Raymond's Folk Song Page - Recently Updated Pages

Coal Mining Songs

raymondcrooke — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 05:40:26 CST

You can see a playlist of my Mining Songs.

The Big Hewer (Ewan MacColl)

British coalminers have many stories of a legendary hero known by various names, including Temple, Tempest, Jackie Torr, Bob Towers, and, in Wales, Isaac Lewis. He is also known as "The Great Miner" or "The Big Hewer". He is to the British coalfields what Paul Bunyan was to the US logging camps and John Henry to the African American railway builders.

This song was specially written for the documentary Radio Ballad, The Big Hewer, first broadcast by the BBC in 1961.

Here is my rendition of the song, and here are the lyrics.

Come All You Coal Miners (Sarah Ogan Gunning)

Sarah Garland Gunning (later Sarah Ogan Gunning) was the tenth of 11 children in a Kentucky mining family, at a time when miners were paid less than a dollar and a half for a ten-hour day and worked in appalling conditions. Her father, Jim Garland, was blacklisted as he represented the miners in their fight for better wages, forcing him to use aliases in order go work in the mines. In 1931, a group of Northerners called the Dreiser Committee came to Kentucky to investigate atrocities committed against the miners, and brought their plight to national attention.

Sarah Garland and her sister, Molly (later known as Aunt Molly Jackson) wrote and sang songs in support of the struggle at labor rallies. They were taken to New York by members of the Dreiser Committee to help raise money for the miners' cause. Sarah, who was suffering from brown lung disease met folk singers like Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger and Lee Hays, who went on to record her songs. After successful treatment for tuberculosis treatment she retired from performing, but returned in the '60s to perform at several major folk festivals. Her half brother, Jim Garland, wrote I Don't Want Your Millions, Mister, which I have already uploaded to YouTube.

This song, written in 1937, is typical of her work. It has been recorded by Uncle Tupelo, who sings it from the perspective of a coal miner, rather than a coal miner's wife as in the original version, and also by Mike Seeger.

Here is my performance, and here are the lyrics.

Dark as a Dungeon (Merle Travis)

This song about the deadly lure of the coal mines was written by Merle Travis, whose father and brothers were all coal miners in Kentucky where he grew up.

Merle Travis himself remembers his oldest brother, Taylor washing up in a galvanized tub in the middle of the floor after coming home from the mines: "When I'd watch him wash the black coal dust from a little rose tattoo on his arm I longed for the day when I could work in the mine and have a tattoo... He practically broke every rib in his body in a mine accident and it changed his whole life..."

Travis first recorded the song in 1946.It was later popularised by Johnny Cash when he first sang it in his Folsom Prison concert. It has been covered by many other singers, including Dolly Parton, Harry Belafonte, Bob DeCormier, Pete Seeger, John Greenway, Cisco Houston, Jim Kweskin (1971), Rose Maddox (1976), The Weavers, The Wolfe Tones (1965), Glenn Yarbrough, Joan Baez (in 1964 and with Bob Dylan in their 1975 Rolling Thunder Revue concerts) and Patrick Sky (1985). The band, Wall of Voodoo, did a punk version in 1985.

Here's a performance by Ryan's Fancy and a nice one from a YouTuber who calls himself Fret Killer.

Here is my performance of this song and the lyrics are here.

Dream of a Miner's Child (Robert Donnely, Will Geddes)

This song was originally called Don't Go Down in the Mine, Dad. It was published in London in 1910. It was rewritten by Vernon Dahlhart in 1925 and popularised by Doc Watson. It has also been recorded by Ralph Stanley and Marty Robbins.

Here is my rendition and here are the lyrics.

The Dying Doctor (Woody Guthrie)

Woody Guthrie wrote several songs in support of the miners who were often in conflict with the companies which exploited them. These lyrics were written in September, 1945, but were never recorded. It is not known whether he ever wrote a tune to this or just intended it as a poem. As far as I know, nobody has performed this song before. Also known as The Company Town Doctor, it was published in the 1965 book Born To Win, which he co-wrote with Robert Shelton. I have put a tune to it, which I hope is close enough to Woody's style.

Thanks to Tony Oppegard, for providing me with the lyrics. Here is my rendition.

The Dying Miner (Woody Guthrie)

This song was written as a tribute to the 111 miners who were killed in Centralia Coal Mine No 5 Disaster which occurred on March 25, 1947 at 3:26 PM

This video about the disaster uses Woody Guthrie's song as the soundtrack. And here is my rendition of the song.

Here are the lyrics.

The Gallant Colliers (Ewan MacColl)

This song, to the tune of Morissey and the Russian Sailor, was written, in January, 1960, for a Tyne-Tees Television Co. documentary film about Coal, Burning Light.

Here is my rendition, and here are the lyrics.

High-Flying Bird (Billy Edd Wheeler)

Billy Edward Wheeler was born in 1932 in Boone County, West Virginia. His songs have been performed by more than ninety different artists. He has also written sixteen plays.

This great coal-mining song tells the story of a miner who dreams of escaping the mines by thinking about the freedom of a flying bird, but the only way he can ultimately escape the mines is by dying. It was covered a lot in the early 70s by artists such as Jefferson Airplane, Richie Havens and Gram Parsons, but often with changes to the lyrics that lost the original meaning. I first heard it sung by Judy Henske, who was the first to record the song. It was the title track of her 1963 album (1963) and she sang it with the original words. It was then picked up by Richie Havens and it became his signature song. Wheeler personally did not like the way Havens did the song. He said in a in an interview that "it was too monotonous - although I was thrilled that he did it. I don’t care how you do my songs as long as you do ’em! It is flattering and it helps me to eat."

Here is my rendition and here are the lyrics.

The High Sheriff of Hazard (Tom Paxton)

Tom Paxton wrote the following about this song (from Sing Out!, Vol. 14, No. 5, Nov 1964, p. 30):

Over the Easter weekend, my wife Midge and I, along with Phil Ochs, Carolyn Hester, Alix Dobkin, Eric Anderson [sic], Danny Kalb, and some others, got down to Hazard, Kentucky, to meet some of the miners who have been on strike and starving for over a year. If a man wants to scab, he can put in a twelve-hour-day in an unsafe mine ("dog holes," they call them) for anywhere from three to eight dollars a day. Things are rigged so if he won't scab, it's seen that he's unable to get food stamps for the government rations. This "high sheriff" runs the county the way he likes. As the song says, he's part-owner of a mine himself, so the miners have learned not to expect too much from him -- except trouble.

For the melody he used the traditional tune of The Limerick Rake. Here is my rendition of the song and here are the lyrics.

Lawrence Jones (Si Kahn)

Si Kahn, a North Carolina-based union organizer, writes hard-hitting political songs. This one, about the hazards of coal mining, is set to the tune of Pretty Polly, which was also used by Woody Guthrie for Pastures of Plenty and by Dylan for The Ballad of Hollis Brown.

Here is my rendition, and here are the lyrics.

Ludlow Massacre (Woody Guthrie)

In September 1913, mine workers in southern Colorado went on strike against the coal mine owners, in particular John D. Rockefeller's Colorado Fuel and Iron Corporation. They were fighting for an eight-hour day, a fairer method of weighing the coal and the right to shop in stores not owned by the company, as well as recognition of the union according to already existing labor laws.

Miners' housing and everything else in the towns where they lived, and pretty much the state government itself, were in Rockefeller's control.

When the striking workers were forced out of their homes they set up tent camps in the hills, the largest being at Ludlow.

Although there was no violence from the strikers, Martial Law was declared and, throughout the winter, regular raids were carried out by "detective agencies" working for Rockefeller, resulting in several deaths. Some of the strikers managed to obtain guns to defend themselves.

When the strike was still not over by spring the mine owners organised an armored car, with a mounted machine-gun, to drive around and spray bullets into the camps, forcing the miners to dig trenches and holes beneath the tent floors to protect their families.

The armed thugs were reinforced by the National Guard, which was under the command of the governor, Their wages were paid by the Rockefellers.

On the morning of April 20th, the Ludlow camp was attacked with machine-gun fire and the strike leader was enticed into the hills to discuss a truce, and shot to death by members of the National Guardsmen. Then at night the tents were set on fire by the soldiers, killing twenty people, eleven of them children. It is estimated that altogether 66 people were killed over the duration of the strike.

The outcome of the massacre was that thousands of people marched to the state capital and demanded that the Guardsmen be tried for murder. Miners armed themselves and attack the mine guards and blew up mine shafts in the town of Trinidad. A company of state soldiers sent there refused to mobilize, saying they would not shoot women and children.

After twelve more deaths, order was restored by the combined forces of the corporations and the federal government and the strike ended. None of the hired gunmen were charged with a crime.

This song is Woody Guthrie's account of the massacre at the Ludlow camp.

Here is my rendition. You can read the lyrics here.

Miner's Lifeguard

This coal-mining song is sung to the tune of the 19th century sacred song Life's Railway to Heaven, which was adapted from the Welsh hymn, Calon Lan.

These lyrics were collected and recorded by George Korson from Mrs. Luigi Gugliotta, West Virginia in 1940.

