All language subtitles for The.Piano.Lesson.1995.720p.WEBRip.x264.AAC-[YTS.MX]

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♪ I don't want ♪

♪ No sugar in my coffee ♪

♪ It makes me mean ♪

♪ Lord, it makes me mean ♪

♪ I don't want ♪

♪ No sugar in my coffee ♪

♪ It makes me mean ♪

♪Lord, it makes me mean ♪

♪ I got a bulldog ♪

♪ He weigh 500 ♪

♪ In my backyard ♪

♪ Lord, in my backyard ♪

♪ I got a bulldog ♪

♪ He weigh 500 ♪

♪ In my backyard ♪

♪ Lord, in my backyard. ♪

♪ Oh, when he bark ♪

♪ He roll like thunder ♪

♪ Up in the cloud ♪

♪ Lord, up in the cloud ♪

♪ Oh, when he bark ♪

♪He roll like thunder, up... ♪

Hit them brakes!
Man, what's up...

Watch it...!

Lymon, watch it!

You think
that's funny, huh?

You really think
that's funny?

Whoo!

Hey!

Whoa!

Hmm, hmm, hmm.

Maretha, when you
finish your lesson,

I want you to see
if your Uncle Doaker

need anything
from the store.

Then you get upstairs
and change your clothes.

Yes, ma'am.

We got to go get
some water.

I ain't going nowhere.

You go.

I ain't going
by myself.

Well, then,
we can stay here then.

If you took care
of your truck,

we wouldn't be here!

We'd be in Pittsburgh!

At my sister's house!

Eating fried chicken
and cornbread.

Hey, Lymon!

Wait up!

You don't know
how to find no water!

When you and Avery
gonna get married?

I ain't said nothing
about getting married.

Well, that's
what the matter is.

Maybe you ought to be
saying something about it.

♪ Who broke the lock? ♪

♪ On the hen house door ♪

♪ Who broke the lock? ♪

♪ On the hen house door ♪

♪ Who broke the lock? ♪

♪ Somebody tell me... ♪

You watch, Lymon,

as soon as Berniece see me,

she gonna try
and start something.

You watch.

Yeah, yeah, yeah--
this is it!

Hey, Doaker!

Hey, Berniece!

Boy Willie,
what if they 'sleep?

They ain't 'sleep.

Hey, Doaker!

Hey, Doaker!

Hey, Doaker!

Who is it?

Open the door--

it's me,
Boy Willie!

Who?

Boy Willie!
Open the door!

Whaa!

What you doing up here?

I thought you was
in Sunflower, Mississippi.

I told you, Lymon.

Lymon talking about
you might be 'sleep.

You remember Lymon Jackson
from down home?

Sure...
This my Uncle Doaker.

What you doing
up here?

Me and Lymon
selling watermelon.

That's Lymon's truck.

Where Berniece?

Berniece up there
asleep.

Well, let her get up.

She can go back to bed.

Me and Lymon been riding
two days in that truck.

Least she can do is
get up and say hi.

Hey, Berniece!

She got to
go to work in
the morning!

Hey, well, she can
get up and say hi.

It's been three years
since I seen her.

I told you
they was 'sleep.

I ain't thinking
about no nothing.

You two need
to be quiet.

What you doing making
all that noise?

Hey, Berniece!

It's 5:00
in the morning.

You can't come in
like normal folk?

Oh, I ain't
done nothing.

You start all that noise
'fore you hit the door.

Oh, woman, I was glad
to see Doaker.

You didn't have
to come down

if you didn't want to.

I come 1,800 miles
to see my sister.

I figure she might want
to get up and say hi.

Other than that,
you can go back upstairs!

Hey, you remember
Lymon Jackson?

How you doing, Berniece?

You look just like
I thought you'd look.

Hey, me and Lymon
selling watermelons.

We got a truck
out there.

Hey, Doaker,

where your bottle?

Me and Lymon
celebrating--

the ghosts's of the Yellow Dog
got Sutter.

Say he drowned
in his well.

When this happen,
Boy Willie?

Oh, about
three weeks ago.

Me and Lymon was over
in Stone County

when we heard
about it.

We laughed,

we thought
it was funny.

A great big old
340-pound man

gonna fall down his well!

Reminded me
of Humpty Dumpty.

Everybody say

the ghosts's of the Yellow Dog
pushed him.

I don't want to hear
that nonsense.

Somebody down there
pushing them people

in they wells.

The only thing I want to know is
when you and Lymon

plan on
going back.

Lymon say he's staying.

As soon as
we sell them
watermelons,

I'm going
on back.

That's what you need to do.

And you need to do it quick.

Coming here disrupting
this house.

I'm surprised you ain't
woke Maretha up!

Well, you going up there,
wake her up and tell her

her uncle's here.
I ain't waking that child up.

You and Lymon need to
sell them watermelons
and go on back.

I see Berniece
still act stuck up.

You hear
from Wining Boy?

That's my uncle.

Oh, he come through here
about a year ago.

Had a whole sack
of money,

ain't offered nothing.

Berniece asked him
for $3.00,

and he got mad and left.

He still making
them records?

Oh, he made one or two records
a long time ago.

That's the only ones
I ever known him to make.

If you let him tell it,

he a big recording star.

Is that
that piano?

Yeah...
that's it, Lymon.

You see how it got
all them carvings on it?

Mm-hmm.

That's what
I was talking about.

You never find you
another piano like that.

Yeah, that
looks real nice.

I told you.

Mm-hmm.

You see how
it's polished?

My mama used
to polish it every day.

Yeah, that's
real nice.

I told you.

Mm-hmm.

Hey, Doaker?

Sutter's brother
selling the land.

Say he gonna
sell it to me.

Say he wanna
see me with it.

Ask Lymon.
!
Mm-hmm.

How much land Sutter got left?

Got a hundred
acres.

Good land.

His brother don't wanna be
bothered with it.

Told me he'd let me have it
for $2,000 cash money.

Told him to give me two weeks.

That's why I come up here.

Sell all them watermelons.

Get Berniece to sell that piano.

Put them two parts

with the part
I done saved.

Ah, Doaker...

I walk in there...

tip my hat,

lay my money down on the table,

get my deed,

and walk on out.

This time...

I get to keep all the cotton.

Hmm.

Berniece ain't gonna
sell that piano.

Oh, no, I'm...
I'm gonna talk to her, now.

She been playing on it?

Now, you know
she won't touch
that piano.

I ain't never known
her to touch it

since your mama died,

that's over
seven years now.

She say it's
got blood on it.

She got Maretha
playing on it,
though.

Oh, Maretha don't
need to be playing

on no piano.

She can play
on the guitar.

Well, you gonna have a hard time

trying to get Berniece
to sell that piano.

You know Avery Brown.

He followed Berniece up here,

trying to get her to marry him

after Crawley got killed.

Call himself
a preacher now.

Oh, I know Avery.

Lymon know him, too.

Hey, Avery think
all white men is
big shots.

He don't know
that some white men

ain't got as much as he got.

Mm, that's why
I know Berniece

ain't gonna
sell that piano.

He tried to get her
to sell it

to help him
start his church.

Sent a man around
and everything.

What man?

Oh, some white fellow
was going around

all the colored people's houses

looking to buy up
musical instruments.

How much he offer her for it?

Now, you know me.

She didn't say,
and I didn't ask.

I just know it was
a nice price.

Doaker!

Berniece!

Oh, Berniece!

What's the matter?

You all right?

Sutter.

Sutter is standing at
the top of the steps.

Boy Willie!

What's wrong with her, Doaker?!

She says she seen
Sutter's ghost

standing at the top
of the stairs!

Seen what?

Sutter?

She ain't seen no Sutter!

You want a glass
of water, Berniece?

Get her a glass of water,
Boy Willie.

She don't need no water.

She ain't seen nothing.

Oh, let Berniece tell it.

What happened, Berniece?
I ain't stopping

her from telling it.

I come out of my room
to come back down here.

And Sutter was
standing in the hall.

What he look like?

He looked like Sutter.

Looked like he always look.

Oh, Sutter couldn't find his way
from Big Sandy to Little Sandy.

How he gonna find his way all
the way up here to Pittsburgh?

Sutter ain't never even
heard of Pittsburgh.

Go on, Berniece.

The man ain't never left
Sunflower County

when he was living.

And he gonna come
all the way up here

now that he's dead?!

Oh, go on, Berniece.

Don't pay Boy Willie no mind.

Oh.

He was standing there.

He had his hand
on top of his head.

Look like he might've thought
if he took his hand down,

his head might've fallen off.

Did he have on a hat?

He just had on that blue suit.

Standing there, holding onto

the top of his head.

