... as the show was about to begin. So we went in and took a chance...
Great! The band was Quicksand Soup. Here's how they looked and sounded on the same stage a few days before we heard them.
They didn't do "Rock of Ages" the day we were there. My favorite song they played was "Sixteen Tons." Here's their studio recording of "Sixteen Tons."
From the Wikipedia article on "Sixteen Tons":
"Sixteen Tons" is a song written by Merle Travis about a coal miner, based on life in coal mines in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky.... The line "You load sixteen tons and what do you get? Another day older and deeper in debt" came from a letter written by Travis's brother John. Another line came from their father, a coal miner, who would say: "I can't afford to die. I owe my soul to the company store."Merle Travis got some fantastic letters! The brother even provided the rhyme. I'm impressed.
Now, I'm reading more about Merle Travis. What were his other songs? Well, one was "So Round, So Firm, So Fully Packed" (listen here). Travis seems to have been a master of found text. Not only did he get those "16 Tons" lines from letters, he got "So Round, So Firm, So Fully Packed" from the writing on a pack of Lucky Strike cigarettes:
The slogan "So round, so firm, so fully packed, so free and easy on the draw" was used in the Lucky Strike brand cigarette advertising of the time.The song also uses the slogans "I'd walk a mile" (from Camel cigarettes), "Just ask the man who owns one" (from Packard automobiles), and "The Pause that Refreshes" (from Coca-Cola).
ADDED: Here's a Lucky Strike commercial from 1948 where you'll hear the slogan:
That's very amusing, but please don't smoke! As President Trump says...
"Never take drugs. Don't drink alcohol. Don't smoke. Enjoy your life."
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108 comments:
Serendipitous coincidence, in light of Ann's earlier embed of Grateful Dead. My favorite Merl Travis song (and performer of same) is Jerry Garcia's version of "Dark as a Dungeon".
Trump is funny. Best Presidential sense of humor - ever.
"Sixteen Tons" <-> Tennessee Ernie Ford. Nothing more to say.
The Trump Rally tonight has a big crowd standing in the snow storm to hear about the Storm coming from declassifying what the FBI, DOJ, and
I always thought "Sixteen Tons" was a tin pan alley/Record Company song. Didn't know the guy who wrote it was a Coal miner.
...and CIA with MI6 help did to our country.
Tennessee Ernie Ford’s was the hit version in 1955.
""Sixteen Tons" <-> Tennessee Ernie Ford. Nothing more to say."
The post links to the Wikipedia article, which, of course, highlights the Tennessee Ernie Ford version. I heard that a lot as a child (without understanding the meaning at all), so that was one reason the version I heard this week appealed to me.
Anyway, lots of people have done the song. From the list at Wikipedia, I'll just cite a few:
1966: Stevie Wonder recorded a version influenced by Motown and soul music on his Down to Earth album.
1987: Johnny Cash released a country version on his album Johnny Cash Is Coming to Town.
1990: A rendition of the song by Eric Burdon was used for the opening to the comedy film Joe Versus the Volcano. Recorded in the early
2005: Punk band This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb included it on their album Dance Party...
2007: Presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich's rendition of the song on 8 January received fairly widespread TV coverage.
Here's the Dennis Kucinich version.
Hold on a sec, didn't Lucy vamp Tennessee Ernie Ford?
Hell yeah, Lucy Vamps Country Boy
LS/MFT What did those letters stand for when you were in high school? Question aimed at, at least, Viet Nam vets.
At dance class we foxtrot to the LeAnn Rimes cover of 16 Tons.
My eldest sister had the Ford version on 45 rpm. I may still have that record in a box in my basement.... along with (1) Eddie Fisher's "O My Papa!" and (2) Andy Griffith's "What It Was Was Football," and more that I can't remember....
1) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dWOsP_wly0
2) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNxLxTZHKM8
“The rally was supposed to be held in the courtyard outside, but students told me no one is on campus on Fridays bc it’s mainly a commuter school.”
Beto can't even plan, or manage a decent rally.
At dance class we foxtrot to the LeAnn Rimes cover of 16 Tons.
