Tugboat Jackson, one of our most prolific artists here at Big And Tall Records has been absent for awhile, so it was with pleasure we saw this sound file in our email. The song 1984compares the book by George Orwell, published in 1949, about the dangers of big government and 'Big Brother' to modern times and the prolific lying that is going on.
Orwell's book was prophetic, as it took what was the current political turmoil of the world at the time, mainly Communism as practiced by the former Soviet Union and fast-forwarded what could happen to a society when state sponsored terror, control of history, and the cultural narrative could do. This warning applies equally to the extreme political right and political left, as totalitarianism is itself a form of government that is evil in its own right. With totalitarianism comes the control of everything, usually to the deification of the wealthy that kowtow to the powers that be, and leads to blatant corruption and inequality to those who disobey in the slightest. Our business is music, not politics, so we defer any curiosity that Tugboat has stirred in the listener to the encouragement to read Orwell's book that is widely available in bookstores, online, and libraries, and see for yourself if there is or is not parallels in contemporary society and governments.
In the past, Tugboat has been not only vocal in his lyrics but in words he had written for us. For whatever reason(s), he he declined further comment on any of his songs or opinions. He only tells us what he has to say he says in his songs. An honest enough response for an artist in any case.
Ya think you’ve heard it allThen when ya git outta bedLies float out over the airwavesTry to burrow in yo headSpewed out hard like the dry heavesEverything skewed all aroundTryin' to make one take rootThe liar works on iffy groundLike a waterfall of nonsenseLike the book written long agoGeorge Orwell predicted itIn his book nineteen eighty foThe bigger and fatter the lieThe more outlandish and boldMore that people will believe itThe dirty lie that is toldRepeat it loud and oftenBeat it hard into their earCompassion is for the weakThe only way is through fearLike a waterfall of nonsenseLike the book written long agoGeorge Orwell predicted itIn his book nineteen eighty foAnd the people are helplessSo they have been led to believeBeen lied to until they’re senselessHardly any hope of reprieveThe shadows will follow youWill tolerate no defianceIt's almost too late for itFor a rule of law reliancePeople united cannot failDespite all the ones with richesTake back our country fight them allThese lyin' sons of bitches!
The discovery of Uncle June's Jug Band by The Burgoo Boys has given Big And Tall Records another group of artists that we love; the relatively unknown artist that deserves to be heard more widely. And the word 'discovered' only pertains to the group being recorded. Uncle June has played for weddings, dances, all kinds of local events and is widely known in his area of Kentucky.
Uncle June himself is the soloist in this song, 'Possum Livin' Skills, and he has a voice that isn't what you'd call pretty, but it is assuredly distinctive. With a little bit of a growl, a touch of hoarseness, and an ability to put a lot into the lyrics of a song. But we do advise that listeners follow along with the printed lyrics, as Uncle June's accent combined with his voice timbre can leave some words hard to understand. But it is worth the effort, as Uncle June is the author of them, and they contain Kentucky country wisdom as well as good humor.
We talked to the leader of The Burgoo Boys, John Henry Flort, and he told us their group was playing the same gig as Uncle June's and they liked their sound, started jamming with them after the gig, and they ended up playing until morning! John Henry said that the group gives them an added dimension besides bluegrass. He also told us that the entire group is the happiest bunch they've ever met. Not a sourpuss in the bunch! He gave us Uncle June's phone number, so we gave him a call.
His good will and humor came across the phone just talking to him, and he had some things to tell us about himself:
Yeah, we been playin' for quite a few years. Played all kinds of events, even had a bar mitzvah scheduled once, but they cancelled! Man, The Burgoo Boys like they been playin' with us fer years! Hit it right off, blended good. They like all the oddball instruments my guys can play. You name it, these guys done played it! We're lookin' forward to playin' with The Boys lots more. They told us we could prolly get a contract from ya'll on our own, but nah, we'll stick with The Boys. They's recorded before, got more experience. Truth be told, me and my boys don't want the bother of it all. We jest wanna play! 'Sides, lot of the guys got other jobs, good payin' one too, hard to come by this day and age in this here part of the country, so this is jest a sideline for 'em.
