Note: This is my first post and I’ve pinned it up top temporarily so that the initial visitors to this new site can see it. At some point in the not-to-distant future I’ll unpin it.
2019 started on a sour note, at least for hardcore country & western fans. Steve Ripley died four days into the new year. Ripley was the founder, and only permanent member, of a loosely-affiliated brotherhood of musicians who put out several albums under the band name The Tractors.
Unlike many C&W songs that dwell on heartbreak, or the stereotype of booze-prison-and-pickup trucks, a couple of songs on the band’s debut album have a distinct Woody Guthrie feel. Here’s from The Little Man, written by Tim DuBois, Jim Pulte, and Ripley:
Why don’t we take all the city-slick bankers
And put ’em on John Deere tractors in the summer sun
And sit back and watch ’em sweat
You can bet all the wheat in Oklahoma they’ll get…
A different attitude before the plowin’s done
Why don’t we take all the IRS boys
And watch ’em try to make a livin’ from the family store
When the big chain moves in down the block
There ain’t no room for the “mom and pop”
And all across this land, they’re closin’ their doors
(and you know that’s true)
I wrote it for you and i wrote it for me
You don’t need to look too hard to see
You’ve got to make more than the year before
Just to keep from gettin’ behind
And the little man is gettin’ smaller all of the time
Why don’t we take all the politicians
And make ’em spend a night with the homeless out in the street
Maybe they’d understand
We’ve got to start to lend a helpin’ hand
It’s the little man that made this country great
Well it’s true for you and it’s true for me
You don’t need to be smart to see
You(‘ve) got to be bigger than yesterday
Just to keep from gettin’ behind
The little man is gettin’ smaller all of the time
(that’s right–you know…)
The little man is gettin’ smaller all of the time
And here’s a portion of Badly Bent, written by Ripley with Martha Ellis and Walt Richmond:
Between the telephone, gas and electric bills
Car payment and the rent
Give it everything I got
Can’t seem to make a dent
I don’t understand
Where the money went
I’m not broke
But I’m badly bent
Can you tell me where
All the money went
I might not be broke
But I’m badly bent
Notice how in another stanza, the “I might be broke” changes to “we”:
I am just a country boy
Tryin’ to make some sense
But I’d like to ask the congress
I’d like to ask the president
Can you tell me where
All the money went
We might not be broke
But we’re badly bent
Yes, we as a country are badly bent. And yes, all the little men and women, all those not blessed to be in the top 10%, all those working stiffs who made America great, keep falling farther and farther behind. The horror stories of government workers facing eviction and having to depend on food banks during the recent government shutdown is just further illustration of how even people with fairly good federal jobs live so close to the margin that a single month without a paycheck is more than they can handle. Now reflect on this:
The Little Man and Badly Bent were written in 1994.
Twenty-five years ago.
So next time someone tells you that Russian interference was the reason Trump got elected, or that all those people between the coasts suddenly turned racist, sexist, or misogynist, ask them how financially comfortable they are. If they claim that they’ve got things covered, dare them to prove it by donating their next month’s paycheck to charity. You’ll get precious few takers.
And for those who might be interested, you can still get The Tractors various albums on CD, or download their songs. Two of my favorites are Headin’ Down to New Orleans, and Baby’s Got to Rock It, which hit #2 on the Country charts in ’94.
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