Try Waltzing across Texas
Daffy Duck has a wonderful way of saying "So round, so firm, so fully packed" in Book Revue. Jump ahead to 3:15, but the whole short is worth a watch.
Sixteen Tons by Tennessee Ernie Ford. Much, much better.
Lucky Strike Means Fine Tobacco
I love TEF’s 16T, but I like the way this group does it, too. It’s almost different song.
>>mockturtle said...
Sixteen Tons by Tennessee Ernie Ford. Much, much better.
Really. the Quicksand vocalist's voice is *nowhere near* gnarly enough to be convincing in that song. Pleasant enough to listen to once, I guess,
Moab: Mother of all bombs.
--Rt1Rebel
Merle Travis is still revered in the subset of guitarists that play fingerstyle, along with Chet Atkins and Jerry Reed. Those three guys taught everyone how to play.
Merle was pressured to write an album folk songs by recording execs that didn't know what folk songs are; 16 Tons and Dark as a Dungeon are two of tunes. He once said that he didn't care for 16 Tons and thought his lyrics were silly, but after Ernie Ford had his hit, it became one of his favorites, dontcha know.
Baby boomers. Our parents smoked and drank and never heard of a seatbelt or a baby seat. And yet most of us survived and many don’t want to leave the stage.
A toast to Trump, Biden, Warren, Sanders, Romney, HRC, and Althouse. You are tougher than you look and you are the most important people in the world. Never change.
I learned about Muhlenberg County through John Prine. Mr. Peabody coal train done hauled it away.
Paradise
in the Ta-Nehisi Ernie Ford version, all the miners were in black-face
My mother had an "album" of Merle Travis that I used to love when I was a tyke. It was a real album in the sense that it was a heavy cardboard with 8 internal sleeves each holding a 78RPM disk.
I've got a virtual "album" of Western Swing that, among other tunes, has Merle with "So Round So firm.
I used to have a Doug Clarke and his Hot Nuts album that also took a line from Lucky Strike:
"Two old maids,
Lying in bed,
One jumped up
And this is what she said
She said
LSMFT
(Yeah)
LSMFT
(Yeah)
Let's stop, my finger's tired.
John Henry
I like Quicksand Soup a great deal. Thanks for providing the link, Althouse.
At least when President Trump tells us not to smoke, drink or do drugs he is telling us "do as I do"
When President Obama told us that, he was saying "Do as I say, not as I do"
Who is the better role model for success in life?
I quit drugs in the 60s' smoking in the 70s and drinking in the 80s. Don't miss any of them even a little bit.
John Henry
Blogger Amadeus 48 said...
Baby boomers. Our parents smoked and drank and never heard of a seatbelt or a baby seat. And yet most of us survived and many don’t want to leave the stage.
Amen to that.
In the 50s we lived on Lake George NY. We had an aluminum boat with a 5hp Johnson. At about 10 years old I was allowed to go anywhere on the northern 10 miles of the lake. No life jacket, just an old sat flat seat cushion that would probably have helped me drown faster.
Somehow I survived.
We were up there last summer and rented a boat. I went out with my grandson, 9, and let him drive around. I avoided supervising him, though I would have kept him out of trouble if need be. I just put him in the driver's seat and told him to figure it out. My son freaked when I he found out what we had done.
John Henry
If you're still in Moab, try Desert Bistro, and sit outside.
Yes, smoking is bad, bad, bad, but can't we even take a cultural trip down memory lane without the obligatory prissy finger-waving. I suppose I can take it from Althouse, but from that paragon of personal moral rectitude, Donald Trump? It is becomink, how you say, Soviet.
I'm all in favor of taking a drink, now and then. But smoking was always a bad, dangerous habit, and i'm glad its almost disappeared. I always thought there was something weird and unnatural in lighting something and breathing in the smoke. Plus, I've never been a fan of ash trays or cigarette butts. I can remember as a kid walking along a beach and stepping on cigarette butts - yuck!
Plus smoking a cigarette makes men look effeminate. If you're going to smoke go with a manly cigar or pipe.
