Woody Guthrie : Dust Bowl Ballads

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Back in nineteen twenty-seven

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I had a little farm and I called that heaven

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Well, the prices up and the rain come down

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And I hauled my crops all into town

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I got the money, bought clothes and groceries

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Fed the kids, and raised a family

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Rain quit and the wind got high

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And the black old dust storm filled the sky

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And I swapped my farm for a Ford machine

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And I poured it full of this gasoline

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And I started, rockin' an' a-rollin'

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Over the mountains, out towards the old Peach Bowl

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Way up yonder on a mountain road

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I had a hot motor and a heavy load

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Got a-goin' pretty fast, there wasn't even stoppin'

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A-bouncing up and down, like popcorn poppin'

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Had a breakdown, sort of a nervous breakdown of some kind

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There was a fella there, a mechanic fella, said it was engine trouble

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Way up yonder on a mountain curve

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A way up yonder in the piney wood

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I gave that rolling Ford a shove

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Was a-gonna coast as far as I could

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Commence coasting, pickin' up speed

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Was a hairpin turn, I didn't make it

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Man alive, I'm a-tellin' you

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The fiddles and the guitars really flew

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That Ford took off like a flying squirrel

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And it flew halfway around the world

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Scattered wives and children

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All over the side of that mountain

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We got out to the West Coast broke

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So goddamned hungry I thought I'd croak

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So I bummed up a spud or two

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And my wife fixed up a tater stew

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We poured the kids full of it, mighty thin stew, though

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You could read a magazine right through it

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Always have figured that if it'd been just a little bit thinner

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Some of these here politicians could of seen through it

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I'm blowin' down this old dusty road

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I'm a-blowin' down this old dusty road

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I'm a-blowin' down this old dusty road, Lord, Lord

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An' I ain't a-gonna be treated this-a-way I'm a-goin' where the water tastes like wine I'm a-goin' where the water tastes like wine I'm a-goin' where the water tastes like wine, Lord An' I ain't a-gonna be treated this way I'm a-goin' where the dust storms never blow I'm a-goin' where them dust storms never blow I'm a-goin' where them dust storms never blow, blow, blow An' I ain't a-gonna be treated this way They say I'm a dust bowl refugee Yes, they say I'm a dust bowl refugee They say I'm a dust bowl refugee, Lord, Lord But I ain't a-gonna be treated this way I'm a-lookin' for a job at honest pay I'm a-lookin' for a job at honest pay I'm a-lookin' for a job at honest pay, Lord, Lord An' I ain't a-gonna be treated this way My children need three square meals a day Now, my children need three square meals a day My children need three square meals a day, Lord An' I ain't a-gonna be treated this way It takes a ten dollar shoe to fit my feet It takes a ten dollar shoe to fit my feet It takes a ten dollar shoe to fit my feet, Lord, Lord An' I ain't a-gonna be treated this way Your a-two dollar shoe hurts my feet Your two dollar shoe hurts my feet Yes, your two dollar shoe hurts my feet, Lord, Lord An' I ain't a-gonna be treated this way I'm a-goin' down this old dusty road I'm blowin' down this old dusty road I'm a-blowin' down this old dusty road, Lord, Lord An' I ain't a-gonna be treated this way

Capo:

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Lots of folks back East, they say, is leavin' home every day

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Beatin' the hot old dusty way to the California line

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'Cross the desert sands they roll, gettin' out of that old dust bowl

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They think they're goin' to a sugar bowl, but here's what they find

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Now, the police at the port of entry say

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"You're number fourteen thousand for today"

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Oh, if you ain't got the do re mi, folks

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You ain't got the do re mi

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Why, you better go back to beautiful Texas

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Oklahoma, Kansas, Georgia, Tennessee

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California is a garden of Eden, a paradise to live in or see

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But believe it or not, you won't find it so hot

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If you ain't got the do re mi

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You want to buy you a home or a farm, that can't deal nobody harm

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Or take your vacation by the mountains or sea

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Don't swap your old cow for a car, you better stay right where you are

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Better take this little tip from me

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'Cause I look through the want ads every day

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But the headlines on the papers always say:

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Oh, if you ain't got the do re mi, boys

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You ain't got the do re mi

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Why, you better go back to beautiful Texas

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Oklahoma, Kansas, Georgia, Tennessee

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California is a garden of Eden, a paradise to live in or see

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But believe it or not, you won't find it so hot

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If you ain't got the do re mi

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That old dust storm killed my baby

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But it can't kill me, Lord

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And it can't kill me That old dust storm killed my family But it can't kill me, Lord And it can't kill me That old landlord got my homestead But it can't get me, Lord And it can't get me That old dry spell killed my crop, boys But it can't kill me, Lord And it can't kill me That old tractor got my home, boys But it can't get me, Lord And it can't get me That old tractor run my house down But it can't run me down And it can't get me That old pawn shop got my furniture But it can't get me, Lord And it can't get me That old highway's got my relatives But it can't get me , Lord And it can't get me That old dust might kill my wheat, boys But it can't kill me, Lord And it can't kill me I have weathered a-many a dust storm But it can't kill me, Lord And it can't kill me That old dust storm well, it blowed my barn down But it can't blow me down And it can't blow me down That old wind might blow this world down But it can't blow me down And It can't kill me That old dust storm killed my baby But it can't kill me, Lord And it can't kill me

