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father songs

05 Jun 06 - 12:38 PM (#1753374)
Subject: father songs
From: open mike

I am considering doing a special this month on songs about fathers..
>any suggestions?

>Last month I had a couple of hours of "mother" songs on my show,
>as May is the month when Mother's Day is scheduled,
>and it seems like the logical follow-up for the month of June,
>when Father's Day is.

I have heard of a few from other folk d.j.'s:

Greg Brown--Daughters

several songs called My Old Man..by David Mallett and others

Patsy Montana has a song called My Dad Got A Job (Up In Heaven)

any other suggestions from mudcats?

[Some song titles in this thread have been converted to links by a Mudelf.]


05 Jun 06 - 01:05 PM (#1753389)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: open mike

in the interests in NOT re-inventing the wheel
i checked the DT and found (at least) one of interest
JOHNNY BE FAIR (Buffy Ste. Marie)

which is a song that i have heard sung by mudcatter Marion


05 Jun 06 - 01:09 PM (#1753393)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Wesley S

Chet Atkins sang { yes - sang } a song called "My Fathers Hat". There won't be a dry eye in the house if you sing it.


05 Jun 06 - 01:13 PM (#1753394)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: John MacKenzie

My Father by Judy Collins.

My Old Man's a Dustman. Lonnie Donegan

My Old man said Follow the Van.

Oh mein Papa.

Oh mi Papino Caro

Giok


05 Jun 06 - 01:15 PM (#1753397)
Subject: Lyr Add: I STILL CAN'T SAY GOODBYE (Chet Atkins)
From: Wesley S

I was wrong about the title of the Chet Atkins song -

"I Still Can't Say Goodbye" - by Chet Atkins
http://www.knopfler.net/mp3/chet.mp3

Spoken introduction:
"You know, every time I look in the mirror I see my Dad.
I think that's why this song means so much to me."

When I was young, my Dad would say:
Come on, son, let's go out and play
Sometimes it seems like yesterday.

And I'd climb up the closet shelf
when I was all by myself
Grab his hat and fix the brim,
pretending I was him

No matter how hard I try
No matter how many tears I cry
No matter how many years go by
I still can't say good-bye

He always took care of mom and me.
We all cut down a Christmas tree
He always had some time for me.

Wind blows through the trees,
street lights, they still shine bright
Most things are the same
but I miss my Dad tonight

I walked by a Salvation Army store
Saw a hat like my daddy wore
Tried it on when I walked in,
Still trying to be like him

No matter how hard I try
No matter how many years go by
No matter how many tears I cry
I still can't say good-bye


05 Jun 06 - 01:47 PM (#1753415)
Subject: Lyr Add: THAT SILVER-HAIRED DADDY OF MINE (G Autry
From: Terry K

"That Silver Haired Daddy of Mine" - didn't Simon & Garfunk do it? Very sickly - could be just what you're looking for!

THAT SILVER-HAIRED DADDY OF MINE - Gene Autry

In a vine covered shack in the mountains,   (D)
Bravely fighting the battle of time,   (A7)
Is a dear one who's weathered life's sorrows,   (D, G)
'Tis that silver-haired daddy of mine.   (D, A7, D)

REFRAIN: If I could recall all the heartache,   (D)
Dear old Daddy I've caused you to bear,   (G, D)
If I could erase the lines from your face,   (A7, D)
And bring back the gold to your hair,   (E, A)
If God would but grant me the power,   (D)
Just to turn back the pages of time,   (A7)
I'd give all I own if I could but atone,   (D, D7, G)
To that silver-haired daddy of mine.   (D, A7, D)

I know it's too late dear old daddy,
To repay all the sorrow and care,
But dear Mother is waiting in heaven,
Just to comfort and solace you there.

(Refrain)


05 Jun 06 - 01:51 PM (#1753420)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Rapparee

I had one in mind, but all I can think of now is "Pop! Goes the weasel" and that ain't it.


05 Jun 06 - 02:48 PM (#1753437)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: fat B****rd

It's very "Landon" but Ian Dury's "My Old Man" is quite beautiful.


