LUSK ANNUAL MUSIC PARTY
On Saturday, January 27, 2007 the Lusk family will have our Annual Mid-Winter Folk Music Party at 61 Wurts Street, Kingston, New York. It starts at 6:00 p.m. and runs until people leave, which is usually pretty late.
All kinds of music and musicians are welcome, but no amplifiers please. Usually there is a healthy mix between folk singing, fiddle music, blues and bluegrass, with several different jamming spaces available, so people can find their niche, or float from one to the other. It's not a big food party, (it's a music party!) but we have the basics - you won't go hungry - and you can bring a dish to share if you wish. Also, this is an open party, so feel free to spread the word.
No illegal drugs please, although moderate alcohol use is fine. All smoking must take place outside, (preferably down the block, over the river and through the woods.)
Directions are at the end of this e-mail. Any questions please call (845) 338-8587, but no rsvp is necessary. If you call the night of the party we may have trouble hearing the phone!
Thanks,
Bob, Penny and Roberto Lusk
61 Wurts Street
Kingston, NY 12401
(914)338-8587
boblusk@hvc.rr.com
Party Directions
From the South: Take 9W north past the Poughkeepsie bridge. Keep on going. You will go through Highland, a turnoff for 299, Esopus, then Port Ewan. At the end of Port Ewan there is Laundromat on your left at the rear of a large parking lot. There will be a turnoff after this to the left that goes into Kingston. You will go over a small bridge. Go straight and you will be on Wurts Street. Go to the top of the hill and park opposite the park near the corner of Spring St. The house will be lit up. If you miss the turnoff in Port Ewan, you wind up going over a larger bridge on a more major highway. Make your first left turn and go straight 2 blocks up the hill. This will put you at the corner of Wurts and Spring St. (Be careful driving across Wurts Street if you come this way). Look for parking. The house will be lit up with lights and spirit.
From the NYS Thruway: Get off at the Kingston exit. Go around the traffic Circle to the 3rd exit (it is the 2nd exit that says "Kingston"). This is Chandler Drive. Follow it to the end (about 1/4 mile) At the light cross over and bear left. You will be on Broadway. Take Broadway all the way through Kingston. You will pass the High School, Kingston Hospital. Shortly after you pass Burger King and the road bears around and down to the right. At the bottom there is a light. Broadway makes a sharp 90 degree left turn. Don't make that turn. Go straight one more block and make a left. You will be on Wurts Street. Go about 2 blocks to the corner of Spring street and look for parking. The house will be all lit up.
Steve Suffet: Shameless Self-Promotion!
I don't promote very many people's CD's especially if I haven't heard them myself, but Steve and I go way back and he is, in fact, as he says, an "old fashioned folk singer". Worth checking out, I'm sure. - Bob
Greetings,
As the subject line warns, this message is an act completely shameless self-promotion. If you find that to be a problem, read no further. Just hit the delete button.
If you are still with me, then here's what it's all about. My new CD, "I've Been Up On the Mountain," is now available for purchase on-line through CD Baby. Here's a link:
http://cdbaby.com/cd/stevesuffet2
Of the eighteen songs, four are ones that I wrote by myself in traditional style, one I wrote in collaboration with Joel Landy, and another I wrote with some help from Anne Price. One is a little known Woody Guthrie song , and another is by Utah Phillips. The remaining ten songs are all my arrangements of traditional folk songs. You will find among them quite a variety of genres, styles, themes, and moods.
I was blessed to have some truly fine musicians work with me on this CD. They are Jody Kolodzey, Ray Korona, Joel Landy, Chris Lang, Heather Lev, Eric Levine, Bruce Markow, Anne Price, Gina Tlamsa. I hesitate to call these folks "back-up musicians," for "I've Been Up On the Mountain" is truly a collaborative product. You are welcome to listen to sound clips from any or all of the songs. But if that is not enough to convince you, you can download five complete songs from the CD for free from my music site, or you can listen to them on-line as streaming audio. They are the first five songs at the top of this page:
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/1/stevesuffet_music.htm
I know some folks will tell me that giving away so many freebies means I have lousy business sense, but you can prove me wrong by buying the CD.
Oh, one more thing. Just in case you missed it, CD Baby also carries my first CD, "Now the Wheel Has Turned." Here's a link:
http://cdbaby.com/cd/stevesuffet
If you would rather buy either or both of my CDs directly from me, you will have to do so in person. Otherwise, I'm very happy to let CD Baby deal with the order taking, billing, shipping, and tracking while I concentrate on making music. I will, nevertheless, make these two exceptions:
1. If you are a member of People's Music Network, the Peoples' Voice Cafe, or AFM Local 1000, you can order either CD from me for just $13 each or both for $25, postpaid to anywhere in the USA. You don't even have to pay me in advance. Just submit your order to my by e-mail, include your postal mailing address, and send me a check when the package arrives.
2. If you would like to buy 5 or more CDs at one time, please contact me and we will work out a discount based upon how many you want. My phone number is 718-786-1533.
Kindest regards for a healthy holiday season and a happy New Year.
--- Steve Suffet
Old Fashioned Folksinger
Website: http://suffet.home.att.net
Music website: http://www.soundclick.com/bands/1/stevesuffet_music.htm
E-mail link: mailto:suffet@att.net
Phil Ochs lyric: 'No Christmas in Kentucky', etc
Here is a note from John Pietaro of "Flames of Discontent"
Friends,
Though we are taught differently, the holiday season usually finds us doing very little reflecting on loved ones or spiritual concerns. We may think of the poor, but we usually move on quckly enough to thoughts of our hurting check-books. Few of us remember to sign up to work in a soup kitchen or to help with gift-wrapping at local charitable organizations. God knows, I always mean to. I envy those among you who insist on ONLY celebrating the Winter Solstice,for the holidays really have become deeply commercial. Yeah.
I guess being a full-time activist also implies working overtime around this time of year, but its just so hard to get it all in. So, we run around and buy the gifts we need--those we meant to get weeks before. The presents for the folks we'll be seeing at Christmas or Chanukah or Kwanzaa or New Year's Day. Then don't forget to buy the bottle of wine or the holiday cake. But--wait--you almost forgot to hang the twinkly lights around the doorway! I squeeked by and actually did so only a week ago). There's so much to do. So what was this holiday time really all about?
One of the things that keeps it all in perspective for me is a song by Phil Ochs. Each year when we perform for a Phil Ochs birthday tribute (as we did this Dec 16 in Woodstock), the following song is a must. It is a little-known piece that never actually appeared on any of his regularly released albums. He wrote it long ago, while traveling throughout Harlan County, Kentucky during one of the harshest labor struggles of the past
fifty years. Though the miners in "Bloody Harlan" had actually become organized years prior, there were always renewed fights as well as terrible oppression. The early 1960s saw a resurgence among the miners who were fighting for safe working conditions, decent pay, and benefits. Strikes and other labor actions saw many of the workers being locked out and as the months wore on, Kentucky became a battleground.
The life-long Labor activist and member of the IWW, Phil Ochs, traveled to Harlan County during the holiday season of 1962. He met with the miners, sang with them on picket lines, sat with them in cold makeshift union halls, joined them in pot-luck dinners and stood with them as they braved corrupt deputy sheriffs with dogs and loaded rifles. Ochs proved his worth as not only a topical singer, but a die-hard radical. He became one with the miners and they offered him the chance to write some of his great early works including "Harlan, Kentucky" and the lyric which follows - "No Christmas in Kentucky". The latter offers us a lesson not only of history, but of all time. Please read this over as you contemplate the next holiday party or gift purchase. It is not intended to sadden you during the holidays, as far as i can see. But it will make you think and consider the issues in your life that actually DO matter.
Please enjoy and pass this on to others.
