Part of Hard Times Hundred & One, my project to write 101 original Americana songs inspired by photographs from the Great Depression. More at https://hardtimes100and1.com/

Image and caption: Native Texas tenant farmer. Near Goodliet, Texas. Aged seventy; seventeen years on the same farm. Is to be "tractored out" at the end of 1938. One son has been tractored out and has been on WPA (Work Projects Administration) for two years. Another son was tractored out in 1937. Has moved to town and remains temporarily off relief by selling his livestock. "What are my boys going to do? It's not a question of what they're going to do. It's a question of what they're going to have to do. They're not any up there in Congress but what are big landowners and they're going to see that the program is in their interest. As long as the government is paying the landowner more to let the land out than they make by renting it, they won't rent it.",  Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress), LC-USF34- 018175-E

Lyrics:
Well they tractored us out, with no ceremony
Leaving us on our own with little to show
For 20 long years of counting each penny—
Just the second part’s true, sir, of “easy come, easy go”
My daddy worked hard—but then he died early
Of the fruits of his labor, he enjoyed next to none
Now with each passing day, my I’m growing more weary
We’ll see if it’s destined: “like father, like son”
“For better or worse,” we vowed our wedding day--
To weather together storms tomorrow might bring
She ain’t said one unkind word—and she’s no mind to stray--
But that  look in her eyes, sir—by god does it sting
What luck I had once has been blowed away—
Baked into dust by a merciless sun
What the good lord may give, he might then take away:
I was born to a poor man, I guess I’ll leave this world one

Tractored Out

Live recording A Poor Man's Lot (Gets Harder Every Day), part of Hard Times Hundred & One, my project to create 101 original Americana songs inspired by photos from the Great Depression. More at https://hardtimes100and1.com/

Image and caption: Negro plowing corn. He is a tenant; raises mainly tobacco; has lived here for four years. The cornfield is grassy and poor. On dirt road from Highway 144. Person County, North Carolina. He is saying "You ain't looking for money, is you?" Person County, North Carolina, Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress), LC-USF34- 019921-E

Lyrics:

Just when you think you’ll get ahead
The worst bad luck will stop you dead
And leave you deeper in hock than you started instead-- 
The way a poor man’s lot gets harder every day

Just when you’re sure you can’t take no more--
‘Cause  you’ve got trouble in spades, and debt galore 
Here comes a bankerman knocking on your front door--
‘Cause  a poor man’s lot gets harder every day

	When you’re most in need of catching a break
	You’re leastest likely to get a fair shake
	It’s enough to keep a poor man lying awake---

‘Cause just when you mostest need a hand
You’ll find there ain’t much kindness in this land
It’s a sad fact but easy to understand 
Why a poor man’s lot gets harder every day

So I wish you the bestest luck my friend
‘Cause til these hardest hard times end
It’s a fat chance our fortune’s will be on the mend--
‘Cause  a poor man’s gets harder every day

A Poor Mans Lot Live

Part of Hard Times Hundred & One, my project to write 101 original Americana songs inspired by photos from the Great Depression. More at https://hardtimes100and1.com/

Image & caption: Christmas dinner in home of Earl Pauley. Near Smithfield, Iowa. Dinner consisted of potatoes, cabbage and pie, Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress)

Lyrics:
I know you made a list
And I swear it ain’t been missed
By the jolly old elf in red
But with time’s being so tough
Instead of “getting lots of stuff”
It’s the “Year of Something Else” instead

The world’s good girls and boys
Deserve a mighty haul of toys
But shoes and socks and meals come first
So St. Nick’s double-checking lists
To make sure ain’t nobody’s missed
Among the families who are hurting worst

It’s the hardest kind of year
To feel Yuletide cheer
When lines are stretching ‘round the block for bread
But if we can find it in our heart
To pony up and do our part
We’ll do the “Year of Something Else” instead

‘Cause there’s lots of girls and boys
Whose folks can’t afford no toys
Nor even rent come New Year’s Day
We need Santa with his sack
And his reindeer in a pack
To come and carry all their debts away

