DAVID LUKE MYRICK
"T. Texas Tyler"
THE DECK OF CARDS
During the North African campaign, a bunch of soldier boys had been on a long hike and they arrived in a little town called Casino.
The next morning being Sunday, several of the boys went to Church.
A sergeant commanded the boys in Church and after the Chaplain had read the prayer, the text was taken up next. Those of the boys who had a prayer book took them out, but this one boy had only a deck of cards, and so he spread them out.
The Sergeant saw the cards and said, "Soldier, put away those cards."
After the services was over, the soldier was taken prisoner and brought before the Provost Marshall.
The Marshall said, "Sergeant, why have you brought this man here?"
"For playing cards in church, Sir."
"And what have you to say for yourself, son?"
"Much, Sir," replied the soldier.
The Marshall said, "I hope so, for if not I shall punish you more than any man was ever punished."
The soldier said, "Sir, I have been on the march for about six days. I have neither a Bible nor a prayer book, but I hope to satisfy you, Sir, with the purity of my intentions." And with that, the boy started his story:
"You see Sir, when I look at the Ace, it reminds me that there is but one God; and the Deuce reminds me that the Bible is divided into two parts, the Old and the New Testaments.
When I see the Trey, I think of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost; and when I see the Four, I think of the four Evangelists who preached the Gospel; there was Matthew, Mark, Luke and John; and when I see the Five, it reminds me of the five wise virgins who trimmed their lamps; there were ten of them: five were wise and were saved, five were foolish and were shut out.
When I see the Six, it reminds me that in six days, God made this great heaven and earth.
When I see the Seven, it reminds me that on the seventh day, God rested from His great work; and when I see the Eight, I think of the eight righteous persons God saved when He destroyed this earth; there was Noah, his wife, their sons and their wives; and when I see the Nine, I think of the lepers our Savior cleansed, and nine out of the ten didn't even thank Him.
When I see the Ten, I think of the Ten Commandments God handed down to Moses on a table of stone. When I see the King, it reminds me that there is but one King of Heaven, God Almighty; and when I see the Queen, I think of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who is Queen of Heaven; and the Jack or Knave is the Devil.
When I count the number of spots on a deck of cards, I find 365, the number of days in a year.
There are 52 cards, the number of weeks in a year.
There are 4 suits, the number of weeks in a month.
There are 12 picture cards, the number of months in a year.
There are 13 tricks, the number of weeks in a quarter.
So you see, Sir, my pack of cards serves me as a Bible, an Almanac and a Prayer Book."
"And friends, the story is true. I know, I was that soldier."
T. Texas Tyler
The following research was undertaken by Charles J. "Chuck" Ingerson, a Navy and Army Veteran. Chuck is a valued contributor and friend of IWVPA, and a poet whose writings I admire.
Dear Anthony,
"THE DECK OF CARDS" - was, I thought, written by Wink Martindale - he did it as a narration - song in the late fifties.
Chuck
Dear Anthony,
I found this also - will continue to look.
"THE DECK OF CARDS" Recorded by: "T" Texas Tyler (4 Star 1228) 1948(#2) Tex Ritter (Capitol Amer. 40114) 1948(#10) Wink Martindale (Dot 15968) 1959(#11) Traditional Arrangement
Chuck
Dear Anthony
"THE DECK OF CARDS" Recorded by T. Texas Tyler Traditional Arrangement
Note. Some sources credit T. Texas Tyler as the writer of the song. However, other sources say it was the basis for a sermon by a preacher in the late 1800's.
I think if I remember correctly the idea of the deck of cards - were used by the various religious sects who had to find different ways of teaching and remembering things of the Gospel. It is easier then to see how T. Texas Tyler could take this and present it in a song. Also, in the N. African campaign many various branches of the service were involved and this could (the various meanings of the cards) have been passed on from a wise parent to a son. There are a various other songs "The Twelve Days of Christmas" as an example of how gospel lessons were taught.
Chuck
Hi again Anthony,
The most requested song on "The Country Oldies Show" is "THE DECK OF CARDS" and it always generates a lot of letters and cards. Here's the information about it.
Deck of Cards was composed by T. Texas Tyler whose real name was David Luke Myrick, born 6/20/1916 in Mena, Arkansas. He died of cancer in 1972. He's best known as a singer, songwriter/guitarist and was nicknamed "The Man With A Million Friends". He appeared in the movie "Horseman of the Sierras', and hosted the "Range Roundup",
TV series in Los Angeles. Deck of Cards was released in February of 1948 and went up the music charts, peaking at #2 in April. Deck of Cards is licensed by BMI #289054.
Another recording was done by Tex Ritter in 1948 and went to #10 in June.
Later, in 1959, popular Radio Personality and TV host Wink Martindale released his version of the song, going to #11 on the Country charts in October, 1959.
Most recently, Bill Anderson released the song on a CD in June of 1991.
Here are the lyrics:
Regards,
Chuck
T. Texas Tyler whose real name was David Luke Myrick was born 6/20/1916 in Mena, Arkansas. He died of cancer in 1972 and is best known as a singer, songwriter/guitarist. He was nicknamed "The Man With A Million Friends" and appeared in the movie "Horseman of the Sierras", and hosted the "Range Roundup" TV series in Los Angeles.