In Solidarity...and Peace,
John Pietaro
www.flamesofdiscontent.org
________________________
"No Christmas in Kentucky"
By Phil Ochs
G C
Christmas shoppers shopping on a neon city street
D C G
Another Christmas dollar for another Christmas treat
G C
There's satin on the pretty dolls that make the children glow
D C G
While a boy walking ragged in the cold Kentucky snow
G C G
No, they don't have Christmas in Kentucky
C D
There's no holly on a West Virginia door
G C G
For the trees don't twinkle when you're hungry
C D G
And the Jingle Bells don't jingle when you're poor
There's lots of toys for children when then Christmas time is near
But the present for the miners is a stocking full of beer
In the dark hills of Kentucky there's one gift that may be found
The coal dust of forgotten days that's lying on the ground
No, they don't have Christmas in Kentucky
There's no holly on a West Virginia door
For the trees don't twinkle when you're hungry
And the Jingle Bells don't jingle when you're poor
Let's drink a toast to Congress and a toast to Santa Claus
and a toast to all the speeches that bring the loud applause
There's not enough to give, no, there's not enough to share
So let's drown the sounds of sorrow with a hearty Christmas cheer
No, they don't have Christmas in Kentucky
There's no holly on a West Virginia door
For the trees don't twinkle when you're hungry
And the Jingle Bells don't jingle when you're poor
Have a merry, merry Christmas and a happy new year's day
For now's a time of plenty, and plenty's here to stay
But if you knew what Christmas was, I think that you would find
That Christ is spending Christmas in the cold Kentucky mine
No, they don't have Christmas in Kentucky
There's no holly on a West Virginia door
For the trees don't twinkle when you're hungry
And the Jingle Bells don't jingle when you're poor
Notes:
From the Remembering Phil Ochs website
Chords supplied by James Barnett
Happy Blessed Holidays - THE TRADITIONAL MUSICIAN'S PRAYER
THE TRADITIONAL MUSICIAN'S PRAYER
(with apologies to St Francis)
(with apologies to St Francis)
Lord, keep always before me
The appreciation of music as one of Your greatest gifts.
Never let me stray far from the tune;
Help me to remain faithful to the spirits
Of those musicians who have gone before
Leaving this lovely legacy in my care.
Lord, let me always remember
What Your Golden Rule instructs
So that I treat other musicians
As I would wish to be treated myself.
Lord, let me always remember
That You give Irish musicians a special gift:
The opportunity to praise and glorify You
While sitting around playing jigs and reels
In dark pubs, on cruise ships,
In kitchens, on concert stages.
Lord, give me patience always
And help me to remember
That the word "tradition"
Implies sharing.
Lord, give me tolerance always
And help me to appreciate
The Great Mystery:
Not everybody likes what I like.
Never let me slip too far into self-importance
And help me use as necessary
Whatever sense of humor
You may have imparted to me.
Lord, let me never forget
That I don't have all the answers
And that there's nobody
That I can't learn from
(Even bodhrán and banjo players)
And finally, Lord - if it's not too much to ask -
Make me competent first
Then respected
And eventually brilliant.
(But Your will always be done.)
Amen.
- Bill Black
Anti-House Concert Blog
Here's a great blog about political repression of folk music house concerts! http://livingroommusic.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Caroling in the Neighborhood
Had a wonderful time caroling with the neighbors again this year. It's called "Cocktails and Carols". Starting with "snuggles" (hot chocolate and snapps) at pianist Liz Tolinos's House on Ravine Street at 4:30, we made the rounds of the neighborhood singing in front of houses that looked as if they might be occupied. There were a lot of good singers including a High Falls contingent, people from NYC, midtown Kingston, Abeel St, etc. We had some wonderful cider at Dimitri & Linda's House on President's Place, caroled for Azara Farell and other neighbors, then went to the church on the corner of Spring & Wurts Street to 3 seperate apartments.
First was Herman & Andy's, who had fancy drinks and tequila meatballs. Then upstairs to Amanda & Amy's Church Penthouse for "White Christmases". Peter came in playing the accordian, so we wound our way around the corner to His and Julies wonderful space where we had more to drink and Peter sat down at his grand piano and led us through some more carols.
Then it was home sweet home at 61 Wurts street where Penny made Irish Coffees in the kitchen and I played with Peter in the diningn room while drinking egg nog that Penny had made from my mother's old recipe. Then it was roll down the block to Paul and Ingrid's church where, Peter played the organ, I played fiddle and several great singers sang with us.
On our way out we each got to pull the rope and ring out the church bells across the valley. Penny and I abandoned the group as they continued down to The Bridgewater Bar on Abeel Street.
All in all a wonderful evening of Christmas song and cheer!
First was Herman & Andy's, who had fancy drinks and tequila meatballs. Then upstairs to Amanda & Amy's Church Penthouse for "White Christmases". Peter came in playing the accordian, so we wound our way around the corner to His and Julies wonderful space where we had more to drink and Peter sat down at his grand piano and led us through some more carols.
Then it was home sweet home at 61 Wurts street where Penny made Irish Coffees in the kitchen and I played with Peter in the diningn room while drinking egg nog that Penny had made from my mother's old recipe. Then it was roll down the block to Paul and Ingrid's church where, Peter played the organ, I played fiddle and several great singers sang with us.
On our way out we each got to pull the rope and ring out the church bells across the valley. Penny and I abandoned the group as they continued down to The Bridgewater Bar on Abeel Street.
All in all a wonderful evening of Christmas song and cheer!
Peace Symbol
What a great ending to this story!
Pro-Peace Symbol Forces Win Battle in Colorado Town
DENVER, Nov. 28 — Peace is fighting back in Pagosa Springs.
Last week, a couple were threatened with fines of $25 a day by their homeowners’ association unless they removed a four-foot wreath shaped like a peace symbol from the front of their house.
The fines have been dropped, and the three-member board of the association has resigned, according to an e-mail message sent to residents on Monday.
Two board members have disconnected their telephones, apparently to escape the waves of callers asking what the board could have been thinking, residents said. The third board member, with a working phone, did not return a call for comment.
In its original letter to the couple, Lisa Jensen and Bill Trimarco, the association said some neighbors had found the peace symbol politically “divisive.”
A board member later told a newspaper that he thought the familiar circle with angled lines was also, perhaps, a sign of the devil.
The peace symbol came to prominence in the late 1950s as the logo for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, a British antiwar group, according to the group’s Web site. It incorporates the semaphore flag images for the letters in the group’s name, a “D” atop an “N.”
Other people have said the upright line with arms angled down, commonplace in the United States in the Vietnam War, especially, has roots in the early Christian era, representing a twisted or broken cross.
Mr. Trimarco said he put up the wreath as a general symbol of peace on earth, not as a commentary on the Iraq war or another political statement.
In any case, there are now more peace symbols in Pagosa Springs, a town of 1,700 people 200 miles southwest of Denver, than probably ever in its history.
On Tuesday morning, 20 people marched through the center carrying peace signs and then stomped a giant peace sign in the snow perhaps 300 feet across on a soccer field, where it could be easily seen.
“There’s quite a few now in our subdivision in a show of support,” Mr. Trimarco said.
A former president of the Loma Linda community, where Mr. Trimarco lives, said Tuesday that he had stepped in to help form an interim homeowners’ association.
The former president, Farrell C. Trask, described himself in a telephone interview as a military veteran who would fight for anyone’s right to free speech, peace symbols included.
Town Manager Mark Garcia said Pagosa Springs was building its own peace wreath, too. Mr. Garcia said it would be finished by late Tuesday and installed on a bell tower in the center of town.