05 Jun 06 - 03:20 PM (#1753453)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Effsee

Eric Bogle - No Use For Him
Ditto - Little Scraps of Paper
Ewan MacColl - My Old Man
Ditto - Father's Song
Finbar Furey - My Old Man


05 Jun 06 - 03:41 PM (#1753474)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Charmain

And old family favourite:

Don't jump off the roof, Dad
You'll make a hole in the yard
Mother's just planted petunias
And don't you know she worked hard
If you want to end all Dad
Why don't you give us a break
Take a walk to the park Dad
There you can jump in the lake

Strange - my Dad never quite saw the funny side...We liked it though


05 Jun 06 - 04:21 PM (#1753489)
Subject: Lyr/Chords Add: CHILD'S SONG (Murray McLaughlan)
From: Wesley S

Tom Rush       Child's Song   written by Murray McLaughlan

                                                
Tom Rush         vocals/acoustic guitar
Trevor Veitch    guitar
Duke Bardwell    bass
Warren Bernhardt piano
Herb Lovelle    drums

E       A                E
Goodbye momma goodbye to you too pa
F#m                                              A   Amaj7
Little sister you'll have to wait a while to come along
E                A          E
Goodybye to this house and all it's memories
F#m                              A   Amaj7
We just got too old to say we're wrong
E      E/D#    E/C#      E/B   Amaj7
Got to make one last trip to my bedroom
E          E/D#    E/C#       E/B   Amaj7                  
Guess I'll have to leave some stuff behind
E          E/D#    D/C#    E/B    Amaj7
It's funny how the same old crooked pictures
E          E/D#    D/C#    E/B Amaj7
Just don't seem the same to me tonight
E             A               E      
There ain't no use in sheding lonely tears mamma
F#m                                  A   Amaj7
There ain't no use in shouting at me pa
E               A                E
I can't live no longer with your fears mamma
F#m                                  A Amaj7
I love you but that hasn't helped at all
E       E/D#    E/C#          E/B Amaj7
Each of us must do the things that matter
E      E/D#    E/C#       E/B Amaj7
All of us must see what we can see
E      E/D#    E/C# E/B    Amaj7
It was long ago you must remember
E       E/D#    E/C#      E/B       Amaj7
You were once as young and scared as me
E            A                  E
I don't know how hard it is yet mamma
F#m                              A Amaj7
When you relaize you're growning old
E          A                E
I know how hard is not to be younger
F#m                                     A Amaj7
I know you've tried to keep me from the cold
E          E/D#    E/C#       E/B   Amaj7
Thanks for all you done it may sound hollow
E         E/D#    E/C#            E/B   Amaj7
Thank you for the good times that we've known
E    E/D#      E/C#       E/B    Amaj7
But I must find my own road now to follow
E       E/D#   E/C#    E/B   Amaj7
You will all be welcome in my home
E          A               E
Got my suitacse I must go now
F#m                               A Amj7
I don't mind about the things you said
E         A                         E
I'm sorry Mom I don't know where I'm going
F#m                         A   Amqj7
Remember little sister look ahead
E       E/D#      E/C#    E/B   Amaj7   
Tomorrow I'll be   in some other sunrise
E    E/D#      E/C#    E/B   Amaj7
Maybe I'll have someone at my side
E                                 Amaj7
Mamma give your love back to your husband
E                                 Amaj7
Father you've have taught we well goodbye
E       A                   E   A   E            
Goodbye Mamma goodbye to you too pa


From Tom Rush
Columbia Records


05 Jun 06 - 04:22 PM (#1753490)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Sandy Mc Lean

I often sing "The Old Man". See Effsee's list but it should be "the" rather than "my". It is in the DT. It was written by Phill Coulter after the death of the Furey Brothers' father, who was a respected fiddler in his own right. Finbar recorded the song with an amazing amount of emotion. I first heard him sing it in a concert and bought the tape from them the same night so I could learn it. It was also later recorded by John McDermott. A great song by both!
Sandy


05 Jun 06 - 04:32 PM (#1753494)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Effsee

Thank Sandy! Jings, the things you learn on this site. I've enjoyed that song for years without knowing it was a PC composition.
Finbar's Dad, Ted, was a one time All Ireland Champion fiddler.


