Dialect variation in the Times

[Laurence Horn]

On Aug 21, 2011, at 6:31 PM, Wilson Gray wrote:

> On Tue, Jul 1, 2008 at 11:05 PM, Marc Velasco <marcjvelasco at gmail.com> wrote:
>> But in general,
>> when quoting a lyric, even if you're not *exactly* sure what it is, should
>> you trust your ear, or go with an online source many other people apparently
>> agree upon?
>
> i say, "Go with your ear."
>
> That way, you don't make mistakes like citing
>
> "I've got to keep to the highway"
>
> as the opening line of the blues classic,
>
> [I Got the] Key to the Highway.
>
Showing an ignorance not only of Little Walter and Big Bill Broonzy but of Eric (a.k.a. Derek) Clapton, not to mention Arlo Guthrie.  Seems it was written and first recorded by William Charles Segar in 1940, who I'd never heard of, but at least I did know it was "Key" (or "Keys") and not "Keep".

LH

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