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The New York Times: John Mellencamp’s Poetic Tribute To Woody Guthrie
07.11.2012 - By
THE NEW YORK TIMES
In this week’s Arts & Leisure section, Larry Rohter writes about “Woody at 100,”
a new collection released on Tuesday. The three-CD set commemorates the
centennial of Woody Guthrie’s birth on July 14.
John Mellencamp, a fan of Guthrie’s since his childhood in Indiana, has
recorded Guthrie compositions like “Do Re Mi” and “Johnny Hart.” For the 100th
anniversary of Guthrie’s birth Mr. Mellencamp has written this poem as a
tribute:
You know there’s a certain kind of individual
Who always takes the rough side
The side that nobody else wants to take
Most folks are content to take the path of least resistance
To sit on the sidelines and watch the world go by
And yell obscenities from the dark
Not this bird
He has no desire to take the easy way out
He sees the world through a long lens
And through that lens he knows
How out of kilter this place really is
He has no desire for riches
For ass-kissing, for fitting in
Or being at the right place at the right time
No, for him it’s just the opposite
Quite the contrary
It seems like he’s always in the wrong place
At the wrong time
He knows the world is full of hypocrisy
And is hyper aware of his own
This bird is not afraid to fight
To love
To get so far out there in the bones
That it would hurt our feet just to walk down his highway
But this bird soars wings on
This bird keeps us on guard
And honest
As the rest of us can be
This bird don’t mind volunteering
Is not afraid to lose
Is too moral to be a whore
And too honest to steal
But cares enough to write it all down in song ….
This bird is Woody Guthrie
And he dares you to fill his footprint
And so do I
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Johnny Hart by W.Guthrie
Me? Aint got nothing to say...but...for those of you who haven't, john's people may surprise us all with permission to make sure we all read the lyrics to "Johnny Hart".Now I know. Or they'll nix on it! Then I'll write my own little dit. Johnny Hart by W.Guthrie "Hey, wait! This is not Alice's Restaurant!" johnny hart, he was a pesky little man, who raised a pack of pickles every day..cut down a man on the free state line, man... you should've seen johnny hart getting away, dear Lord, see johnny hart gettin' away! Johnny Hart made a run for the free state line, it was there he thought he'd be free...but a man come awalkin' and grabbed him by the arm, he said, "sonny, come along with me, poor boy...johnny, come along wiht me! Johnny Hart, he called his mom and dad, he said, "Come and go my fare..." But money wouldn't go his merry charge...so they laid johnny hart back in jail, poor guy...they laid johnny hart back in jail. Now the first one to visit johnny hart in jail was a girl with a rag on her head...she said,that, "Rather than see you in this jail, I believe I would rather see you dead, dear Lord...I believe I would rather see you dead...'' Now the second to visit johnny hart in jail, was his life and wife, she was so great...she was "checkin' out the cell for a cottage sheet, so they could make it into long, winding chains, dear Lord...make it into winding chains." So there he stood in his jeese-yeah, and a tear rolled down his face,he said, "Rather be your slave than rot in your grave... we can "make it to the handgun ground" mister jailor, "make it to the handgun ground..." There are guards to the east and guards to the west and guards this whole world through... if I ever break loose of this "one-and-uh-two-and-uh..." ...come on out and ask it for the truth, "that's hel lado, honey!" What a trade! Just "ask him for the truth!" truly yours, reisa gerber
Posted by reisaloisgerber 2012-07-23 19:20:20.