This is one of my favorite John Prine tunes, reminds me of my Grandfathers. And the very different world they raised my parents in. ~sekanblogger
Grandpa wore his suit to dinner
Nearly every day
No particular reason
He just dressed that way
Brown necktie and a matching vest
And both his wingtip shoes
He built a closet on our back porch
And put a penny in a burned out fuse.
CHORUS:
Grandpa was a carpenter
He built houses stores and banks
Chain smoked Camel cigarettes
And hammered nails in planks
He was level on the level
And shaved even every door
And voted for Eisenhower
‘Cause Lincoln won the war.
Well, he used to sing me “Blood on the Saddle”
And rock me on his knee
And let me listen to radio
Before we got T.V.
Well, he’d drive to church on Sunday
And take me with him too!
Stained glass in every window
Hearing aids in every pew.
(REPEAT CHORUS)
Now my grandma was a teacher
Went to school in Bowling Green
Traded in a milking cow
For a Singer sewing machine
She called her husband “Mister”
And walked real tall in pride
And used to buy me comic books
After grandpa died.
Final chorus
Grandpa was a carpenter
He built houses stores and banks
Chain smoked Camel cigarettes
And hammered nails in planks
He was level on the level
And shaved even every door
And voted for Eisenhower
‘Cause Lincoln won the war.
PrairiePopulistsAndProgressives.net 
This is one of my very favorite Prine songs. I mean, they are all my favorites, but this is my favorite FAVORITE one. 🙂
I knew it, or rather guessed.
What are your favorite folk songs? Head over to the Folk Alley site and join the discussion. To get you started, here’s the master list:
The 100 Essential Folk Songs
1. “This Land Is Your Land” – Woody Guthrie
2. “Blowin’ in the Wind” – Bob Dylan
3. “City of New Orleans” – Steve Goodman
4. “If I Had a Hammer” – Pete Seeger
5. “Where Have All the Flowers Gone” – The Kingston Trio
6. “Early Morning Rain” – Gordon Lightfoot
7. “Suzanne” – Leonard Cohen
8. “We Shall Overcome” – Pete Seeger
9. “Four Strong Winds” – Ian and Sylvia
10. “Last Thing on My Mind” – Tom Paxton
11. “The Circle Game” – Joni Mitchell
12. “Tom Dooley” – The Kingston Trio (Trad)
13. “Both Sides Now” – Joni Mitchell
14. “Who Knows Where the Time Goes” – Sandy Denny
15. “Goodnight Irene” – The Weavers (Trad)
16. “Universal Soldier” – Buffy Sainte-Marie
17. “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright” – Bob Dylan
18. “Diamonds and Rust” – Joan Baez
19. “Sounds of Silence” – Simon & Garfunkel
20. “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” – Gordon Lightfoot
21. “Alice’s Restaurant” – Arlo Guthrie
22. “Turn, Turn, Turn!” – The Byrds (Pete Seeger)
23. “Puff the Magic Dragon” – Peter, Paul and Mary
24. “Thirsty Boots” – Eric Anderson
25. “There But for Fortune” – Phil Ochs
26. “Across the Great Divide” – Kate Wolf
27. “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” – The Band (Robbie Robertson)
28. “The Dutchman” – Steve Goodman
29. “Matty Groves” – Fairport Convention (Trad)
30. “Pastures of Plenty” – Woody Guthrie
31. “Canadian Railroad Trilogy” – Gordon Lightfoot
32. “Ramblin’ Boy” – Tom Paxton
33. “Hello in There” – John Prine
34. “The Mary Ellen Carter” – Stan Rogers
35. “Scarborough Fair” – Martin Carthy (Trad)
36. “Freight Train” – Elizabeth Cotton
37. “Like a Rolling Stone” – Bob Dylan
38. “Paradise” – John Prine
39. “Northwest Passage” – Stan Rogers
40. “And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda” – Eric Bogel
41. “Changes” – Phil Ochs
42. “Streets of London” – Ralph McTell
43. “Gentle on My Mind” – John Hartford
44. “Barbara Allen” – Shirley Collins (Trad)
45. “Little Boxes” – Malvina Reynolds
46. “The Water Is Wide” – Traditional
47. “Blue Moon of Kentucky” – Bill Monroe
48. “No Regrets” – Tom Rush
49. “Amazing Grace” – Odetta (Trad)
50. “Catch the Wind” – Donovan
51. “If I Were a Carpenter” – Tim Hardin
52. “Big Yellow Taxi” – Joni Mitchell
53. “House of the Rising Sun” – Doc & Richard Watson (Trad)
54. “Kisses Sweeter Than Wine” – The Weavers
55. “Tangled Up in Blue” – Bob Dylan
56. “The Boxer” – Simon and Garfunkel
57. “Someday Soon” – Ian and Sylvia
58. “Miles” – Peter, Paul and Mary
59. “Masters of War” – Bob Dylan
60. “Wildwood Flower” – Carter Family
61. “Can the Circle Be Unbroken” – Carter Family
62. “Can’t Help but Wonder Where I’m Bound” – Tom Paxton
63. “Teach Your Children” – Crosby, Stills Nash & Young
64. “Deportee” – Woody Guthrie
65. “Tecumseh Valley” – Townes Van Zandt
66. “Mr. Bojangles” – Jerry Jeff Walker
67. “Cold Missouri Waters” – James Keeleghan
68. “The Crucifixion” – Phil Ochs