Amy Fradon this Saturday
Friends of AIR~ This Saturday will no doubt be one of the finest shows we've ever had & I hope you don't miss it. I say that not just because Amy is so talented & has one of the sweetest voices I've ever heard, but because 2007 is going to be bringing down some major changes for AIR Studio. After over 15 years of art & music events, renovations, restorations & child rearing (3 down, 2 to go!), Nina & I have decided that the time is right for her to open her own private PT practice here on O'Neil Street. I ask you to look ahead to January 13th, the next 2nd Saturday & join us for a Pot Luck party, to Jam with Bobby & friends, & also discuss our plans for the future & how you can continue to be a part of it. Keep lookin up! Peace&LovePrevails...(:-)>jbo
2nd Saturdays @ AIR: Live Music, 8-11PM
*******************************
A.I.R. Studio Gallery
(Artist-In-Residence)
71 O'Neil St, Kingston, NY
http://www.airstudiogallery.com/
http://www.airstudiogallery.com/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2nd Saturdays @ AIR: Live Music, 8-11PM
Acoustic Artists Coalition ~ Hosted by Bobby Kennedy
$10pp, admission includes coffee, tea, juice, seltzer, chips, dips & assorted munchies.
>12/09~ AMY FRADON & JIM BARBARO: Amys' sweet, melodious voice is one of the Hudson Valleys finest treasures, together with our old friend & colleague Jim (master sound engineer for all of our CDs & audio recordings), will make this a night to remember.
>01/13: The next decade at AIR; Pot Luck Party & Open Mic. Join us for a reorganizational meeting on our future plans for developing 71 O'Neil St as midtowns progressive healing arts center.
---------------------------------------------------------------
>Art Fun for Kids: Draw, Paint, Cut & Paste. Fun for all ages. By appointment, $10 per hour, group discounts. Also, Children's Art Parties, TARP; Therapeutic Art Recreation Program for special needs sessions.
>12/20~ New Moon Gatherings: ETA 2012: Every New Moon, ExtraTerrestrial Ambassador trainings & UFO watch (weather permitting) from 1130pm-1am. Time to prepare for 1st contact. Call ahead for reservation & details. INCOMING!>
>HELP! Johnny Asia Relief Fund~ Please help John recover from his long debilitating battle with Lyme Disease. No standard medical approach has been able to help him & none of the standard health insurance programs will cover the alternative program he using. Visit this site to offer your support in any way you can:
AIR STUDIO GALLERY, 71 O'Neil St, Kingston, NY. Ph: 331-2662, E: AirStudio@aol.com Web: http://www.airstudiogallery.com/ (New & Improved! Concert recordings, art & pics!). An going, rotating art exhibit of Friends of AIR; Robert Eggers, Jim Krzymowski, Jim Marzano, Leslie Miller, Glen River, Todd Samara, Roberta Sickler, Ruth Wolf, Lee Yaple & others. < http://www.richardzarroart.com/ > Archival reproductions available through PayPal.
Gallery hours: Stop by anytime you're in town or, call ahead, we live here! Just one block off Broadway on the corner of O'Neil St & Tremper Ave, in Midtown Kingston. Across from Boices Milk House, one block North from where Rt32 & Henry St meets Broadway. Member of the Ulster County Arts Council ( http://www.ulstercountyartscouncil.org/ ) & the Arts Society of Kingston ( http://www.askforarts.org/ ). Help make the world a more beautiful place, support the arts!
Gallery hours: Stop by anytime you're in town or, call ahead, we live here! Just one block off Broadway on the corner of O'Neil St & Tremper Ave, in Midtown Kingston. Across from Boices Milk House, one block North from where Rt32 & Henry St meets Broadway. Member of the Ulster County Arts Council ( http://www.ulstercountyartscouncil.org/ ) & the Arts Society of Kingston ( http://www.askforarts.org/ ). Help make the world a more beautiful place, support the arts!
FOR FUTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
JIM MARZANO, 71 ONEIL ST, KINGSTON, NY, 12401-3509; PH# 845-331-2662, Email: AirStudio@aol.com
Taps
just had an e-mail from George that the following is a hoax. Well it makes a good story anyway. Thats the differance between folklore and history!
From: George Armstrong
If any of you have ever been to a military funeral in which taps were played; this brings out a new meaning of it. Here is something Every American should know.. Until I read this, I didn't know, but I checked it out and it's true:
We in the United States have all heard the haunting song, "Taps". It's the song that gives us that lump in our throats and usually tears in our eyes. But, do you know the story behind the song? If not, I think you will be interested to find out about its humble beginnings.
Reportedly, it all began in 1862 during the Civil War, when Union Army Captain Robert Ellicombe was with his men near Harrison's Landing in Virginia. The Confederate Army was on the other side of the narrow strip of land.
During the night, Captain Ellicombe heard the moans of a soldier who lay severely wounded on the field. Not knowing if it was a Union or Confederate soldier, the Captain decided to risk his life and bring the stricken man back for medical attention. Crawling on his stomach through the gunfire, the Captain reached the stricken soldier and began pulling him toward his encampment. When the Captain finally reached his own lines, he discovered it was actually a Confederate soldier, but the soldier was dead.
The Captain lit a lantern and suddenly caught his breath and went numb with shock. In the dim light, he saw the face of the soldier. It was his own son. The boy had been studying music in the South when the war broke out. Without telling his father, the boy enlisted in the Confederate Army.
The following morning, heartbroken, the father asked permission of his superiors to give his son a full military burial, despite his enemy status. His request was only partially granted.
The Captain had asked if he could have a group of Army band members play a funeral dirge for his son at the funeral. The request was turned down since the soldier was a Confederate. But, out of respect for the father, they did say they could give him only one musician. The Captain chose a bugler. He asked the bugler to play a series of musical notes he had found on a piece of paper in the pocket of the dead youth's uniform. This wish was granted. The haunting melody, we now know as "Taps" used at military funerals was born.
The words are
Day is done ... Gone the sun
From the lakes ...From the hills ....
From the sky .. All is well .
Safely rest .. God is nigh.
Fading light .. Dims the sight ..
And a star ... Gems the sky
Gleaming bright From afar ....
Drawing nigh . Falls the night.
Thanks and praise ... For our days .
Neath the sun ... Neath the stars...
Neath the sky . As we go .
This we know .. God is nigh.
I, too, have felt the chills while listening to "Taps" but I have never seen all the words to the song until now. I didn't even know there was more than one verse. I also never knew the story behind the song and I didn't know if you had either so I thought I'd pass it along.
I now have an even deeper respect for the song than I did before.
Remember Those Lost and Harmed While Serving Their Country.
And also those presently serving in the Armed Forces.
From: George Armstrong
If any of you have ever been to a military funeral in which taps were played; this brings out a new meaning of it. Here is something Every American should know.. Until I read this, I didn't know, but I checked it out and it's true:
We in the United States have all heard the haunting song, "Taps". It's the song that gives us that lump in our throats and usually tears in our eyes. But, do you know the story behind the song? If not, I think you will be interested to find out about its humble beginnings.
Reportedly, it all began in 1862 during the Civil War, when Union Army Captain Robert Ellicombe was with his men near Harrison's Landing in Virginia. The Confederate Army was on the other side of the narrow strip of land.
During the night, Captain Ellicombe heard the moans of a soldier who lay severely wounded on the field. Not knowing if it was a Union or Confederate soldier, the Captain decided to risk his life and bring the stricken man back for medical attention. Crawling on his stomach through the gunfire, the Captain reached the stricken soldier and began pulling him toward his encampment. When the Captain finally reached his own lines, he discovered it was actually a Confederate soldier, but the soldier was dead.
The Captain lit a lantern and suddenly caught his breath and went numb with shock. In the dim light, he saw the face of the soldier. It was his own son. The boy had been studying music in the South when the war broke out. Without telling his father, the boy enlisted in the Confederate Army.
The following morning, heartbroken, the father asked permission of his superiors to give his son a full military burial, despite his enemy status. His request was only partially granted.