Calling Boy Willie's name.

What-What he calling
my name for?

I believe you pushed him
down that well.

Now, what kind of
sense that make?

Oh, you telling me I'm gonna go
out there and hide in the weeds,

with all them dogs and
things he got 'round there,

I'm gonna hide and wait
till I catch him

looking down his
well just right.

Then, I'm gonna run
over and push him in,

a great, big
old 340-pound man?

Well, what he call
your name for?

He bending over looking
down his well, woman.

How he know who pushed him?

Could've been anybody.

Oh, where was you
when Sutter fell in his well?

Where was Doaker?

The ghost of the Yellow Dog
pushed him.

That's what the people say.

Just like all them other men.

Come talking 'bout
he looking for me.

That ain't nothing
but in Berniece head.

Ain't no telling what she liable
to come up with next.

You don't do nothing but bring
trouble with you,

everywhere you go.

If it wasn't for you,
my husband would still be alive.

I ain't have nothing to do

with Crawley getting killed.

That was his own fault.

Just go on and leave

and let Sutter go looking
somewhere else for you.

Sutter looking for that piano.

That's what he
looking for.

He had to die to find out

where that piano was at.

If I was you, I'd get rid of it.

That's the way
to get rid of Sutter's ghost.

Get rid of that piano.

I want you and Lymon to go on

and take all this confusion
out of my house.

I ain't going nowhere
till we sell them watermelons!

Well, why don't you
go on out there
and sell them?!

We waiting
till the people get up.

Come on, Doaker.

Come walk up here with me.

Let me get Maretha started.

I got to get ready myself.

BOY WILLIE
If you see Sutter up there,

tell him I'm down here
waiting on him.

I wish I could see Sutter.

Then I'd put a whomping on him.

Hey, Sugar.

Come on, give
Uncle Boy Willie a hug.

Don't be shy.

Oh, Doaker, look at her.

She done got bigger.
Ain't she got big?

Yeah, she getting up there.

How you doing, Sugar?

Fine.

This your Uncle Boy Willie
from down south.

Hey, that there Lymon.
He my friend.

Hi.

How you doing?

You look just
like your mama.

I remember you was
wearing diapers.

Hey, you gonna come
down south and see me?

Uncle Boy Willie
gonna get him a farm.

You come down there,
I'll teach you how
to ride a mule.

I'll teach you how to
kill a chicken, too.

I seen my mama do that.

Oh, it ain't nothing to it.

You just grab him by his neck
and twist it.

You get a real good grip.

You just wring his neck,
throw him in that pot.

Hey, your mama got you
playing on that piano?

You like that?

You like playing on the piano.

It's all right. You just got
to read the notes off the paper.

And they be hard to see.

Hey, well, then Uncle Boy Willie
gonna buy you a guitar.

Let Uncle Doaker teach you
how to play on that.

You don't need
to read no paper
to play on the guitar.

Maretha.

I got to get ready to go.

You get up here and get ready to
go, so you'll be on time.

Whoa.

All right, Doaker.

This smells good.

What you barking at?

Here come Avery now.

I see you out
there, messing
'round my tomatoes.

Hey, Doaker.
Hey, how you doing?

Look at him, Lymon.
Look at him.

He don't know what to say!

How you doing, Avery?!

Great, Boy Willie!

Is that Lymon?

Lymon Jackson!

Yeah, you know Lymon.

Yeah.

What y'all doing up here?

That must be your truck
full of watermelons

sitting in front of the house.

Yeah, that's Lymon's truck.

Hey, hey, hey.

Doaker say you a preacher now.

Well.

What?

We supposed to call you
Reverend Avery?

I remember you were

down on the Wilshire place
planting cotton.

You wasn't thinking
'bout no reverend then.

Avery said he gonna be

a preacher
so he don't have to work.

Oh, Avery working.

Avery got him
one of them good jobs.

He down there working in
one of them skyscrapers.

Yeah, I'm running
an elevator.

Got a pension and everything.

They even give you
a turkey on Thanksgiving.

Berniece be down
in a minute.

She say y'all going
down to the bank.

Yeah, I'm going down there.

See if I can get me a loan
to expand my church.

How you get to be
a preacher, Avery?

It come to me in a dream.

God called me.

Told me he wanted me to be
a shepherd for his flock.

And that's what I call
my church--

The Good Shepherd
Church of God in Christ.

Tell them what you told me.

Tell them about the three hobos.

Well, I was sitting
out in this railroad yard,

just watching trains go by.

The train stopped,
and these three hobos got off.

Told me to come
go along with them.

They give me a candle,
told me to light it,

but to make sure
it didn't go out.

Then, they took me
to this place

that was filled with
all kinds of different people,

only they all had sheep heads

and was making noise
like sheep make.

And then, they showed me
these three doors

and told me to pick one.

Well, I went through
one of them doors.

That flame leapt
off that candle.

Seemed like my whole head
caught fire.

I looks around, there
are four or five
other fellows

standing now, and then we heard
a voice tell us to...

♪ Look out across
this valley... ♪

We looked, and we seen
the valley was full of wolves.

The voice told us
that the sheep people

had to go over to the other side
of this valley,

and somebody had to take them.

And then,
I heard another voice say,

"Who shall I send?"

And next thing I knew, I said,
"Here I am! Send me!"

And that's when I met Jesus.

He said,
"If you go, I'll go with you."

Then something
told me to say,

"Well, come on, let's go!"

That's when I woke up.

I knew right then I'd been
filled with the Holy Ghost,

called to be a
servant of the Lord.

Is we gonna take
the streetcar?

Ain't no "we."

Me and Avery dropping you off
at the Settlement House.

And don't you go down there
showing your color, you hear?

How you doing, Avery?

Well, you look nice.

Thank you.

Doaker, I'll see you later.

Hey, Berniece.

What's the name of that man
Avery sent past the house?

Say he wants to buy the piano.

I knew it.

I knew it when I
first seen't you.

I knew you was up
to something.

Berniece, Sutter's brother
selling the land.

Say he gonna sell it to me.

Now I need
to sell the piano

to get me the money
to buy Sutter's land.

I ain't selling that
piano, Boy Willie,

and that's all there is to it.

And if that's what
you come up here for,

you done come up
here for nothing.

Well, all right.

Hey, Doaker.

Mm-hmm.

If Berniece don't
want to sell
that piano,

I'm 'a go ahead and cut it
in half and sell my half.

That's your generator.

You need a new generator.

Can't fix that.

Got to put a new one in there.

Just leave it sit here.

I'll have it ready for you
tomorrow.

No, no, we got to
have it fixed today.

Well, can't fix it
without the part,

and can't get the part
till tomorrow.

And that'll cost you $10.

Lymon.
Hmm?

Give the man $10.
What?

Why I always got to pay?

Here you go.

Come on, let's
go see Avery.

We were just talking
about you, Wining Boy.

When you left out of
here with that sack
of money, we thought

we wasn't never
gonna see you no more.

Boy Willie said we
wasn't gonna see you
till you got broke.

Broke?

What you mean broke?

I got a whole pocket
full of money.

You wait till
he come in here.
I'm gonna tell him

about hisself.

They been around here three days
trying to sell them watermelons,

but the truck
keep breaking down.

Yeah.
He say as soon as

he can get that truck empty
to where he can

sit that piano up in there,
he gonna take it out of here

and go sell it.

Oh, shoot, Berniece ain't
gonna sell that piano.

And I can't understand

how he don't know that.

Well, it ain't done nothing
but cause trouble.

She need to go ahead
and get rid of it.

How long you been
in Kansas City?

Oh, since I left here.

Yeah.

Got tied up
with some old gal down there.

Oh...

You know Cleotha passed.

Yeah, I heard that.

I was sorry to hear that.

One of her friends
wrote and told me

by the name of
Willa Dean Purda.
Mm-hmm.

I was down there
in Kansas City.

She say she know
Cousin Rutha, too.

Uh-huh.

It says, "Dear Wining Boy,

"I am writing this
letter to let you know

"Miss Cleotha Holman passed on
Saturday the first of May.

"She departed this world in
the loving arms of her sister,

"Miss Alberta Samuels.

"I know you would
want to know this

"and am writing as
a friend of Cleotha.

"There have been many hardships
since last you seen her,

"but she survived them all and
to the end was a good woman

"whom I hope have God's grace
and is in His paradise.

"I pray this reaches
you about Cleotha.

"Miss Willa Dean Purda,

a friend."

Man, that hit me so.

They was nailing her coffin shut
by the time I got the letter.

And that just bust me
all up inside.

So I said, "Well, let
me go see family,"

so I stopped by here

to see you and Berniece.

Cleotha always did
have a nice way about her.

