of the b ...

Dave Van Ronk David Kenneth Ritz Van Ronk (June 30, 1936 – February 10, 2002) was an American folk singer. An important figure in the American folk music revival and New York City's Greenwich Village scene in the 1960s, he was nicknamed the "Mayor of Mac ...

Hobart Smith Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

Mavis Staples Mavis Staples (born July 10, 1939) is an American rhythm and blues and gospel singer, actress, and civil rights activist. She rose to fame as a member of her family's band The Staple Singers (she is the last surviving member of that band). Durin ...

Martin Simpson Martin Stewart Simpson (born 5 May 1953) is an English folk singer, guitarist and songwriter. His music reflects a wide variety of influences and styles, rooted in Britain, Ireland, America and beyond. He builds a purposeful, often upbeat voi ...

Thelonious Monster Thelonious Monster is an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, led by singer-songwriter Bob Forrest and named after jazz musician Thelonious Monk. Active from 1984 to 1994, again from 2004 to 2011, and reforming a second time in ...

Peter Parcek Peter Parcek is an American blues rock guitarist, singer, and songwriter. In 2021, Parcek's album, ''Mississippi Suitcase'' was nominated for a Blues Music Award in the 'Blues Rock Album' category. Parcek has released four albums since 2000, af ...

, and

Widespread Panic Widespread Panic is an American rock band from Athens, Georgia. The current lineup includes guitarist/singer John Bell, bassist Dave Schools, drummer Duane Trucks, percussionist Domingo "Sunny" Ortiz, keyboardist John "JoJo" Hermann, and guit ...

. Staples' version of the song from her 2015 album ''Your Good Fortune'' won the 2016

Grammy Award for Best American Roots Performance The Grammy Award for Best American Roots Performance is an award category at the annual Grammy Awards. It was first presented in 2015. The award was first approved by the board of trustees of the Grammy Awards in June 2014. According to NARAS, th ...

Pat Donohue Patrick Donohue (born April 28, 1953) is an American Fingerstyle guitar, fingerstyle guitarist born in St. Paul, Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota. He is a Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Album, Grammy nominated, Walnut Valley Festival, Natio ...

performed this song as "One Kind Favor" live on

Garrison Keillor Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor (; born August 7, 1942) is an American author, singer, humorist, voice actor, and radio personality. He created the Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) show ''A Prairie Home Companion'' (called ''Garrison Keillor's Radio ...

's ''

A Prairie Home Companion ''A Prairie Home Companion'' is a weekly radio variety show created and hosted by Garrison Keillor that aired live from 1974 to 2016. In 2016, musician Chris Thile took over as host, and the successor show was eventually renamed ''Live from He ...

''. It was later released on Donohue's CD, ''Radio Blues''. The British band

Half Man Half Biscuit Half Man Half Biscuit are an English rock band, formed in 1984 in Birkenhead, Merseyside. Known for their satirical, sardonic, and sometimes surreal songs, the band comprises lead singer and guitarist Nigel Blackwell, bassist and singer Neil Cr ...

recorded a parody titled "See That My Bike's Kept Clean" on their 1997 album, ''

Voyage to the Bottom of the Road ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Road'' is the sixth album by Birkenhead-based UK rock band Half Man Half Biscuit, released July 1997. Critical reception * Stewart Mason, AllMusic: "''Voyage to the Bottom of the Road'' is a surprising and enter ...

''. On August 4, 2017, the American Jam/Rock band

Phish Phish is an American rock band formed in Burlington, Vermont, in 1983. The band is known for musical improvisation, extended jams, blending of genres, and a dedicated fan base. The band consists of guitarist Trey Anastasio, bassist Mike Gordon ...

performed this song to open night 11 of their 13 night residency at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

named the Bakers Dozen. Each show was donut themed, with night 11 being "lemon donut" night.

References

{{Authority control 1927 songs Blues songs Bob Dylan songs Peter, Paul and Mary songs Songs about death