So may our stockings hung with care
Remind us here, there, everywhere
So many hopes are hanging by a thread--
And that the least that we can do
To see these hard times through
Is the “Year of Something Else” instead

The Year Of Something Else Instead Live

Part of Hard Times Hundred & One, my project to write 101 original Americana songs inspired by photos from the Great Depression. More at https://hardtimes100and1.com/

Image and caption: Japanese mother and daughter, agricultural workers near Guadalupe, California, Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress)

Lyrics:
Mothers and daughters, fathers and sons
Hold on to hopes--stick to your guns
‘Cause there’s a whole lot of trouble, up and down this hard land
And it’s been with us way longer, than anyone’s planned
But if you’re searching in earnest for how to cause better days
To pull us one and all through this--in all possible ways
If you look in your heart, I swear there you will find
One obvious answer: when in doubt be kind

Mothers And Daughters

Part of Hard Times Hundred & One, my project to write 101 original Americana songs inspired by photos from the Great Depression. More at https://hardtimes100and1.com/

Image:  Drought-stricken farmer and family near Muskogee, Oklahoma. Agricultural day laborer. Muskogee County U.S. Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information LC-USF34-016107-C

Lyrics:

I wish there was a star baby, that we could hitch our wagon to

Or we could a find a well out there just waiting for the penny

That’s gonna make our dreams come true

‘Cause it’s been a long time coming lately--a little luck for me and you

So I ain’t providing for our baby, nor nearly giving you your due

Fact is there’s no jobs on offer, and I ain’t a beggar or a thief

I fear it’s time we contemplate dear: I disappear, you go on relief


If wishes were horses we’d be riding into the lives we’d hoped to lead

But sometimes you can’t get what you wanted--or even the half of what you need




I wish there was a job ready, for every pair of idled hands

That before these hard times built the factories, laid the rails and farmed these lands

‘Cause if working was a right, darling, I’d throw my all at any task

A fair day’s pay for a hard day’s work, now—that don’t seem so much to ask

But what with “liquidation” as the watchword among the mighty and the few

I fear that wishful thinking is all that’s left for me and you



If there was justice I’d be working--and a honest wage would see us through

But now without some rare good fortune, I just don’t know what we can do

Wishes

Part of Hard Times Hundred & One, my project to create 101 original American songs inspired by photos from the Great Depression. More at https://hardtimes100and1.com/

Image:  One dead, fifteen wounded in strike clash. One man was killed and at least fifteen were wounded in an attack by 200 deputies on a crowd of pickets at the Spang-Chalfant Seamless Tube Company plant. This is the first fatality since the strike disorders in the coal districts near Pittsburgh. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, LC-USZ62-26197

Lyrics:
You’d think passionate hearts, and skilled, willing hands
Would play some small part in the bosses’ grand plans
But the Fat Cats back East want to shut this plant down
Takin’ jobs down South, to some non-union town
Or over the border, down Mexico -way—
Where desperation’s making workers beg for pennies a day
‘Cause their ’s banner is the dollar, and their battle cry is “More!”
And they’ve been doing all the shooting in this haves-on-have-nots war

The bosses won’t stop pushing till your back’s against the wall
And the bosses won’t stop taking, until they’ve took it all
They’ll take from you by law, and they’ll take from you by theft
They’ll take what you’ve got coming, and they’ll take what you have left—
It’s getting to the point a man can’t care for a family anymore
From losing of battle after battle in this haves-on-have-nots war

All the politicians counsel “turn the other cheek”
Singing praises for the worker while they sell him up the creek
What they call “negotiation” means “they take and you give back”
“Just look, son, to the brighter side of getting ‘squat’ or ‘jack'”
It’s hard to play the hand you’re dealt when every deck is stacked
And the bosses’ plan ain’t compromise, it’s “attack, attack, attack”
It’s 99-to-one or worse if you’ve been keeping score
Advantage to the rich man, in this haves-on-have-nots war