05 Jun 06 - 04:38 PM (#1753497)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Bill Hahn//\\

Here are a few:

Michael Smith's    I Brought My Father With Me (Covered by others as well)

Steve Goodman's    My Old Man   (Covered by John Prine)

Groucho Marx       Der Alte Mann
                   Dad You've Been Like A Mother To Us


Bill Hahn
Traditions/ Sunday Simcha


05 Jun 06 - 04:58 PM (#1753529)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Charley Noble

Si Kahn has a number that fit this category including "Daddy Don't You Tell No Lies."

I'm also fond of his "Gone, Gonna Rise Again" song.

Charley Noble


05 Jun 06 - 05:21 PM (#1753539)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Sorcha

Father, Dear Father, Come Home with Me Now, the clock in the steeple strikes one....


05 Jun 06 - 05:30 PM (#1753542)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: open mike

Greg Brown has a song "Same Damn Hat" about his father,
and how we are similar to our folks.

how would i locate the one by the Furey's ?
i have seen it mentioned a few times,
but have never run across these musicians.

What label? what date? and any other clues ?


05 Jun 06 - 05:48 PM (#1753557)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: GUEST,Jim

Jerry Jeff Walker has a song called My Old Man.


05 Jun 06 - 06:09 PM (#1753569)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Sandy Mc Lean

OM
Look here:
   http://www.thefureys.com/pressrelease.htm
          and here:
   http://www.finbarfurey.com/
Sorry but you'll have to paste the URL.


05 Jun 06 - 06:16 PM (#1753571)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: BusyBee Paul

Talking with My Father - Dougie Maclean.

I've only ever heard Duncan McFarlane's version on his Bed of Straw CD.

Very moving.


05 Jun 06 - 06:16 PM (#1753572)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: John MacKenzie

Don't Sell Daddy Any More Whiskey, it's in the DT.
G.


05 Jun 06 - 06:23 PM (#1753580)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: dick greenhaus

Of course, there's our own Micca's "The Hash My Father Scored"
and "The Dream of the Miner's Child"
and the heavy in a whole bunch of Child Ballads.


05 Jun 06 - 06:23 PM (#1753581)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: open mike

thanks for the info and the links...


05 Jun 06 - 06:24 PM (#1753582)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: GUEST

Michael Smith"s "I Brought My Father With Me"......Frank Of Toledo


05 Jun 06 - 06:25 PM (#1753583)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Sorcha

Don't Go Down in the Mine, Dad


05 Jun 06 - 07:00 PM (#1753606)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Bob the Postman

My Dad's Dinner Pail


05 Jun 06 - 08:50 PM (#1753688)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: SharonA

Paradise ("Daddy, won't you take me back to Muhlenberg County...")

Daddy's Hands (Holly Dunn)

Dan Fogelberg wrote a song about his father but the title escapes me at the moment. [Leader of the Band]


05 Jun 06 - 09:04 PM (#1753696)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Sandy Mc Lean

open mike,
   I have sent you a PM about The Old Man.
                Sandy


05 Jun 06 - 09:13 PM (#1753706)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: open mike

Oh, this is going to be a great collection..
thanks for all the advice and info, folkies.

I have everything from good dads to abusive ones,
and from pleasant memories to struggles.

thanks, and keep 'em coming...

Laurel


05 Jun 06 - 09:47 PM (#1753738)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Desert Dancer

Grandfather's Clock?

And perhaps not -- Liverpool Lullaby

~ Becky in Tucson


05 Jun 06 - 10:05 PM (#1753750)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Charley Noble

No one has mentioned Arlo Guthrie's classic, "Alice's Restaurant" with its relevant reference to "father-rapers."

Charley Ignoble


05 Jun 06 - 10:17 PM (#1753758)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: cptsnapper

"Please Don't Sell My Daddy No More Wine" though I can't remember who wrote it or sang it.


06 Jun 06 - 08:22 AM (#1754018)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Paco Rabanne

Father and Son - Cat Stevens.


06 Jun 06 - 02:50 PM (#1754307)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: open mike

thanks for all the good suggestions.
for fathers and grandfathers..

Laurel


06 Jun 06 - 03:07 PM (#1754325)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Cool Beans

Father Along (sorry).
I'm My Own Grandpa.
When Father Papered the Parlour.
Daddy Sang Bass.