Uncle June
As fer myself, hell I'm not only REtired, I'm STILL tired! Don't let my looks fool ya, I'm older than I look! As for the 'Possum Livin' Skills song, I been mullin' that over in my head fer quite a spell. Seen lots of 'possums 'round these parts, and got to thinkin' how they get along so well, some of them in town to boot. 'Possums just adapted to modern times I reckon. The music was a group effort fer sure. Our trombone player, 'Boner' Stewart came up with the trombone parts and brought some of his other 'bone buddies and a tuba blower also to help out. The guy's been playin' the 'bone for longer than I know, and he's real good! Course gotta have the washtub bass and washboard for the bottom of the song! Gotta tell ya, at the recording, I thunk up the last line of the song I'd rather be well fed and alive than purty and dead, on the spot. When I said it at the end, we also spoiled the recording because my guys started crackin' up! That and when I said the word 'omnivore' the first few takes, the band cracked up too. They didn't kn ow what it meant, jest thought it sounded funny and too hifalutin for a song we was recording! That's the only trouble we got with recording; we have so much fun playin' t'gether, we crack up and cain't keep goin'. Come to a dead stop gigllin' and carryin' on!
Times is hard for a lot of us So here's some things ya'll can try We call it 'possum livin' skills All kind a tricks to get by
'Possum plays dead, but not all the time Sometimes he just saunters off Other times he'll hiss like a snake Sometimes stand his ground get pissed off!
So pick your battles carefully Sometimes jest puff up say no! Others raise up your hackles Others ya just gotta let go
Times is hard for a lot of us So here's some things ya'll can try We call it 'possum livin' skills All kind a tricks to get by
When persimmon trees are in fruit The 'possum gets his belly full On a branch, feedin' hisself Enjoyin' ever sweet mouthful!
Find out what your persimmons are Oh yeah, seek it and ya'll will find Find what gives ya satisfaction Gives ya a sense of peace of mind
Times is hard for a lot of us So here's some things ya can try We call it 'possum livin' skills All kind a tricks to get by
Live on the cheap you'll be surprised How little can keep ya alive Not always, but when ya have to Keep an even keel to survive
We all need money to get by on But don't be gettin' the notion To work your ass off wreck your health To try and make a big fortune
Times is hard for a lot of us So here's some things ya can try We call it 'possum livin' skills All kind a tricks to get by
Don't neglect the dark of night Ol' 'possum is a night critter On a clear night go outside Get a chair be a night sitter
Darker the night, the better Light can be a distraction Let your mind go, have a think Take peace in your inaction
But thar's somethin' ya needs to know Ol' 'possum is an omnivore Nice way of sayin' he eats anything... I wouldn't do that...OH NO!
Times is hard for a lot of us Been that way through history Maybe 'possum livin' skills Can help keep ya happy and free!
'Possum livin' skills Oh yeah! 'Possum livin' skills Ugly ol' 'possum Knows where it's at! He be ugly, but he don't starve I'd rather be well fed and alive than purty and dead.
As Forgotten Bob says in hiss latest Oh, Baby Oh, Baby, he has 8(!) children by his wife, who he's been married to for many years. Their romance started way back when they were both into the punk rock scene, and as could be expected in the early 1990's no one thought their relationship would last. The punk scene was rather looked down upon as degenerate and immoral. some of it probably was, but these two prove that love is love, and they hung in together.
They both grew out of the punk scene when they started having babies. Bob got a good paying job (he was always a whiz with numbers and computers) and quit playing music in public until a few years ago. He took an early retirement from a lucrative job after he saved up his money. He's told us they hardly have had any disagreements after over 30 years of marriage. He said the only thing she insisted upon was that he get the tattoos removed from his hands, and he did. He attributed a lot of their long marriage in the fact that neither one was into drugs. He admitted to smoking until he quit playing, and a few beers now and then. He's told us so many he knew that were in the punk rock scene back then were into drugs, and he saw more than his share of friends meet a sad end.