The line "keep your eyes upon the scale (or sometimes "scales") refers to the coal owners' practice of underweighing the miners' coal cars which was common until the unions succeeded in appointing a union man to doublecheck the weight.

It was recorded by The Almanac Singers, Pete Seeger's group that preceded The Weavers.

Here it is sung by Kwan at a session of the Hong Kong Folk Society at The Canny Man in The Wharney Hotel, Wanchai.

Here are the lyrics.

Miner's Lullaby (James Low)

This lovely song, by Portland singer, James Low, was recorded on his album, Live at Mississippi Studios. It was requested by Tony Oppegard, who called it "a little-known coal mining song, but one of my all-time favorites". He said he has never heard a cover of the song, so this may be a first!

Here is my rendition, and here are the lyrics.

Miner's Wife (Ewan MacColl)

This short song was written for the documentary Radio Ballad, The Big Hewer, first broadcast by the BBC in 1961. A number of interviews were conducted with miners' wives and the greatest concern seemed to be the dangers in the pit, a subject which worried the women as much as the miners themselves. One woman described it as as "a constant war of nerves".

Here is my rendition, and here are the lyrics.

The Mountain (Steve Earle)

This great coal mining ballad is the title track from the album that Steve Earle made with the Del McCoury Bluegrass band in 1999. He wrote all 14 songs, and said in his liner notes that his motive was an attempt at immortality. He hoped at least one of the songs would be performed at every bluegrass festival in the world after he was gone.

Here is my rendition, and here are the lyrics.

One Miner's Life (Ed Pickford)

Pound a Week Rise (Ed Pickford)

Ed Pickford was born in 1943 in County Durham. Influenced by Woody Guthrie - via Lonnie Donegan - he wrote many great songs of working class struggles and concerns including The Workers' Song, Ah Cud Hew, Farewell Johnny Miner, One Miner's Life and of course this song about the miners' pay claim of 1960, which he wrote in 1962 when he was 19 years old.

This song has been recorded many times, one of the best known being by Dick Gaughan in 1978.

Here is my rendition and here are the lyrics.

Schoolday's End (Ewan MacColl)

This nostalgic song was specially written for the documentary Radio Ballad, The Big Hewer, first broadcast by the BBC in 1961. The three verses tell the same story of a young man leaving school to work in the mines, but the setting changes from England to Scotland and then to Wales.

One of the best recordings is by Luke Kelly, using the title School Days Over. Most recordings since then have been basically covers of his version. Here is one by Damien Dempsey and another by Gavin Hayes.

Here is my rendition, and here are the lyrics.

Sixteen Tons (Merle Travis)

There is some controversy about whether Merle Travis actually wrote this song, which he recorded in 1953. George Davis (1906-1992), known as the "singing miner of Hazard, Kentucky," claimed to have written the song as Nine to Ten Tons some time earlier.

Tennessee Ernie Ford had a big hit with the song when it was released as the B-side of a song called You Don't Have to be a Baby to Cry in 1955.

The many others who have recorded the song include Johnny Desmond (1955), Frankie Laine (1955), The Weavers (1956), Eddy Arnold (1956), Kate Smith (1958), Homer & Jethro (1960), Jimmy Dean (1961), Bo Diddley - 1961, Lorne Greene - 1965, Stevie Wonder (1966), Tom Jones (1967), Eric Burdon (1990), Johnny Cash, Leon Russell, The Platters, and Big Bill Broonzy.

Here is my rendition and here are the lyrics.

The Springhill Mine Disaster (Peggy Seeger)

The Springhill mining disaster of this song occurred in 1958. A number of miners trapped underground were miraculously rescued after eight days.

Peggy Seeger, who was living in Paris at the time, saw the reports of the disaster on television and was moved to write about it. Because she had never been down a mine, she later asked Ewan MacColl to help her with it. He added at least one verse, probably the third.

The kind of situation described in this song is still a frequent occurence in China, where I live. So many people have given their lives in this way throughout history.

The song has been recorded by many artists, including Ewan MacColl (of course), Peter, Paul and Mary, Theodore Bikel, Martin Carthy, Bob Gibson, Luke Kelly and U2.

Here is my rendition of the song. And here are the lyrics.

The Testimony of Patience Kershaw (Frank Higgins)

In 1842, a commission of the British government examined the working conditions of women and children who worked in the coal mines. An illiterate girl of 17, Patience Kershaw, gave this testimony. Frank Higgins wrote her account into this powerful ballad.

It has been covered by various artists, including Enoch Kent, Sally Rogers, Elle Osborne and The Ian Campbell Folk Group.

Here is my rendition, and here are the lyrics.

Trimdon Grange (Tommy Armstrong)

This song tells of an explosion of either firedamp or coaldust which took place at the Trimdon Grange colliery in South County Durham on 16 February 1882. Seventy-four miners were killed. One of the common (but unofficial) fund-raising methods in such cases was to write and sell songs about the disaster on the streets. Tommy Armstrong wrote these lyrics to the tune of the ballad Go and Leave Me If You Wish It which is best known in America as Columbus Stockade".

Martin Carthy learned the song from Bob Davenport and recorded it on his 1974 album, Sweet Wivelsfeld. It was reissued in 2003 using the name The Trimdon Grange Explosion.

Here is my rendition and here are the lyrics.

High-Flying Bird

raymondcrooke — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 04:59:42 CST

Em ........................ Am .............. Em
There’s a high flyin’ bird up in the sky
.............................................................. B7 ..... Em
And I wonder if that bird looks down as he flies by
.............................. B7 ............. Em
Ridin’ on the air so easy in the sky

Sun comes along, lights up the day
When he gets tired, he slides on over the way
East to the west, he gets gone every day

.......................... Am ............. Em ............. Am
But Lord look at me here, I’m rooted like a tree here
............. Em ......... B7 ....... Am ............ B7 .......... Em
I got the sit down, can’t cry, O Lord I’m gonna die blues
....................................................... Am .............. Em
I used to have an old man and he worked in the mine
.................................................................. B7 ...... Em
He never saw the sunlight, but O Lord he kept on tryin’
.............................. D .......... Em
Then one day my daddy, he up and died
...... B7 .................................. Em ............... Am
My old man up and died, my daddy up and died
........... Em .............................. Am ............ B7 .......... Am
Oh, he had to fly away and the only way to fly was to die.

........................ Em ........ Am .............. Em
Well, there’s a high flyin’ bird up in the sky
................................................................. B7 ...... Em
And I wonder if that birdie looks down as he flies by
........................................... B7 ............. Em
Oh, he's ridin’ on the air so easy in the sky

But Lord look at me here, I’m rooted like a tree here
............. Em ........ Am ....... Em ............ B7 ........... Em
I got the sit down, can’t cry, O Lord I’m gonna die blues
I got the sit down, can’t cry, O Lord I’m gonna die blues

Politically Correct

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:41:59 CST

C
You know that dirty story
............ F
That’s currently doing the rounds.
.......... G7
If you dare to pass it on you’ll be on
C
Very shaky grounds.
F
These days any kind of humour
C
Seems to be out of bounds.
..... G7 ............ C.. D7 G
All jokes you must reject.
....... C
You can’t draw a caricature
...... F
In case it offends.
........ G7
You must beware and never dare
...... C
Upset our Muslim friends.
........... F
You’d better get on the bandwagon
........ C ............ F
And follow the latest trends.
........ C ................ G7 .......... C
You have to be politically correct.

You can’t make fun of Irishmen,
You can’t make fun of Jews.
And don’t attack the feminists –
You’ve got too much to lose.
They’ll always let you speak your mind
So long as you share their views.
And don’t say you’ve been hen-pecked!
An anatomically compact bloke
Should never be called a dwarf.
You can say he’s vertically challenged,
But never say he’s short.
Call a differently-weighted person fat
And you might end up in court.
You have to be politically correct.

If a guy comes up to you
And invites you to play,
You can’t call him a poofter
And send him on his way.
“You homo!” is a no-no,
But it’s okay to say he’s gay!
You have to show respect.
You can’t call a spade
A spade any more.
You can’t call a sex-worker
A hooker or a *****.
And you can’t make jokes
About your mother-in-law.
You have to be politically correct.

They’ve censored all the fairy tales,
They’re banning Mother Goose.
You mustn’t laugh at Benny Hill
Or even Lenny Bruce.
And you mustn’t smack your naughty child.
You’ll get done for child abuse,
And then your family’s wrecked.
You can’t assume that others
Share the belies that you hold dear.
You can’t say “Merry Christmas”,
But only “Happy New Year”,
And if you make a Nativity scene
You’ll be thrown out on your ear.
You have to be politically correct.

Sometimes Mother Nature
Is very hard to please.
Environmental issues
Can bring a business to its knees.
Stop your global warming
And go out and hug some trees.
This pollution must be checked.
Endangered whales and sharks
Are disappearing from the seas,
But if we try to save the whales
We’ll offend the Japanese,
And sharks fin soup at a banquet
Is important for Chinese.
You have to be politically correct.