07 Jun 06 - 08:49 AM (#1754890)
Subject: Lyr Add: MY OLD MAN (Steve Goodman)
From: Mr Fox

Anybody mentioned 'Cat's in the Cradle' yet? And how about:

My Old Man
(Steve Goodman)

I miss the old man tonight, I wish he was here with me
With his corny jokes and his cheap cigar
He could look you in the eye and sell you a car
That's not an easy thing to do
But no one ever knew a finer man in all this land
Than my old man

He never talked about his war, in France when he was eighteen
The day they put him in a trench was the day he learnt sense
And he never again used violence
He got out of uniform
Came home and married mum, and not so very long after that
He was my old man

I remember the fights we had, my sisters and I got him mad
He'd get all boiled up, he'd sometimes shout
We knew what was coming so we tuned him out
Now the old man's gone
I'd give all I own to know what he said when I wasn't listening
To my old man

I miss the old man tonight, I can almost see his face
He was always trying to watch his weight
But his heart only made it to fifty-eight
For the first time since he died
Late last night I cried - I wondered when I was going to do that
For my old man


07 Jun 06 - 12:04 PM (#1755039)
Subject: Lyr Add: OLD FATHER FALL (Sally Rogers)
From: Charley Noble

This is one from Sally Rogers that I've always liked but never dared sing:

OLD FATHER FALL

(By Sally Rogers ©1975
Recorded on IN THE CIRCLE OF THE SUN
Thrushwood Records #2, © 1982)

Old Father Fall
Rusty and weathered
Summertime's beggar in patchwork and pins;
Brisk autumn seas,
Seagulls' companion,
Rushing white lion,
After pebbles and fins.

Chorus:

And I wonder what happens
To summer boats on the ocean,
And their dry-docked old captains
With salty gray beards;
To choices and voices,
On those scrubbed teaky timbers,
Polished brass, tarnished memories,
Of love lost and won.

The sea claimed his soul
And his soul was the ocean,
Never slowing or stopping
For those on the shore;
And his life was a dream,
Carried by mainsails,
And was drowned in those same sails
In the fall of a dream. (CHO)

And now he's alone,
A grounded old captain,
Without crew, sails or sextant
to show him the way;
And they've left him alone
With his wants and his need-be's
He just wanted to be free
Of family and fear. (CHO)

Charley Noble


07 Jun 06 - 06:00 PM (#1755251)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: TheBigPinkLad

June Tabor does a choker version of The Cloud Factory.


08 Jun 06 - 12:57 AM (#1755524)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: jaze

"To Daddy" written by Dolly Parton & recorded by Emmylou Harris

"Please Daddy, Don't Get Drunk This Christmas" recorded by John Denver-not sure if he wrote it.


08 Jun 06 - 01:29 PM (#1755662)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: JohnInKansas

Any list of songs about fathers should include

A Boy Named Sue.

Viewed as an allegory, the ending with grudging acceptance is about all many fathers can expect, even when their motives are purposeful. True realism - in an exaggerated sort of way.

John


08 Jun 06 - 09:09 PM (#1755942)
Subject: RE: father songs-(
From: Severn

I forgot the name of the CD, as I gave it to a friend a while ago who had recently had a kid, but, from another point of view, Sugar Hill put out a CD of fathers singing lullabies for their kids with Doc Watson, Tim O'Brien, The Red Clay Ramblers, The Seldom Scene and others in their folk & bluegrass stable of artists.

Papa's On The Housetop - Jim Kweskin (with and w/o the jug band)
My Old Man - Jim Kweskin Jug Band (Yet another song by that name)
The End Of The Rainbow - Richard Thompson
Your Dad Did - John Hiatt
Me And All The Mothers, Dilated To Meet You and any number of other father songs written by Loudon Wainwright III
Tom Paxton has a couple, for that matter.
No Deeper Blue - Townes Van Zandt
Papa Was A Rolling Stone - The Temptations
The Miller's Will - New Lost City Ramblers
Come Home, Father - Joan Morris, William Bolcom & Clifford Jackson (the Henry Clay Work Original) or Poor Little Bennie - Bela Lam & His Greene County Singers (the country version from a '78).
Hang On The Bell, Nellie - Joe Hickerson or The Chad Mitchell Trio
Everybody Works But Father - ?
My Father's Son - Ricky Skaggs
Carpenter of Wood - The Bluegrass Cardinals


Maybe more later...