Cigarette smoking - when it became popular in the 1920's - was actually a step up in terms of tobacco use. Before then, chewing and spitting tobacco was the major American way of enjoying nicotine. Talk about gross.
"Sixteen Tons" <-> Tennessee Ernie Ford. Nothing more to say.
Yes, "Sixteen Tons" belongs to Tennessee Ernie Ford, but I think he's approve of this slower, more bluesy version. My wife and I enjoyed it. Thanks, Ann.
My dad smoked Luckies up until '57. He started in the army in WWII (Pacific Theatre), where they got'em free. The military theme is pretty obvious in these ads, where the cigarettes are marching in formation.
Wasn't Ruth a Moabite?
If there isn't a Ruth song, they could sing something by Naomi Judd.
From the Israeli spy show whose name escapes me, I finally found out that Boaz is pronounced BOHz.
Bye bye nicotine; hello cannabis!
Trump told the kids that? Obama would have been awarded another medal if he had done that.
I have "Sixteen Tons" - great song - by
Eric Burdon
Johnny Cash
Lorne Greene
Merle Travis
Tennessee Ernie Ford
Tom Jones
Yale Spizzwinks
ZZ Top w/Jeff Beck
Red Army Choir
Platters
Frank Zappa
Yep Tennessee Ernie Ford the best.
Ernest Tubb, when Country Music was COUNTRY MUSIC. Nice outfits too.
Bogart and Jack Benny, "A Lucky Strike, eh?" ... because it's "So Round, So Firm, So Fully Packed".
"...so free and easy on the draw!"
Ralph L said...
Wasn't Ruth a Moabite?
Yes, yes she was. Her people rock climbed and 4-wheeled (and worshipped idols);
but she gave it all up to take care of her mother in-law
It's hard to top Johnny Cash when you sing about toil and hard times. Maybe the Tennessee Ernie Ford version was better. Anyway it's the one people remember. Merle Travis doesn't even make the top three for recorded versions of his own song. Is that a triumph for his songwriting ability or a dis for his singing.......The lyrics to Dark as Dungeon don't make sense. The song is effective when it tells of the misery in the mines, but I don't see how that misery could become addictive. Miners are addicted to paychecks not dirty jobs breathing foul air in dangerous places.
"It can excavate 240,000 tons of coal ... daily"
+
"In 2012, each coal miner in Wyoming removed an average of 57,320 short tons of coal from the ground;"
= 57320 / 261 working days = 219 tons per day ~= 16 tons in .6 hours.
Coal mines have some very cool machinery.
Miners are addicted to paychecks not dirty jobs breathing foul air in dangerous places.
apparently though, if you dig coal with someone; they become your brother, and you can't shot to kill, even though he's a Crowder and it's your job to bring him in.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justified_(TV_series)
So, the damp must to Something to your mind, something weird and twisted
"In 2012, each coal miner in Wyoming removed an average of 57,320 short tons of coal from the ground;"
yes but;
In Wyoming they don't mine coal in dark damp holes, they mine it in the bright sun, like GOD intended
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Thunder_Coal_Mine
Gilbar per Ruth Yes, yes she was. Her people rock climbed and 4-wheeled (and worshipped idols); but she gave it all up to take care of her mother in-law
"Whither thou goest..." True but she did marry Boaz, after Naomi told her how to attract him.
"Never take drugs. Don't drink alcohol. Don't smoke. Enjoy your life."
Well, which is it?
In Wyoming they don't mine coal in dark damp holes, they mine it in the bright sun, like GOD intended
I worked at open pit and underground coal mines in Colorado, Utah, and Alberta, and underground is cooler because how could anyone not love this cute little guy?
expectant mothers, remember-- you're smoking for two!
A slimmer baby means an easier delivery!
but remember to be courteous--
if you're going to blow a fag, dont do it in the house
Fern' correctly points out that... underground is cooler
except in the Winter, when underground is MUCH warmer :)
And that little guy IS cute :)
Back on Memorial Day, 1992 (conveniently WAY past the statute of limitations)
Me and Darci and Stephanie Scudder snuck into the Martin Marietta Aggregates mine in Ames.