Sixteen-year-old Zerrin
Had a boyfriend, to her shame.
Her father stabbed the girl to death
To save the family’s name.
The judge said, “He’s a Muslim,
So that mitigates the blame.
What else would you expect?"
“Allow for cultural differences”
Is a song you’ll learn to sing,
Though equality for women
Is a very worthy thing,
We must allow for cultures where
The man is like a king.
You have to be politically correct.

Don’t call a ****** a ******
Unless you’re a ****** too.
Borat can tell anti-Jewish jokes
Because he’s actually a Jew,
And Kazakhstan is wondering
Who the hell to sue,
Their reputation to protect.
The safest thing to do
Is to sit firmly on the fence.
Don’t be so bloody sensitive,
So quick to take offence.
Have a sense of humour
And have some common sense.
Do you have to be politically correct?

Polly Ann

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:36:28 CST

E .............................................. B7
I used to sleep soundly when I lived in the gutter.
..... E
I existed on acorns and apricot butter,
......... A
But then, when the peacocks and butterflies came,
E ................................. B7 ............... E
All I could do was find someone to blame.

......... A ................................. E
Polly Ann, Polly Ann, you’ve found a new man,
B7 ..................................... E
Steal back on tiptoes whenever you can,
................................................... A
Walk back and wake me when you need a hand,
............... B7 ................................... E
Lest you find yourself buried in a mountain of sand.

You walked alongside me for many a mile.
I gave you my hand and you gave me your smile.
But then when we parted I still had your shoes.
You had my money and I had the blues.

The desert was dry; I got lost in its heat
But the footprints I followed were made by your feet.
The clowns on the mountain could not make me laugh.
I took back your tickets and I tore them in half.

Last time I saw you you’d tied up your hair.
You walked right on past me with your nose in the air.
I glanced at my watch but the hands had gone west
And the bluebird I dreamed of had deserted its nest.

Now I’m leaving your lilies by the side of the road,
I sit here and listen as the crystals explode,
The clouds up above me are cottonwool sheep
And the river I float in is fifty miles deep.

Saddam

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:34:35 CST

...... E ........................................................... A
Today they hanged this man, Saddam Hussein.
.... B7 .................................. E
Another life was lost. What did we gain?

They found him at his hidden base.

He was brought to the courtroom in disgrace,
A
No chance that he could ever win his case.

Will his death make the world a better place?
.... B7
It might bring a smile to a Shiite’s face.
....... A7 ...................................... E
But wasn’t he a member of the human race?

One of the guards called out his name.
“Remember Muqtada to your shame.
We knew you were the one to blame.
You caused us suffering and pain.
Go to Hell, Saddam Hussein,
And burn in everlasting flame!”

Do you want to make a martyr of this man?
Do you think you can complete what you began?
You walked with him and you shook his hand
And used him in your quarrel with Iran,
But when he didn’t fit neatly into your plan
You sent out your troops to invade his land.

What ever did you come here for?
He was hiding weapons? Are you sure?
You say that things were bad before?
The time will come when you must withdraw
And leave this land to its civil war.
Yes, he spilt blood, but you’ve spilt more.

Song for a Hundred Subscribers

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:33:10 CST

.......... C ................................. G7................ C
Hey, blandmangopatterson I wrote you this song.
..... G7........................... C
If I list my subscribers I just can’t go wrong.
F .......................................................... C
I’ve reached a hundred subscribers at last.
........ G7 ............................................. C
If I shout all their names out, then I’ll have to sing fast.

There’s senoritalyndsie and rocrebelgranny,
And in Canada there’s a sweet singer named Annie.
Capo420 and you, shawnmcnair!
Keep those songs coming. You’ve so much to share.

Squiresfan, keep singing and scraping those strings.
There’s JohnnyBazooka; like Dylan he sings,
There’s my friend, coolanddark, and the lovely sisjewell,
Ottawarocket, losthills, all your songs are so cool.

When I’m watching YouTube I’m always so glad
To see those great videos made by vidlad.
Greetings to XxWaveWarlockxX
Good luck with your research into how stuff connects.

To dear Gabriella and rvbobc,
To YIU123 and wmtdv,
To EricZamarripa and msyting,
Thank you for listening to me when I sing.

Here’s to pappupagerindia and to THEJAMMAN,
nacatus, Kathaarsis and garybridgham.
Hello hamlogoku and cybertaiko.
Raise a glass to kickassmo and billybobjoe.

ramstein and matgems and akusexy,
MarshallBananna, sandalopachuli,
To elsasusanty and tinosvblog,
To monkusdichheilus and to you, fogfrogblog,

To you bebekbuntal and ryanandpatricklover,
upikabujelek and you, BIGFOOTBUBBA,
Griffin, OmOrange and rolf41,
Piratmorya and KCOLB121.

Good luck dimanddiger and kingofthe bingogame,
Unpromoted and NIGHTOWL, I wish you the same.
Kennewicksheri, you ought to be thanked,
And BADBOY69, you deserve to be spanked!

thumperpyp, Inverness, d1a1r,
septjoy, InvisiblePeep and labunner,
I can say sapikurus, but I must hesitate
When I see rstdbrcn78.

Here’s to claire92284 and srpb2,
To amjwebnz and dbrockttu
rockyriver and Zaimaz, UNFILTEREDnREAL,
When you make your comments it means a great deal.

Best wishes to manikam and goodnightmuseum,
Where are your videos? I’m waiting to see ‘em.
To ILikeTheMonkeyHead and you, devildish
trishaallen, Frankenlobster and also Kabish.

To lizaatakan and nixnbrunei
And jughea6 and blooobie and also wildshy,
aeolust, organpipes and TheDright
And jkevinraymundo, I bid you goodnight.

Thanks to longjd777 and videoblast
I’ve reached a hundred subscribers at last.
swedeheart and ewchoi, I’m glad you dropped by,
But number one hundred is you, JelousSky.

To therealdylanperry and kcrooke as well
And amelcrotur (or should I just say Mel?)
And radically atomic, I’m starting to see
You guys are just like a family to me!

Heres to iliketorock6767,
claymore77 and othmOO11,
ehaught and danskscum, deezyd212,
And my favourite subscriber of all, lewnlew.

So blandmangopatterson, I’ve finished my song.
And I can’t help but think that it’s gone on too long.
But let’s keep moving on, with a song and a smile,
And I thank my subscribers who make it worthwhile.

Song for 100 Subscribers - Part 2

Hey, blandmangopatterson, there’s more to this song
Another one hundred have just come along.
We need our subscribers, without any doubt
So I reckon it’s time that I gave them a shout.

So many musicians, where can I begin?
There’s SilasRockefeller, who plays mandolin
There’s chuckadile, greyxwolf and RonanCeol too,
thewunited, Gabo and lprox152.

There’s graffjamie and coldironbounds82
And d6njm and dreaminglad too
And mactruck and rington and johnfern99
Keep singing and playing; you all sound so fine.

sophiecutegirl and MarieLynn3
caitruane, queeniefox and LokeLoski
idazarinawaty and upulagi,
And the most creative man on YouTube, that’s Ardieverde.

Orfea from Brunei, arcelona from Singapore
mightyironlungs from Guam and there’s yanks by the score,
There’s jsm19782003
And rsspinball who’s a burden on society.

To *************, firounce, eNahda
To jazztap, bolehnationdotcom, sainabah
Syntethic, asp, karlster and mokipekida
Terima kasih and apa kabar.

From Deutchland, klickstarter and NaomiFan
But ant, are you really from Afghanistan?
With his bodhran and whistle, there’s NicktheIrishman
nutinmay from Woodend, hotmetalgearz from Japan.

teeara, offroadrules, tgr and xanlu
Butchers and teddybear722
lilpyro83 and samelf
I see you’re all Aussies the same as myself.

Modernoracle, thanks for your great database,
And TeamCannabis for your impeccable taste.
gluthahia and mustang, keep racing those cars.
johnnysmooth and jadephoenix, you’re big YouTube stars.

There’s spiritual-materialist analysis from Jihunn,
Rock, jazz, blues and gospel from Davidaron.
Grancie48 gives us early childhood
And there’s anarchistic altruism from beavisisgood.

If you want to learn a language, go to twinswordsoffire,
For skateboarders, skaterat will make you fly higher.
Sophsweet has comedy and podgytube football,
veikko blues, beer and hockey and, for silat, there’s maul.

There’s enderthird, jimbob and elaineszeto,
yardlizard and bpautz and pshapiro,
gLobaLovinGr8ViLLage and inepali
And artistic JJ77TTUU3

helivestubes, atoach and ieg032,
sconesandteabags, nanaikekumu,
stephengreathead, kaburto and rde93,
pyromanic, rhiaaswan, racehorse and schtumptley.

gphilips and rayner, sutroy, shotgunl,
karoldotkarol, WilliamCerf, hirondel,
goochie and Dunken and juzzers312
ds7176 and you, rixiroo.

obrien97eire and fere21,
ohchaste and gerkey and also mcfun.
And irish 2B2, keep up the good fight;
Let’s put the abusers and spammers to flight.