08 Jun 06 - 09:28 PM (#1755955)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: GUEST,Joe_F

They're Moving Father's Grave to Build a Sewer

Father's Whiskers

--- Joe Fineman    joe_f@verizon.net

||: Had enough? Drop dead. :||


08 Jun 06 - 09:46 PM (#1755963)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: jaze

"Daddies Sing Goodnight" is the name of the lullaby cd. Also," Gulf Winds" by Joan Baez is largely about her father.


08 Jun 06 - 09:50 PM (#1755966)
Subject: RE: A bit father on- more songs
From: Severn

Some fathers in dubious situations:

Bungle Rye - Clancys, Dubliners, Gordon Bok, Corries, etc.

Rocking The Cradle - Ian Campbell Group

The Cherry Tree Carol - (Pick your favorite version)

or Cry of a Tiny Babe - Bruce Cockburn w/ Lou Reed, Roseanne Cash & Rob Wasserman (on a CD of The Columbia Records Radio Hour Vol.1) for views of the "ultimate stepfather" Hail Joseph!

Unwed Fathers - John Prine

The Bedmaking - Martin Carthy


09 Jun 06 - 11:21 AM (#1756058)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Splott Man

Huw Williams - We Stayed Awake -a beautiful song
Shel Silverstein - Father of a Boy Named Sue - It's a cracker!


10 Jun 06 - 01:06 AM (#1756511)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Bugsy

A favourite of mine:

"My Daddy and Me" - Tom Paxton

Or for a little light relief, "Please Daddy (Don't Get Drunk This Christmas)" - John Denver

Cheers


Bugsy


10 Jun 06 - 01:28 AM (#1756517)
Subject: Lyr Add: LEADER OF THE BAND (Dan Fogelberg)
From: Pauline L

One of my very favorite songs is Leader of the Band (Dan Fogelberg)

LEADER OF THE BAND
Dan Fogelberg
        
An only child alone and wild
A cab'net maker's son
His hands were meant for diff'rent work
And his heart was known to none
He left his home and went his lone and solitary way
And he gave to me a gift
I know I never can repay

A quiet man of music
Denied a simpler fate
He tried to be a soldier once
But his music wouldn't wait
He earned his love thru' discipline
A thund'ring velvet hand
His gentle means of sculpting souls
Took me years to understand

The leader of the band
Is tired and his eyes are growing old
But his blood runs thru' my instrument
And his song is in my soul
My life has been a poor attempt to imitate the man
I'm just a living legacy
To the leader of the band

My brother's lives were diff'rent
For they heard another call
One went to Chicago and the other to St. Paul
And I'm in Colorado
When I'm not in some hotel
Living out this life I've chose
And come to know so well

I thank you for the music
And your stories of the road
I thank you for the freedom
When it came my time to go
I thank you for the kindness
And the times when you got tough
And papa I don't think I said
"I love you" near enough

The leader of the band
Is tired and his eyes are growing old
But his blood runs thru' my instrument
And his song is in my soul
My life has been a poor attempt to imitate the man
I'm just a living legacy
To the leader of the band
I am the living legacy
To the leader of the band

------------------

The Marvelous Toy (Tom Paxton)

---------------------

A beautiful, sad song whose name I can't remember, written by our own El Greko (George Papavgeris)


10 Jun 06 - 08:33 AM (#1756635)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: open mike

thanks for all suggestions, additions, and submissions.

I will be doing my radio show today from 2-4 pacific time and will feature songs about fathers. krbs is on www.radiobirdstreet.org.

Yes I have El Greko's song...a very touching one...

and Chet Atkins' and the Furey Brothers'

and also a recording of my dad singing The Ash Grove...


