In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Oh Daddy hoes cotton like I do
Daddy picked cotton by hand
used to come home hot and dirty
he told me how he hated black land
he told me how he hated black land
one day he just walked away
he walked down the road he kicking up dust
right in the middle of the day
he walked down the road he kicking up dust
left me and Mama that way
somebody help me sing Hallelujah
somebody help me sing Hey hoe hard
somebody help me sing That's enough cotton
somebody help me sing Praise the lord
see Mama cleaned house for white folks
and man our house was a mess
but we had shoes and we had food
better than most I guess
she had a sister back in '40
when she married a man named Teal
the high blood took her back in '53
she's buried on the side of the hill
with the coloreds on the side of the hill
you see back then that was the deal
somebody help me sing Hallelujah
somebody help me sing Hey ho hard
somebody help me sing That's enough cotton
somebody help me sing Praise the lord
I’ve got rows of cotton in the morning
I’ve got rows of cotton till night
I walk these rows with a hoe in my hand
hoe for the rest of my life
hoe for the rest of my life
hoe for the rest of my life
Daddy picked cotton by hand
used to come home hot and dirty
he told me how he hated black land
he told me how he hated black land
one day he just walked away
he walked down the road he kicking up dust
right in the middle of the day
he walked down the road he kicking up dust
left me and Mama that way
somebody help me sing Hallelujah
somebody help me sing Hey hoe hard
somebody help me sing That's enough cotton
somebody help me sing Praise the lord
see Mama cleaned house for white folks
and man our house was a mess
but we had shoes and we had food
better than most I guess
she had a sister back in '40
when she married a man named Teal
the high blood took her back in '53
she's buried on the side of the hill
with the coloreds on the side of the hill
you see back then that was the deal
somebody help me sing Hallelujah
somebody help me sing Hey ho hard
somebody help me sing That's enough cotton
somebody help me sing Praise the lord
I’ve got rows of cotton in the morning
I’ve got rows of cotton till night
I walk these rows with a hoe in my hand
hoe for the rest of my life
hoe for the rest of my life
hoe for the rest of my life
Lyrics submitted by exodusdamage
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