My friends, whummadug and HaulAwayJoe
And my newest subscriber, jalukusumo,
Although you came later I won’t leave you out
I want to give all my subscribers a shout.

So blandmangopatterson, I've finished my song.
And, just like the first part, it's gone on too long.
But I thank my subscribers, the first hundred too,
And all the musicians I’ve found here – like you.

Song for 100 Subscribers - Part 3

blandmangopatterson, I’m singing to you,
Though I’m not sure if you noticed Part One and Part Two.
You’re the first of three hundred subscribers, my friend.
It was easy to start, but how will this song end?

There’s anloef from Norway, asylumyears from Italy
chutipascal from Spain and Pacificdreamer07 from Germany
And seadreamer12 in Canada, but lestep and nfri,
Bjtongyu and markpaulam are all Aussies, like me.

From Brunei there’s MiniFridayHacker and mikikiyora
From the Netherlands, asnaak, from Greece, chambaba.
From Mexico LGAbbadie, from India, 1musicSTARR
And I hope you’ll put me in your video, PlugBar.

From Buenos Aires via Norway there’s demian90,
There’s acoustic guitar lover jbman413
SinnFein1916 and johnnyblaz13
And, whummadug, you’re back here as UbiDubi1A

From Indonesia there’s efendori
And from Brunei via Glasgow there’s kerrazeegui
From the US theco12ex, from Sweden GalihRatna,
From Australia, mjay22 and migno - so Apa Kabar?

From Malaysia 012dead and mylaothman,
gigixes, chintjo1, dencall and rkoyan
Torkiev, a loner obsessed with yaoi,
mazledotcom and amerhadiazmi.

Not a bad kind of chap is kellygthatsme
For runescape videos see zezimaabc,
And for emo from Edinburgh you’ll have to see
MsiAnimeSceneWanabe.

wingsthesteatoflove, sankahouse, samdaboy5,
jamesprobbins, namsniper, PointsOfNote, jimmybhoy4,
DemiHumanShield, crnkybtchh, shakeymcfly and sthetix,
Daytripper10108 and vanzandt6]

There’s dogspause and branthus and Lullabye4u
elmagnifico3, gregw2825 and johnnyhorton2
Jws85 and cibhc7
wsh40516 and NinaJ2011

Keep poking and tapping things, CityzenJane.
Keep making those movies, hillbillyprofane.
For mikedelic brownage from the timewarp interjelly
Tune into slippereal and turn off your telly.

Child of the universe, ichingiching,
nigelbourke and unionsundown, it’s great when you sing.
Hear billkilpatrick and maajonic; you got nothing to lose,
And just listen to deltaslim singing the blues.

Come mambeu and atkinson4234,
leafer6, culverlocal, Jackvrij, nosibor,
All you musicians, you know who you are,
Like jayrbee60 and JesseGuitar07

And Lewdite, the songster, LAdave65, and theslian.
Your wife’s a great singer, ProsperiaFan
UnclassicalPiano, keep hammering those keys,
AccordianTony, more videos please.

alonzogarbanzo has music for all occasions,
For extinction events and for defenestrations
Autos da fe, supernovas and birthday parties.
He could have ruled the cosmos, but had other priorities.

mundy678, drmeandme,
ronenbarzel and HokieofWV
Opinionated caranfinand has unknown allergies
And liamstarwatcher is a pirate who likes cheese.

cbgb77class is an alternative school
Lady Mary Jane of Lochaber is a blackwidow74 so cruel
To see kids at Colby’s Clubhouse, go to diuint if you like,
Or the series of adventures of LasVegasOpenMic.

Leopardjoy, on YouTube you’re making your mark,
Showcasing stars like blooeye, coolanddark,
OttawaRocket, RLSGuitar, tommiji
AnnieCanada, Team Cannabis – some day, maybe me!

greyxwolf, I’ve shouted your name out before
And now you’ve appeared in my new list once more.
Your comments are cryptic but friendly and nice,
But how did you manage to subscribe to me twice?

DAHCFDMF’s not in my dictionary
But that’s where you go if you like Deborah Harry.
Go to indietvfest for independent TV
And StanleyJenkins videos look funny to me.

For Snuffydoug and silver965 and johnnyd101,
And sirstuart and steedan, YouTube is such fun
Wtfiswrongwitya just made it on time
Hard to pronounce – and impossible to rhyme.

So blandmangopatterson, I’ve come to the end.
I’ve dug myself into a hole here, my friend.
In no time there’ll be 400 subscribers and then
I’ll have to do this stuff all over again.

Song for 100 Subscribers - Part 4

Hey, hey, YouTubers, I’m back here at last.
The subscribers keep coming so thick and so fast.
Now the fourth hundred has crept up on me.
It doesn’t seem long since I sang you Part Three.

There’s THELONEWEBCRUSADER, Vorlan, Monklady
And the very politically correct Jamezzini
Doomsday316 blows anime bubble gum
And GJMIII is happiest when he’s holding a gun.

Some can play jazz, like Lonnieplaxico.
From Boston there’s Nakedfolk, from Chicago, seeso.
DardisMusic from Deutchland, from Arkansas Cliffbrock,
bfsongs from Argentina, you really do rock.

You can listen to kyriesong or Ireland’s JAMMAN1701
Or a guitar-playing barman called guitaristkam.
There’s albertaviking and CelticAccordionTony
And for blues from Lithuania there’s empiremonkey.

I can hear OaklynRecs and OaklynTV,
But KamakaTexas, I’m waiting to hear your ukulele,
davidholness and whitepeaches, I’m glad you could stay.
Come and meet quasirella and LeViolongay.

cleo1994 from Norway is a big Dylan fan,
So for zimmiegirl and you, kummernummer’s your man,
And goodlookingdracula, you make it quite clear -
Jimmie Rodgers is the singer that you want to hear.

Welcome WaprilsJimBob, and how do you do?
I’m waiting to hear some good music from you.
And for all you YouTubers who want a good laugh
Come and meet audreynolanreturns - in her bath.

There’s donnelly307 from Ireland and Hong Kong’s azuremain,
There’s SpiritusDeae and Hisautumnrain,
There’s mlkarthik from India, and there’s hamidah1024 too,
And RebuildingBabel can be your guru.

Here’s to Demondragonkinggav and you, idbowman,
And macanhitam who says he’s from Uzbekistan.
From Andorra there’s munter123, from Poland beniak2,
From Gibraltar jakelegjeeter, from Albania aoeu2007

hevox from Sweden and gpod89 from Korea
mohitlucifer from India, you’re all welcome here
From Israel there’s lordi22893, from Taiwan, jimmynpuppy
And, from Italy, the roller-skating radagast93

From Canada there’s x2xfreakx2x and aubey1
Babybookworm003, BENGALtiger87 and tomdavison.
For spiritualism there’s DYBoulet2 as well
And cheeseitz who offers you marshmallow hell.

From Malaysia touchupictures and azlanrosli
And classical music lover sukrisabri
Protos09, shemlexluger, wankedah and shaw1,
Stocks and bonds are okay but figure-skating’s more fun.

roticanaispes, amaltiagunawan,
yzsystem from Brunei and jess421,
raflytrecool, iks666 and sufehmi,
I think you could all speak Bahasa to me.

I’ve got lots of subscribers from the US of A,
Like bobbywallis, and matt, who’s from Boston and gay,
And merlin440 and meteormite and SCOTTK1NM4RT1N,
janemaril, jim1965, serge165, rickoap1 and merlin440

There’s SublimeStuff and flxible8V92 and fedecuco,
sethev, myusenet, carsonsheir and Tucko1,
spittle8, BeMyFriendPlease, fussballpa and lameplan,
caithiseach, realoldgeezer, choco523 and trawlerman79

poolpig and 2Xintheface, your art is so fine
And teddytayl likes anything that can sparkle or shine.
Thebeatlesrandy, you’re American, but in London you sit,
And you curse Sir Walter Raleigh, he was such a stupid git.

From Australia there’s crooner71 and BADASSBITCH2
LittleBindii, Phatsora, silentassassin4u
There’s thatjellyfish and warcat08 who has a talk show,
And magicmunchies from New Zealand. (That’s in Australia, you know!)

Now the kiwis are after me, so I really must run.
I hope you find YouTube a whole lot of fun.
Thanks for staying with me till the end of this song.
Part 5 will be coming before very long.

Song for 100 Subscribers - Part 5

Now I've got five hundred subscribers or more
I keep writing this song; you may wonder what for.
The subscriptions come faster and faster each day.
I welcome you all, and I hope that you'll stay.

I've lots of subscribers from the US it seems;
There's yarrkoon, Fattpirate and RadiantBeams,
Eyesayah, inatangle, Rowlduke, korwinblue,
bodiddleybodiddley, kwailman and Xenu

There's DecemberGuy, DruryF06, bojames25570, jackjnston,
Lostslider and that man of the world, JoeWhittington.
There's that geek, elvirasweeney, n4rit4, oceanblue00,
And ssmith97 with three daughters and a dog and frog too.

