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Jackhammer John

Woody Guthrie
Language: English


Woody Guthrie

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[1944]
Parole e musica di Woody Guthrie
Nelle raccolte “Woody Guthrie Sings Folk Songs”, con Leadbelly, Sonny Terry e Cisco Houston (Smithsonian Folkways Records, 1989) e “The Asch Recordings” (Smithsonian Folkways Records, 1997-99).

Woody Guthrie Sings Folk Songs The Asch Recordings


Oggi è stato per lo più sostituito dal braccio di una pala meccanica, ma quello del “martellista”, l’operaio addetto al martello pneumatico (sulle strade, sulle ferrovie, nelle miniere…), è stato fino a non molto tempo fa uno dei lavori più duri ed alienanti da che l’uomo ha inventato degli attrezzi meccanici per frantumare e perforare…



Le malattie professionali legate all’uso intensivo del martello pneumatico vanno da importanti disturbi uditivi a gravi sindromi articolari e vascolari.
Il testo della canzone restituisce in tutto e per tutto il suono e la vibrazione ripetitiva dell’attrezzo, ormai trasferitisi in permanenza nel corpo e nella vita del povero John…
Jackhammer John was a jackhammer man,
Born with a jackhammer in his hand.
Lord, Lord And he had them jackhammer blues.
I got them jackhammer blues.

I built your roads and buildings too,
And I'm gonna build a damn or two.
Lord, Lord, well I had them jackhammer blues.
I got them jackhammer blues.

I was borned in Portland town,
Built every port from Alasky down;
Lord, Lord, well I got them jackhammer blues.
I got them jackhammer blues.

Built your bridges, dug your mines,
Been in jail a thousand times.
Lord, Lord, well I got them jackhammer blues.
I got them jackhammer blues.

Jackhammer, jackhammer, where ya been?
Been out a-chasin' them gals again;
Lord, Lord, well I got them jackhammer blues.
I got them jackhammer blues.

Jackhammer man from a jackhammer town,
I can hammer till the sun goes down,
Lord, Lord, well I got them jackhammer blues.
I got them jackhammer blues.

I hammered on the boulder, hammered on the butte,
Columbia River on a five-mile chute;
Lord, Lord, well I got them jackhammer blues.
I got them jackhammer blues.

Workin' on the Bonneville, hammered all night
A-tryin' to bring the people some electric light,
Lord, Lord, well I got them jackhammer blues.
I got them jackhammer blues.

I hammered on Bonneville, Coulee too,
Always broke when my job was through,
Lord, Lord, well I got them jackhammer blues.
I got them jackhammer blues.

I hammered on the river from sun to sun,
Fifteen million salmon run;
Lord, Lord, well I got them jackhammer blues.
I got them jackhammer blues.

I hammered in the rain, I hammered in the dust,
I hammered in the best and I hammered in the worst;
Lord, Lord, well I got them jackhammer blues.
I got them jackhammer blues.

I got a jackhammer gal just as sweet as pie,
And I'm a-gonna hammer till the day I die,
Lord, Lord, well I got them jackhammer blues.
I got them jackhammer blues.

Contributed by Bernart Bartleby - 2015/7/20 - 16:36




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