[which is 500' underground on the lowest level]
so, I can Honestly say that I have been under ground, in a mine, with minors :)
Can you imagine Kahmala Hahrris giving kids the advice that Trump gave them?
Trump has followed own advice and is enjoying life. Walking billboard for America he envisions.
This was the coolest gizmo, the teeth move up and down along a coal face and grind it down and the coal chunks go into the pan on at the base and get shoved out the back onto a conveyor belt. V8 powered ventilation fans are also pretty sexy.
"The brother even provided the rhyme."
I'm thinking that at that time in Muhlenberg County, "get" and "debt" didn't rhyme.
ceowen-
Loose Straps Mean......
“If you're still in Moab, try Desert Bistro, and sit outside.”
The other place we ate was the Atomic Cafe, and we did sit outside. Meade had elk stew and I had a cheeseburger.
Whilst AA was in Moab, by coinky-dink we discussed being 100 miles away having lunch at the Twin Rocks Cafe in Bluff Utah but decided not to go because it was too late in the day.
True story!
Also glad to see John Prine having a second wind. Especially love his duet with Iris Dement singing his “In Spite of Ourselves”
She don't like her eggs all runny
She thinks crossin' her legs is funny
She looks down her nose at money
She gets it on like the Easter Bunny
She's my baby, I'm her honey
I'm never gonna let her go....
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=v-YzlbgEOOA
Acapulco Gold Means Fine Weed!
Meade had elk stew and I had a cheeseburger.
Jesus ! You guys gonna give Trumpit a heart attack. Hope he isn't reading..
The lyrics to “Sixteen Tons” are friggin’ awesome. “St. Peter don’t you call out, cause I can’t go ... I owe my soul to the company store.”
Absolute poetry, the whole thing.
Apparently Lucy smoked Phillip Morris
if you dig coal with someone; they become your brother, and you can't shot to kill, even though he's a Crowder and it's your job to bring him in.
In the deep dark hills of eastern Kentucky
That's the place where I trace my bloodline
And it's there I read on a hillside gravestone
You will never leave Harlan alive
Oh, my granddad's dad walked down Katahrins Mountain
And he asked Tillie Helton to be his bride
Said, won't you walk with me out of the mouth Of this holler
Or we'll never leave Harlan alive
Where the sun comes up about ten in the morning
And the sun goes down about three in the day
And you fill your cup with whatever bitter brew you're drinking
And you spend your life just thinkin' of how to get away
No one ever knew there was coal in them mountains
Till a man from the Northeast arrived
Waving hundred dollar bills he said I'll pay ya for your minerals
But he never left Harlan alive
Granny sold out cheap and they moved out west of Pineville
To a farm where big Richland River winds
I bet they danced them a jig, laughed and sang a new song
Who said we'd never leave Harlan alive?
But the times got hard and tobacco wasn't selling
And ole granddad knew what he'd do to survive
He went and dug for Harlan coal and sent the money back to granny
But he never left Harlan alive
Where the sun comes up about ten in the morning
And the sun goes down about three in the day
And you fill your cup with whatever bitter brew you're drinking
And you spend your life just thinkin' of how to get away
Where the sun comes up about ten in the morning
And the sun goes down about three in the day
And you fill your cup with whatever bitter brew you're drinking
And you spend your life digging coal from the bottom of your grave
In the deep dark hills of eastern Kentucky
That's the place where I trace my bloodline
And it's there I read on a hillside gravestone
You will never leave Harlan alive
Next one's comin faster! :)
Or, maybe Chesterfields
John Prine, Merle Travis and the Everyly brothers are all from Muehlenberg County.
Was everyone white out there? Utah sounds so horrible. I couldn't imagine doll.
LS/MFT also translate to Loose Straps Means Floppy Tits.
Omg. The food at the restaurant is like all meat. Not fab
Not a cough in the carload..
There is a classic joke in Tex Avery's Redhot Riding Hood at 2:10. (The second "revised" title card is a cigarette joke as well). Well worth your 7min for the whole thing.