Oh, man, that woman
was something!

I used to thank the Lord.

Yeah.

I looked out over my life.

I said, "Well, I had Cleotha."

When it didn't look like
there was nothing else

for me, I said, "Well,
thank God, at least I had that."

And if ever I go
anywhere in this life,

I done known a good woman.

Mm.

Boy Willie,

how high do you think that is?

There go Avery.

Look at him. He wasn't
expecting to see us.

Boy Willie, what
you doing down here?

Just stopped
by to see you.

Come on,
take us for a ride.

I can't have no
company on my job.

You gonna
get me fired.

Oh, you ain't gonna get fired.
Come on, Lymon.

Oh, no. That-That rope
might break.

A-Avery, ain't you scared
that rope gonna break?

Morning, sir.

Morning.

Morning, sir.

Look, I'll be back.
Wait for me.

Mm-hmm.
Morning, sir.

Morning to
you, Avery.

Yeah.

This is nice, Avery.

I can see how
they give you

a turkey on Thanksgiving.

Woo-hoo.

Ooh, it run
fast, too.

I ain't know
it run this fast.

Yeah, it's gonna be all right.

Boy Willie,
come back here.

Don't worry, I'll be back.

Hey, Lymon.

Boy Willie, I'm
not allowed no
company on my job.

I'm working. I ain't
got time to talk.

Well, I just stopped by
to find out the name of that man

who say he wants
to buy the piano.

Doaker say you sent him
by the house.

I forgot his name.

He give Berniece a
card with his name
and number on it,

but I believe she
throwed it away.

That's a while back.

I can't recall his name.

See you later, Avery.

Come on, Lymon.

Oh, look it here.

Wining Boy.

What you doing here?

Where you coming from?
Where you been?

I've been down
in Kansas City.

Hey, you remember
Lymon-- Lymon Jackson?

Yeah, yeah.

This my Uncle
Wining Boy.

I used to know
his daddy.

Hey, Doaker say
Berniece asked you

for three dollars,

and you got mad
and left.

Oh, shoot.

Berniece try to
rule over you too
much with me.

Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
That's why I left.

Oh, no, no, no, no.

That wasn't about
no three dollars.

Hey, hey, Doaker tell you
about Sutter?

The ghosts's
of the Yellow Dog got him

about three weeks ago.

Berniece done seen his ghost
and everything.

Now, how many that make
that the ghost of the Yellow Dog

done got?

I don't know.
Must be about nine or ten.

Hey, Berniece say
she don't believe in all that

about the ghosts's
of the Yellow Dog.

Berniece ain't
got to believe it.

You go down there in
Sunflower County and ask

them white folks, see
if they believe it.

I don't care if Berniece
believe it or not.

I done been to where

the tracks of the
southern railroad
crossed the tracks

of the Yellow Dog.

And called out
the names

of the ghosts.

And they talk back
to you, too.

Whoa.

You done been there for real,

Wining Boy?

1930.

July 19 and 30.

I stood right there
on that spot.

Didn't seem like nothing
was going right in my life,

so I said, "Well, let me godown near the ghosts of Yellow Dog,

call on them
and see if they can help me."

I went down there, and I stood
right there on that spot

and called out their names.

Called out the names
of the ghosts.

I didn't want
to leave.

And it
seemed like

the longer I stood there,
the bigger I got.

I seen the train coming,

and it seemed like
I got bigger than the train.

Started not to move.

Something told me
to go ahead on and
get out of the way.

When I walked away
from there, I was
feeling like a king.

Had a stroke of
luck that lasted

for three years,
so see, I don't care

if Berniece
believe it or not.

I know, because
I've been there.

Oh, Berniece don't believe
in nothing.

She just thinks
she believes.

Oh, now let's not get on
Berniece now.

Hey, Doaker tell me that
you're gonna buy Sutter's land.

Mm-hmm.

How you know Sutter's brother

ain't sold that
land already?

Uh-uh, he say
he waiting on me.

Now you know
he gonna sell that land

to the first one walk up there
and hand him the money.

That's just
who I'm gonna be.

Look, you ain't got to know
he waiting on me.

I know. I know
what the man told me.

The man say he waiting on me,
he waiting on me.

Uh-uh, Doaker.

Come on, give me a drink.

I see Wining Boy
got his glass.

Wining Boy.

Hey, Doaker tells me

they had you and Lymon down
there in the penitentiary

on Parchment Farm.

Had you all down
there on my old
stomping ground.

Yeah, they looking
for Lymon down there now.

Rounded him up,
put him in jail for not working.

Mm-hmm.
Fined me $100.

Mr. Stovall come
and paid my $100.

Mm-hmm.

And the judge say
I got to work for him

to pay him back his $100.

I told them
I'd rather take my 30 days,

but they wouldn't let me
do that.

Uh-uh.

As soon as Stovall
turned his back, Lymon was gone.

I told Boy Willie
I'm staying up here.

I ain't going back with him.

They treat you better up here.

I ain't worried
about nobody mistreating me.

They treat you
like you let them treat you.

They mistreat me,
I mistreat 'em right back.

Ain't no difference
in me and the white man.

Well, now, I'll tell
you the difference

between the colored man
and the white man.

The colored man can't fix
nothing with the law.

Now that's the difference
between the colored man

and the white man.
Mm.

Oh, I don't... It don't matter
to me what the law say.

The law liable to say anything.
Mm-hmm.

I take a look at it
for myself.

Mm-hmm, and that's why
you gonna end up back down there

on the
Parchment Farm.

I ain't thinking
about no Parchment Farm.

You liable to go back
before I do.

No, I ain't.

They had Lymon down there
singing "Berta, Berta."

No, they didn't. Why you go
telling a lie, Boy Willie?

Yeah, they did.
Yeah, they did.

Hey sing, he sing.
Never been
in no Parchment

penitentiary.
He sing.

♪ Oh, Lord ♪

♪ Berta ♪

♪ Oh, now, gal ♪

♪ Well, uh... ♪

♪ Go ahead and marry ♪

♪ Don't ya ♪

♪ Wait on me, oh, huh ♪

♪ Go ahead and marry ♪

♪ Don't ya ♪

♪ Wait on me ♪

♪ Well, now ♪

♪ Might not want ya when I ♪

♪ I go free, oh I ♪

♪ Might not want ya when I ♪

♪ I go free ♪

♪ Well, now... ♪

Come on, Doaker.
Doaker know this one.

♪ Whoa, now gal, oh, I ♪

♪ Oh, Lord, Berta, Berta ♪

♪ Oh Lord, gal, well now ♪

♪ Raise 'em up! ♪

♪ Raise 'em up higher, let 'em ♪

♪ Drop on down, oh I ♪

♪ Raise 'em up higher, let 'em ♪

♪ Drop on down, well now ♪

♪ I'm on ol' Parchment, got to ♪

♪ Work hard... ♪

♪ Oh, I, I'm on ol' Parchment ♪

♪ Got to work hard, well now ♪

♪ Oh, Alberta, Berta ♪

♪ Oh, Lord, gal, oh I ♪

♪ Oh, Alberta, Berta ♪

♪ Oh, Lord gal, well now ♪

♪ When you marry,
don't you marry a farming man ♪

♪ Oh I ♪

♪ Every day, Monday hoe
and a ha ♪

♪ In your hand, well now ♪

♪ When you marry,
marry a railroad man ♪

♪ Oh, ah ♪

♪ Every day Sunday, now, now ♪

♪ In your hand, well now ♪

♪ Oh, Alberta, Berta ♪

♪ Oh, Lord gal, oh I ♪

♪ Oh, Alberta, Berta... ♪

Hey, Wining Boy.

Come on, play some piano.

You play the piano.
Come on, play.

Lymon want to hear you play.
Mm-hmm.

Oh, shoot.
I give that piano up.

That's a nice piano.

If I knew how
to play it,

I would play it.

Otherwise, I
would sell it.

'Cause you can get a
nice price for that piano.

That's right.
Mm-hmm.

Now, I'm gonna tell you
something.

Now, Lymon don't
know this.

But I'm 'a tell you
why me and Wining Boy say

Berniece ain't gonna sell
that piano.

She...

ain't got to sell it.

I'm gonna sell it.

Now, Berniece
ain't got no more rights

to that piano than I do.

I'm talking to the man.

Now let me talk to the man.

See now, to understand
why we say that,

to understand
about that piano...

Mm-hmm.

...well, you got
to go back to
slavery time.

See, our family was owned

by a fellow
named Robert Sutter.

Now that was Sutter's
grandfather.

All right.

The piano was owned by a fellow
named Joel Nolander.

Now he was one
of the Nolander brothers

from down in Georgia.