The Captain had asked if he could have a group of Army band members play a funeral dirge for his son at the funeral. The request was turned down since the soldier was a Confederate. But, out of respect for the father, they did say they could give him only one musician. The Captain chose a bugler. He asked the bugler to play a series of musical notes he had found on a piece of paper in the pocket of the dead youth's uniform. This wish was granted. The haunting melody, we now know as "Taps" used at military funerals was born.
The words are
Day is done ... Gone the sun
From the lakes ...From the hills ....
From the sky .. All is well .
Safely rest .. God is nigh.
Fading light .. Dims the sight ..
And a star ... Gems the sky
Gleaming bright From afar ....
Drawing nigh . Falls the night.
Thanks and praise ... For our days .
Neath the sun ... Neath the stars...
Neath the sky . As we go .
This we know .. God is nigh.
I, too, have felt the chills while listening to "Taps" but I have never seen all the words to the song until now. I didn't even know there was more than one verse. I also never knew the story behind the song and I didn't know if you had either so I thought I'd pass it along.
I now have an even deeper respect for the song than I did before.
Remember Those Lost and Harmed While Serving Their Country.
And also those presently serving in the Armed Forces.
Ahhh!, It's the Tax Man!
From Terri Massardo. She and Steve host the John St. Jam in Saugerties http://www.chrisdepalma.com/JSJ/JSJ_home.php This post is not related to their jam, but is pretty creative.
***************************************
What Happened???
At first I thought this was funny...then I realized the awful truth of it. Be sure to read all the way to the end!
Tax his land,
Tax his bed,
Tax the table
At which he's fed.
Tax his tractor,
Tax his mule,
Teach him taxes
Are the rule.
Tax his cow,
Tax his goat,
Tax his pants,
Tax his coat.
Tax his ties,
Tax his shirt,
Tax his work,
Tax his dirt.
Tax his tobacco,
Tax his drink,
Tax him if he
Tries to think.
Tax his cigars,
Tax his beers,
If he cries, then
Tax his tears.
Tax his car,
Tax his gas,
Find other ways
To tax his ass
Tax all he has
Then let him know
That you won't be done
Till he has no dough.
When he screams and hollers,
Then tax him some more,
Tax him till
He's good and sore.
Then tax his coffin,
Tax his grave,
Tax the sod in
Which he's laid.
Put these words
upon his tomb,
"Taxes drove me
to my doom..."
When he's gone,
Do not relax,
Its time to apply
The inheritance tax.
Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL license Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Federal Income Tax
Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax,
Fuel permit tax
Gasoline Tax (42 cents per gallon)
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Interest expense
Inventory tax
IRS Interest Charges IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Taxes
Marriage License Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service charge taxes
Social Security Tax
Road usage taxes
Sales Tax
Recreational Vehicle Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone federal excise tax
Telephone federal universal service fee tax
Telephone federal, state and local surcharge taxes
Telephone minimum usage surcharge tax
Telephone recurring and non-recurring charges tax
Telephone state and local tax
Telephone usage charge tax
Utility Taxes
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax
COMMENTS: Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago,
and our nation was the most prosperous in the world.
We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.
What happened?
***************************************
What Happened???
At first I thought this was funny...then I realized the awful truth of it. Be sure to read all the way to the end!
Tax his land,
Tax his bed,
Tax the table
At which he's fed.
Tax his tractor,
Tax his mule,
Teach him taxes
Are the rule.
Tax his cow,
Tax his goat,
Tax his pants,
Tax his coat.
Tax his ties,
Tax his shirt,
Tax his work,
Tax his dirt.
Tax his tobacco,
Tax his drink,
Tax him if he
Tries to think.
Tax his cigars,
Tax his beers,
If he cries, then
Tax his tears.
Tax his car,
Tax his gas,
Find other ways
To tax his ass
Tax all he has
Then let him know
That you won't be done
Till he has no dough.
When he screams and hollers,
Then tax him some more,
Tax him till
He's good and sore.
Then tax his coffin,
Tax his grave,
Tax the sod in
Which he's laid.
Put these words
upon his tomb,
"Taxes drove me
to my doom..."
When he's gone,
Do not relax,
Its time to apply
The inheritance tax.
Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL license Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Federal Income Tax
Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax,
Fuel permit tax
Gasoline Tax (42 cents per gallon)
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Interest expense
Inventory tax
IRS Interest Charges IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Taxes
Marriage License Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service charge taxes
Social Security Tax
Road usage taxes
Sales Tax
Recreational Vehicle Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone federal excise tax
Telephone federal universal service fee tax
Telephone federal, state and local surcharge taxes
Telephone minimum usage surcharge tax
Telephone recurring and non-recurring charges tax
Telephone state and local tax
Telephone usage charge tax
Utility Taxes
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax
COMMENTS: Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago,
and our nation was the most prosperous in the world.
We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.
What happened?
Updating
New posts at http://bhaavram.blogspot.com/, Also have added on to some song intros at http://boblusklyrics.blogspot.com/ and updated some personal history at http://journeytokirtan.blogspot.com/
Peace "Poem" of the Month
I'm happy and proud to announce that my song "Read Me the Dead" has been chosen as Arts for Peace's Peace Poem of the Month for December 2006. It will be displayed at the Arts for Peace show at the Village Hall in New Paltz. I had known that someone submitted it for me, but that was awhile ago and I was surprised to hear that they are using it. One more piece of local publicity for us!
Read Me the Dead
c Bob Lusk May 2006
Every Saturday morning Jay, David and Joan
Stand by the door, at the Kings’ Mall
Outside the recruiters, they do their duty
They stand and recite, the names of the dead
Chorus: Read me the dead, what were their names?
Do you think this is some sort of game?
Read me the dead, what were their names?
Do you think this is some sort of game?
That was my son, my daughter or brother
Uncle or aunt, friend or a lover.
Why did they go, what did they hope for?
Why are we here, who wants to know?
Chorus
Cursed be the leaders, who tarnished the memories
Of foot soldiers, veterans, each one a hero
These are their names, their battles have ended
We stand in their honor, we stand here for peace!
Chorus
Read Me the Dead
c Bob Lusk May 2006
Every Saturday morning Jay, David and Joan
Stand by the door, at the Kings’ Mall
Outside the recruiters, they do their duty
They stand and recite, the names of the dead
Chorus: Read me the dead, what were their names?
Do you think this is some sort of game?
Read me the dead, what were their names?
Do you think this is some sort of game?
That was my son, my daughter or brother
Uncle or aunt, friend or a lover.
Why did they go, what did they hope for?
Why are we here, who wants to know?
Chorus
Cursed be the leaders, who tarnished the memories
Of foot soldiers, veterans, each one a hero
These are their names, their battles have ended
We stand in their honor, we stand here for peace!
Chorus
Traditional Music of Upstate New York
For Immediate Release
Contact: Kyle Carey
cel 603-393-8199 or Skidmore College: 518-580-5000
Traditional Music of Upstate New York
Free Concert - Thursday, December 7th 7pm
Bernhard Theater - Skidmore College Campus
Skidmore College · 815 North Broadway · Saratoga Springs, NY · 12866
Siamsa na nGael of Skidmore College will sponsor a concert of Traditional Music of the Upstate New York region. This free event is a unique gathering of nine of the area's finest exponents of regional 'folk music,' that is ballads, songs or dance music coming to us through an oral tradition. Though not known for it's folk music in the way that Ireland or Southern Appalachia are, New York State has a rich tradition of it's own.
Saratoga Springs, New York - This free event will have both an entertaining and educational aim. The music itself runs the gamut from the lovely long-form ballads of singer Colleen Cleveland to the lively dance music of Bill Spence and George Wilson. An added goal is to bring to students and the community an awareness of New York's folk tradition and the many performers who carry it on. Traditional Music is an important part of New York's cultural identity.