Tom Joad got out of the old McAlester Pen There he got his parole After four long years on a man killing charge Tom Joad come a-walkin' down the road, poor boy Tom Joad come a-walkin' down the road Tom Joad, he met a truck driving man There he caught him a ride He said, "I just got loose from McAlester Pen On a charge called homicide A charge called homicide" That truck rolled away in a cloud of dust Tommy turned his face toward home He met Preacher Casey, and they had a little drink But they found that his family they was gone He found that his family they was gone He found his mother's old-fashioned shoe Found his daddy's hat And he found little Muley and Muley said "They've been tractored out by the cats They've been tractored out by the cats" Tom Joad walked down to the neighbor's farm Found his family They took Preacher Casey and loaded in a car And his mother said, "We've got to get away" His mother said, "We've got to get away" Now, the twelve of the Joads made a mighty heavy load But Grandpa Joad did cry He picked up a handful of land in his hand Said: "I'm stayin' with the farm till I die Yes, I'm stayin' with the farm till I die" They fed him short ribs and coffee and soothing syrup And Grandpa Joad did die They buried Grandpa Joad by the side of the road Grandma on the California side They buried Grandma on the California side They stood on a mountain and they looked to the west And it looked like the promised land That bright green valley with a river running through There was work for every single hand, they thought There was work for every single hand The Joads rolled away to the jungle camp There they cooked a stew And the hungry little kids of the jungle camp Said: "We'd like to have some, too" Said: "We'd like to have some, too"

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Now a deputy sheriff fired loose at a man

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Shot a woman in the back

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Before he could take his aim again

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Preacher Casey dropped him in his track

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Poor boy, preacher Casey dropped him in his track They handcuffed Casey and they took him in jail And then he got away And he met Tom Joad on the old river bridge And these few words he did say, poor boy These few words he did say "I preached for the Lord a mighty long time Preached about the rich and the poor Us workin' folks, all get together 'Cause we ain't got a chance anymore We ain't got a chance anymore" Now, the deputies come, and Tom and Casey run To the bridge where the water run down But the vigilante thugs hit Casey with a club They laid Preacher Casey on the ground Poor Casey, they laid Preacher Casey on the ground Tom Joad, he grabbed that deputy's club Hit him over the head Tom Joad took flight in the dark rainy night And a deputy and a preacher lying dead Two men: a deputy and a preacher lying dead Tom run back where his mother was asleep He woke her up out of bed An' he kissed goodbye to the mother that he loved Said what Preacher Casey said, Tom Joad He said what Preacher Casey said "Everybody might be just one big soul Well it looks that-a-way to me Everywhere that you look, in the day or night That's where I'm a-gonna be, Ma That's where I'm a-gonna be Wherever little children are hungry and cry Wherever people ain't free Wherever men are fightin' for their rights That's where I'm a-gonna be, Ma That's where I'm a-gonna be"

On the 14th day of April of 1935 There struck the worst of dust storms that ever filled the sky You could see that dust storm comin', the cloud looked deathlike black And through our mighty nation, it left a dreadful track From Oklahoma City to the Arizona line Dakota and Nebraska to the lazy Rio Grande It fell across our city like a curtain of black rolled down We thought it was our judgement, we thought it was our doom The radio reported, we listened with alarm The wild and windy actions of this great mysterious storm From Albuquerque and Clovis, and all New Mexico They said it was the blackest that ever they had saw From old Dodge City, Kansas, the dust had rung their knell And a few more comrades sleeping on top of old Boot Hill From Denver, Colorado, they said it blew so strong They thought that they could hold out, but they didn't know how long Our relatives were huddled into their oil boom shacks And the children they was cryin' as it whistled through the cracks And the family it was crowded into their little room They thought the world had ended, and they thought it was their doom The storm took place at sundown, it lasted through the night When we looked out next morning, we saw a terrible sight We saw outside our window where wheat fields they had grown Was now a rippling ocean of dust the wind had blown It covered up our fences, it covered up our barns It covered up our tractors in this wild and dusty storm We loaded our jalopies and piled our families in We rattled down that highway to never come back again

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I've sung this song, but I'll sing it again

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Of the place that I lived on the wild windy plains

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In the month called April, county called Gray

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And here's what all of the people there say

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So long, it's been good to know you

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So long, it's been good to know you

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So long, it's been good to know you

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This dusty old dust is a-gettin' my home

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And I've got to be driftin' along A dust storm hit, and it hit like thunder It dusted us over, and it covered us under Blocked out the traffic and blocked out the sun Straight for home all the people did run, singin' So long, it's been good to know you... We talked of the end of the world and then We'd sing a song and then sing it again We'd sit for an hour and not say a word And then these words would be heard So long, it's been good to know you... Sweethearts sat in the dark and sparked They hugged and kissed in that dusty old dark They sighed and cried, hugged and kissed Instead of marriage, they talked like this: "Honey..." So long, it's been good to know you... Now the telephone rang, and it jumped off the wall That was the preacher a-makin' his call He said, "Kind friend, this may be the end And you've got your last chance of salvation of sin"

Instrumental chorus

The churches was jammed and the churches was packed And that dusty old dust storm blowed so black Preacher could not read a word of his text And he folded his specs and he took up collection, said So long, it's been good to know you...

