Eighth of January

The date is January 8, 1815, when Andrew Jackson's army beat the British at New Orleans. The peace treaty ending the War of 1812 had already been signed, but neither side knew it. The tune was first called "Jackson's Victory," and the anniversary was celebrated with dances across the South for much of the 19th century.

Around the Civil War, as Jackson's reputation slipped, the title changed to name the battle instead of the man. Tom Carter heard that it was reworked from an older tune called "Jake Gilly," while Tom Rankin thought it might be older than the battle. Jimmy Driftwood set words to it in 1936 as "The Battle of New Orleans," which Johnny Horton made a hit in 1959.