The concert will feature Rexford resident George Ward - a singer, musician and folklorist who specializes in traditional ballads and songs of the Erie Canal, Voorheesville resident Bill Spence - a hammered dulcimer player who led the revival of the instrument in the early '70s and has been a key player in the contra-dance scene ever since, Wynantskill resident George Wilson - a fiddler, teacher and multi-instrumentalist who has played with Spence in Fennig's All-Stars and solo since the late 70s, Brant Lake resident Colleen Cleveland - a singer who has the rare gift of an unbroken oral tradition coming down through her family, Greenfield Center residents John Kirk and Trish Miller - both musicians, teachers and performers who for over 20 years have celebrated the music and dance of the Adirondack region, Schenectady resident and England native John Roberts - a singer and musician whose repertoire includes ballads and songs from Britain, Ireland and the Northeastern United States which he has performed over the years on his own and in a duo with fellow singer Tony Barrand, Ballston Spa resident and Adirondack native Dan Berggren - singer, songwriter, folklorist and collector of songs from Minerva and throughout the Adirondack region, and Southern Appalachian resident and Saranac Lake native Lee Knight, a singer and song collector whose has also worked with Marjorie Lansing Porter and Anne & Frank Warner, musicologists who had a major impact on the preservation of New York State Traditional music.
Concert attendees are encouraged to bring canned food to be collected and donated to a local Saratoga Springs food pantry.
After the concert there will be an open song-swap held at the Case Center building. This additional event is also free to any who wish to listen or to take part.
Additional information Contact:
Keith Fotheringham, Manager, Celtic Treasures 518-583-9452 or cel 518-879-1029
Or for further information on the artists:
George Ward (518-399-0315):
http://www.mulesong.com/
Colleen Cleveland:
http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/upnorth/masters/cleveland/cleveland.php
Bill Spence (518-765-4193):
http://www.oldsongs.org/billspencemusic/biography.html
George Wilson (518-461-8394)
http://www.oldsongs.org/georgewilson.html
Lee Knight:
http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-139680221.html
Dan Berggren (518-490-1809):
http://www.berggrenfolk.com/
John Roberts (518-370-4166):
http://www.ziplink.net/%7Elwalker/r-b_bio.html
John Kirk & Trish Miller (518-581-0255):
http://www.johnandtrish.com/
Contact: Kyle Carey
cel 603-393-8199 or Skidmore College: 518-580-5000
Traditional Music of Upstate New York
Free Concert - Thursday, December 7th 7pm
Bernhard Theater - Skidmore College Campus
Skidmore College · 815 North Broadway · Saratoga Springs, NY · 12866
Siamsa na nGael of Skidmore College will sponsor a concert of Traditional Music of the Upstate New York region. This free event is a unique gathering of nine of the area's finest exponents of regional 'folk music,' that is ballads, songs or dance music coming to us through an oral tradition. Though not known for it's folk music in the way that Ireland or Southern Appalachia are, New York State has a rich tradition of it's own.
Saratoga Springs, New York - This free event will have both an entertaining and educational aim. The music itself runs the gamut from the lovely long-form ballads of singer Colleen Cleveland to the lively dance music of Bill Spence and George Wilson. An added goal is to bring to students and the community an awareness of New York's folk tradition and the many performers who carry it on. Traditional Music is an important part of New York's cultural identity.
The concert will feature Rexford resident George Ward - a singer, musician and folklorist who specializes in traditional ballads and songs of the Erie Canal, Voorheesville resident Bill Spence - a hammered dulcimer player who led the revival of the instrument in the early '70s and has been a key player in the contra-dance scene ever since, Wynantskill resident George Wilson - a fiddler, teacher and multi-instrumentalist who has played with Spence in Fennig's All-Stars and solo since the late 70s, Brant Lake resident Colleen Cleveland - a singer who has the rare gift of an unbroken oral tradition coming down through her family, Greenfield Center residents John Kirk and Trish Miller - both musicians, teachers and performers who for over 20 years have celebrated the music and dance of the Adirondack region, Schenectady resident and England native John Roberts - a singer and musician whose repertoire includes ballads and songs from Britain, Ireland and the Northeastern United States which he has performed over the years on his own and in a duo with fellow singer Tony Barrand, Ballston Spa resident and Adirondack native Dan Berggren - singer, songwriter, folklorist and collector of songs from Minerva and throughout the Adirondack region, and Southern Appalachian resident and Saranac Lake native Lee Knight, a singer and song collector whose has also worked with Marjorie Lansing Porter and Anne & Frank Warner, musicologists who had a major impact on the preservation of New York State Traditional music.
Concert attendees are encouraged to bring canned food to be collected and donated to a local Saratoga Springs food pantry.
After the concert there will be an open song-swap held at the Case Center building. This additional event is also free to any who wish to listen or to take part.
Additional information Contact:
Keith Fotheringham, Manager, Celtic Treasures 518-583-9452 or cel 518-879-1029
Or for further information on the artists:
George Ward (518-399-0315):
http://www.mulesong.com/
Colleen Cleveland:
http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/upnorth/masters/cleveland/cleveland.php
Bill Spence (518-765-4193):
http://www.oldsongs.org/billspencemusic/biography.html
George Wilson (518-461-8394)
http://www.oldsongs.org/georgewilson.html
Lee Knight:
http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-139680221.html
Dan Berggren (518-490-1809):
http://www.berggrenfolk.com/
John Roberts (518-370-4166):
http://www.ziplink.net/%7Elwalker/r-b_bio.html
John Kirk & Trish Miller (518-581-0255):
http://www.johnandtrish.com/
"From the Mountains to the Valley" on TV!
"From the Mountains to the Valley" - Video Produced by Ernie Mortizans from a concert of Bob Lusk and Regina Scheff doing historic folk music, will be playing on public access Ch 23, in Saugerties, at the following times this week:Thursday 4:30 - 6:20, Friday 4:30 - 6:20, Saturday 4:30 - 6:20, Sunday 1:30 - 3:20
Kings Mall 7 Benefit
Dear Editor,
Cries of "More, More" greeted the end of each musical set at New World Home Cooking on Sunday afternoon as we enjoyed a too short but very successful party/fundraiser in support of the Kingsmall 7. The terrific New World Home Cooking appetizers kept coming, warming bellies. Betty McDonald called herself stage manager but was truly the gracious hostess, warming hearts.
Murali Coryell led a world class musical line up and gained the rapt attention of the audience, not easy in a chattering, bustling Ulster County group. Bob Lusk, one of the Kings Mall 7, sang an original song which could become THE Iraq War lament with a strong, from the heart, baritone. Betty McDonald, Jim Curtin and Peggy Stern made music which stopped me in my running-around-attending-to-everything tracks. Such deep beauty and wild wisdom.
Julie Parisi Kirby and T.G.Vanini's songs were alternately witty and soulful, both with impeccable musicality. Mikhail Horowitz and Giles Malkine must have written new work for this sophisticated crowd. They topped themselves and had us doubled up, helpless with biting hilarity. Peggy Mulligan piped some plaintive bag pipe offerings for "healing."
Yes, Bagpipes! And then the chairs disappeared like magic from the sheer force of the need to dance to Rennie Cantine and Rip Van Ren. If you weren't there but thought you felt an earthquake Sunday afternoon, it was that rocking group.
Sincere thanks to all of the above. It was the happiest fund raiser ever. And the celebratory mood was enhanced by an announcement of the Kings Mall's 7's attorneys, Stephen Bergstein and Alan Sussman. The New York ACLU considers this case important enough for their over loaded docket. They will join the appeal! As WWII Vet Joan Keefe told the supportive crowd, freedom of speech and assembly is not limited to two hours a week!