(It's a shame Warner has kept most of its and MGM's classic toons officially off youtube so you have to make links to clunky dailymotion..)
The lyrics to “Sixteen Tons” are friggin’ awesome. “St. Peter don’t you call out, cause I can’t go ... I owe my soul to the company store.”
Absolute poetry, the whole thing.
Yep:
If you see me comin', better step aside.
A lotta men didn't and a lotta men died.
One fist of iron, the other of steel.
If the right one don't get you, the left one will.
Similar lyrics to “So Round, So Firm, So Fully Packed” in “Who Stole the Kiska” ....
Fat and round and firmly packed
It was hanging on the rack
Someone stole the kishka
When I turned my back
Who stole the kishka?
Who stole the kishka?
Who stole the kishka?
Someone bring it back!
Frankie Yankovic covered this. Did he play often in Wisconsin?
Some versions of “Who Stole the Kiska” on YouTube actually say “ round and firm and fully packed”.
Waiting for the Democrat response. Chuck Schumer in a Sunday press conference: "Take drugs. Drink alcohol. Smoke. Don't enjoy your life."
I'd never heard of Gillian Welch (who wrote Rock of Ages). I've been listening to her on YouTube for the last hour. Absolutely great.
This is a great post about a great road trip to Moab.
You could garner more wisdom and insight about the world in 1 pleasant weekend in Moab, than from 4 years of reading the NYTimes.
My Dad's gf for a few years whose doctor son practiced in Harlan KY out of med school. He said miners were doing whatever they could to get a black lung diagnosis to get the lifetime benefits--and the better-looking women who chased the money.
Interesting to see the discussion of "Sixteen Tons" which was a big hit by Tennessee Ernie when I was in high school.
Titus said... Omg. The food at the restaurant is like all meat. Not fab
no it's Not! i double checked, and there's Chicken, and Duck too!
"Never take drugs. Don't drink alcohol. Don't smoke. Enjoy your life."
Part of my enjoyment in life is a glass of wine with my meal. Trump shouldn't be castrated for saying that, but it's close.
In order to save the planet from environmental destruction, all male babies should be castrated at birth for at least 10 years. Most sperm banks should be shut down. Buy stock in dildos! You must understand the severity of the problems humanity faces.
Green Bay has just heard Trump's best speech yet. He really connects with his supporters. The 2020 election should just be declared over by forfeit.
"This Old House" has got good lyrics too, with the Angel Gabriel instead of Saint Peter as the celestial interlocutor.
The singer in "this old house" describes the lousy condition his house is in, because he is either old or very sick, and near death - broken window panes, broken doors - and a dog howling because the owner is not going to hunt with it anymore --- but the singer states that "I feel no fear of pain because there's an angel looking though a broken window pane" - or something like that, I am quoting through memory.
I get it that coal miners have now and always have had a hard life, and let them brag as much as they want. I'd brag too about how hard my life was and how tough I was if I were a coal miner.
But we all have a hard life and MOST of us are going to die ---- and ALL of us are probably going to die if the world does not end within our lifetimes (for further details, read the bios of Enoch, Ezekiel, Mary of Nazareth, and the relevant chapters of Thessalonians and Revelation).
If you are human, you can't surrender - you have to be tough enough to refuse to surrender --- God does not want you to surrender, and there is nobody but God to whom you can surrender and remain human ---- all you can do is care about other people or not care about other people. (Bernanos, La Joie, page 197, Tacoma Washington, Cluny Media, 2017 ....."Can't you understand ? To whom does one surrender ? To whom does one surrender one's soul ? ....... one gives oneself or one refuses oneself, but does one surrender?"
oh and that probably was a good speech by Trump, goes without saying.
strange that he does not have a couple of dogs. not even a cat.
"not having a dog or cat" is worse than :having an occasional drink or an occasional cigar."
much worse.
but i am sure it was a pretty good speech anyway, as politicians go he knows how to give a speech.
"You could garner more wisdom and insight about the world in 1 pleasant weekend in Moab, than from 4 years of reading the NYTimes."
What does "garner" mean? I think you are trolling us with nonsensical comments.