His music now is what he calls 'rockabilly', but he lapses back into rock and roll on occasion, as in this song. He did tell us he never quit playing his guitar, most every day. And all eight of their children are musically talented, with one even studying to be a classical pianist! His wife doesn't play an instrument, but she was a singer and still has a decent voice he tells us, but he can't get her to sing on a recording.
We've been mighty curious about how Bob looked in his punk days, and we finally tracked down a picture! Take a look at this young man in the bloom of his punk youth!
A marked difference with the way he looks now! There were no actual photos. He's always had a lot of artists friends that did portraits of him from the beginning. We emailed this picture to him asking if he knew who it was, and it wasn't 5 minutes later when he called us back. "Where in hell did you get THAT?" he asked with a laugh. "Good gravy, that was 35 years ago!" We told him we couldn't reveal our sources. He said, "Now you know why I said in one of my songs that I still got all the holes in my face where all the jewelry went! And the 'tats! Holy cow, it was misery gettin' them! But ya couldn't be a punk back then if ya didn't have' em. Only one thing worse then getting 'em, that's having 'em removed! About killed my hands to get them taken off!"
I met a woman long time past She done it for me from the start Ended up we got together I finally followed my heart
But it took a bit to begin It started to mess up my head I got frustrated and angry This is what I finally said
Oh baby, oh baby, sweet babe Can't you open your heart for me I cannot live without your love Oh pretty baby can't you see?
All my pesterin' had results Agreed to go out on a date My heart 'bout beat outa my chest So excited, could hardly wait
Didn't have much money back then So we had some burgers and fries Ended up talkin' for hours Kept it honest, told her no lies
Oh baby, oh baby, sweet babe You opened your heart to me I cannot live without your love Oh pretty baby you can see!
I met a woman long time past She done it for me from the start Ended up we got together I finally followed my heart
We been through some very tough times But we stuck it out together Still go out for burgers and fries Couldn't have done me no better
Oh baby, oh baby, sweet babe Still got your heart open to me Ain't had to live without your love Pretty baby, lucky for me!
Yeah man! Still together. After 8 kids! You heard me! They're all growed, just my baby and me, lots of Grandbabies. We still boogie.
We haven't heard anything from The Burgoo Boys for a while, and now that we have they've picked up some more musicians along the way. Uncle Junes' Jug Band is a group that plays the rounds in Kentucky and are known for their use of traditional jug band instruments like kazoo, jaw harp, washtub bass, washboard, and of course the jug. Jug bands began years ago and were primarily back musicians that played in urban areas of the south, as well as medicine shows. They are a part of the history of the blues, and played many styles of music like jazz, ragtime, and the blues. Kentucky New Year's Eve is a happy song, an invitation to ring in the New Year with some home-spun music and traditional Kentucky and Southern food.
Some of the jug band instruments can be heard throughout like the washtub bass and washboard. The middle instrumental interlude spotlights some of them, and includes a solo by Uncle June himself, who is a virtuoso on the kazoo.
Gonna have a good New Years Eve
Get together and nip some shine
Jug player
Stay a while, don't ya'll leave
The eats gonna be mighty fine
A Kentucky New Years Eve Starts real early in the day Goes all the way to next light Overnight we're gonna stay
Bring yer Get-fiddles and dobros Banjoes, mandolins as well We'll start playin' and eatin' Raise us some mighty hell!
Gonna have a good New Years Eve etc…
Gonna have real fried chicken None of that KFC stuff Cay at fish, Chow-Chow, Frog legs So good you can't get enough!
We gonna have a jug band too Jaw harp, kazoo, washboard as well We'll start playin' and eatin' Raise us some mighty hell!
Gonna have a good New Years Eve etc…
What the hell you done asked me? We gonna have any Burgoo? Kentucky New Years Eve without it? What in hell is wrong with you?
We gonna have Derby pie Bourbon balls, Modjeska, as well Just take it easy with the shine It'll make ya drunker than hell!
