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.
I lived in a place called Okfuskee
And I had a little girl in a holler tree
I said, "little girl, it's plain to see
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me"
She said, "it's hard for me to see
How one little boy got so ugly"
Yes, my little girly, that might be
But there ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Way over yonder in the minor key
Way over yonder in the minor key
There ain't nobody that can sing like me
We walked down by the Buckeye Creek
To see the frog eat the goggle-eye bee
To hear the west wind whistle to the east
There ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Oh, my little girly, will you let me see
Way over yonder where the wind blows free?
Nobody can see in our holler tree
And there ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Way over yonder in the minor key
Way over yonder in the minor key
There ain't nobody that can sing like me
Her mama cut a switch from a cherry tree
And laid it on the she and me
It stung lots worse than a hive of bees
But there ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Now I've walked a long long ways
Still look back to my Tanglewood days
I've led lots of girls since then to stray
Saying ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Way over yonder in the minor key
Way over yonder in the minor key
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Way over yonder in the minor key
Way over yonder in the minor key
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
And I had a little girl in a holler tree
I said, "little girl, it's plain to see
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me"
She said, "it's hard for me to see
How one little boy got so ugly"
Yes, my little girly, that might be
But there ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Way over yonder in the minor key
Way over yonder in the minor key
There ain't nobody that can sing like me
We walked down by the Buckeye Creek
To see the frog eat the goggle-eye bee
To hear the west wind whistle to the east
There ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Oh, my little girly, will you let me see
Way over yonder where the wind blows free?
Nobody can see in our holler tree
And there ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Way over yonder in the minor key
Way over yonder in the minor key
There ain't nobody that can sing like me
Her mama cut a switch from a cherry tree
And laid it on the she and me
It stung lots worse than a hive of bees
But there ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Now I've walked a long long ways
Still look back to my Tanglewood days
I've led lots of girls since then to stray
Saying ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Way over yonder in the minor key
Way over yonder in the minor key
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Way over yonder in the minor key
Way over yonder in the minor key
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
Ain't nobody that can sing like me
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I can't believe nobody has commented on such a kick-ass song. Woody Guthrie rocks and so does wilco. Not so much Billy Bragg. I do have to wonder how this song would have sounded like if Bob Dylan had found this song instead of Billy Bragg.
I have to agree with Xmisfit, Billy Bragg is one of the great songwriter's of his generation. I know his unrefined singing voice, unhidden working class brogue and staunch socialist worldview is an acquired taste, but was Woody Guthrie any different? They were cast from the same mold. Billy Bragg's music is so earnest and bare, it stirs up passion in folks and inspires them to transcend their lives and the world around them, which is something Woody Guthrie would know something about. I encourage you to give Bragg another listen. I'm sure he will grow on you.