Ry Cooder
Ry Cooder
Ry Cooder
Ry Cooder
Ry Cooder
Ry Cooder
Ry Cooder
Ry Cooder
Ry Cooder
Ry Cooder
Ry Cooder
“How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live?” by Alfred Reed was recorded on 4 December 1929, less than two months after the great stock market crash of October 29th on Wall Street.
This is one of the first published protest songs.
(Blind Alfred Reed, at right, with fiddler Fred Pendleton circa...
[Verse 1]
Well, the doctor comes around with his face all bright
And he says in a little while you'll be all right
All he gives is a humbug pill
A dose of dope and a great big bill
Tell me how can a poor man stand such times and live?
[Verse 2]
Well there once was a time when everything was cheap
But now prices nearly puts a man to sleep
When we get our grocery bill
We just feel like making our will
Tell me how can a poor man stand such times and live?
[Verse 3]
Prohibition's good if 'tis conducted right
There's no sense in shooting a man 'til he shows flight
Officers kill without a cause
Then they complain about the funny laws
Tell me how can a poor man stand such times and live?
(Additional stanzas in the original version:)
I remember when dry goods were cheap as dirt
We could take two bits and buy a dandy shirt
Now we pay ten bucks or more
Maybe get a shirt that another man wore
Tell me how can a poor man stand such times and live?
Well, I used to trade with a man by the name of Gray
Flour was fifty cents for a twenty-four pound bag
Now it's a dollar and a half beside
Just like a-skinning off a flea for the hide
Tell me how can a poor man stand such times and live?
Oh, the schools we have today ain't worth a cent
But they see to it that every child is sent
If we don't send everyday
We have a heavy fine to pay
Tell me how can a poor man stand such times and live?
Most all preachers preach for gold and not for souls
That's what keeps a poor man always in a hole
We can hardly get our breath
Taxed and schooled and preached to death
Tell me how can a poor man stand such times and live?
Oh, it's time for every man to be awake
We pay fifty cents a pound when we ask for steak
When we get our package home
A little wad of paper with gristle and bone
Tell me how can a poor man stand such times and live?
Songwriter: Alfred Reed
How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live? was written by Blind Alfred Reed.
How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live? was produced by Van Dyke Parks & Lenny Waronker.
Ry Cooder released How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live? on Tue Dec 01 1970.