Various Artists / Classic Labor Songs
Album: Classic Labor Songs   Collection:General
Artist:Various Artists   Added:Sep 2006
Label:Smithsonian/Folkways  

A-File Activity
Add Date: 2006-10-08 Pull Date: 2006-12-10
Week Ending: Dec 3 Nov 26 Nov 19 Nov 5 Oct 29 Oct 22 Oct 15
Airplays: 1 1 1 5 2 3 3

Recent Airplay
1. Nov 30, 2024: Everything
Casey Jones (Union Scab)
4. Nov 04, 2023: Everything
Automation
2. Nov 21, 2023: Traditions
Which Side Are You On?, Joe Hill
5. Oct 07, 2023: Everything
Casey Jones (Union Scab)
3. Nov 11, 2023: Everything
Automation
6. Oct 29, 2021: Traditions - Musicians We Lost to Covid
We Just Come To Work Here, We Don't Come To Die

Album Review
mike
Reviewed 2006-10-09
V/A CLASSIC LABOR SONGS CD (Smithsonian Folkways)
Folk, bluegrass, a little country, singer songwriters, acapella and a few other sounds all sing pro-worker songs. There are some classics, like “Joe Hill” and “Which Side are You On” to go along with some newer tracks.
1. Piano and the lowest voice you’ve heard before.
2. Absolutely awful.
3. Banjo, Pete Seeger and backing female vocals do a classic.
4. Restrained, somewhat uptight version of this classic.
5. Short acapella.
**6. Harmonica, guitar and vocals. Still relevant since you’re probably wearing sweatshop clothes.
7. Another textile worker themed song that’s slightly country.
8. Strange slow pace and grating voice.
**9. Amazing classic with mostly just vocals and guitar in the “talking blues” form, which WOODY GUTHRIE started and DYLAN continued.
**10. Sad, simple guitar and GUTHRIE’S voice. A sad story of the bosses causing a xmas party panic which killed 73 children. Read the liner notes!
**11. UTAH PHILLIPS hitting hard as usual with a song about how the preachers were for a long time, against the worker. Banjo, upbeat, and pissed.
**12. One of my favorite songs and renditions of it. Mostly acappella vocals from an older scratchy voiced woman to begin and then PETE SEEGER and the ALMANAC SINGERS take over.
13. In somewhat of a gospel form which kicks into upbeat banjo bluegrass. A Wobbly theme song.
14. Fiddle, mandolin and multiple female vocals doing an upbeat version of this classic.
**16. A powerful acapella track from bluegrass singer HAZEL DICKENS.
18. A bit poppy.
19. Some electric guitar.
20. Strange rock sound.
21. Doesn't start out sounding like it but this is a straight bluegrass track.
22. Old melody line used in a new song. Mostly acapella.
23. Blues rock.
24. Strong female vocals and background guitar.
**25. Well known, do-wop/barbershop quartet track “We do the Work”
26. Surprising “Mexican” sounding UFW theme song from Cesar Chavez’s time sung by the current president of the Farm Labor Organizing Committee.
27. I’ve heard many better version of this track.
Good collection. -mph

Track Listing
 ArtistTrack Name
1. Paul Robeson Joe Hill
2. Bobbie Mcgee Bread And Roses
3. Pete Seeger And The Almanac Singer Casey Jones (Union Scab)
4. Joe Glazer We Shall Not Be Moved/Roll The Union On
5. John Handcox Rol Lthe Union On
6. Mike Seeger Cotton Mill Colic
7. Joe Glazer The Mill Was Made Of Marble
8. Peggy Seeger Argon Mill
9. Almanac Singers Talking Union
10. Woody Guthrie 1913 Massacre
11. Utah Phillips The Preacher And The Slave
12. Florence Reese/Almanac Singers Which Side And You On?
13. Joe Uehlein Hold The Fort
14. New Harmony Sisterhood Band Union Maid
15. Joe Glazeer Too Old To Work
16. Hazel Dickens Black Lung
17. Larry Penn Been Rolling So Long
18. Tom Juravich Vdt
19. Joe Glazer Automation
20. Kenny Winfree I'm A Union Card
21. John O'conner Carpal Tunnel
22. Anne Feeney We Just Come To Work Here, We Don't Come To Die
23. Elaine Purkey One Day More
24. Elaine Purkey One Day More
25. Jon Fromer We Do The Work
26. Baldemar Velasquez And Aguila Negra De Colores
27. Joe Glazer Solidarity Forever