There's foxwindflower, Echoe22 and slapie
And Playomatic makes great little movies to see.
If you like animation, there’s willamato.
“You’re all evil – there’s no hope for you!” says jdgemo.

TheBorgLives is Larry, a big YouTube star,
JeremyAllenF18, DarthEric31, gloveseller and BluesHat2057 play guitar.
You can hear jacobehrlich play and sing like Leadbelly
Or timboytx trial-and-erroring on his ukulele.

There’s thnkngstuff, a disaster-manager, kimmarie801 and rhylee90
hornygirls4u and xredroses4me
And also from the US - I think it's symbolic -
Is GenScrewUp, who's a suicidal manic-depressive alcoholic.

From the UK there’s megandloz07 and Clarzo.
comeonwork puts the adventures of Pad and Ben on show
There's kaizaersaid and whitejw and djmitch18,
And panickingjuggler who's outgrowing the cage that he's in.

There’s Stardomproductions and 5StarRafa,
banjohopeful plays banjo, pinknblues1, the guitar
grapefruitparrot’s a musician; so’s blueukulele.
And TheraminTrees indulges in philosophy.

From Sweden there's Kaabii, from Qatar, mloreangal,
From Switzerland, DschaladDin, from Poland bialyszkwal
From Malaysia syrupbandung, idiotgram and anaklabu,
And bearbusuk and oxcomb, and, from Ireland, laoisabu.

From Hong Kong there's asdfjkl2357
From Ireland there's PCSCZ and gerilithgae as well,
From Singapore, jessevoidable, from Indonesia, juenna,
From Russia and Italy, MisterFirebird and lamartineta

There’s agape2000 from New Zealand and agduine from Spain
And angry sparrow111260, an atheist, from Switzerland again.
From Germany there’s flopunox and phelondudras
And from Perth, in Australia, there’s ellisguitars.

From the Netherlands there's schokker64, from Belgium DinaBandhuDasa
And there’s Brendan the poet, spelt bafr1.
There’s beauwt, with his factweb and from Canada there’s swhabby
And HappyWilliam21 from Australia, who’s occupation is being happy.

There’s canegracehasettevite and cheezeba11
And thency and bygo23 and Aukon07
I'll mention A1eXau55 and neoclassicism if I can
And scumbucket1019, from Nev'vawaz'za in Umbrellastan

It's great to have musicians subscribing to me
Like romford25 and 12barblues2 and OntZ
saraahope, nondepouk and TravisTricky,
bluesyworms, loddar39 and lili100I,

marcoacca and Barrie562 and irishpiper3
whatnojungle, doggun and also kampi3.
BeautifulGirlByDana you nearly missed out,
But I still have the chance to put you in this shout.

I was getting all ready to upload this song
But another subscriber has just come along.
From somewhere over the rainbow in Ireland you are,
A twelve-year-old singer known as deboeahshasha.

And now I have come to the end of this rhyme.
There'll be no Part 6, 'cause I just don't have time.
So to the next five hundred, let me make it clear.
You're welcome. I hope you'll enjoy my songs here.

Song For a Thousand Subscribers

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:29:45 CST

E
I’ve got a thousand subscribers now and here they are:
B7 ............................................................. E
souixana, sheedah24, CarlaM317, nicobilika
B7
esomantecha, muniiera, wankedah
A ........................ E ...... B7 ............. E
numenoralca, swalta, ggk21, catminima

purpleandchodan, Aidan485, tsirahxuan, idbowman82
hexman586, uglilyan, Vorlan, NicktheIrishman
ProsperiaFan, jbman413, amaltiagunawan
killiekentman, steedan, rhiaaswan, kwailman

mjay22, rabhay, rca1679, gerilithgae
WILLARDJ, wj432187, milkyway3011, LeViolongay
j4l4k, doomsday316, thenatureway
agape2000, chintj01, aubey1, nutinmay

gabriella1012, quasirella, sinawava42, hamidah1024
mikikiyora, WizardWalk, eNahda
JesseGuitar07, JustArthur1904, gluthahia,
shyakun, Jihunn, OutLawzpker, loddar39

dnzz, jughea6, OntZ, kaizersaid
rehtged, bpautz, ILikeTheMonkeyHead
amjwebnz, PCSCZ, bardyz
hoxukokent, mercymovement, JCDenton04, 012dead

MlleVerity, tony45347, kodi9942, rvbobc
labulabi2407, Euterpe01, rde93, tjm3, hoxulee
lordi22893, thency, princessfiffy, rhylee90, linuszrv
TravisTricky, bodiddleybodiddley, alizaytv

suuzzee5, Christophski1988, carlinamarie, schtumptley44
unintentionalcruelty, akusexy, ieg032
Jamezzini, LGAbbadie, kimmarie801, supandhi
CelticAccordionTony, swhabby, Thebeatlesrandy

TheraminTrees, justinsteven1, BeMyFriendPlease, pickngrin70
OsvaldoPaese, realoldgeezer, goodnightmuseum, MarieLynn3
thenewbabyjesus, nanin3, wsh40516, dimanddiger, deltaslim
pappupagerindia, hisyamudin, drsunnylim

sophiecutegirl, zimmiegirl, audreynolandreturns, TheDright
Debbyturner, thewunited, lturner2008, lewdite
lenakatzir, nir71, gigixes, bluesyworms, alniteboldnite
TaishoTears, asylumyears, hotmetalgearz, meteormite

wwwJEZSEZcom, SirCoughsalot, twinswordsoffire, hevox
jairosoft, qpod89, Ottawarocket, lprox152
sexysox113, BruneiDoLL, RonanCeol, queeniefox
liamstarwatcher, GoldenOldies60and70s, SolomanPhenox

Macozzx, EvolvedTorture, pharaoh33, mutesolo
sistermoonshine13, Edberge, aryomustiko
Weaseldog2001, Rainydog, kensington25, avroe1
antoniomelejor, ravensburger2, sherhino

greyxwolf, Butchers, wheeliewoman, kcrooke
coldironsbound82, unionsundown, bearbusuk
RightOnAndFarOut, cheers1905, jess421, moktook
foxwindflower, sankahouse, NITEOWL779, kitekook

shunt1974, 9sunj27, bdahw
wingthesteatoflove, silentassassin4u
mightyironlungs, juzzers312, whitejw7
Gurrier, xsexybutt103, aeolust, bew2005

lyricoperalover, filmmakersRus
ryanandpatricklover, sapikurus
Jesuscamplover1, 1122hung, nelsonwalrus
cocklesandmussels, TimMcMullen, 789ulmus

masterpxz2, txmom2many mondweep, ZimmermanFan1
domhnail1, CATSTALE48, mattstrange, Paulychan
jmacrusader, jdrichard01, Boghy90, tinman530
Stgmets, CJLNM, ppartear, fthart, maxdemian1978

gundalowman, lameplan, rkoyan, lizaatakan
Halo3TricksFan152, najasajan, saulman134
mustang1298, wongsecang, macanhitam, theslian
vanzandt6, Grancie48, Laplacianna, footbalfan08

SinnFein1916, CityzenJane, rayner148, Hisautumnrain
DAHDHDH, npbh68, summersunshine47, GingerJaneM
skatternap, jazztap13, dannyknapp, azuremain
Demondragonkinggav, travis101305027, hillbillyprofane

sapla1729, jessica3345, BeautifulGirlByDana
deboeahshasha, celesteoshana
kingofthebingogame, justgeifaname, sueanna2
THELONEWEBCRUSADER, stewballmax, MarshallBananna

akucomel88, zulunisel, ronenbarzel, GoHopewell
k6tpl, gurlmontel, Gehirnwusel, MosheNL
Lessismor3, stringfellow1971, asdfjkl2357, encinitasmel
gloveseller, owend21, SilasRockefeller, hirondel

senoritalyndsie, nfri, zuhriyuhyi, jayrbee60
cyberwoni, amerhadiazmi, inepali
Monklady, goochie45, fotodigy, hagane9000
Robbie28790, blooobie, crownvicky, aboutb, vrunreality

pmb003, BJC65, lili100l, catuvellauni1
HD28MG, sukrisabri, UbiDubi1A
mrp92a, Vegc84, asi090, MathReality
blueukulele, Barrie562, mundy678, donnelly307, diahdp

ichingiching, msyting, BadyinMacfadyin, anniberlin
hultonclint, jwins2, Ravennwings, kevinch3, merlin440
daytripper10108, thumperpyp, Kathaarsis, diuint, SC0TTK1NM4RT1N
longjd777, SherifG1, OKCELTIS, DschalaladDin

TravisDurden88, enderthird, MisterFirebird, 19jadephoenix81
stephslyrics, banjohopeful, iks666
WilliamCerf, Johnfern99, JoeWhittington, sthetix
ROAFOSocial, PointsOfNote, ds7176