Now Miss Ophelia--

that was Sutter's wife's name--

she fancied herself a player
of the piano,

having taking it up
when she was a little girl.

Now it was coming up
on their wedding anniversary,

and Sutter figured he'd get her
this piano for a present.

The only thing with him,

Sutter ain't had no money.

But he had some slaves.

Told Mr. Nolander he'd give him
one and a half slaves

for that piano.

Mr. Nolander told him,
say, "Okay."

But he wanted to have the pick
of the litter.

He didn't want Sutter
to give him just any old body.

So Sutter lined up his slaves,

and out the whole bunch,

Mr. Nolander picked
my grandmother, Berniece.

Now, that's
who Berniece is named after.

And he picked my daddy

when he wasn't nothing
but a little boy.

Nine years old.

So Sutter traded Mama Berniece
and my daddy for that piano,

and Mr. Nolander carried them
down to his place in Georgia.

Papa Willie Boy
stayed on there at Sutter's.

And he never did see
his family again.

Miss Ophelia was as happy
as she could be

playing on that piano.

She would get up
in the morning,

get all dressed up, sit down
and play on that piano.

All right...

time go along.

Time go along.

Miss Ophelia
got to missing
my grandmother.

The way she would cook
and clean the house,

and talk with her and whatnot.

And she missed having my daddy
around the house

to fetch things
for her.

So, she asked to see if maybe

she trade the piano back
and get her slaves back.

Well, Mr. Nolander said no.

A deal was a deal.

Well, him and Sutter had
a big falling out about it,

and Miss Ophelia took sick
to the bed.

That's when Sutter called
my granddaddy up to the house.

Now, our granddaddy's name

was Boy Willie.

Now that's
who Boy Willie
is named after.

He was a worker of wood.

Uh-huh.

Ah, he could make
you anything you
wanted out of wood.

Yeah.

So, Sutter called my grandfather
up to the house

and told him to carve
a picture of my grandmamma,

and my daddy's picture
on the piano for Miss Ophelia.

And he took and carved this.

See that right there?

Mm-hmm.

That's my grandmother,
Berniece.

And here he put a picture
of my daddy.

Now he made them up
out of his memory.

The only thing,
he didn't stop there.

He carved all this.

He got a picture of his mama,
Mama Esther,

and his daddy, Boy Charles.

Now that was

the first Boy Charles.

Then he put here on this side

all kinds of things.

Mm-hmm.

That's when him and
Mama Berniece got married.

They called it
"Jumping the broom."

And here he got
when my daddy was born.

And he got here
Mama Esther's funeral.

And here he got Mr. Nolander
taking Mama Berniece

and my daddy away to his place
down in Georgia.

Now he got all kinds of things

that what happened
with our family.

When Sutter seen the piano
with all them carvings on it,

he got mad.

He didn't ask for all that.

When Miss Ophelia seen
it, she got excited.

Now she had her piano,
and her slaves, too.

She took back to playing on it,

and played on it
right up to the day she died.

All right.

Now...

our brother, Boy Charles--

that's Boy Willie
and Berniece's daddy--

now I'll tell you
what kinda man he was.

He was the oldest
of us three boys.

He dead now, but
he would've been 57 if he lived.

He died in 1911
when he was 31 years old.

Boy Charles used to talk about
that piano all the time.

He never could
get it off his mind.

Even years later,
he was still talking about it.

He'd be talking about taking it
out of Sutter's house.

Say it was the story
of our whole family,

and as long as
the Sutters had it,

they had us.

Say we were still in slavery.

Well, me and Wining Boy would
try to talk him out of it,

but it wouldn't do any good.

So, on the Fourth of July
in 1911,

when the Sutter family
was at the picnic

that the county give
every year,

we went on in there with him

and took that piano
out of Sutter's house.

Me and Wining Boy carried it
over into the next county

to Boy Willie's mama--

Mama Ola and her people.

Now, I don't know
what happened

when Sutter came home
and found the piano gone,

but somebody went up
to Boy Charles' house

and set it afire.

But he wasn't
in there.

He must've seen it coming,
'cause he went down

and caught the 3:57 Yellow Dog.

Now he ain't know they was gonna
come down and stop the train.

They stopped the train and
found Boy Charles in the boxcar

with four of them hobos.

They must've got mad when
they couldn't find the piano,

'cause they set
the boxcar afire.

They killed... everybody.

Now nobody know who done that.

Some people say it was Sutter,
because it was his piano.

Some people say it
was Sheriff Carter,

but don't nobody know for sure.

It's about two months after that
Ed Saunders fell down his well.

Just up and fell down
his well for no reason.

People say it was
the ghosts of those men

who burnt up in the boxcar

that pushed him in his well.

They started calling them
the "ghosts of the Yellow Dog."

Now that's how all
that got started.

And that's why we say Berniece
ain't gonna sell that piano.

'Cause her daddy
died over it.

Yeah, well...

that's all in the past.

If my daddy had seen

where he could've traded
that piano in

for some land of his own,

it wouldn't be
sitting up here now.

He spent his whole life
farming on somebody else's land.

Doaker, I ain't gonna do that.

And the only thing
my daddy had to give me

was that piano,

and he died over giving me that,

and I ain't gonna let it
sit up there and rot

without trying
to do something with it.

And, Doaker, you know I'm right.

I ain't said
nothing about

who's right or who's wrong.

I was just telling the man
about the piano.

I was telling him why we say
Berniece ain't gonna sell it.

I told Boy Willie he ought
to stay up here with me.

You stay, Lymon.
All right? You stay!

Stay up here and make it
your own way, if that's
what you want to do!

I'm going back and live my life
the way I wanna live it!

Hey, let's see what we got here.

You know, I ain't played
this thing for a while.

You was
playing on it

the last time
you come through here.

We couldn't get you
off of it.

Go on, play
something.

♪ I'm a rambling, gambling man ♪

♪ I gambled in many towns ♪

♪ I rambled this
wide world over ♪

♪ And I rambled this world
around ♪

♪ I've had my ups and downs
through life ♪

♪ Lord, bitter times I saw ♪

♪ I never knew what measly was ♪

♪ Till I land on Arkansas ♪

♪ Well, I work six months
for a rascal ♪

♪ Joe Harry was his name ♪

♪ Well, he fed me
old corn dodgers ♪

♪ That was a-hard as any rock ♪

♪ Well, my tooths is
all got looser ♪

♪ And my knees began to knock ♪

♪ Well, that was
the kind of hash I got ♪

♪ In the state of Arkansas ♪

Come on, Boy Willie!

♪ Travelin' man ♪

♪ Yes, I travel
all around the world ♪

♪ Yes, I'm a travelin' man ♪

♪ Yes, I traveled
from the land of man ♪

Whoo!
♪Yes, I'm a ♪

♪ Travelin' man ♪ ♪

♪ Yes, I traveled
all around the world ♪

♪ Well, now, it ain't no use ♪

♪ Sweatin' no news ♪

♪ I'm a travelin' man! ♪

I know that ain't Wining Boy
sitting there.

Berniece!

You all had this planned!

You and Boy Willie had
this planned!

Oh, Berniece,

I didn't know
he was gonna be here.

No, no.

Maretha, go on upstairs
and change your clothes.

Uncle Wining Boy!

Maretha, yeah!

Oh!
Wining Boy, let me get ready.

I'm gonna fix you
something to eat.
All right.

Yeah...

Hey, Lymon?
Hmm?

Get up on this side of the piano
and let me see something.

Boy Willie, what you doing?
I'm seeing how heavy
this piano is.

Get up over there, Lymon.

Go one and leave
that piano alone.

You ain't taking that piano
out here and selling it.

One, two, three.

You gonna play around
with me

one too many times, Boy Willie.

And then God gonna bless you
and rest's gonna dress you.

Now set that piano
back over there.

I need this piano to get me
some money to buy Sutter's land.

Money can't buy
what that piano cost.

You can't sell your soul
for money.

I ain't talking about
selling my soul.

I'm talking
about trading

that piece of wood
for some land.

Land is the only thing
God ain't making no more of.

You can always
get you another piano.

Wining Boy, you want me
to fry you some pork chops?

Yeah.

Now I'm gonna tell you
the way I see it now.

The only thing make that piano
worth something is them

carvings Papa Willie Boy
put on there.

That was my

great-granddaddy.

Now Papa Boy Charles brought
that piano into the house.

I'm supposed to build
on what they left me.

All right.

If you say to me, "Boy Willie,
I'm using the piano.

I give out lessons on it,
and that help me make my rent,"

or whatever,
then that'd be something else.

But Doaker say you ain't touched
the piano the whole time

it's been up here, so why
you want to stand in my way?

