“Stag O’Lee” (erroneously spelled as “Stackerlee”) is a blues and folk standard that tells the true story of the murder of Billy Lyons by “Stag” Lee Shelton on Christmas of 1895 in Missouri. Stag was an African-American pimp living in St. Louis, Missouri. On Christmas Night of 1895, Stag and his friend Billy were drinking at Bill Curtis’s saloon. A heated political argument broke out between the two men. Accounts of the what happened next vary, but the dispute culminated in Lyons grabbing Stag’s Stetson hat, and, after refusing to give it back, being fatally shot by Stag. Stag was subsequently imprisoned and released on parole in 1909, however he was incarcerated again for robbery in 1911. He died in prison in 1912.

The song itself has been recorded numerous times, and was being played as early as 1897. This version–a ‘hollar’ by the inmate Bama–features Billy & Stag arguing about poker instead of politics, as well as a classic “come back or I’ll kill you”-style section about a woman named Alberta after the main story finishes. Lomax called Bama’s three final verses–demanding heaven, whiskey, and women, describing his ascent to God’s throne, and the murder of Alberta–“three of the most violent and impudent stanzas in Negro folklore, the singer laughing with pleasurer as he sings.”