Tucko1, kdkmo, guitarhero250,Gemizo
hamlogoko, willamato, pshapiro, kickassmo
alonzogarbanzo, billybobjoe57, seeso
flambeau, cybertaiko, jkevinraymundo

mansderk, COLLEENVIRK, razorgore2, rumbo4266
Griffin6942, Paulinajtking, Mzbiglynn, emono36
00BubblesTheBear00, willtrib, Sigurdllyk, blytheau2
937irish, majawins, sea2side, blackwidow74

stephenjamescrowther, firounce66, samdaboy5
alexlloyd123, epitrochoid09, UncleVRoy
slctdmbntwrx, Doobierollerz, ewchoi
volleyballjones, bibliosca, septjoy

bloodcreture, touchupictures, scrooge38, ***********
Teledude1972, testtube7, charsalutube, podgytube
ShaggyLuke, nondepouk, Rowlduke, helivestubes
mohitlucifer, tyiyBots, shemlexluger, madboobs

MarchRunner, labunner1, fere21
kummernummer, rington1, celticnooneson
danskscum, magicmunchies, gizzysmum, doggun
alfredunhill, uthund, da9elsolum, mcfun61

Babaganaba, Maysey1, murpy90, hartke112,
pasquazzone, Torrquerrone78, pat12345tee, Colognefgfg
Thafookillah, imustkill, grapefruitparrot, caitlinv1990
Androswolf, COLLEENisHERE, adinboy, nickpld

AcousticAlexander15, SallyMander4711, annarmerirand
TeamCannabis, serikanda, randomdancing66, BCBband
phmuyldermans, sweetresonance, Icefishermans, caranfinand
MiniFridayHacker, TheHarriets, theblackhand2

2Xintheface, Superscape62, pizzaface777, manputera
LAdave65, BigMacers, ohchaste, onesukma
AcousticMate, spittle8, goodlookingdracula
teddytayl, weeknightingale, tufffytale, fussballpa

rickyaap, dyanrazalie, aNisluvdarl, Joshua4396
noname180795, 420SensiStar, lamartineta, PlugBar
andromeda6428, Maskwa19, Ermengarde11, LeLotusNoir
rendra26mk, TUBERBOULEVARD, andriaaam, lechavfma

indietvfest, gdgest, kensen468
Jojomgs, stealth5976, lestep, fsmramen
davidholness, Inverness01, camden38, yourcamden
Jws85, dtandersen, cyrus2cn

Knurdy, rocrebelgranny, elvirasweeney
shawncheekeasy, deezyd212, fat88andy, zezimaabc
*************, MsiAnimeSceneWanabe
ArdieVerde, upulagi, graffjamie, irishpiper3

kaktoralagi, jakelegjeeter, whitepeaches, maajonic
slippereal, UNFILTEREDnREAL, harmonykieding, screamogeek
leafer6, DemiHumanShield, caithiseach, omarafiq
rxzgreen, freshgreens2006, KCOLB121, agduine, aphique

cheeseitz, porkinwitz, rockyriver, mummy2skye
villeelliv, TheBorgLives, spikesmth, ssmith97, blooeye
y512516, meryt114, Deanishes, DecemberGuy
devildish, thatjellyfish, edjib, Kabish, shakeymcfly

Maul565, doogey9, Serge165, jjm1965, 9035
Evilliboba, WaprilsJimBob, Ralf5555
Nutjob99, jimbob757575, saraahope, rickoap1, sgtforlive
jamesprobbins, Frankenlobster, 666y555

jdgemo, mambeu, oldcrow213, Lonnieplaxico
cleo1994, kaburto1966, buhminho, sherakiko
Clarzo, fedecuco, rnsantiago
jalukusumo, capo420420, choco523, Gabo9312

zezodegrimstone, ant414, nosibor
Picerthrone, ChuckEBone, RavenstoneW, localbore
atkinson4234, LIBERATOR1944, claire92284, shaw1, claymore77
ThunderSquawk, abhvor87700, ahsum2u14, artCOR3

jessevoidable, gillybunty, Rossiboy07, sutroy001
A1eXau55, kunglao00, GenScrewUp, LeopardJoy
naturallyWonderful, jimmynpuppy, emoboy1819
meadeboy223, jimmybhoy4, folkgrassboy

raflytrecool, offroadrules, lamelcrotur, crooner71
BIGFOOTBUBBA, imursubber, doubletrouble1947, huner85
mactruck01, asmithorguk, Dunken555, pirrung123, billbassoon
silenthunter07, shotgunl, empiremonkey, yarrkoon

Stardomproductions, aksthebugs, edwardclug
WaSheeHaProductions, scumbucket1019, snuffydoug
whatnojungle, koghokmung, Biergutt, whummadug
panickingjuggler, thnkngstuff, duglug

atoach, beniak2, RandyHaddock, dreaminglad
sconesandteabags, silentdragon10, inatangle, madfortrad5958
ghostgal30e, blinddrunkal, Sevzgal, Gogsard, drprasad79
sriekant, RedMilitant, thisisapples1, ijad82

Zas379, asp504, Nimash, radagast93, kedikatt007
trishaallen, richpat, JeremyAllenF18, warcat08
blandmangopatterson, Playomatic, BluesHat2057
skaterat5050, golnat, agirlfromasia, kleeblatt07

pegasusiskandar, sirona30, jonathandavidr
NiobProta, marcoacca, cera19376, AnnieCanada
amalia7127, pjhalla, kaliteya, mokipekida
juenna, arcelona, 5StarRafa, GalihRatna

granniejans, gbonnycastle, bambangpamungkas
ellisguitars, klickstarter, giutarmaster96, nacatus
faisalbart, swedeheart1, danielgabehart, phelondudras
videoblast, masque, cbgb77class

r2d21977, aoeu2007, ashley0211, derekeverett
ArtNatureMusic, Phantomsbreath, myusenet
roticanaispes, Sopez1, farfadet888, Weralxet,
holymeth, Torkiev, whhwns, sethev, tyvekvelvette

JJ77TTUU3, YIU123
slapie5, DruryF06, irish2B2, jsm19782003, sandalopachuli,
nathanbeatty, kennewicksheri, LittleBindii, bommyc2
kampi48, SpiritusDeae, epr323, drmeandme

mindfulmusic78, SHEILASMUSIC, lethal14, NinaJ2011, Alaric66
seadreamer12, RadiantBeams, Pacificdreamer07, mlkarthik200
InvisiblePeep, journeybeast, justinsleep, bucknorrismusic
canegracehasettevite, matt5413, sophsweet, syntethic666

albertaviking, BENGALtiger87, Kejsermichael, JelousSky
hamdiexile, JerryXheimer, vasascristian, o2bhi2
neoclassicism, karlster77, deathism, chuckymogwai
jacobehrlich, crnkybtchh, djmitch18, nixnbrunei

NakedFolk, emifolk, culverlocal, Cliffbrock
angeljoker, Unpromoted, gudnyth, nyzmrock
tinosvblog, fogfrogblog, comeonwork, Mcflemdog, rock28574
NiteBlogger, genaillechristophe, iliketorock6767

lilpyro83, Selserene, migno, HaulAwayJoe
jasonjohnhorn, gushho, thewestburykid, dunno000001
UnclassicalPiano, haniyaveiro, bradondo
elaineszeto, yorkphoto, Maldo707, elmagnifico3

romford25, memarywalker, johnnyhorton2, donal1951
andyrawn, paula29511, z0rn86, syrupbandung, randall2020
thedrafthorse, archambault65, racehorse87, bebekbuntal
dogspause, ehaught, kestorz, bialyszkwal

brandwho, rixiroo, gocrazy4u
Schuschu1, 0900Zulu, nanaikekumu
perryjw, Miker2, lewnlew
Lullabye4u, irishroverandthecrew

fairdinkumfruitloop, mizzissippiblues
melvinseatsoup, pjtuloup, SelseMuse
mangocomputer, beauwt, mute900, pinknblues1
truth736, 12barblues2, johnnysmooth, maIaysianews

ELECTRICSHAMAN13, kobokan45, trawlerman79, NaomiFan
azurisan, guitaristkam, burtondylan100fan
THEJAMMAN, postoman0708, Stingetan, guitmartiman
idiotgram, markpaulam, garybridghamframsam

Takefivejazz, johnnyblaz13, Beadazzle10, coolanddark
cycloneaxe, jdmac730, Zaimaz, branthus, blueslark
colddrake80, ForOlTimesSake, elsasusanty, asnaak
irisjade84, sparrow111260, gade121, freedomslavery, JackLark020

Adobeninja, Eyesayah, 1musicSTARR
DinaBandhuDasa, JohnnyBazooka, piratmorya
bafr1, tgr2007, jukaka22, starnes87, PhatSora, sainabah
RLSguitar, chambaba, angga1402, lovergurlsara

olieq, anloef, acfemf, teddybear722
DAHCFDMF, matgems, samelf, carsonsheir
sobyczek, upikabujelek, sunatzenith, shawnmcnair1
d6njm, littlecherubs, RedCeltic, obrien97eire

radicallyatomic, meggasimonn, davidaron
bolehnationdotcom, bfsongs, dyjeeon
FightingIrishdotcom, mazledotcom, Wmacdon175
fuhloizle, armedconventicle, ev0lve, daleryanshutchinson

cobhc7, nomipi, srpb2, kellygthatsme
azlanrosli, LokeLoski, sufehmi, OaklynTV
Kriegs333, eiffazaidi, Orfea84, headbuzzed, EstherNickleby
xredroses4me, gerkey48, parkyoshin, efendori

gLobaLovinGr8ViLLage, AmishChildren, GJMIII
HappyWilliam21, polyacryl, losthills, cmsingerbill
Vicille, shlemihl, Jackvrij, silver965, paulinskill01
hanezlind, rshuping, ginmillsinger, janemaril

themistoklisp, IndigoBlind, sirstuart69, BADBOY69CP
tongferlion, LasVegasOpenMic, Line6G, Graeline
squiresfire, babybookworm003, ticklepint, ERaveline
organpipes, ramstein05, namsniper, sherrywine1941

