Can't You See?

Lady Jane

Separate Yourself

Wes Hixson performs "Berimbau" by Baden Powell

Berimbau performed by Wesley Hixson

John Henry is an American folk hero who worked as a steel-driver in the 1870’s.  The job of the steel-drivers was to hammer holes into rock so that explosives could be packed in and blast a path for new railroad tracks.  It was a rough job worked by many former slaves in the Reconstruction era with little regard paid to their safety and their lives.  According to some legends, John Henry was a large and powerful man who could swing a hammer from birth and was exceptional as a steel-driver.  His hero status, however, was cemented when blasting through a mountain in competition with a steam-powered drill.  As the stories tell us, a steam drill was brought in to speed up the drilling through the mountain but John Henry was not going to be out done.  John Henry and the steam drill raced each other to the center of the mountain with John Henry emerging victorious only to collapse and die from exhaustion.

For our song, we tried to tell the story without words. The ring of the hammer is echoed with a regular percussive hit throughout, with the energy of the piece building to a climax. When the dust settles the melody is retold first in celebration over John Henry’s victory but then again in sorrow over his death.

01 John Henry Pt. 1

Duo Tandem is an Instrumental Guitar Duo based in London and Chicago.  Formed in 2011 by guitarists Necati Emirzade and Mark Anderson, Duo Tandem seeks to tell stories with their music.  Commissioning and writing music based on folk tales, poetry, art, and other sources of inspiration. 

01 John Henry Pt. 1

Duo Tandem

Related tracks