Now I want to get
Sutter's land with
that piano, Berniece.

Now the kind of man
my daddy was,

he would've
understood that.

And Berniece,

I'm sorry
if you can't see it that way.

But that's why I'm gonna take
that piano out of here,

and I'm gonna sell it.

You ain't taking that piano out
of my house.

Look at that piano.

Look at it!

Mama Ola polished this piano

with her tears for 17 years.

For 17 years, she rubbed on it

till her hands bled.

Then she rubbed the blood

and mixed it up with the rest
of the blood on it.

Every day that God breathed life
into her body,

she rubbed and cleaned

and polished and
prayed over it.

"Play something for me,
Berniece."

"Play something
for me, Berniece."

Every day.

"I cleaned it up for you."

"Play something for me,
Berniece."

You always talking
about your daddy,

but you ain't never stopped

to look at what his foolishness
cost your mama.

17 years worth of cold nights
in her empty bed.

And for what?

For a piano?

For a piece of wood?

To get even with somebody.

I look at you, and
you're all the same.

You, Papa
Boy Charles,

Wining Boy,
Doaker, Crawley!

You all alike!

All this thieving and killing.

And thieving
and killing.

And what it
ever lead to?

More killing,
more thieving.

I ain't never seen it come
to nothing.

People getting burnt up.

People getting shot.

People falling down their wells.

It don't never stop.

I ain't never
killed nobody.

Now, I can't speak
for nobody else,

but I ain't never killed nobody.

You killed Crawley

just as sure
as you pulled the trigger.

Now you see, that's ignorant.

That's downright foolish
for you to say

something like
that, Berniece.

Crawley tried to be a big man

and bully them fellas,
and they cut

him down.

That was his
own fault.

It's the smart
man that lives

to fight another day.

Crawley ain't know
you stole that wood.

Oh, we ain't
stole no wood,
Berniece.

Me and Lymon was
hauling wood

for Jim Miller, keeping us
a little bit on the side.

We dumped that little bit off

down there by the
creek until we had
enough to make a load.

Me and Boy
Willie told him

about the wood.

We told him
some fellas might be trying

to beat
us to it.

He say, "Let me go
back and get my .38."

Now that's what caused
all the trouble.

If Crawley ain't had that gun,

he'd be alive today.

He'd liked to got
me and Lymon killed.

They shot Lymon
in his stomach.

We had it about halfway loaded
when they come up on us.

We seen the sheriff was
with them, and we tried

to get away.

We ducked around near that bend
in the creek,

but they was down there, too.

Boy Willie say, "Let's give in."

But Crawley pulled out his gun
and started shooting,

and that's when they started

shooting back.

All I know is,
Crawley would be alive

if you hadn't come up
there and got him.

My husband is dead
and in the ground,

and you still
walking around
here eating.

That's all
I know.

He went off to load
some wood with you,

and he ain't never come back.

Berniece,
I ain't have nothing to do

with Crawley getting killed.

It was his own fault.
He ain't here, is he?

I said, he ain't

here, he ain't here!

Come on, come on, Berniece.
Is he?

Don't do this,
Berniece, come on.
He ain't here.

He ain't here, is he?
He ain't here!

Come on.

He ain't here!
Come on now.

Berniece, let it go.
It ain't his fault.

He ain't here, is he?
Now, stop it.
I ain't had nothing...

He ain't... he ain't...
I told you I ain't
responsible for Crawley...

He ain't here,
is he? Is he?

♪ I'm gonna leave
Jackson, Mississippi ♪

♪ Go to Memphis ♪

♪ Double on back to Jackson ♪

♪ Come on down to Hattiesburg ♪

♪Change cars
on the Yellow Dog... ♪

Watermelons!

♪Red to the ripe ♪
♪Red... red ♪

Watermelons! Hey people,
we got watermelons!

Watermelons!

Watermelons,
sweet and green.

We got watermelons.

♪ Best watermelon
you ever seen. ♪

♪ Can a highball pass
on through? ♪

Highball on through, sir.

Grand Carson,
31st Street Depot,

Fourth Street Depot...

♪ I'm on my way to Memphis...♪

Are your watermelons sweet?

Is they
sweet?

Lady, where we grow

these watermelons,
we put sugar in the ground.

I never heard

of such a thing.

Oh, yeah, we put it right
in the ground with the seed.

Taste it.

Mmm!
Mmm.

It's sweet.

Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.

I'll take two of them.
Oh, you want two.

Hey, two watermelons
for the lady.

Two watermelons coming up.

♪ One watermelon's awful sweet ♪

♪ Two watermelons
can't be beat ♪

♪ Three is better,
and four is best ♪

♪ Somebody come up here
and buy the rest... ♪

All right, give this
lady a watermelon here.

Give this lady a
watermelon here.

Here you go, lady.

All right, lady.

All right, give me
that money first, ma'am.

Here we go, James.

Yeah.

♪ ...And she's a beauty ♪

♪ I bet you five dollars
she can't do this ♪

♪ A lady on one foot ♪

♪ One foot, one foot ♪

♪ A lady... ♪

Hey, mister.

I thought you took that suit
to the pawn shop.

I went down there,

and the man say the
suit is too old.

Now look at this suit.

This is 100%
genuine silk.

Now how is a silk
suit gonna get too old?

Well, they got another
pawn shop up on Wylie.

Mm-hmm, I carried
it up there.

He didn't want
it, either.

He don't take
no clothes.

The only thing
he take is guns,

radios and maybe
a guitar or two.

Well, Maretha's scared
to sleep up there now.

Hmm.

Berniece figure
if Boy Willie leave,

Sutter's ghost will follow.

She don't know,

I seen Sutter's ghost
before Boy Willie come.

Say what?!

Yeah, I was in

my room, and I heard
that piano playing.

I thought it was Berniece,

but then she don't play
that kind of music.

I come out,

and I didn't see nobody,
but them piano keys

was moving a mile a minute.

Well, I tell you outright.

If I see Sutter's ghost,

I'll be on the first thing
that got wheels on it.

How we do?

Charge them a quarter more.
All right.

Watermelons!
Fresh, ripe, red!

We got watermelons out here!

What time Berniece get home?

I don't see how I let her
get away from me this morning.

What kind of business
you got with Berniece?

My business.

I ain't ask you what kind
of business you got.

Now Berniece ain't
got no money,

if that's why you was
trying to catch her.

She having a hard enough time
trying to get by as it is.

Well, let me have $5.

I just give you a dollar
'fore you left out of here.

You ain't gonna take
my $5 out there

and gamble and drink it up.

Oh, let me have $5.

I'll give it back to you.

Make it seven?
You take this $5,
and you bring

my money back here, too.
We almost sold

all of them,
Boy Willie!

Oh, boy!

Boy, they was lining
up for them, boy.

Me and Boy Willie couldn't
sell them fast enough.

Oh, I got something for Lymon.

I ain't never seen nobody snatch
a dollar fast as Boy Willie.

Hey, Lymon.
Hmm?

Look at this.

Whoa...

This is 100%
genuine silk!

Come on, put it on,
see how it fit you.

Yeah.

I got that in Chicago.

See, you can't get
clothes like this

nowhere but in New
York or Chicago.

See, you can't get clothes
like that here in Pittsburgh.

See, these folks
here in Pittsburgh,

they ain't never seen
no clothes like this.

Yeah, this is nice.

This feel real nice and smooth.

Yeah.

Woo...

That's a $55 suit.
Oh.

Yeah, that's the kind of suit

the big shots wear.

Oh, you need you a pistol
and a pocketful of money

to wear a suit like that.

No, no, no.

Now, I'll let you
have it... for $3.

All the women will
fall out their windows,

they see you
in a suit like that.

Ow.

Yeah, go on,
give me $3.

Go on down the street, get
dressed and get you a woman.

Oh, that look
nice, Lymon.

Put on the pants.

Let me see it
with the pants.

Yeah.

Yeah, now don't that
look nice?

Yeah, see, now go on
and give me $3.

Go on and take it.

Look, I got a shirt
to go with it.

Cost you a dollar extra.

Four dollars,
you got the whole deal.

Four dollars for everything?

The suit and the shirt?

Now that's cheap.

All right.

Now, you got some shoes?
Uh-uh.

What size shoes you wear?
Size nine.

That's what size I got,
size nine.

Look, I'll let you
have them for $3.

Where they at?
Let me see them.

They nice shoes, too.

They got a nice tip to them.

They got a pointed toe
just like you want.

Come on, Boy Willie,

let's go out tonight.

We can go to a picture show
and find some women!

Hey, Doaker,
I got the name of that man

say he want to buy the piano.

The man was fixing the truck
gave me his name.

I got his name and number.