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I'm a dust bowl refugee

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Just a dust bowl refugee

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From that dust bowl to the peach bowl

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Now that peach fuzz is a-killin' me 'Cross the mountains to the sea Come the wife and kids and me It's a hot old dusty highway For a dust bowl refugee Hard, it's always been that way Here today and on our way Down that mountain, 'cross the desert Just a dust bowl refugee We are ramblers, so they say We are only here today Then we travel with the seasons We're the dust bowl refugees From the south land and the drought land Come the wife and kids and me And this old world is a hard world For a dust bowl refugee Yes, we ramble and we roam And the highway that's our home It's a never-ending highway For a dust bowl refugee Yes, we wander and we work In your crops and in your fruit Like the whirlwinds on the desert That's the dust bowl refugees I'm a dust bowl refugee I'm a dust bowl refugee And I wonder will I always Be a dust bowl refugee?

I got that dust pneumonia, pneumonia in my lung I got the dust pneumonia, pneumonia in my lung An' I'm a-gonna sing this dust pneumonia song I went to the doctor, and the doctor, said, "My son" I went to the doctor, and the doctor, said, "My son You got that dust pneumonia an' you ain't got long, not long" Now there ought to be some yodelin' in this song Yeah, there ought to be some yodelin' in this song But I can't yodel for the rattlin' in my lung My good gal sings the dust pneumonia blues My good gal sings the dust pneumonia blues She loves me 'cause she's got the dust pneumonia, too It it wasn't for choppin' my hoe would turn to rust If it wasn't for choppin' my hoe would turn to rust I can't find a woman in this black ol' Texas dust Down in Oklahoma, the wind blows mighty strong Down in Oklahoma, the wind blows mighty strong If you want to get a mama, just sing a California song Down in Texas, my gal fainted in the rain Down in Texas, my gal fainted in the rain I throwed a bucket o' dirt in her face just to bring her back again

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I ain't got no home, I'm just a-ramblin' round

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A hard working ramblin' man, and I go from town to town

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Police make it hard wherever I may go

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And I ain't got no home in this world anymore

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I ain't got no home in this world anymore I was farmin' on the shares, always I was poor My crops I'd lay away into the banker's store My wife she took down and died upon the cabin floor And I ain't got no home in this world anymore I ain't got no home in this world anymore I ain't got no home, I'm just a-ramblin' round A hard working ramblin' man, and I go from town to town Police make it hard wherever I may go And I ain't got no home in this world anymore I ain't got no home in this world anymore Well, as I look around, it's mighty plain to see This wide open world, she's a funny old place to be The gamblin' man is rich, the workin' man is poor And I ain't got no home in this world anymore I ain't got no home in this world anymore My brothers and my sisters are stranded on this road A hot and dusty road that a million feet have trod Rich man took my home and drove me from my door And I ain't got no home in this world anymore

Capo:

II

Intro: harp over verse chords

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Have you seen that vigilante man?

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Have you seen that vigilante man?

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Have you seen that vigilante man?

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I been hearin' his name all over the land Well, what is a vigilante man? Tell me, what is a vigilante man? Has he got a gun and a club in his hand? Is that a vigilante man? Rainy night down in the engine house Sleepin' just as still as a mouse Man come along an' he chased us out in the rain Was that a vigilante man? Stormy days we passed the time away Sleepin' in some good warm place Man come along an' we give him a little race Was that a vigilante man? Preacher Casey was just a workin' man And he said, "Unite all you working men" Killed him in the river some strange man Was that a vigilante man? Oh, why does a vigilante man Why does a vigilante man Carry that sawed-off shotgun in his hand? Would he shoot his brother and sister down? I rambled 'round from town to town I rambled 'round from town to town And they herded us around like a wild herd of cattle Was that the vigilante men? Have you seen that vigilante man? Have you seen that vigilante man? I've heard his name all over this land

Woody Guthrie : Dust Bowl Ballads
1940

Talkin' Dust Bowl Blues

Blowing Down This Road

Do Re Mi

Dust Can't Kill Me

Tom Joad (Part 1)

Tom Joad (Part 2)

The Great Dust Storm

Dust Old Dust (So Long, It's Been Good To Know You)

Dust Bowl Refugee

Dust Pneumonia Blues

I Ain't Got No Home In This World Anymore

Vigilante Man

Woody Guthrie : Dust Bowl Ballads 1940

Talkin' Dust Bowl Blues

Blowing Down This Road

Do Re Mi

Dust Can't Kill Me

Tom Joad (Part 1)

Tom Joad (Part 2)

The Great Dust Storm

Dust Old Dust (So Long, It's Been Good To Know You)

Dust Bowl Refugee

Dust Pneumonia Blues

I Ain't Got No Home In This World Anymore

Vigilante Man

Woody Guthrie : Dust Bowl Ballads
1940