Sep 072009
It’s Labor Day, a holiday in the US, but that doesn’t mean Rock Town Hall and its crack staff in The Back Office are taking it easy. There’s a full day of workin’ and practicin’ ahead, so if you catch a free minute in your busy day, tell us what moves you about a favorite song about working, be it in a coal mine or in the back seat of an old Chevy.
Animal Collective, “Daily Routine”
Average White Band-Got Work To Do. I guess it’s the horns, the groove, and the harmonies I love.
I know this video is an inspiration to us all:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x228ud_mick-jagger-lets-work_music
“Oklahoma, USA” always rings true for me. That and “Night Moves.”
Dan Reeder’s “Work Song” is the only one that matters.
What’s that old Springsteen song called? “Out in the Street?” Not totally about the actual work as I recall, but the exhilarating freedom of the time after work is done. I like as much leisure time as I’m able to squeeze out of this life, so that tune’s got the juice there.
BB
This reminds me of that Neil Young song Southern Pacific. My dad was a railroad man, and that was the line he worked.
“It was Mr. Jones,
We’ve got to let you go
It’s company policy
You’ve got a pension though.
Roll on, Southern Pacific
On your silver rails
On your silver rails
Roll on, Southern Pacific
On your silver rails
Through the moonlight.”
Dad got hurt on the job the last year before he was scheduled to retire, and the bastards tried to deny him his pension. Thank god for unions.
Someone should do an entire website/blog exclusively devoted to Rundgren’s “Bang On The Drum”. It would be HUGE.
“Workin on the Highway” by The Boss. Because The Boss ***HAS NEVER HAD A REAL JOB!***
I always liked the punch of “Welcome to the Working Week” by Elvis Costello. I can’t tell you how many comps I kicked off with that track.
TB
Hard Day’s Night