It ain't gonna
do you no good.

All right.

Here you go, size nine.

All right, put them on.

Eh... that's the kind
Stagger Lee wore.

Yeah, now that'll cost you $3.

Woo.

You sure this size nine?

Well, now, you can

look at my feet and see
we wear the same size.

Look, go on and take them.

Two dollars.

Come on, Boy Willie.

Let's go find some women.

Hey, look like you ready
to railroad some, boy.

Yeah, I got to make that run
overnight to Philadelphia.

How I look?

Whoa!
Whoa, boy!

You look like
a million dollars!
Whoo!

Don't he look good,
Doaker?

Yeah.

Ah, boy, yeah.

Hey, you want to play
some cards?

Come on,
let's play some cards.

Oh, no, no, no.

We ain't gonna play
no cards with you.

Lymon, don't you play no cards
with Wining Boy.

He'll take all your money.

Oh, you got a
magic suit there.

Oh, now, you'll get
you a woman easy with
a suit like that.

But you got to know
the magic words.

You know the magic words
to get you a woman?

Uh-uh.

I just talk to them, see if
I like them and they like me.

Oh, that man don't
need you to tell him
nothing about no women.

These women these days
ain't gonna fall

for that kind of stuff
you talking.

You got to buy them a present.

That's what they're
looking for these days.

Come on, I'm ready.

You ready, Lymon?

Uh-huh.

Let's go find some women.

I'm gonna walk
out with you.

I want to see them women

fall out their windows
when they see Lymon.

No, no. Now don't mess
with that man's shoes.

Oh, you looking good.

Hey, there you go, Doaker.

All right, I got to go this way.
All right. See you later.

Y'all stay out of trouble.
All right.

Like I told you now, they
gonna fall out their windows.

All right, boy.
All right.

Boy Willie... whoo!

You get the tickets, Lymon.

Come on, Boy Willie.

Come on.

Oh, John, please listen to me.

Please, I can
explain everything.

John, I didn't know
what they were going to do!

Let me go with you, John!

Please?

Please, let me
explain it to you, John!

Please let me go with you!

Please! John!

He wants to see you.

Listen to me, ma'am.
I want you to do as I say.

I want them both arrested.

You tell the police department
to pick up Trammell.

I've got the girl here.

I don't care
what you charge him with.

If you're worried,
let him go in the morning,

but keep him in jail overnight.

Sit down there!

Hey, sit down, man.

I've got your father's diary,
Ann.

Father's...?

I never knew he had a diary.

There's enough in there
for 100 speeches.

Things people ought
to hear nowadays...

Hey, Wining Boy
back in town.

Hey, Wining Boy,
over here, baby.

Hey, Wining Boy,
good to see you again.

Wining Boy.

Hey, Wining Boy.

♪ Oh, 'tis thee, oh ♪

♪ Ship of life... ♪

Who is it?

It's me, Avery.

Avery, I was just getting ready
to take my bath.

Oh, where Boy Willie?

I see that truck out
there almost empty.

They was gone
when I got home.

I don't know where
they went off to.

Boy Willie around here
'bout to drive me crazy.

Well, they sell
them watermelons,
he be gone soon.

Berniece, I be
sitting at home

and I get to thinking

I'm down there
and you up here.

Now, you know how I feel
about you, Berniece.

I get to thinking
how that look

to have a preacher
that ain't married.

Now it make for
a better congregation

if the preacher
was settled down
and married.

Not now, Avery.

I'm fixing to take my bath.

I ain't got much
in the way of comfort.

I got a hole
in my pocket

near about far
as money's concerned,

but I ain't never
found my way through life

to a woman I care about
like I care about you.

Now, I need that.

I need somebody
on my bond side.

Now I need a woman
that fits in my hand.

Avery, I'm not ready
to get married now.

Now, you too young a woman
to close up, Berniece.

I ain't said nothing
about closing up.

I got a lot of woman
left in me.

So, where's it at?

When the last time
you looked at it?

That's a nasty thing to say.

And you call yourself
a preacher.

You trying to tell me
a woman ain't nothing

unless she got a man?

You can just walk
outta here without me,

without a woman,
and you still a man.

That's all right for you.

But everybody gonna be worried
about Berniece.

"How Berniece gonna take care
of herself?

How she gonna raise that kid
without a man?"

Everybody telling me I can't be
a woman without a man.

Well, you tell me, Avery,
you know.

How much woman am I?

It wasn't me,
Berniece.

Now you can't blame me for
Crawley or nobody else.

I ain't blaming nobody
for nothing.

Just stating facts.

This is
a big world.

Life's got all kinds of twists
and turns,

but that don't mean
you stop living.

Now, you can't go through life

carrying Crawley's ghost
with you.

Crawley been dead
three years.

Three years,
Berniece.

I know how long Crawley
been dead.

You ain't got to tell me that.

Well I'm standing
here now, Berniece.

But I don't know
how much longer

I'm gonna be standing
here waiting on you.

Avery, it's just that I've got
so many other things

on my mind right now.

After I come home yesterday,

me and Boy Willie
were arguing

about the piano,
and Maretha saw
Sutter's ghost

standing at the top
of the steps.

She's scared to sleep
up there now.

Maybe if you bless the house,
he'll go away.

I don't know,
Berniece.

Now, I don't know if I
should fool around

with something
like that.

I keep telling myself
that when Boy Willie leaves

Sutter's ghost
will leave, too,

but now he talking
about selling the piano.

Well, maybe if Boy Willie see
you was doing something with it.

If you told him
you was gonna

put it down
in the church
and start a choir.

When my mama died,
I closed the lid on that piano

and I ain't opened it since.

She used to have me playing
on it.

I used to think them pictures
come to life at night

and walk around the house.

Sometimes late at night I could
hear my mama talking to them.

I said that wasn't gonna happen
to me.

I don't play on that piano

'cause I don't wanna wake
them spirits.

Then they'll be walking around
this house.

Now you got
to put

all that behind you,
Berniece.

Everybody got stones
in their pathway.

You got to step over them
or walk around them.

Now you picking them up
and carrying them with you.

You can walk over
there right now
and play that piano.

You can walk over there
right now.

And God'll walk over there
with you.

Come on, Berniece.

Play That Old Ship
of Zion.

You can walk over here,

claim it as an instrument
of the Lord.

You can walk over here
right now...

...and make this
into a celebration.

Avery...

Bible says, "The Lord
is my refuge

and my strength."

With the strength of God,
you can put the past behind you.

With the strength of God,

you can do
anything.

Avery, just leave.

Let me finish my bath.

I'll see you tomorrow.

Okay, Berniece.

I'm gonna go home
and read up on my Bible.

And tomorrow...

good Lord,
give me strength.

I'm gonna come by
and bless this house.

And show you the power
of the Lord.

Now, it's gonna be
all right, Berniece.

God said He'll soothe
the troubled water.

You crazy.

I'm telling you...

Come on in.

This my sister's house.

My sister live here.

Come on,
I ain't gonna bite you.

Shh!
( laughing growslouder )

Shh!

Oh, put some light on.

I can't see.
Shh!

All you need
to see is me.

If you can't see me,
you can feel me in the dark.

How's that, sugar?

Go on, now wait.

Oh, come on.
Give me a little kiss.

Boy Willie, what you
doing down here?

You know I don't allow
that in my house.

You have to take

your "company" somewhere else.

Allow what?

We just sitting here talking.

I'm sorry, Miss, but he know
I don't allow that.

Uh, you ain't got
to tell me but once.

I don't stay nowhere
I ain't wanted.

Now you ain't... you ain't gotta
be like that, Berniece.

Embarrassing me in front
of my company.

Come on!

Take me home.

Go on, Boy Willie.

Go on with your company.

Boy Will...

How you doing, Berniece?

I thought you'd be 'sleep.

Boy Willie been back here?

He just left out of here
just a minute ago.

I was
with this woman.

She just wanted to drink up
all my money.

So I left there

come back looking
for Boy Willie.

You just missed him.
He just left out of here.

They got some
nice-looking women
in this city.

I'm gonna like it up
here real good. Mm-hmm.

Boy Willie met
a real nice one.

Wish I met her
before he did.

He just left out of here
with some woman

just a little
while ago.

What she look like?

The woman
he was with.

Was she a real dark-skinned
woman about this high?

Nice and healthy.

Got nice hips
on her?

She had on a red dress.

That's her. That's Grace.

She real nice.
Mm-hmm.

I seen't her
before Boy Willie did, only...

he beat me
to her.

Doaker gone, huh?

Say he had
to make a trip.

He had to make a trip.

He's still cooking for the
Pennsylvania Railroad.

This is usually my time
I get some peace and quiet.

