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Sixteen Tons Lyrics
Some people say a man is made out of mud
A poor man's made out of muscle and blood
Muscle and blood, and skin and bones,
A mind that's weak and a back that's strong
(Chorus:)
You load Sixteen Tons, whadaya get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
I was born one mornin' when the sun didn't shine
Picked up my shovel and I walked to the mine
I loaded Sixteen Tons of number 9 coal
And the straw-boss said, "Well, bless my soul"
Repeat Chorus
I was born one morning it was drizzlin' rain
Fightin' and Trouble are my middle name
I was raised in the canebrake by an old mama lion
Can't no high-toned woman make me walk the line
Repeat Chorus
If you see me comin' better step aside
A lot of men didn't, a lot of men died
One fist of iron, the other of steel
If the right one don't get you, the left one will
Repeat Chorus
A poor man's made out of muscle and blood
Muscle and blood, and skin and bones,
A mind that's weak and a back that's strong
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
Picked up my shovel and I walked to the mine
I loaded Sixteen Tons of number 9 coal
And the straw-boss said, "Well, bless my soul"
Fightin' and Trouble are my middle name
I was raised in the canebrake by an old mama lion
Can't no high-toned woman make me walk the line
A lot of men didn't, a lot of men died
One fist of iron, the other of steel
If the right one don't get you, the left one will
Song Info
Copyright
Lyrics © Bmg Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Writer
Merle Travis
Producer
Lee Gillette
Release date
Oct 17, 1955
Sentiment
Positive
Submitted by
filibusterman On Mar 20, 2006
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This song is about the coal mining indeed. Though laborers in any field can identify with the downtrodden existance of which mister Travis refers; while taking pride in the power the labor gives his body. Debt bondage is alive and well.
"Saint Peter don't you call me cause I can't go, I owe my soul to the Mastercard Gold."
This is the working man's anthem! I love this song.
This song is about the coal mining indeed. and about debt bondage. Miners had to spend a certain percent of their wages in the shops owned by the company they worked for. this created an even bigger dependency on the company. These systems of debt bondage (have) existed all over the world.
"another day older and deeper in debt was a phrase oft used by the original songwriter, Mister Merle Travis.
This song is an all-time classic. It will be covered and played for years to come. My favorite version is by the nighthawks (from The Wire soundtrack):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_yKtiIgP_c
it's about coal mining to be specific, but yes. it quite is the working man's anthem
IIRC, we discussed this song in one of my History classes in high school. I -think- it was written before Unions were formed and illustrates how bad things could get when businesses could ... I don't remember, pay you crap wages for hard work or something.
I also remember it because it was one of the songs on that DisneyTV VHS I own that showed clips of Disney cartoons to old songs like "Baby Love." Of course, I didn't get the significance when I was 5, but now it makes me sad for the guys who had to work so hard to survive.
Does anyone have any thoughts about the meaning of this verse?
Considering this is from the workers perspective, sounds like its talking about the big wigs.
Considering this is from the workers perspective, sounds like its talking about the big wigs.
@tsuchan I always interpreted it as a worker who went nuts and killed 'the man,' but I think TheDeaderMan probably has it right. Such a bad@$$ line.
@tsuchan I always interpreted it as a worker who went nuts and killed 'the man,' but I think TheDeaderMan probably has it right. Such a bad@$$ line.
He's a tough man who claims to have been in a lot of fights and won most or all of them. He has no interaction with the upper class and I doubt he wants any. He was born poor and it's all he knows. I don't think he faults anyone specifically for his position in life and he takes pride in his strength, toughness, and perseverance under the conditions he was born into.
He's a tough man who claims to have been in a lot of fights and won most or all of them. He has no interaction with the upper class and I doubt he wants any. He was born poor and it's all he knows. I don't think he faults anyone specifically for his position in life and he takes pride in his strength, toughness, and perseverance under the conditions he was born into.
Any nation of working class people that didn't take pride in themselves and the system they lived under would have been overpowered by their neighbors in the...
Any nation of working class people that didn't take pride in themselves and the system they lived under would have been overpowered by their neighbors in the period up to at least the end of World War 2. It wasn't in their interest to fight the system. None of them had any expectation of wealth nor would they have been regularly exposed to any common display of it, so I doubt many had serious resentment toward it. They probably still expected life to be somewhat "nasty, brutish, and short".
I should clarify that I'm sure many of the workers did resent the system and struggled to achieve better work and life conditions, but I doubt many were inclined to attack those above them. They weren't trying to completely tear down the social structure that allowed them to at least survive. They were far more likely to fight among themselves, and I think this is the sentiment of that verse.
I should clarify that I'm sure many of the workers did resent the system and struggled to achieve better work and life conditions, but I doubt many were inclined to attack those above them. They weren't trying to completely tear down the social structure that allowed them to at least survive. They were far more likely to fight among themselves, and I think this is the sentiment of that verse.