Lyr Req: Blackland Farmer (Frankie Miller)

Subject: Black Land Farmer Lyrics
From: GUEST,Sidney
Date: 23 Jun 03 - 01:11 PM

A friend just mentioned a song he loves that was popular in the 5o's ??
called Black Land Farmer, but no results in the database. Anyone have lyrics, chords, links or suggestions? --Thanks! Sid

Subject: Lyr Add: BLACKLAND FARMER (Frankie Miller)
From: MMario
Date: 23 Jun 03 - 01:29 PM

black Land Farmer - Frankie Miller

---

Black Land Farmer
by Frankie Miller
© ARPS Publishing (BMI)

When the Lord made me He made a simple man
Not much money and not much land
He didn't make me no banker or legal charmer
When the Lord made me He made a blackland farmer

Well my hands ain't smooth, my face is rough
But my heart is warm and my ways ain't tough
I guess I'm the luckiest man ever born
'Cause the Lord gave me health and a blackland farm

Breaking up the new ground early in the day
Gonna plant cotton, I'm gonna plant hay
I love to smell the sweet breeze blowing through the corn
Lord, you sho done me right by my blackland farm

I feel like I'm getting closer to you, God
Plowing up the new ground and breaking up the sod
My mind is set not to do no harm
Lord, I owe it all to You and my blackland farm

---

Lyrics copy-pasted from the link cited above.-Joe Offer-

Subject: RE: Black Land Farmer Lyrics
From: GUEST
Date: 23 Jun 03 - 08:55 PM

Subject: RE: Black Land Farmer Lyrics
From: GUEST,Dale
Date: 24 Jun 03 - 01:06 AM

(That wasn't me above ~~ twice in one night is enough, I think)

Additions to the Frankie Miller recording.

Starts with a whistle,then spoken , "Get up here boy!"

Hums tune before first verse.

Everything is as he sings it until late in the song.

Gonna plant cotton

I'm a-gettin' (he drops all the G's)

A-plowin' in the ground and a'breakin' up the sod

Well, my mind is at ease an' I could do no harm

How this came to be a hit is quite an interesting story. Starday released it, and it promptly dropped out of sight. It lay dormant for some months, then some kids in a town in Texas (I forget which one ~~ it has been a LONG time) discovered a copy, played it, liked it, and started asking a local DJ to play it. From this, requests for a song that was no longer available really started to roll in. Starday got wind of the phenomenon and was quick to re-release it. This time it was a HIT.

Don't suppose that could happen today. For one thing, how do you tell a machine that you want it to play a song that it doesn't have in its playlist ~~ one that doesn't fit the target audience?

Subject: RE: Black Land Farmer Lyrics
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 24 Jun 03 - 08:05 AM

A real pleasure to see someone else remembering this song. I still have the single, and also an lp of Frankie Miller's. I remember introducing Dave Van Ronk to this song in the early 60's. Guess it never made it east (at least not into New York City.) It has a nice, loping rhythm, that would fit the pace of working behind a plow.

Jerry

Subject: RE: Black Land Farmer Lyrics
From: GUEST,Gene
Date: 24 Jun 03 - 12:57 PM

FM sings that one on a DALLAS BIG "D" JAMBOREE CD -
And does some great imitations, also..

Subject: RE: Black Land Farmer Lyrics
From: The O'Meara
Date: 25 Jun 03 - 11:44 AM

Black Land Farmer is one of the great, simple songs that work perfectly and couldn't be made better!

O'Meara

Subject: RE: Black Land Farmer Lyrics
From: GUEST,Wayne
Date: 26 Jun 03 - 12:41 AM

Is this the same song I remember from the summer of 1961, The Black DIRT Farmer?

Subject: RE: Black Land Farmer Lyrics
From: GUEST
Date: 26 Jun 03 - 02:04 AM

My Granny's favorite song. Used to listen to it on the jukebox when I was a tyke and we were on the way to hunt deer in west Texas. We'd stop at the diner in Castroville to eat enchiladas and I'd run the nickles to the jukebox for the grownups...teaching me to read, they claimed. "Punch L-5, J-4..." Porter Waggoner, Skeeter Davis, Webb Pierce. "Here's a slug. Play that farmin' song."

A lot of jukeboxes back then played local and regional stuff, so I always assumed this was a regional song about the Blackland Prairie region of Texas:

Blackland Prairie

Never gave it much thought, though. I imagine there are 'blackland' areas in every state.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Blackland Farmer (Frankie Miller)
From: GUEST,Jack Holly
Date: 03 May 10 - 12:15 PM

Frankie lived and performed in the Dallas Ft. Worth area (black dirt)

I saw him at Big D Jamboree in Dallas and also at The Cowtown Hoedown in Ft. Worth.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Blackland Farmer (Frankie Miller)
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 03 May 10 - 04:53 PM

Frankie Miller singing "Black Land Farmer"

For the benefit of UK readers who might be wondering, no, it isn't the Frankie Miller ...

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Blackland Farmer (Frankie Miller)
From: GUEST,DWR
Date: 03 May 10 - 11:16 PM

Ummm, who is to say which is the Frankie Miller, Murray? In these parts, our Frankie Miller is the one.

Just messin' with you, Murray, not trying to start a Trans-Atlantic war of words. (insert smiley here) Dale

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Blackland Farmer (Frankie Miller)
From: Martha Burns
Date: 04 May 10 - 12:00 AM

Allan Block used to sing this, too. One of my favorites of his. Don't know if he ever recorded it, though he may well have.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Blackland Farmer (Frankie Miller)
From: GUEST,Frank Dollinger
Date: 15 Apr 12 - 01:19 AM

I was a farmboy from Illinois,stationed at Goose AFB in Labrador-1955-56.Heard this song by Frankie Miller on the Juke Box at the Airmans Club.Made me think of My father and home.Played it a cuople more times .Some of the other farm boys liked it too.Drank a few beers and thought of home.How I grew up.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Blackland Farmer (Frankie Miller)
From: GUEST,Larry Saidman
Date: 15 Apr 12 - 01:35 AM

I think it was Wink Martindale who had the hit version....at least it was a hit in Canada.