Maretha's asleep.

She look just like you.

Got them big eyes.

She sure
is pretty.

Boy Willie say you staying.

What you gonna do
in the big city?

You thought about that?

They'll never get me back
down there.

I figure I'd find me a job.

Try to get set up.
See what the year bring.

It's not a bad city, once you
get to know your way around.

Wining Boy told me
I wear this suit,

I'd find me a woman.

He was almost right.

You don't need to be out there

in them saloons.

Ain't no telling
what you're liable
to run into out there.

I don't know
what them women out there

be thinking about.

Mostly they be lonely.

Looking for somebody
to spend the night
with them.

Sometime it matter who
it is, sometime it don't.

I used to be
the same way.

Now it got
to matter.

The way I see it,

we the only two people
like us in the world.

We got to see how
we fit together.

A woman who don't want
to take the time
to do that,

I don't bother
with them.

How come
you ain't married?

I get me a job
and a little place

and get set up
to where I can make
a woman comfortable,

I might get married.

Avery nice.

You ought to go on ahead
and get married.

You'd be a preacher's wife
and not have to work.

I hate living
by myself.

I ain't want to be
no strain on my mama

so I left home.

I was about 16.

Everything I tried,
seem like it just
didn't work out.

Now I'm trying this.

You keep on trying.

It'll work out for you.

You ever go down there
to the picture show?

I don't go in
for all that.

It ain't like gambling
or sinning or nothing.

Ain't nothing wrong
with it.

I stay at home most of the time
and take care of Maretha.

It's getting kinda late.

Was you in bed?

I ain't mean to be
keeping you up.

You ain't

keeping me up.

You got on that nightgown.

I likes women who wear them
fancy nightclothes and all.

It makes their skin look pretty.

I-I got this
at the five-and-ten-cent store.

It ain't so fancy.

I don't too often get to see
a woman dressed like that.

Wining Boy told me this
was a magic suit.

I'm 'a put it on
again tomorrow.

See if it bring me
a woman like he say.

I almost forgot I had this.

Some man sold me this
for a dollar.

Said it's the same
kind of perfume

the Queen of France wear.

Mm-hmm, I smelled it.

It smell good to me.

Here, you smell it.

See if you like it.

I was gonna
give it to Dolly,

but I ain't like
her too much.

It smells nice.

I wanna give it to you.

Make you smell nice.

They tell me you supposed
to put it right here.

Behind your ear.

Say if you put it there, it make
you smell nice all day.

There.

You smell real good now.

You smell real good

for Lymon.

Berniece.

Lymon.

Lymon, come on. Get up.

Leave me alone.

Come on.
What you want?

Come on, let's go.

I called the man about
the piano.

He said to bring it on out.

Why didn't you tell him

to come and pick it up?

I didn't want to have
no problem

with Berniece.

This way we can just take it
on out there

and it'd be out of the way.

He just say have it to him
by 6:00.

Come on, let's go.

All right, look...

Come on, Lymon.

Look. Look.

All you gotta do just
move your end out

so we can work it
towards the door.

Now you gotta get a real
good grip on it now.

I-I got this side.
You just get that side.

Wait till I say ready,
all right?

Now you got it good?
You got a real
good grip on it?

Yeah, I got it.
Just push that side.

All right. On three.

One,

two,

three.

Wait a minute.
Something holding this.

This is gonna take more than me
and you to move this piano.

We can do it. Come on.

Hey, Doaker.

How did this piano
get in the house?

Boy Willie, what you doing?

I'm carrying this piano
out the house.

What it look like I'm doing?

Come on, Lymon.
Let's try it again.

Go on let
the piano sit

over there
till Berniece come home.

You ain't got nothing
to do with this, Doaker.

This is my business.

This is my house.

And I ain't gonna let you

or nobody else carry
nothing out of it.

This is my piano.

This ain't got nothing
to do with you.

I say leave it set over there
till Berniece come home.

She got part of it, too.

Leave it set there

till you see
what she say.

I don't care

what Berniece say.

Come on, Lymon.
I got this side.

All you gotta do is
move your end out.

How we gonna get it
in the truck?

Leave that piano
set over there

till Berniece
come back.

I don't care what
you do with it then.

But you gonna
leave it sit

over there right now.

All right.

I'm gonna tell you this, Doaker.

I'm going out of here.

I'm gonna get me some rope.

Find me a plank and some wheels,
then I'm coming back.

When I come back

I'm gonna carry
that piano out of here,

sell it and give
Berniece half the money.

You see now that's
what I'm gonna do

and you or nobody else gonna
stop me.

Come on, Lymon.

Let's go get some rope
and stuff.

I'll be back, Doaker.

My Lord.

Then after that...

all them
white folks down there

started falling down
their wells.

Everybody say

the ghosts's of the
Yellow Dog pushed them.

Why they wanna call them that?

'Cause the Yazoo
Delta Railroad

got yellow boxcars.

Sometimes the way the whistle

blow...

sound like
an old dog
howling.

So the people call it
the Yellow Dog.

Maretha,
you go on

and get ready
for me to do your hair.
Yes, ma'am.

Boy Willie, I done
told you

to leave my house.

I ain't playing
with Boy Willie.

I got Crawley's gun upstairs.

You don't know it,

but I am through with it.

Where Lymon go?

Boy Willie sent him
for some rope

just before you come in.

I ain't standing Boy Willie

or Lymon or the rope.

Maretha, you go
run across the street

and get me another can
of hair grease.

And you come straight back, too.

Don't be playing
around out there.

Be careful crossing
the street.

Yes, ma'am.

Boy Willie, I done told you
to leave my house.

There, now I'm outta
your part of the house.

Consider me to
left your part.

Soon Lymon come back
with that rope,

I'm gonna take that piano outta
here and sell it.

You ain't touching
that piano.

I'm gonna carry it out
of here just as big and bold

like my daddy would've done come
time to get Sutter's land.

Oh, why don't
y'all stop that?

Boy Willie, go on and
leave her alone.

You know how Berniece get.

I ain't thinking
about Berniece.

Did you say Avery
gonna stop by?

What Avery gonna do?

Avery can't do
nothing with me.

I wish Avery would say something
to me about this piano.

Berniece ain't
said about that.

Light that stove and set that
comb over there to get hot.

And get something to put
around your shoulders.

How do you do?

Pastor.

Ow!

Be still, Maretha. If you was
a boy, I wouldn't have

to go through this.
Oh, don't you tell

that girl that.
Why you wanna tell here that?
You ain't got nothing

to do with this child.
Telling her you wish
she was a boy?!

How that's gonna
make her feel?

If you wanna tell her something,
tell her about that piano.

You ain't even told her
about that piano.

I got something
to be ashamed of.

You ought to mark
down on the calendar

the day Papa Boy Charles brought
that piano into the house.

And every year when it come up,

throw a party.
Have a celebration.

That way she know where
she at in the world.

You got her going out
here thinking

she all wrong in the world.

Like there ain't no part
of it belong to her.

You let me take care
of my child.

When you get one of your own,
then you can teach it

what you want
to teach it.

Now, what I want to bring
a child into this world for now?

Now, look, I ain't got
no advantages

to offer nobody.

Many is the time
I looked at my daddy

and seen him staring off

at his hands.

I got a little older,
I know just what
he was thinking.

He's sitting there

saying...

"I got these big old hands,
but what I'm 'a do with them?

"I can take and build
something with these hands,

"but where's the tools?

All I got
is these hands."

See, now, if he had his own land

he wouldn't
have felt
that way.

If he had something

under his feet
that belonged to him

he could stand up taller.
That's what I'm talking about.

If you got a piece of land

everything else will fall
right into place.

That's all you got
going for you is talk.

All your whole life

that's all you had going
for you was talk.

Straighten up your head,
Maretha.

Don't be bending down like that.

All I'm trying to do
is mark my passing

on the road.

Just like you write it
on a tree.

"Boy Willie was here!"

That's all
I'm trying to do.

My heart say for me

to sell that piano
and get me some land

to make a life for myself
to live in my own way.

Other than that,

I ain't thinking about
nothing Berniece
got to say.

Here we go.

Lymon, I been wait...

Oh, I thought you
was Lymon.

Lymon?

Hey, Berniece, look who here.

Come on in, Avery.

Don't pay Boy Willie
no mind.

Don't pay neither
one of them no mind.

They been arguing
all day.

Well, how's
everybody in here?

Oh, Berniece say you was
coming by to bless the house.

Yeah. I done read up
on my Bible.

She asked me to come by
and see if I could get
rid of Sutter's ghost.

There ain't no ghost
in this house.

That's all in
Berniece head.

Go on up there and see
if you see him.