The bosses won’t be happy till we’re scared to take a stand
And ain’t no unions left unbroken up and down this whole hard land
They’ll do it by dividing us and breaking locals one by one
With contracts, crooked cronies—or the policeman’s gun—
It’s getting to the point my friend where a man can’t hardly live
In this war on working people mister something’s got to give

Ninety-nine to One

Part of Hard Times Hundred & One, my project to create 101 original Americana songs inspired by photos from the Great Depression. More at https://hardtimes100and1.com/

Image and caption: [Untitled photo, possibly related to: Tulare County, California. Farm Security Administration (FSA) camp for migratory agricultural workers at Farmersville. Nurse of Agricultural Workers' Health and Medical Association (FSA) is assigned to the camp. Photo shows her attending sick baby, Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress, LC-USF34- 019658-D

Lyrics:

How’s a man to find hope?
How’s a man to find hope?
How’s a man to find some strength and peace of mind and hope  in this hard time?

When it seems like battle lines are drawn
Feels like our better days are long, long gone
And the price of keepin’ keepin’ on
Feels steeper every day

How’s a woman to find hope?
How’s a woman to find hope?
How’s a woman to find some strength and peace of mind and hope  in this hard time?

When it seems like kindness ain’t in style
Feels like we’re lost by a country mile
And the leastest cause to crack a smile
Feels scarcer every day

How’s a child to find hope?
How’s a child to find hope?
How’s a child to find some strength and peace of mind and hope  in this hard time?

Sons and daughters, here’s the score: we’ve lived through times like these before
When famine, pestilence, or war brought out the worst of those in power
And grifters, sycophants, and liars—toady peddlers of despair 
Disguise the failure at the top by slandering the strength to care

	Look past the lies to find hope
	Look toward the kind to find hope
	Open your heart to share hope in this hard time

Hope In This Hard Time

Part of Hard Times Hundred and One, my project to write 101 original Americana songs inspired by photos from the Great Depression. More at https://hardtimes100and1.com/

Image and caption: New York, New York. Midnight mass on Christmas Eve at Saint Dominick's church in an Italian-American neighborhood. Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information photograph collection (Library of Congress) LC-USW3- 013032-E

Lyrics:

God rest ye jobless gentlemen, ‘cause Christmas cheer is free
Don’t be dismayed there won’t be work another month or three
Since Mr. Hoover’s gift this year is more austerity--
Some tidings, sir, they just don’t bring no joy

From shiverin’ in a manger to nailed to a tree
Jesus was a poor man who knew adversity
So I’ll wish him happy birthday with heartfelt sympathy
Some tidings, sir, they just don’t bring no joy

So ring the bells and deck the halls—hang the holly high
But if you please, you’ll pardon me
If I’m slow to joll-i-fy

Now steering clear of Satan’s power’s wise any time of year
But it’s the strength of Mammon’s grip that’s crushed our Christmas cheer
And it’s “work for every idled man” to which all our hopes adhere 
Those tidings sir, would bring comfort and joy

God Rest Ye Jobless Gentlemen

Part of Hard Times Hundred & One, my project to write 101 original Americana songs inspired by photos from the Great Depression More at https://hardtimes100and1.com/

Image and caption:  Waiting for the semimonthly relief checks at Calipatria, Imperial Valley, California. Typical story: fifteen years ago they owned farms in Oklahoma. Lost them through foreclosure when cotton prices fell after the war. Became tenants and sharecroppers. With the drought and dust they came West, 1934-1937. Never before left the county where they were born. Now although in California over a year they haven't been continuously resident in any single county long enough to become a legal resident. Reason: migratory agricultural laborers,  Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress)

Lyrics:

Some hard knocks’ll teach you lots of things you ain’t never learnt in school--
Like when you’re certain you’re the wiser man you just might be The Greater Fool
I went rags to riches, then right back, on account of wanting “more”--
I traded all the “finer things” for a shot at one big score 
 
Silver in the cupboard, carpet in the hall—
I made a whole lot of money, but then I lost it all