10 Jun 06 - 08:48 AM (#1756638)
Subject: Lyr Add: COME HOME FATHER (Henry Clay Work, 1864)
From: Bonnie Shaljean

Two great Mick Hanly ones, one much more well known: "Lets Have One More From The Daddy" (referring to songs in a singaround or family gathering) and the darker "Daddy Come Down" which is a child's-eye view of a drunken father, the child understanding much more than he wants to about what's going on. The coming-down refers to coming down the stairs at home, more often than not the worse for wear. The only bit of its words I can remember is "Daddy come down, Daddy come down, Daddy don't come down with flames on your breath." A great song which I would love to get ahold of but it's not on his website or recorded CD's.

Sorcha, you beat me to it, so just to get even, here are the words to Father Dear Father (nyah nyah) :-)

Father, dear father, come home with me now,
The clock in the steeple strikes one;
You said you were coming right home from the shop
As soon as your day's work was done;
Our fire has gone out, our house is all dark,
And mother's been watching since tea,
With poor brother Benny so sick in her arms
And no one to help her but me,
Come home! come home! come home!
Please father, dear father, come home.

Chorus:
Hear the sweet voice of the child,
Which the night-winds repeat as they roam;
Oh who could resist this most plaintive of prayers
"Please father, dear father, come home."

Father, dear father, come home with me now,
The clock in the steeple strikes two;
The night has grown colder, and Benny is worse
But he has been calling for you:
Indeed he is worse, ma says he will die--
Perhaps before morning shall dawn;
And this is the message she sent me to bring
"Come quickly, or he will be gone."
Come home! come home! come home!
Please father, dear father, come home.

Chorus

Father, dear father, come home with me now,
The clock in the steeple strikes three;
The house is so lonely, the hours are so long,
For poor weeping mother and me;
Yes, we are alone, poor Benny is dead,
And gone with the angels of light;
And these were the very last words that he said
"I want to kiss papa good-night."
Come home! come home! come home!
Please father, dear father, come home.

Chorus


10 Jun 06 - 06:46 PM (#1756985)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: GUEST,clive

My favorite song on this theme does not have "father" in the title, but Eric Bogle's 'Little Bit of Paper' says more than most songs on the subject.


11 Jun 06 - 12:10 PM (#1757249)
Subject: Lyr Add: THE SCULPTOR (Mike Campbell)
From: Alaska Mike

I wrote this in 1994 about my dad. I still use his artwork on the covers of my CDs.

The Sculptor
by Mike Campbell

When I was a young man I found me a sweetheart,
I carried her books as we walked home from school.
But then when she left me to walk with another,
My poor heart was broken, I felt like a fool
But my father, the sculptor, said son do not worry,
For if you are patient and careful and wise,
You will find you a new love and she�ll bring you true love,
Your heart will be filled when you look in her eyes.

True to his wisdom and just as he told me,
I found my true love in my twenty-third year.
But marriage and children and building a family,
Can bring on more problems than stories you hear.
But my father, the sculptor, said son do not worry,
For if you are patient and careful and wise,
You will let your love guide you and not become blind to,
The wonders and good times your family provides.

He made art out of stone, out of wood, out of bone,
Sometimes he would work through the night in our home.
He could take things in pieces and then make them whole,
And he worked hard at sculpting my soul.

As our children grew older they had many interests,
They blossomed and tried many things on their own.
But once in a while, they would clash with their parents,
Oh, it seemed like, to them, they would never be grown.
Then Grandpa, the sculptor, would say kids don�t worry,
For if you are patient and careful and wise,
You will get through these times when no one understands you,
And cherish these years 'til the day that you die.

Now my wife and I sit on our boat on the ocean,
We'll watch the sunset and think back on good times,
And although the sculptor is no longer with us,
The love that he showed us continues to shine.
For throughout our lives we have tried not to worry,
We've worked to be patient and careful and wise,
Now we play with our grandkids and watch them as they live,
And try our own hand at sculpting their lives.

He made art out of stone, out of wood, out of bone,
Sometimes he would work through the night in our home.
He could take things in pieces and then make them whole,
And he worked hard at sculpting my soul.


11 Jun 06 - 12:14 PM (#1757253)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: Bonnie Shaljean

What a super song, Mike!