Joan Walker
Enlist For Peace Legal Defense Fund
Cries of "More, More" greeted the end of each musical set at New World Home Cooking on Sunday afternoon as we enjoyed a too short but very successful party/fundraiser in support of the Kingsmall 7. The terrific New World Home Cooking appetizers kept coming, warming bellies. Betty McDonald called herself stage manager but was truly the gracious hostess, warming hearts.
Murali Coryell led a world class musical line up and gained the rapt attention of the audience, not easy in a chattering, bustling Ulster County group. Bob Lusk, one of the Kings Mall 7, sang an original song which could become THE Iraq War lament with a strong, from the heart, baritone. Betty McDonald, Jim Curtin and Peggy Stern made music which stopped me in my running-around-attending-to-everything tracks. Such deep beauty and wild wisdom.
Julie Parisi Kirby and T.G.Vanini's songs were alternately witty and soulful, both with impeccable musicality. Mikhail Horowitz and Giles Malkine must have written new work for this sophisticated crowd. They topped themselves and had us doubled up, helpless with biting hilarity. Peggy Mulligan piped some plaintive bag pipe offerings for "healing."
Yes, Bagpipes! And then the chairs disappeared like magic from the sheer force of the need to dance to Rennie Cantine and Rip Van Ren. If you weren't there but thought you felt an earthquake Sunday afternoon, it was that rocking group.
Sincere thanks to all of the above. It was the happiest fund raiser ever. And the celebratory mood was enhanced by an announcement of the Kings Mall's 7's attorneys, Stephen Bergstein and Alan Sussman. The New York ACLU considers this case important enough for their over loaded docket. They will join the appeal! As WWII Vet Joan Keefe told the supportive crowd, freedom of speech and assembly is not limited to two hours a week!
Joan Walker
Enlist For Peace Legal Defense Fund
Adam Snyder - Historic Music in Kingston
Kingston City Hall will proudly host and celebrate the debut of Adam Snyder's second CD: "This Town Will Get Its Due," at a free concert on Saturday, December 16, at 3pm in City Council Chambers, City Hall, 420 Broadway, Kingston, NY.
Adam will be there to sing some of his new songs and will have his CD available for purchase and autograph.
Adam will be there to sing some of his new songs and will have his CD available for purchase and autograph.
Kumbaya
How did 'Kumbaya' become a mocking metaphor?
02:40 PM CST on Sunday, November 12, 2006
By JEFFREY WEISS / The Dallas Morning News
What do a recent Republican political ad, bubble gum commercial and British newspaper spoof of a soccer rivalry have in common?
All make fun of a well-known religious song. The GOP ad is typical: An impersonator of former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright sings "Kumbaya" with terrorists. Why is "Kumbaya" the designated silly-song to represent phony or ineffectual friendliness?
Where did the song come from? And what the heck is a "Kumbaya," anyway?
Also Online
Religion blog: Check out various performances and discussions of "Kumbaya."
The last question is the easiest to answer: "Kumbaya" is a pidgin version of "Come by here." The word repeats as a prayer throughout the song. A typical verse runs:
Someone's praying, Lord. Kumbaya./ Someone's praying, Lord. Kumbaya./ Someone's praying, Lord. Kumbaya./Oh, Lord, Kumbaya.
In other verses, someone's singing, crying, sleeping and so on.
The song's roots wind from South Carolina to Oregon to Angola to Ohio – and out to nearly every summer camp in America.
Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, offers an oft-repeated theory about the creation of "Kumbaya." It says the song (also spelled "Kum Ba Yah") was composed by the Rev. Marvin V. Frey (1918-1992) in the 1930s in New York City.
While it's commonly thought to be a "19th-century African-American folksong, originating among the Gullah, a group descended from enslaved Africans living on the Sea Islands of South Carolina and Georgia ... there is no evidence of the song before Frey's publication," Wikipedia says.
Concise, simple – and significantly wrong. (Lesson: The Wiki is handy, but not trustworthy.)
What may be the best chronicle of "Kumbaya" has been written by Lum Chee-Hoo, a doctoral student in music education at the University of Washington. His article is to be published in Kodaly Envoy, a scholarly music journal.
"I was interviewing some undergrads on camp songs they know and found out that 'Kumbaya' was top of the list, and so decided to do a little investigation," he said.
Here's what Mr. Lum found:
The earliest known threads of "Kumbaya" history are in Washington, D.C., at the American Folklife Center of the Library of Congress.
Sometime between 1922 and 1931, members of an organization called the Society for the Preservation of Spirituals collected a song from the South Carolina coast. "Come By Yuh," as they called it, was sung in Gullah, the Creole dialect spoken by the former slaves living on the Sea Islands.
Another version was preserved on a wax cylinder in May 1936 by Robert Winslow Gordon, founder of what became the American Folklife Center. Mr. Gordon discovered a woman named Ethel Best singing "Come By Here" with a group in Raiford, Fla.
The music and lyrics in both cases were similar, though not identical, to the modern version.
So how could Mr. Frey, a pastor and composer, claim authorship? According to Mr. Lum, Mr. Frey said that he had been inspired by a prayer he heard delivered by "Mother Duffin," a storefront evangelist in Portland, Ore.
Mr. Frey's first lines: "Come by here. Somebody needs salvation, Lord. Come by here." A lyric sheet of Mr. Frey's final version, printed in 1939, indicates it was written in 1936 – well after the versions collected by the music historians.
So was Mr. Frey inspired by a woman praying by using a song she had learned on the other side of the continent? Or was he one of many white artists of his era who piggybacked on the creativity of African-Americans without giving credit? The history is silent.
Mr. Frey went to his grave claiming the song was his own. In any case, by the early 1940s, Mr. Frey's copyrighted version had made it into church hymnals and onto live radio broadcasts.
Next, according to Mr. Frey, he taught the song to missionaries headed for Africa. By the late 1940s, other missionaries had returned to America from Africa singing "Kum By Yah" – with no idea where it had originated.
Jump forward to the mid-1950s and the Cooperative Recreation Service, an Ohio-based publisher of songbooks for camps and scouts.
Joe Hickerson, a folksinger and former director of acquisitions for the American Folklife Center, credits Lynn Rohrbough, the owner of Cooperative Recreation, with getting "Kumbaya" to the masses.
If a camp wanted a music book with, say, 40 songs, Ms. Rohrbough would offer 30 from her stock inventory and add 10 new ones, Mr. Hickerson said.
"Kum By Yah" – described only as an "African" song – was part of the Rohrbough inventory by 1956. As a result, it showed up in countless books of camp songs used by the Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts and others.
"The camp counselors who played guitar liked it because it only has three chords," Mr. Hickerson said.
In the 1950s, he was a student at Oberlin College, in Ohio, where he and some friends had formed a singing group, the Folksmiths. He said he first heard "Kumbaya" in 1957 from a folksinger named Tony Saletan, who had learned it from Ms. Rohrbough.
That summer, the Folksmiths played the song for thousands of campers, Mr. Hickerson said. When the group released an album in 1958, "Kumbaya" was included – the first commercial recording of the song.
Pete Seeger also recorded the song on an album released that year. Many other folksingers quickly followed suit, including the Weavers, Joan Baez, and Peter, Paul and Mary.
In time, the song spread beyond summer camps to become a mainstay of the civil rights movement and Catholic folk masses. So "Kumbaya," apparently, traveled from the Atlantic coast to the Pacific Northwest, to central Africa and back, from a Midwest publishing house to campgrounds everywhere, and, finally, into the broad vernacular of American folkmusic.
For the next 25 years, it was just one folksong among many.
But in the early 1980s, something happened. "Kumbaya" became the English-speaking world's favorite folksong to ridicule, the musical metaphor for corny camaraderie. How? Someone's wondering, Lord.
An extensive (and we do mean extensive) search of databases of newspapers, magazines and other sources turned up what may be the first ironic reference to "Kumbaya" in print, from Aug. 16, 1985.
