[Tempo: 74 BPM] [Mood: Haunting, sorrowful, Southern folk lament; slow and mournful ballad] [Intro] [Style: Traditional folk-blues intro, stripped-down] [Instrumentation: Fingerpicked acoustic guitar in minor key, slow tempo, faint room reverb] [Vocals: Solo female voice, weary and heartfelt, light vibrato] "There is a house in New Orleans, they call the Rising Sun..." [Verse 1] [Style: Slow Americana folk storytelling] [Instrumentation: Acoustic guitar and subtle upright bass; sparse snare taps with brushes] [Vocals: Intimate, confessional tone with emotional restraint] "It’s been the ruin of many a poor girl, and me, oh Lord, was one My mother was a tailor, she sewed them new blue jeans. My lover, he was a gambler, oh Lord, gambled down in New Orleans." [Verse 2] [Style: Blues-folk continuation, deepening tragedy] [Instrumentation: Slight harmonic drone from violin or harmonica, low bass resonance] [Vocals: Quiet, cracked emotion; occasional breath breaks for realism] "My lover, he was a gambling man, he went from town to town; And the only time he was satisfied was when he drank his liquor down." [Verse 3] [Mood: Warning and reflection] [Style: Folk ballad with moral turn] [Instrumentation: Guitar softens; brief pause before delivery of key lines] [Vocals: Spoken-sung warning tone, channeling maternal echo] "If I’d only list’nd when my dear mamma said: Beware, my child, when you roam, Keep away from drunkards and all those gambling men, It’s best by far to come home." [Verse 4] [Style: Traditional lament resolution] [Instrumentation: Fiddle joins in low harmony; rhythm slows further] [Vocals: Pleading, somber; the storyteller warning others] "Go tell my baby sister, never do like I have done But to shun that house in New Orleans that they call the Rising Sun." [Outro] [Style: Slow fade; final reflection] [Instrumentation: Guitar alone; final chord rings out with echo] [Vocals: Soft resignation, whispered tone fading into silence] "With one foot on the platform, and one foot on the train I’m going back to New Orleans to wear the ball and chain. I’m going back to New Orleans, the race is almost run; I’m going back to spend the rest of my life."