XboxcarracerX, timboytx, vivachile73, mikeg8866
StepXXX, theco12ex, ighthx, hiddentracktv2
KamakaTexas, OaklynRecs, marcie99, HokieofWV
x2xfreakx2x, fendertexas, wmtdv

TaylorKingMusic, Terr0rt0telc0
bigshaun6666aus, notscooter952, bygo23, TazOZero
Echoe22, AlbaMorius, 88quadrifoglio
RhunaShellhound, wowbao07, SecondLifeHobo

Earlwood, huggawood, beavisisgood87, vauxhall908
oxcomb, myaddpost, broncose1, chutipascal
BanjoBoog, nabooster, theoldjudge, izyuzal
blackgregariousrose, mloreangal

dj6ual, 1kewldude3, korwinblue
KiltDude32, ShoryukenDude, hyperdude16,ritaru03
helmue2311, anaklabu, hornygirls4u
flxible8V92, gregw2825, bjtongyu, oceanblue00

0thershop, Klop52, modernoracle, yinyangron
puzzdos, RedGabeRoss, Protos09, jackjnston
OmOrange, megandloz07, blindtcjohnson
fatimamedlicott2008, bobbywallis3301, jackson46176

Part 3

E
I’ve got a thousand subscribers now; I thought I’d give them all a shout.
B7 E
Apparently I left one of the most important people out.
B7
His name somehow disappeared so now I have to put it back.
A E B7 E
Here it is at last – the one and only barttheanorak!

Barttheanorak, barttheanorak, theanorak
Barttheanorak, barttheanorak, theanorak
Barttheanorak, barttheanorak, theanorak
Barttheanorak, barttheanorak, theanorak

They Don’t Have Roses in Hong Kong (The Gweilo Song)

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:28:08 CST

E ............................... B7
We are the ones with longer, straighter noses
........ A ........................ B7..................... E
And some of us have been here far too long.
....... B7
We don’t get time to stop and smell the roses,
............... A ............................. B7.................. E
And, anyway, they don’t have roses in Hong Kong.

I’d like to gaze across Victoria Harbour
But I can’t see through that cloud so thick and dark.
The harbour’s growing smaller by the hour,
And they destroy five hundred trees to build a park.

I’d never tried to live inside a shoebox
Until I came to work here in Hong Kong.
My friends all think I must be mad to stay here
But seven million people can’t be wrong.

When people spit or slam doors in your faces,
Bump into you and don’t say thanks or please,
Just be glad you don’t get hit by falling windows
Or fined for littering when you drop your keys.

The passengers on Hong Kong’s public transport
Speak loudly into little mobile phones.
And I dare not say, “Please speak a bit more softly.”
Bus Uncle’s words are worse than sticks and stones.

Now Disneyland has come to Lantau Island
But Mickey Mouse is not the one to fear.
What’s the use of making all your millions
If Donald Duck should bring the bird flu here?

Uncle John

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:26:17 CST

C
From my little world of fairy tales
...... F ............................ C
Of nursery rhymes and teddy bears
........ F........................................ G7
You lift me out with your strong hands
...................... C
Into a land of adult cares.
F
Why do you want to touch me there?
... C
I just don’t understand.
.......... F ................... G7
You know I love you, Uncle John,
......... F ........ G7.................... C
But please – take away your hand.

You take me out and buy me drinks.
You treat me really well,
But why do you do those things to me
And say I shouldn’t tell.
You say it’s our little secret.
Don’t tell Mum and Dad.
You know I love you, Uncle John,
But I feel I’m doing something bad.

You say that when I’m grown up
I’ll understand it then.
You talk about a special love
Between small boys and men.
All the ice-cream that you buy
Can’t stop me asking Why? Why? Why?
I know I’m too young to understand,
But please – please – take away your hand.

The Way It's Gonna Be

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:24:20 CST

C
You tell me, “Please don’t drive so fast.”
G7................................. C
I don’t like to see other cars zoom past.
.... F .................................... C
If you had your way I’d be driving so slow

We’d be an hour late everywhere we go.

That’s the way it’s gonna be, babe,
G7 ................................ C
If you wanna stay with me
......... F
You got to be tough
.................. C
You gotta treat ‘em rough.
G7 ......................... C
That’s the way it’s gonna be.

You tell me to turn the music down.
You tell me not to dress like a circus clown.
I’ll do this my way or I won’t do it at all,
And I won’t come crawling at your beck and call.

You say you don’t like any of my friends;
You want to go home before the party ends,
But you don’t want to go back home on your own
And you just don’t trust me to stay here alone.

You say my best mate is a bloody fool.
I know that, honey, but he’s also cool.
You say you can’t stand a man who flirts,
But I like women, so too bad if it hurts.

I tried to please you, but it wasn’t enough.
If you don’t like the way I do things – tough!
You demanded too much – I had to let you go.
But now I’m all alone – and I miss you so.

I’ll be whatever you want me to be, babe,
If you’ll only come back to me.
I thought I was tough.
I’ll never treat you rough.
Give me one more chance and you’ll see.
That’s the way it’s gonna be.

The Welsh Male Voice Choir of Hong Kong

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:22:29 CST

............... D
With the songs of mine and chapel,
............. G ................ D
With Myfanwy and Yvory
................. G ................ D
With Gwahoddiad and Calon Lan,
....... A7
We come to tell our story,
D
Men from every walk of life,
................... G ............................ D
Some are young and some are hoary,
................ G ............. A7....................... D
To bring music from Wales, the land of song.

From the Hong Kong Cultural Centre
To the Cathedral of St John
From Angeles in the Philippines
To the city of Saigon
May the spirit of Jack Edwards
Ever guide us on,
The Welsh Male Voice Choir of Hong Kong.

From the Opera House in Sydney
To London’s Albert Hall
From carols at Helena May
To the St David’s Society Ball
Armed with airs and melodies
We’ll answer to the call
To bring the world our joyful brand of song.

From the Safari bar in Bangkok
To the Old China Hand,
Our glasses raised in fellowship,
Together we will stand,
Our voices raised in harmony
In many a foreign land,
The Welsh Male Voice Choir of Hong Kong.

What Are You looking For?

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:20:53 CST

E
What are you looking for, young man?
......... B7 ................... E
What are you looking for?

Looking for my ma, looking for my pa,

Looking near and far for a shooting star,

For a rainbow’s end with a pot of gold.
...................... B7............... E
Looking for a cure for the common cold.
A
Looking for something that’ll make you feel proud,

For a silver lining to a mushroom cloud,
........ B7
For Heaven’s gate, for a perfect mate.
........... A .......................... E
Gotta find it myself, well I just can’t wait.

That’s what I’m looking for, old man? ............. B7 .................. E
That’s what I’m looking for.

For the full measure, the ultimate pleasure
Trying to dig up the buried treasure.
For a grain of sand, a helping hand,
For inner peace, for the promised land,
The path to enlightenment, the road not taken,
Looking for a way to bring home the bacon,
For a silver spoon, for the man in the moon
Gotta find the answer, gotta find it soon.

For inspiration, for salvation,
Trying to find my miscalculation,
A contribution, a new solution,
A fairer means of wealth distribution,
A spark of humanity in a politician,
A president who doesn’t keep on changing his position,
Looking for a loophole, looking for a clue,
Looking for a miracle, looking for you.

I’m looking for the light, or the end of the night,
Looking for a way to tell wrong from right,
Looking for praise, for better days.
For a new direction leading out of the maze,
For the missing file, the source of the Nile,
Looking for something that’ll make you smile,
For a cheque in the mail, the holy grail,
For a happy ending to a fairy tale.

Looking for aces, unsolved cases,
Looking for love in all the wrong places,
For the mean, for the mode, for the mother lode,
For the DNA, for the Da Vinci code,
For a faithful wife, an end to strife,
The fountain of youth and the secret of life.
Looking for the kid, the monster from the id.
What will I find if I lift up the lid?

For a needle in a haystack, the missing link,
Looking for something that’ll make ‘em all think.
I’m looking for rain, for the end of the pain,
For Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein.
I’m hunting for the snark, for Noah’s ark,
For weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
For a friendly face, a parking space,
For the key to the survival of the human race.