When you’re flush the bankers beg to be the next to lend to you
But don’t expect no kindness when they call that credit due
And when you’ve cash to burn your congressman cares what you’ve got to say
But when your fortunes take a turn– you won’t get the time of day

I had ten bankers and the governor at my beck and call—
I made a whole lot of money, but then I lost it all

It’s printed on the dollar, bold as brass “In God We Trust”
But if you’re banking on a “boom” sir He just might send you a bust
If you think you’re in good graces with the man upstairs
You just might mistake some dumb luck for a sign he really cares

I should have seen it coming, pride went before my fall—
I made a whole lot of money, but then (just like that) I lost it all

A Whole Lot Of Money Live

Part of Hard Times Hundred & One, my project create 101 original Americana songs inspired by photos from the Great Depression. More at https://hardtimes100and1.com/

Image
Company store, Saturday afternoon. At left, miners shooting craps; at right, card gambling, favorite pastime. Chaplin, West Virginia, U.S. Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Black & White Photographs LC-USF33- 030185-M3

Lyrics
Every Monday morning I’m short money for the week
Every Monday morning I’m short money for the week
I’ll likely end my Wednesday well and truly up the creek
‘Cause it’s another Monday morning I’m short money for the week
I’ve had lots of empty pockets but not a lot of luck
I could share six ways from Sunday for stretching every buck
When it comes to making frayed ends meet I know well of what I speak—
As a poor man, I’m short money for the week
As a poor man, I’m short money for the week
It’s rough when nothing’s in your wallet if you’re a family man
Though you’ve notched your belt and buckled down and done the best you can
I’d like to get the wife and kids a treat but things are looking bleak
As a father, I’m short money for the week
As a father, I’m short money for the week
I’m not looking forward to Friday ‘cause I’m not sure what I’ll do
When the bookie comes-a-calling about my seventh IOU
See I’ve landed on the wrong side of another losing streak—
As a gambler, I’m short money for the week 
As a gambler, I’m short money for the week	
When I lay me down on Sunday I’ve already got a peek
Of waking on the morrow short of money for the week

Money For The Week

Love in a Time of Want EP is part of Hard Times Hundred & One, my project to write 101 original Americana songs inspired by photos from the Great Depression. More at https://hardtimes100and1.com/.

The title track was inspired by a photograph by Dorothea Lange (Image & caption:  Migrant agricultural worker’s family. Seven hungry children. Mother aged thirty-two. Father is a native Californian. Destitute in pea picker’s camp, Nipomo, California, because of the failure of the early pea crop. These people had just sold their tent in order to buy food. Of the twenty-five hundred people in this camp most of them were destitute, Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Black and White Negatives, U.S. Library of Congress)

Track List:
Love in a Time of Want
A Little Love, a Little Mercy
Better Days
No Child Hungry, and No Man Idle Too
Love to Spare

Love In A Time Of Want EP

Man Must Work to Live EP is part of Hard Times Hundred & One, my project to write 101 original Americana songs inspired by photos from the Great Depression. More at hardtimes100and1.com/.

Track list:
1. Man Must Work to Live
2. What are Working Folks to Do?
3. Hope in Hard Times
4. The Devil Lies Waiting for the Idle
5. Cross of Gold

Man Must Work To Live EP

A Whole Lot of Trouble EP  is part of Hard Times Hundred & One, my project to write 101 original Americana songs inspired by photos from the Great Depression. More at hardtimes100and1.com/.

The image that inspired the title track prompted me to wonder "how much sadness could be jammed in to the shortest length of song?"

Track list:
1. A Whole Lot of Trouble
2. The Hardest Hard Time
3. Summer '29
4. Down to Our Last Dollar
5. Nothing Good's Been Done

A Whole Lot Of Trouble EP

A tribute to Woody Guthrie inspired by whiny billionaires and Mitt Romney's hostility to Big Bird. More at www.bryankirschner.com

All You Moochers are Bound to Lose (or, This Machine Kills Muppets)

Hard Times Hundred & One is my current project. The goal:  to create 101 original Americana songs based on photos from the Great Depression.

Bryan Kirschner

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