I'll give you $100
if you see him.

That's all in her
imagination.

Boy Willie, why don't you
just be quiet?

This ain't got nothing
to do with you.

Let him go ahead and do
what he gonna do.

I ain't stopping him.

Avery ain't got no power
to do nothing.

Oh, I ain't got
no power?!

Well, God's got
the power.

Now God's got power over
everything in His creation.

God can do anything.

God's got a wonderful power.

He's got power
over life and death.

Now Jesus raised Lazarus
from the dead.

They was getting ready
to bury him.

And Jesus, He told him,
"Sir, rise up and walk."

And he got up and walked.

And the people made
great rejoicing

in the power of God.

Now, I ain't worried
about Him

chasing away
no little old ghost.

Mm-mm-mm!

Hey, where you been?

I been waiting on you,

and you run off somewhere?
Give me that rope.

I ran into Grace. I stopped
and bought her a dress.

She said she gonna go
to a picture show with me.

Hi, Berniece.

I ain't thinking
about no Grace nothing.

Get up on this side
of the piano.

Boy Willie, don't
start nothing now.

Leave the piano alone.

Get that board
over there, Lymon.

Stay out of this, Doaker.

You just can't
take the piano.

How you gonna take the piano?

Berniece ain't said nothing
about selling that piano.

She ain't got to say nothing.

Come on, Lymon.
We got to lift one end

at a time
on the board.

You got to watch, so
that the board don't
slide up under there.

What we gonna do
with the rope?

Let me worry
about the rope.

Just get up on this side

over here with me.

Boy Willie!

Berniece!

Now, why don't
y'all sit down

and talk this out now?

Ain't nothing to talk out.
I'm through talking
to Berniece.

Come on, Lymon.
Get upon this side.

Throw that rope
over there and tie
it on to the leg.

Wait a minute. Berniece?

Did you tell Boy Willie
he could take this piano?

Boy Willie ain't taking nothing
out of this house but hisself.

Come on, Lymon.
Get up on this side
over here with me.

Berniece, I got
to do this now.

Boy Willie say
he gonna

give you
half the money.

Go. Just go on, Lymon.

I done told
Boy Willie what to do.

Boy Willie, you sure
you want to do this?

The way
I figure it--

I might be wrong--

but I figure she gonna
shoot you first.

Well...

she...

is just gonna
have to shoot me.

Mommy, please,
don't do it.

Go on, get out
of here, Maretha.
No, Mommy!

Doaker, get her
on out of here!

Mommy, no, no! Mommy!

I stopped at
that Seaver place.

These folks
are running around here

talking about Pass Deck Red
is coming.

Wining Boy,
sit down somewhere.

Back away. Back away.
Ah...

Been out drinking all day.
Come in here smelling

like an old polecat.
Sit down out the way. There!

You know Berniece
don't like all that drinking.

Oh, I ain't disrespecting
Berniece. Berniece,

am I disrespecting you?

I'm just trying to be nice.

Oh, I been out
with strangers all day.

And they treat me like family.

I come up in here to family,
and you

treat me like I'm a stranger!

Why don't you go
somewhere and lay down?

Oh, I ain't thinking
about no laying down.

I'm gonna play me
some piano!

Come on. No, Wining Boy.
Me and Lymon

fixing to move
the piano, Wining Boy.
No, no...

Wining Boy, come on,
now, come on!

Now, wait a minute.
Wining...?
Oh! Aw, man!

Wait a minute, now.

I wrote this song for Cleotha.

I wrote this

in memory of Cleotha.

♪ Hey, pretty woman ♪

♪ What's the matter ♪

♪ With you now? ♪

♪ Had a storm last night ♪

♪ Drove the line all down ♪

♪ Tell me how ♪

♪ Long ♪

♪ I gotta wait ♪

♪ Can I get it now ♪

♪ Or must I hesitate? ♪

♪ It takes the
hesitatin' stockings ♪

♪ And the hesitatin' shoes ♪

♪ Takes a hesitatin' woman ♪

♪ Gonna sing the blues ♪

♪ Tell me, tell me how long ♪

♪ Yeah, I've got to wait ♪

♪ Can I kiss you now ♪

♪ Or must I hesitate? ♪

♪Yeah... ♪
Come on, Wining Boy.
Come on now.

Come on, Wining Boy.
Me and... me and Lymon
fixing to work here.

Wining Boy, me and Lymon
fixing to move the piano.

You are not
moving this piano.

Come on, Wining Boy!
Get out the way, now!

You take this piano
out this house,

you got to
take me with it.

Get out the way,
Wining Boy.

Doaker, get him,
I ain't playing
with him now.

I'll get him, Doaker.

Come on, Wining Boy.
Boy Willie ain't
taking this piano.

You got to take me with it.

Get that end, Lymon.

Boy Willie, this thing don't
want to move.

Is Lymon here?

Lymon.

I thought
you was coming back.

I ain't gonna sit
in that truck all day.

I told you I'd be

right back.
Lymon?

You have to take
your company someplace else.

You told me you was
gonna take me
to the movies.

I got to help Boy Willie
move the piano.

I ain't waiting on you. You told
me you was coming right back.

Now you got
to move a piano?

I knew I shouldn't
have come back here.

You just like all the other men.

Something ain't right here.

I knew

I shouldn't have
come back up

in... here!

Wait! I'll be right back,
Boy Willie.

Where you going?
I got to take Grace home.

Hey, Lymon, no!

Doaker.
Uh-huh.

You feel that?

Uh-huh.

Berniece, do you feel cold?

Doaker...

I believe
that was Sutter.

Avery, go ahead
and bless the house.

You need to
bless that piano.

That's what
you need to bless.
Doaker, if he

gonna bless something,
let him bless everything.

Bless upstairs, bless the
kitchen. Go on, bless it all.

He need to bless Berniece head.

That's what he need to bless.

Berniece, hold
this candle.

And whatever you do,

you make sure
it don't go out.

Ain't no ghosts in this house.

Oh, Holy Father...

we gather here this evening
in Thy holy name

to cast out the spirit of one

James Sutter.

May this vial
of water

be empowered
with Thy spirit.

May each drop of it
be a weapon
and a shield

against the presence
of all evil.

And may it be
a cleansing
and a blessing

of this humble abode.

Where there is good,

so shall it cause
evil to scatter

to the four winds.

Get thee behind me, Satan!

Oh, man!
Get thee behind the face
of righteousness...

Yes, yes...
...as we glorify His holy name.

Get thee behind

the hammer
of truth...
Yes.

...and breaking down the walls
of falsehood.

Father, Father, praise, praise.

All this ol'
preaching stuff--

just tell him to leave.

As it is written, I will
sprinkle clean water upon ya.

And you shall be clean
from all your uncleanliness,

and from all
your idols will
I cleanse you.

Boy Willie!

A new heart also will I give ya.

And a new spirit
will I put...
Hey, Sutter!

Hey, Sutter,
get out of this house!

Hey, you want some water?
I got water for you!

Get out of this house!
Hey, Sutter, get out.

Sutter. Sutter!

Boy Willie!
Boy Willie, no!

Don't go in there!

Willie!

Come on, Avery,
don't stop now.

Berniece, I can't.

Avery, come on!
Avery, don't!

Berniece, I can't
do this.
Avery!

Sutter!

Mama Berniece!

Sutter!

Mama Esther!

Help me!

Papa Boy Charles...

I want you to help me.

I want you to help me!

Mama Ola, I want you to help me!

Help me!

Thank you, Father.

Help me!

Boy Willie?

Papa Boy Charles!
Papa!

Mama Berniece!
Help me! Help me!

Berniece.
It's okay, Berniece.
Oh!

Boy Willie's okay.
Oh!

He's okay, all right?

Nothing's wrong.

He's all right.
Everything's gonna
be all right.

Mama Berniece.

Thank you, thank you,
Papa Boy Charles.

Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you, Mama Ola.

Thank you. Oh! Oh, thank you.

Thank you. Oh!

Thank you.
Oh!

Oh, yes.

Thank you. Thank you. Oh...

Come on, boy.

All right.
All right,
Berniece.

Take care of him.

Take care this old brother.

Oh, hey, baby... You keep
playing that piano, hear?

All right.

All right now,
you have a safe trip

and you say hello
to all the folks
down there for me.

Sooner than you think.

All right, Wining Boy.

Come here, sugar!

Okay, Doak.

All right now.
You take care of
yourself, hear?

Okay.
And write.

Berniece, if you and Maretha
don't keep playing

on that piano,
ain't no telling.

Me and Sutter both liable
to be back.

Mm.

All right, Lymon.

Would someone please
help me with my trunk?

Oh, come on, Lymon!