11 Jun 06 - 10:25 PM (#1757661)
Subject: Lyr Add: HERE'S TO YOU ROUNDERS (Don Lang)
From: GUEST,Art Thieme

A great one, albeit about his grandfather, is Don Lang's "Here's To You Rounders":

I never knew my grandad--he was always on the bum,
Every September he'd grab him a southbound and he'd ride,
Long about Christmas, me and my brother
We would get us some cons in the mail,
But we couldn't spend 'em---it was all he could send
From the Mexico City jail.

CHORUS
Here's to you rounders and here's to you railroad bums,
Hoping that you make it home soon,
Here's to the women who married for love
And lived with the man in the moon.

One time near the end he rolled into town,
He was riding on the Greyhound line,
He must've got old and those boxcars got harder to climb,
He dropped his last dime in a call to my granny,
But, "NO!" was her only reply,
She hung up the phone, cursed him in German,
But I saw the pain in her yes.

I never knew my grandad---he was always on the bum,
The Salvation Army, they sent us a note when he died,
Now me and my brother we carry the memory
Of a face that we never did see,
Like some foreign coin laying' cold in the pocket
Of a young boy's faded bluejeans.
--------------------------------------------------------

I recorded this song on my first ever solo LP album:---"Art Thieme--Outright Boldfaced Lies--Live At The Old Town School Of Folk Music"---Kicking Mule Records (KM-150)
Long out of print... -- A.T.


11 Jun 06 - 10:44 PM (#1757678)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: GUEST,2feathers

Charmain's lyrics seem to go with the melody of "Swet Rosie O'Grady"
Made me laugh, but I can understand her father's reaction to it.


12 Jun 06 - 04:58 AM (#1757787)
Subject: Lyr Add: THE BREAD KNIFE BALLAD (Robert Service)
From: Sandy Mc Lean

The Bread-Knife Ballad
Robert Service

A little child was sitting Up on her mother's knee
And down down her cheeks the bitter tears did flow.
And as I sadly listened I heard this tender plea,
'Twas uttered in a voice so soft and low.

Chorus:
       "Please Mother don't stab Father with the BREAD-KNIFE,
       Remember 'twas a gift when you were wed.
       But if you must stab Father with the BREAD-KNIFE,
       Please Mother use another for the BREAD."

"Not guilty" said the Jury And the Judge said "Set her free,
But remember it must not occur again.
And next time you must listen to you little daughter's plea,"
Then all the Court did join in this refrain.

       Chorus:
       "Please Mother don't stab Father with the BREAD-KNIFE,
       Remember 'twas a gift when you were wed.
       But if you must stab Father with the BREAD-KNIFE,
       Please Mother use another for the BREAD."

Online text © 1998-2006 Poetry X. All rights reserved.
From Bar-Room Ballads


06 Jul 11 - 07:18 AM (#3182317)
Subject: Lyr Add: MATTIE RAG (Jamaica)
From: MorwenEdhelwen1

Mattie Rag (Jamaican Mento)

1.
Mumma, mumma, dem ketch puppa,
Dem ketch 'im dung a mango walk.
If a neva run dem woulda ketch mi tu,
So mi sing sweet song an' play guitar.

(chorus)
Wai oh, Mattie rag,
Wai oh, Mattie rag.

2. Puppa go down a mango walk
Cause 'im ear wan hog a chaw a piece a rag.
Wen 'im ax 'im a chaw fa rag,
'Im tell 'im sey a Mattie rag.
(Chorus)
3. Pickney hear whe yu mumma sey,
Yu betta 'tap go mango walk.
If yu neva run dem woulda ketch yu tu,
So sing sweet song an' play guitar.
(Chorus)


06 Jul 11 - 08:28 AM (#3182355)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: kendall

That song that the Kodak company used in their ads always got to me. ['Turn Around' by Malvina Reynolds]

"Where are you going my little one, little one,
Where are you going my baby my own?
Turn around and you're two, turn around and you're four,
Turn around and you're a young girl going out of the door."

Turn around and you're tiny, turn around and you're grown
Turn around and you're a young wife with babes of your own."

I love my grown daughters as much as I ever did, but I sure do miss my little girls. sniff.


06 Jul 11 - 08:17 PM (#3182727)
Subject: RE: father songs
From: dick greenhaus

Well, there's "Hang on the Bell, Nellie" (Curfew must not ring tonight)