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It features a whopping 20 songs (or cinematic vignettes of a sort), but a closer look shows it clocking in at a succinct 39 minutes. Reeder’s new album may seem intimidating at first. This episode was recorded in his garage studio in Nuremberg, Germany, where he's lived with his wife for 30 years.
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Much more than a one man band, Dan often builds every instrument he plays in his recordings, from steel string guitars, to banjos, drums, basses, cellos, violins, clarinets, and even the computer he records on. His normal routine is to layer lush close-mic’d vocals on top of one another using himself as a conspiratorial choir, sketching tiny but poignant moments from his life and imagination, often repeating a simple phrase again and again like one of his most-listened to tunes “Work Song” which tells us bluntly through gospel claps: “I’ve got all the fucking work I need”.
#DAN REEDER WORK SONG SERIES#
Reeder has rarely has been interviewed, but has collected a legion of devoted fans after putting out a series of beloved albums on John Prine’s Oh Boy Records - including the much-anticipated new LP “Every Which Way.”įor the uninitiated, diving into Dan Reeder’s uniquely absurdist, harmony-drenched body of work can feel like reading a rich short-story collection in one sitting. This stand-out track captures the frenzy of getting TO the job in the first place.This week on The Show On The Road Podcast, a conversation with renegade roots songwriter, painter and NSFW self-taught poet Dan Reeder. The Kinks’ album “Soap Opera” is about a celebrity going undercover in the regular work place. Merle Haggard sings about the kind of people who never stop working, but it’s not so bad. In 2009, Camron rapped how much he hated working a bad job and wanted a better one: “I shoulda been a fireman, learned to do wiring, then get retirement, I blame my environment!” Sung in the style of a chain-gang song, Dan Reeder gives us all a foul-mouthed chant to hum when we have more work than we want. R&B, rock ‘n’ roll and blues underground legend Jerry “Boogie” McCain lets us know exactly how lousy his boss is. “Welcome to the Working Week,” Elvis CostelloĮlvis Costello paid tribute to lousy jobs on his debut album, “My Aim Is True,” and sings “I know it don’t thrill you, I hope it don’t kill you.”Ģ0. “Take This Job and Shove It,” Johnny Paycheck/David Allan Coeĭavid Allan Coe summed up the thoughts of a lot of workers with this song that became a hit for Johnny Paycheck in 1977.ġ9. The Red Clay Ramblers’ version is even more stirring than Kahn’s original.ġ8. Si Kahn’s song about a mill closing down and a man being out of work is moving and sweet. “Aragon Mill,” The Red Clay Ramblers/Si Kahn Paul Robeson’s version is chilling, and Joan Baez brought Woodstock to silence with her rendition.ġ7. This song about his ghost returning to inspire union workers was written in 1936 after a 1930 poem by Alfred Hayes. He was executed in 1915 for a murder most historians believe he didn’t commit. Joe Hill was an early martyr to the labor movement. Merle Travis’ own version is terrific, but Dolly Parton’s version will break your heart.Ĭo-written by Dave Loggins, this 1985 hit is simply a celebration of blue collar workers, who can thank labor unions for establishing the 40-hour work week.īilly Joel captured the despair of living in a town where the steel mills were closing and the prospect of a decent job in the town you grew up in was disappearing. It’s stark and poetic in the saddest way. This truly is the greatest song about the job of coal mining. “Dark As a Dungeon,” Merle Travis/Dolly Parton Ford’s 1955 hit is the classic, but Stan Ridgway’s electronic 1999 version is well worth checking out.ġ2. This is one of two of the best coal mining songs ever recorded, both of them written by Merle Travis, who was the son of a coal miner. “16 Tons,” Tennessee Ernie Ford/Stan Ridgway It’s a rare song that leaves you thinking long after it’s over.ġ1. In one of his best and deepest songs, Knoxville’s RB Morris weighs in on the folks who dismiss their own responsibility in the questionable jobs they might do.