Two old ladies sitting in the sand,
Each one wishing that the other was a man,
One turned to the other and this is what she said,
LSMFT,
Lets stop, my fingers tired
Where did you stay in Moab?
Tennesee Ernie Ford was so lucky he was born where he was -- just a couple of miles north and he would have been Virginia Ford.
In the top country hits chart for 1949 - Merle Travis charted at number 96 with “What a Shame” and Frank Yankovic and the Yanks charted at number 97 with “The Iron Range”. A cross-over polka..... seems like a lot of songs back then revolved around mining. Hard pressed to name many social media songs on the current charts. Seems songs about working people are passé.
seems like a lot of songs back then revolved around mining.
At the bottom of this mine, lies a big, big man.
Have you seen my wife, Mr. Jones?
Hi Ho Hi Ho , Its Off To Work We Go!! We did dig dig dig dig dig dig dig In our mine the whole day through To dig dig dig dig dig dig dig dig Its what we like
Anyone who can make sense of the liberal boomer/bourgeois supporting Marijuana smoking while opposing Tobacco smoking, please give me a call. My number is:
1-800-Its all about the $$$.
Tradguy suggests: The 2020 election should just be declared over by forfeit.
It certainly would make life easier for everyone. And save a lot of money, too.
I absolutely love Moab, UT! Any outdoor person needs to visit Moab and the surrounding area and really spend some time there to get to know the area. This is the hiking, biking, camping, 4 wheeling, rafting and kayaking mecca for the US all rolled into 1 area. That does not even include the history of dinosaur tracks, pictographs, ancient dwellings and fossils all found nearby. Every outdoor person owes it to themself to explore Moab and the surrounding area, you will not be disappointed! Don't miss the hike to Delicate Arch in Canyonlands National Park-truly worth the effort!
@orly
The Hyatt.
I wouldn’t choose that hotel again though because the ventilation system was loud and the windows didn’t open. Had to turn off the system and hope for the best. It was expensive, so that’s something that really should be right.
Also I got carded in the bar there.
Also I got carded in the bar there.
That's a plus, no?
"Also I got carded in the bar there."
You shouldn't brag Professor. :)
Q: How can you tell if you're wearing too much lipstick?
A: When you get carded in a bar even with your AARP lapel pin on.
I don't often do this, but I attended a concert on Friday.
It was free but not entirely. It was the Solidarity Concert at St. Patrick's Cathedral on 5th Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. One of four arranged in the United States as a venue for Franco-American friendship and support in the wake of Notre Dame. A friend at work made sure to invite me but in fact it was open to the public.
The church's organist, Daniel Brondel, played several striking numbers:
https://saintpatrickscathedral.org/events/organ-recital-daniel-brondel-st-patricks-cathedral
Some of those low registers will really ring your chimes. Apparently Notre Dame had an early 32-footer which was a point of Pride there and they used it, so Brondel felt it appropriate to emulate.
Aside from the beautiful music, the gorgeous architecture, and the incredibly hard wooden pews, I remember about 30 seconds where I was thinking if and when somebody was going to come in and shoot up or blow up the place. I thought, that's okay, I'm in good company, bring it. I just wished NYC wasn't so restrictive with firearms so that I could be more than a bullet soak.
And then the music started and my fool mind shut up and listened.
I worked in underground uranium in ambrosia lake NM during summer breaks to pay for Mining Engineering School. The song’s phrase “ A man will have lust for the lure of the mine.” Rings true. Mines are cool places where you have to be rough and tough and know your stuff.
Merle Travis invented a new method of playing finger-style bluegrass guitar: the thumb alternates between two different strings for the bass note. Probably his biggest legacy.
doing whatever they could to get a black lung diagnosis to get the lifetime benefits
The summer I worked in Germany, there were two doctors in town: the company doctor and the worker's doctor. The workers from Italy and Spain all went to the worker's doctor before they returned home so they could get a couple of weeks off and recover their earnings from the German healthcare system.
Sounds like a cool destination and a great trip! Always interested in music posts. More please.
Impeach and install the corrupt money grubbers!
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