Looking for a foot that’ll fit the glass slipper,
For the Boston Strangler, for Jack the Ripper,
Looking for the sun, looking for fun,
Looking for a way to make you put down your gun.
For Smokey the Bear, for a breath of fresh air,
For the man who invented the electric chair,
For the lion’s share, for a ruby rare,
For somebody who doesn’t think that I don’t care.

YouTube Copyright Blues

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:18:32 CST

E
YouTube, YouTube, please don’t remove my song.
A ................................. E
YouTube, YouTube, please don’t remove my song.
........... B7 ..................................... E
If you really gotta do that, at least tell me what I’ve done wrong.

I wrote a song for my subscribers, thought I’d give ‘em all a shout.
I wrote a song for my subscribers, thought I’d give ‘em all a shout.
You removed it from my channel. What the hell was that all about?

World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc, I don’t want to start a fight.
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc, I don’t want to start a fight.
I really didn’t mean to – infringe your copyright.

World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc, please let me be.
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc, please let me be.
If you got copyright on the songs I write, you must have copyrighted me.

YouTube, YouTube, please don’t remove my song.
YouTube, YouTube, please don’t remove my song.
If you really gotta do that, at least tell me what I’ve done wrong.

YouTube Comments

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:17:49 CST

E
I wake up in the morning
............ A ..................... B7
And on my computer screen
A .......................... E
Lots of YouTube comments
........ B7
Are waiting to be seen,
............ A
From those who love or hate my songs
....... E
And others in between,
................... A ............ E
And there’s usually a few that sound
...... B7 ................ E
So negative and mean.

A ............ E
YouTube comments -
... B7 .................... E
I see them every day
.......... A ............... E
And I get a lot of pleasure
B7 .......................... E
Reading what they say.
.................. A
You can scrutinise and criticise
............... E ...................... A
Cut me down to size, but hey!
E .................. A
I don’t care. I like to share.
...... B7 ....................... E
My songs won’t go away.

“You’ve got an English accent
So don’t sing an Irish song.”
“You’re an ignorant American.”
“Your songs are far too long.”
“You’re a traitor to the USA,
For in freedom’s name we fight.”
“You insult the holy Q’uran,
‘Cause you didn’t spell it right.”

The comments on my gospel songs
Get cluttered up with spam.
“Come and see me in the nude
In front of my Webcam.”
“YouTube’s no good for nakedness.
Come to my Website.”
“Have fun at FLINGS4FREEdotCOM.”
Well yes, perhaps I might!

“You’re a sadist!” “You’re a racist
And you don’t deserve your life.”
“You’re a ******-loving gay guy”
And “I bet you beat your wife.”
“You can’t sing, you can’t play.”
“You’ve got the chords all wrong”
“The Pogues do that one better
So you shouldn’t sing that song.”

“You’re the worst singer on YouTube.
Please don’t ever sing again.”
“You’re a dirty little hippie
And the drugs have wrecked your brain.”
“Please don’t sing ‘Blowing in the Wind’
Or ‘Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall’.
You don’t sound like Bob Dylan
So you shouldn’t sing at all.”

“You sound just like a hound dog
That’s baying at the moon.”
“You can’t play, you can’t sing
And your guitar’s out of tune.”
“You shouldn’t sing Waxie’s Dargle,
Finnegan’s Wake or Lanigan’s Ball.
You don’t sing like Luke Kelly
So you shouldn’t sing at all.”

YouTube comments -
I see them every day
And most of them encourage me.
“I like your songs,” they say.
If one or two appreciate
What I’m doing here, then hey!
I don’t care. I like to share.
So my songs are here to stay.
My songs won’t go away.
My songs are here to stay.

Writer's Block

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:14:59 CST

E
You ask me why it’s been so long
......... A .............................. E
Since I sat down to write a song.
....................... B7 ............. E
The answer is obvious to me.

I wrote these songs before I knew
....... A ....................................... E
That I would spend my life with you.
..... B7 ................. A ........ B7 .. E
An artist needs a dose of misery.

....... A .......................................... E
It’s hard to be creative on Cloud Nine.
........ B7 .......................................... E
The best songs spring up from the saddest time.
...................... A
With such an angel for a wife
............. E
I’ve led such a happy life.
................... B7....... A ........ B7 .................... E
There’s no need to pour my sorrows out in rhyme.

........... A
If you leave me wandering alone in the darkest night
.............. B7 .............................................. E
I’ll have nothing left to me but the songs I sing.
........... A ........................ E
On my own again in my loneliness, I might
................ B7......................... A ............. B7 ............. E
Begin to write the sweet sad songs that heartaches bring.

I’ve never felt the woes of the broken-hearted
Or the bitterness of true love that’s departed
There are no clouds in the sky
So even if I try
To write a song I really can’t get started.

So that is why it’s been so long
Since I sat down to write a song.
The reason is very clear to see.
I wrote those songs before I knew
That I would spend my life with you.
I just don’t need those songs of misery.

Who Needs Reality?

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:09:42 CST

... D
I used to send a postcard
........ G ................ D
Or a letter I would type,
........ G ................................. D
But now the world’s much smaller
.......... A7
With Messenger and Skype.
......... G ................... D
Now you can talk to me
...... A7 ............... D
And I can talk to you,

Though I'm in New York City
........ A7 ................... D
And you're in Timbuctoo.

G .................. D
Who needs reality?
.. A7............... D
Real life is a bore.

No reason for reality
........... A7 ........... D
In this world any more.

To experience different cultures
The means is in your hand.
There’s no need to travel to
Some distant foreign land.
One click of a button
Can take you anywhere.
There’s no need to move at all
From your comfy chair.

Who needs encyclopedias
Or libraries indeed?
A little bit of googling
Will give you what you need.
Who needs a neighbourhood?
Now everyone depends
On YouTube and Facebook
To make a group of friends.

I’m becoming quite a sportsman,
Because it’s good for me.
My favourite game is tennis –
I play it on my Wii.
I don’t think I’ll get married;
You can’t beat the effects
Of stimulating simulated
Super cyber-sex.

Outside it could be raining
Or perhaps the weather’s fine.
In my air-conditioned office
It’s pleasant all the time.
Though Western civilization
May well be in decline,
The real world doesn’t matter
When you live your life online.

A little bit of PhotoShop
Will make the grass more green.
You can live a second life
On your computer screen.
A click of the mouse is all you need
Until the day you die,
When you’re finally uploaded
To that MySpace in the sky.

Songs From Recent Years

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 17:36:32 CST

The Child Ballads

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 05:44:25 CST

The Testimony of Patience Kershaw

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 01:57:34 CST

....... A ............................................................................... E7
It's good of you to ask me, Sir, to tell you how I spend my days
... A ....................................................................... D .......... A
Down in a coal black tunnel, Sir, I hurry corves to earn my pay.
........................................................................................... D ............ E7
The corves are full of coal, kind Sir, I push them with my hands and head.  
... A .................................................................... E7 .... A
It isn't lady-like, but Sir, you've got to earn your daily bread.   

I push them with my hands and head, and so my hair gets worn away.  
You see this baldy patch I've got, it shames me like I just can't say.  
A lady's hands are lily white, but mine are full of cuts and segs.  
And since I'm pushing all the time, I've got great big muscles on my legs.   

I try to be respectable, but sir, the shame, God save my soul.  
I work with naked, sweating men who curse and swear and hew the coal.  
The sights, the sounds, the smells, kind Sir, not even God could sense my shame.  
I say my prayers, but what's the use? Tomorrow will be just the same.
  
Now, sometimes, Sir, I don't feel well, my stomach's sick, my head it aches.  
I've got to hurry best I can. My knees are weak, my back near breaks.  
And then I'm slow, and then I'm scared these naked men will batter me.  
But they're not to blame, for if I'm slow, their families will starve, you see.   

Now all the lads, they laugh at me, and Sir, the mirror tells me why.  
Pale and dirty can't look nice. It doesn't matter how hard I try.
Great big muscles on my legs, a baldy patch upon my head.  
A lady, Sir? Oh, no, not me! I should've been a boy instead.   

I praise your good intentions, Sir, I love your kind and gentle heart  
But now it's 1842, and you and I, we're miles apart.  
A hundred years and more will pass before we're standing side by side  
But please accept my grateful thanks. God bless you Sir, at least you tried.

The Mountain (Steve Earle)

raymondcrooke — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 01:53:32 CST

C ........................................................... Am
I was born on this mountain a long time ago
.C ............................................ Dm .............. F ................. Am
Before they knocked down the timber and strip-mined the coal
C ................................................................ Am
When you rose in the mornin' before it was light
........... C .............. Dm ........................... F ...... Am G
To go down in that dark hole and come back up at night

I was born on this mountain, this mountain's my home
And she holds me and keeps me from worry and woe
Well, they took everything that she gave, now they're gone
But I'll die on this mountain, this mountain's my home

I was young on this mountain, now I am old
And I knew every holler, every cool swimmin' hole
‘Til one night I lay down and woke up to find
That my childhood was over, I went down in the mine.

There's a hole in this mountain, it's dark and it's deep
And God only knows all the secrets it keeps
There's a chill in the air only miners can feel
And there's ghosts in the tunnels that the company sealed.