69. “Angel from Montgomery” – John Prine
70. “Christmas in the Trenches” – John McCutcheon
71. “John Henry” – Traditional
72. “Pack Up Your Sorrows” – Richard and Mimi Farina
73. “Dirty Old Town” – Ewan MacColl
74. “Caledonia” – Dougie MacLean
75. “Gentle Arms of Eden” – Dave Carter
76. “My Back Pages” – Bob Dylan
77. “Arrow” – Cheryl Wheeler
78. “Hallelujah” – Leonard Cohen
79. “Eve of Destruction” – Barry McGuire
80. “Man of Constant Sorrow” – Ralph Stanley (Trad)
81. “Shady Grove” – Traditional
82. “Pancho and Lefty” – Townes Van Zandt
83. “Old Man” – Neil Young
84. “Mr. Tambourine Man” – Bob Dylan
85. “American Tune” – Paul Simon
86. “At Seventeen” – Janis Ian
87. “Bridge Over Troubled Water” – Simon & Garfunkel
88. “Road” – Nick Drake
89. “Tam Lin” – Fairport Convention (Trad)
90. “Ashokan Farewell” – Jay Ungar and Molly Mason
91. “Desolation Row” – Bob Dylan
92. “Love Is Our Cross to Bear” – John Gorka
93. “Hobo’s Lullaby” – Woody Guthrie
94. “Urge for Going” – Tom Rush
95. “Return of the Grievous Angel” – Gram Parsons
96. “Chilly Winds” – The Kingston Trio
97. “Fountain of Sorrow” – Jackson Browne
98. “The Times They Are A-Changin'” – Bob Dylan
99. “Our Town” – Iris Dement
100. “Leaving on a Jet Plane” – John Denver
“Good night Irene” was written by Leadbelly – whose real last name was Ledbetter. He got the heavier nickname while in prison.
Do any of you know if Ken Keasey’s book title, _Sometimes a Great Notion_, derives from “Good night Irene”?
The lyric in question: “Sometimes I have a great notion to jump in the river and drown”.
That was a good movie too.
Man, I always loved “The Band”. Many years ago saw them at the Cotillion. Shook Levon Helmes’ hand and talked quite a while to Rick Danko, the Bass player.
That was a great post Linda! What a trip down memory lane. But, before I start sounding like Bad Biker (just kidding, dude) I’ll stop. When I was at the Walnut Valley Bluegrass festival in ’81, I heard a unknown band do a Reggae version of this song:
47. “Blue Moon of Kentucky” – Bill Monroe
It was great!
Prairie Pond, did you ever hear the Bonner brothers band do their song, “Ronnie Raggae” in honor of Ronald Reagan? It was hysterical.
When I lived in Hays, a mutual friend used to tell the Bonner Brothers (not the name of the band) that they should promote themselves by the name of “Free Beer” – I always thought that might get folk in the door, but getting them out could get real ugly.
“The times they are a-changin'” – at 98???! Give me a break!
One last late night post. My guitar teacher died in an bus accident on his way to a concert last weekend. He was buried Wednesday and I did not know about the funeral.
I have really struggled with the idea about who is supposed to live and who is not. It has been a very depressing time, to say the least.
I’m sorry too, Iggy. Harder to wrap your mind around a loss when it’s unexpected and you don’t even find out in time to talk it over with others mourning the person.
Iggy, I’m sorry. A music teacher is a very personal friend, and it’s a very personal relationship. I’m so sorry you didnt know about the funeral.
As you remind me often, it’s not a just world. I see that more and more and it depresses me too.
The assassination of Dr. Tiller has affected me deeply, and I didnt even know the guy. I just think he’s a real hero for anyone who loves civil rights and the constitution.
His death brought home again that it is not a just world.
And never will be.
The Bonner Brothers?
Chuck Bonner? I do know him and his wife Barb. I think they are artists and give guided tours out here for fossil hunters.
Perhaps the Bonner Brothers were after my time…
Chuck’s brother Dana and he had a band from about ’80 onward. Yes Chuck and Barb own a business where people use them to hunt fossils. Chuck’s dad (I am sure he is gone now) used to collect the really impressive marine life fossils in Western KS and send them to Japanese collectors. Back in the day, the dad owned a movie theater in Healy, KS. The dad was a big bud with Sternberg and is featured in the Museum’s literature. Orville, the oldest son in the family, was a guiding hand in the paleontology dept. at KU for several years.
Thanks for the condolences, Pond and fnord. I can make a donation for his daughter and that will help some, I hope.
My teacher died at a good time for him. The last few years he was making a reasonable living making music. He was buying a house in Riverside. His significant other seemed to be okay and not crazy.
Things are not fair and it’s stuff like this that drives that home.