The line is from a Washington Post review by Rita Kempley of the comedy movie Volunteers:
"Tom Hanks and John Candy make war on the Peace Corps in Volunteers, a belated lampoon of '60s altruism and the idealistic young Kumbayahoos who went off to save the Third World."
How did she settle on "Kumbaya?" Had she heard others mocking it? Was it something about the cynicism felt by liberals under Reagan? A commentary about the religious theme of the song, at a time when the Moral Majority was making its name?
Ms. Kempley can't remember. "I guess that song was the ultimate expression of people in the '60s who really cared," said Ms. Kemply (who accepted a buyout last year from the Post).
"And then everyone decided, Let's just make fun of that."
Dissing "Kumbaya" caught on.
In 1988, a column in The Christian Science Monitor knocked a New Age performance: "Next he'll want you to sing 'Kumbaya.'..." Time to leave."
In 1994, then-senatorial-candidate Rick Santorum dismissed the federal AmeriCorps program as "somebody ... going to do one year of community service picking up trash in a park and singing 'Kumbaya' around the campfire."
These days, a search for "Kumbaya" on Google or YouTube is almost as likely to turn up a joke as the song.
The recent bubble gum TV ad shows a bunch of tween-aged "summer campers" around a campfire.
"Let's sing 'Kumbaya,' " a rainbow-clad "camp counselor" says.
"We don't want no 'Kumbaya!' the kids yell. "All we want is bubble gum!"
Which doesn't make a ton of sense. But neither does the decision to make "Kumbaya" the symbol of insincere bonhomie. After all, the lyrics have nothing to do with friendship or unity.
So why did "Kumbaya" – among all the folksongs written in the last 100 years – become an idiom for idiocy?
Here's a partial list of etymologists, linguists and other experts who say they don't know:
Paul Heacock, editor of the Cambridge Dictionary of American Idioms ... Erin McKean, editor in chief of U.S. dictionaries for Oxford University Press ... Cynthia Barnhart, senior general editor for the Third Barnhart Dictionary of New English ... Grant Barrett, editor of The Official Dictionary of Unofficial English ... Wayne Glowka, an editor at the journal American Speech and chair of the American Dialect Society's committee on new words ... Barry Popik, contributor to the Historical Dictionary of American Slang ... Hugh Rawson, author of Rawson's Dictionary of Euphemisms and Other Doubletalk.
Some guesses: It's a one-word title that rolls easily off the tongue. It sounds foreign, and that makes it funny to many Americans. It's African-American, so racists deride it. It's African-American, so sappy white liberals couldn't wait to suck the soul out of it. It's a song that generations of summer campers (and folk-mass celebrants) were forced to sing, and they're sick of it.
Since nobody really knows, let's give the final word to Pete Seeger, from his liner notes to the 1958 album Pete Seeger and Sonny Terry at Carnegie Hall:
"At any rate, it is a beautiful example of how the world's folkmusic continues to intermingle, sans passports or permission, across boundary lines of fear and prejudice."
Kumbaya.
E-mail jweiss@dallasnews.com
MAKE THEM STOP, LORD, KUMBAYA ...
"Kumbaya" has been recorded scores of times. Some of the performers are the usual suspects. Some are not.
Folkies:
•Joan Baez
•The Folksmiths
•Garrison Keillor (on Prairie Home Companion)
•Odetta
•Peter, Paul and Mary
•John Sebastian
•Pete Seeger
•Sweet Honey in the Rock
•The Weavers
Oddities:
•Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber (of Veggie Tales)
•Jose Carreras with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra
•Nanci Griffith & The Blue Moon Orchestra
•Guadalcanal Diary (indie pop band)
•The Hillside Singers (best known for the Coke ad song "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing")
•Mackenzie MacBride (glam-punk)
•Raffi
•Terell Stafford (jazz trumpeter)
•Very Best of Welsh Male Choirs
Jeffrey Weiss
COLE PORTER IT AIN'T
The lyrics to "Kumbaya," as recorded by Peter, Paul and Mary in 1998:
Kumbaya, my Lord. Kumbaya.
Kumbaya, my Lord. Kumbaya.
Kumbaya, my Lord. Kumbaya.
Oh, Lord, kumbaya.
Someone's singing Lord. Kumbaya.
(REPEAT TWICE)
Oh, Lord, kumbayah.
Someone's laughing, Lord. Kumbaya.
(REPEAT TWICE)
Oh, Lord, kumbaya.
Someone's crying, Lord. Kumbaya.
(REPEAT TWICE)
Oh, Lord, kumbaya.
Someone's praying, Lord. Kumbaya.
(REPEAT TWICE)
Oh, Lord, kumbaya.
Someone's sleeping, Lord. Kumbaya.
(REPEAT TWICE)
Oh, Lord, kumbaya.
02:40 PM CST on Sunday, November 12, 2006
By JEFFREY WEISS / The Dallas Morning News
What do a recent Republican political ad, bubble gum commercial and British newspaper spoof of a soccer rivalry have in common?
All make fun of a well-known religious song. The GOP ad is typical: An impersonator of former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright sings "Kumbaya" with terrorists. Why is "Kumbaya" the designated silly-song to represent phony or ineffectual friendliness?
Where did the song come from? And what the heck is a "Kumbaya," anyway?
Also Online
Religion blog: Check out various performances and discussions of "Kumbaya."
The last question is the easiest to answer: "Kumbaya" is a pidgin version of "Come by here." The word repeats as a prayer throughout the song. A typical verse runs:
Someone's praying, Lord. Kumbaya./ Someone's praying, Lord. Kumbaya./ Someone's praying, Lord. Kumbaya./Oh, Lord, Kumbaya.
In other verses, someone's singing, crying, sleeping and so on.
The song's roots wind from South Carolina to Oregon to Angola to Ohio – and out to nearly every summer camp in America.
Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, offers an oft-repeated theory about the creation of "Kumbaya." It says the song (also spelled "Kum Ba Yah") was composed by the Rev. Marvin V. Frey (1918-1992) in the 1930s in New York City.
While it's commonly thought to be a "19th-century African-American folksong, originating among the Gullah, a group descended from enslaved Africans living on the Sea Islands of South Carolina and Georgia ... there is no evidence of the song before Frey's publication," Wikipedia says.
Concise, simple – and significantly wrong. (Lesson: The Wiki is handy, but not trustworthy.)
What may be the best chronicle of "Kumbaya" has been written by Lum Chee-Hoo, a doctoral student in music education at the University of Washington. His article is to be published in Kodaly Envoy, a scholarly music journal.
"I was interviewing some undergrads on camp songs they know and found out that 'Kumbaya' was top of the list, and so decided to do a little investigation," he said.
Here's what Mr. Lum found:
The earliest known threads of "Kumbaya" history are in Washington, D.C., at the American Folklife Center of the Library of Congress.
Sometime between 1922 and 1931, members of an organization called the Society for the Preservation of Spirituals collected a song from the South Carolina coast. "Come By Yuh," as they called it, was sung in Gullah, the Creole dialect spoken by the former slaves living on the Sea Islands.
Another version was preserved on a wax cylinder in May 1936 by Robert Winslow Gordon, founder of what became the American Folklife Center. Mr. Gordon discovered a woman named Ethel Best singing "Come By Here" with a group in Raiford, Fla.
The music and lyrics in both cases were similar, though not identical, to the modern version.
So how could Mr. Frey, a pastor and composer, claim authorship? According to Mr. Lum, Mr. Frey said that he had been inspired by a prayer he heard delivered by "Mother Duffin," a storefront evangelist in Portland, Ore.
Mr. Frey's first lines: "Come by here. Somebody needs salvation, Lord. Come by here." A lyric sheet of Mr. Frey's final version, printed in 1939, indicates it was written in 1936 – well after the versions collected by the music historians.