Gonna have a good New Years Eve etc…
There's gonna be all kinds a ladies And men as well, that is true C'mon and daynce, sing and play They's bound to be partner for yew
We gonna ring in the New Year Hope it's lots better than the last Be nicer to all yer neighbors Keep all the hate in the past
The railroad has been in Betty Miranga's for all her life, and the family association goes back generations back to her Great Grandfather, Grandfather, and Father. Evidently she has a predilection for getting romantically inclined with railroad men as well. That it hasn't turned out well for her is being made plain in her songs. She has 2 sons from a previous marriage to a railroad man, and when the boys got of age they both hired on the railroad as well. This song, My Daddy Worked On The Rails tells a little bit about her father, and the sorrow she still feels from his passing.
We got a chance to talk to Betty as she came to our studios to sign a contract. We were somewhat surprised when we saw her. For some reason, we thought she was a small woman going by her high pitched voice, but it shows how getting a picture of someone just by their voice isn't always a good gauge of their physiognomy. Far from being a small woman, she's just a tad short of 6 foot tall! She shook hands and her grip is substantial. After we talked, we found out she was quite an athlete in her younger days (she's quite an attractive late 50's-early 60's lady). Played much basketball, softball, volleyball, and stays active and in shape by playing golf; she's 2 handicap,close to being scratch,but she said she's got some arthritis in her shoulders and doesn't play as often as she should anymore. Her voice is the same talking as when she sings; soft, high pitched, almost like a young girl. She told us her voice has not changed over the years, and she's careful not to strain or overwork her voice. Her talent and soul she puts into her songs is that of a mature woman that admits to using music to work through some of her life-long demons, as she calls them.
My Daddy worked on the rails 'Til his dyin' day runnin' trains Wouldn't quit when he had the chance Life of a rail man in his veins
Daddy followed in the footsteps Of his Daddy, Grampaw too Worked his way up from laborer All on the old SOU (Southern Railroad)
Ran the big diesel engines Long trains of black coal would fly 'Member goin' to the crossin' Wavin' to him as he rolled by
My Daddy worked on the rails 'Til his dyin' day runnin' trains Wouldn't quit when he had the chance Life of a rail man in his veins
Daddy got crippled up o'er time With arthritis in his back Ever time he had to move His joints would creak and crack
Had a chance to hang up his hat On account disability But he couldn't stand not ridin' And wounding his virility
My Daddy worked on the rails 'Til his dyin' day runnin' trains It's had a strange effect on me Life of a rail man in his veins
I ain't never worked the railroad But it's part of me just like him All my love's have been rail men All have ended up really dim
'Member hearin' 'bout Daddy Found dead in the engineer's seat They was stopped for a crew change Then his life was full complete
My Daddy worked on the rails His heart give out that sad day I'm all alone, without a man... I might end up the same way
The Mariachi group Un Grupo de Mexicali performs a song about the
Mexican tradition of Las Posadas where people walk every night between
Dec. 16th and ending Dec. 24th and knock on doors for others to invite
them in and offer refreshment. It is in imitation of Joseph and Mary's
walking through the streets of Bethlehem to find lodgings. That is in
fact what the title of the song translates to in English, 'Lodgings'.
The final night, Christmas Eve, is an evening of celebration and
traditional foods like tamales and punch along with piñatas in the shape
of stars.
En la noche oscura Un canto va Con velas y rezos En cada hogar Puertas se cierran Pero hay un lugar
¿Quién llama afuera? ¿Quién quiere entrar? Es José y María buscando un hogar
Estrella de luz Guía el caminar En Las Posadas Se siente el amar Piñatas que caen Risas al volar Y en Nochebuena Todo es celebrar
Los niños cantando Villancicos van Rompiendo silencios Uniendo el pan El aroma a ponche El fuego en paz
El patio se llena La fe a brillar Somos peregrinos buscando lugar
Estrella de luz Guía el caminar En Las Posadas Se siente el amar Piñatas que caen Risas al volar Y en Nochebuena Todo es celebrar
In the darkness A cry is heard Candles and reverence But every place Doors are closing Is there is a place? Who is knocking outside? Who wants to come in? It's Joseph and Mary looking for shelter within
Star of light Guide our way In Las Posadas Love will stay Piñatas falling Laughter rising And on Christmas Eve A celebration uprising
