Another day older and deeper in debt. That is a line from the song: “Sixteen Tons.” I remember loving the single that my parents had of this song. I must have sounded more than a little bit silly singing this at the age of 4 or 5, trying to achieve the smooth bass sound of Tennessee Ernie Ford.
What kind of a name is Tennessee Ernie Ford? Well, long time ago, radio DJs often made up personas to hook audiences into their shows. I remember Wolfman Jack, for instance. The Big Bopper was the radio persona of Jiles Perry (J.P.) Richardson. Tennessee Ernie was born Ernest Jennings Ford. He happened to be born in Tennessee. Apparently, his persona was of an exaggerated hillbilly. However, this hillbilly had received classical vocal training at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, conveniently in Cincinnati, Ohio. You can hear his training in the smoothness of his voice and the pitch-perfect intonation.
“Sixteen Tons” was written in 1946 by Merle Travis who also did the first recording of the song. Travis is best known for a style of guitar playing that is still called Travis picking. It’s a distinctive style that originates in Travis’s native Kentucky, with some added ragtime touches. If you listen to much of Peter, Paul and Mary’s songs, you will hear this style of finger picking.
While “Sixteen Tons” went on to become a gold record for Travis, it seems to have gone away for a few years, coming out of the mothballs in 1955. Since that time, it has been recorded almost every year by singers from all styles of music: country, rock, pop, jazz and even punk. But the definitive recording goes to Tennessee Ernie Ford.
Like many a hit, “Sixteen Tons” was the B-side to a song called “You Don’t Have to be a Baby to Cry.” However, it was “Sixteen Tons” that got the airplay and has been a hit since 1956. It quickly rose to number one in both the US and the UK, selling over two million copies in just two months. It has been estimated that eventually the song sold over twenty million copies worldwide.
What kind of a name is Tennessee Ernie Ford? Well, long time ago, radio DJs often made up personas to hook audiences into their shows. I remember Wolfman Jack, for instance. The Big Bopper was the radio persona of Jiles Perry (J.P.) Richardson. Tennessee Ernie was born Ernest Jennings Ford. He happened to be born in Tennessee. Apparently, his persona was of an exaggerated hillbilly. However, this hillbilly had received classical vocal training at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, conveniently in Cincinnati, Ohio. You can hear his training in the smoothness of his voice and the pitch-perfect intonation.
“Sixteen Tons” was written in 1946 by Merle Travis who also did the first recording of the song. Travis is best known for a style of guitar playing that is still called Travis picking. It’s a distinctive style that originates in Travis’s native Kentucky, with some added ragtime touches. If you listen to much of Peter, Paul and Mary’s songs, you will hear this style of finger picking.
While “Sixteen Tons” went on to become a gold record for Travis, it seems to have gone away for a few years, coming out of the mothballs in 1955. Since that time, it has been recorded almost every year by singers from all styles of music: country, rock, pop, jazz and even punk. But the definitive recording goes to Tennessee Ernie Ford.
Like many a hit, “Sixteen Tons” was the B-side to a song called “You Don’t Have to be a Baby to Cry.” However, it was “Sixteen Tons” that got the airplay and has been a hit since 1956. It quickly rose to number one in both the US and the UK, selling over two million copies in just two months. It has been estimated that eventually the song sold over twenty million copies worldwide.
Some people say a man is made outta mud
A poor man's made outta muscle and blood
Muscle and blood and skin and bones
A mind that's a-weak and a back that's strong
You load sixteen tons, what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
I was born one mornin' when the sun didn't shine
I picked up my shovel and I walked to the mine
I loaded sixteen tons of number nine coal
And the straw boss said "Well, a-bless my soul"
You load sixteen tons, what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
I was born one mornin', it was drizzlin' rain
Fightin' and trouble are my middle name
I was raised in the canebrake by an ol' mama lion
Can't no-a high-toned woman make me walk the line
You load sixteen tons, what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
If you see me comin', better step aside
A lotta men didn't, a lotta men died
One fist of iron, the other of steel
If the right one don't a-get you, then the left one will
You load sixteen tons, what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
A poor man's made outta muscle and blood
Muscle and blood and skin and bones
A mind that's a-weak and a back that's strong
You load sixteen tons, what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
I was born one mornin' when the sun didn't shine
I picked up my shovel and I walked to the mine
I loaded sixteen tons of number nine coal
And the straw boss said "Well, a-bless my soul"
You load sixteen tons, what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
I was born one mornin', it was drizzlin' rain
Fightin' and trouble are my middle name
I was raised in the canebrake by an ol' mama lion
Can't no-a high-toned woman make me walk the line
You load sixteen tons, what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
If you see me comin', better step aside
A lotta men didn't, a lotta men died
One fist of iron, the other of steel
If the right one don't a-get you, then the left one will
You load sixteen tons, what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store
You can hear fingers snapping at the start of the song. The small band that was recording with Ford asked for the tempo. He gave it to them by snapping his fingers. The record producer liked it and kept the snapping in the song.
A few points about the lyrics. First the reference to “number nine coal.” I couldn’t find anything definitive, but it sounds like coal seams get numbers. So, number nine could just be the number of that particular seam and that particular mine. I also read that it could refer to the quality of the coal, with number nine being the highest grade. Does anyone have a definite answer?
The line “I owe my soul to the company store” refers to the form of serfdom that coal mines used with their miners. In order to work the mine, you had to live in the company town. All the houses were owned by the mine owners. The rent for those houses was taken out of your pay. But to make things even worse, you were paid not with money, but with scrip. This scrip was only usable at the company store. Once you started working at the mines, there was no way out. You could never save up money because you had none. You only had these otherwise worthless pieces of paper.
Happy Labor Day, indeed!
What’s your favorite version of “Sixteen Tons?” Johnny Cash does a great version. I understand that Elvis used to sing it in concert, but there are no recordings of it. Let me know what you think in the comments below. I’ll be posting versions of this song and maybe some other songs by Tennessee Ernie Ford this week on my Minnich Music Facebook page, so check them out.
Until next time!
A few points about the lyrics. First the reference to “number nine coal.” I couldn’t find anything definitive, but it sounds like coal seams get numbers. So, number nine could just be the number of that particular seam and that particular mine. I also read that it could refer to the quality of the coal, with number nine being the highest grade. Does anyone have a definite answer?
The line “I owe my soul to the company store” refers to the form of serfdom that coal mines used with their miners. In order to work the mine, you had to live in the company town. All the houses were owned by the mine owners. The rent for those houses was taken out of your pay. But to make things even worse, you were paid not with money, but with scrip. This scrip was only usable at the company store. Once you started working at the mines, there was no way out. You could never save up money because you had none. You only had these otherwise worthless pieces of paper.
Happy Labor Day, indeed!
What’s your favorite version of “Sixteen Tons?” Johnny Cash does a great version. I understand that Elvis used to sing it in concert, but there are no recordings of it. Let me know what you think in the comments below. I’ll be posting versions of this song and maybe some other songs by Tennessee Ernie Ford this week on my Minnich Music Facebook page, so check them out.
Until next time!
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