So was Mr. Frey inspired by a woman praying by using a song she had learned on the other side of the continent? Or was he one of many white artists of his era who piggybacked on the creativity of African-Americans without giving credit? The history is silent.
Mr. Frey went to his grave claiming the song was his own. In any case, by the early 1940s, Mr. Frey's copyrighted version had made it into church hymnals and onto live radio broadcasts.
Next, according to Mr. Frey, he taught the song to missionaries headed for Africa. By the late 1940s, other missionaries had returned to America from Africa singing "Kum By Yah" – with no idea where it had originated.
Jump forward to the mid-1950s and the Cooperative Recreation Service, an Ohio-based publisher of songbooks for camps and scouts.
Joe Hickerson, a folksinger and former director of acquisitions for the American Folklife Center, credits Lynn Rohrbough, the owner of Cooperative Recreation, with getting "Kumbaya" to the masses.
If a camp wanted a music book with, say, 40 songs, Ms. Rohrbough would offer 30 from her stock inventory and add 10 new ones, Mr. Hickerson said.
"Kum By Yah" – described only as an "African" song – was part of the Rohrbough inventory by 1956. As a result, it showed up in countless books of camp songs used by the Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts and others.
"The camp counselors who played guitar liked it because it only has three chords," Mr. Hickerson said.
In the 1950s, he was a student at Oberlin College, in Ohio, where he and some friends had formed a singing group, the Folksmiths. He said he first heard "Kumbaya" in 1957 from a folksinger named Tony Saletan, who had learned it from Ms. Rohrbough.
That summer, the Folksmiths played the song for thousands of campers, Mr. Hickerson said. When the group released an album in 1958, "Kumbaya" was included – the first commercial recording of the song.
Pete Seeger also recorded the song on an album released that year. Many other folksingers quickly followed suit, including the Weavers, Joan Baez, and Peter, Paul and Mary.
In time, the song spread beyond summer camps to become a mainstay of the civil rights movement and Catholic folk masses. So "Kumbaya," apparently, traveled from the Atlantic coast to the Pacific Northwest, to central Africa and back, from a Midwest publishing house to campgrounds everywhere, and, finally, into the broad vernacular of American folkmusic.
For the next 25 years, it was just one folksong among many.
But in the early 1980s, something happened. "Kumbaya" became the English-speaking world's favorite folksong to ridicule, the musical metaphor for corny camaraderie. How? Someone's wondering, Lord.
An extensive (and we do mean extensive) search of databases of newspapers, magazines and other sources turned up what may be the first ironic reference to "Kumbaya" in print, from Aug. 16, 1985.
The line is from a Washington Post review by Rita Kempley of the comedy movie Volunteers:
"Tom Hanks and John Candy make war on the Peace Corps in Volunteers, a belated lampoon of '60s altruism and the idealistic young Kumbayahoos who went off to save the Third World."
How did she settle on "Kumbaya?" Had she heard others mocking it? Was it something about the cynicism felt by liberals under Reagan? A commentary about the religious theme of the song, at a time when the Moral Majority was making its name?
Ms. Kempley can't remember. "I guess that song was the ultimate expression of people in the '60s who really cared," said Ms. Kemply (who accepted a buyout last year from the Post).
"And then everyone decided, Let's just make fun of that."
Dissing "Kumbaya" caught on.
In 1988, a column in The Christian Science Monitor knocked a New Age performance: "Next he'll want you to sing 'Kumbaya.'..." Time to leave."
In 1994, then-senatorial-candidate Rick Santorum dismissed the federal AmeriCorps program as "somebody ... going to do one year of community service picking up trash in a park and singing 'Kumbaya' around the campfire."
These days, a search for "Kumbaya" on Google or YouTube is almost as likely to turn up a joke as the song.
The recent bubble gum TV ad shows a bunch of tween-aged "summer campers" around a campfire.
"Let's sing 'Kumbaya,' " a rainbow-clad "camp counselor" says.
"We don't want no 'Kumbaya!' the kids yell. "All we want is bubble gum!"
Which doesn't make a ton of sense. But neither does the decision to make "Kumbaya" the symbol of insincere bonhomie. After all, the lyrics have nothing to do with friendship or unity.
So why did "Kumbaya" – among all the folksongs written in the last 100 years – become an idiom for idiocy?
Here's a partial list of etymologists, linguists and other experts who say they don't know:
Paul Heacock, editor of the Cambridge Dictionary of American Idioms ... Erin McKean, editor in chief of U.S. dictionaries for Oxford University Press ... Cynthia Barnhart, senior general editor for the Third Barnhart Dictionary of New English ... Grant Barrett, editor of The Official Dictionary of Unofficial English ... Wayne Glowka, an editor at the journal American Speech and chair of the American Dialect Society's committee on new words ... Barry Popik, contributor to the Historical Dictionary of American Slang ... Hugh Rawson, author of Rawson's Dictionary of Euphemisms and Other Doubletalk.
Some guesses: It's a one-word title that rolls easily off the tongue. It sounds foreign, and that makes it funny to many Americans. It's African-American, so racists deride it. It's African-American, so sappy white liberals couldn't wait to suck the soul out of it. It's a song that generations of summer campers (and folk-mass celebrants) were forced to sing, and they're sick of it.
Since nobody really knows, let's give the final word to Pete Seeger, from his liner notes to the 1958 album Pete Seeger and Sonny Terry at Carnegie Hall:
"At any rate, it is a beautiful example of how the world's folkmusic continues to intermingle, sans passports or permission, across boundary lines of fear and prejudice."
Kumbaya.
E-mail jweiss@dallasnews.com
MAKE THEM STOP, LORD, KUMBAYA ...
"Kumbaya" has been recorded scores of times. Some of the performers are the usual suspects. Some are not.
Folkies:
•Joan Baez
•The Folksmiths
•Garrison Keillor (on Prairie Home Companion)
•Odetta
•Peter, Paul and Mary
•John Sebastian
•Pete Seeger
•Sweet Honey in the Rock
•The Weavers
Oddities:
•Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber (of Veggie Tales)
•Jose Carreras with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra
•Nanci Griffith & The Blue Moon Orchestra
•Guadalcanal Diary (indie pop band)
•The Hillside Singers (best known for the Coke ad song "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing")
•Mackenzie MacBride (glam-punk)
•Raffi
•Terell Stafford (jazz trumpeter)
•Very Best of Welsh Male Choirs
Jeffrey Weiss
COLE PORTER IT AIN'T
The lyrics to "Kumbaya," as recorded by Peter, Paul and Mary in 1998:
Kumbaya, my Lord. Kumbaya.
Kumbaya, my Lord. Kumbaya.
Kumbaya, my Lord. Kumbaya.
Oh, Lord, kumbaya.
Someone's singing Lord. Kumbaya.
(REPEAT TWICE)
Oh, Lord, kumbayah.
Someone's laughing, Lord. Kumbaya.
(REPEAT TWICE)
Oh, Lord, kumbaya.
Someone's crying, Lord. Kumbaya.
(REPEAT TWICE)
Oh, Lord, kumbaya.
Someone's praying, Lord. Kumbaya.
(REPEAT TWICE)
Oh, Lord, kumbaya.
Someone's sleeping, Lord. Kumbaya.
(REPEAT TWICE)
Oh, Lord, kumbaya.
Yorktown Folk Guild
Fun at the Yorktown Folk Guild Saturday night. A small group, but enthusiastic. Mark Bernardini puts out a lot of time and effort to make it happen. There are some great guitar pickers there.
The high point for me though was singing in the church lobby while Lorraine played accordion. Songs were Hava Nagila and Roll Out the Barrel.
The high point for me though was singing in the church lobby while Lorraine played accordion. Songs were Hava Nagila and Roll Out the Barrel.
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