Social Education 71(1), pp. 15–20 ©2007 National Council for the Social Studies Using Music to Teach about the Great Depression

Robert L. Stevens and Jared A. Fogel

In 1932, one out of four Americans was out of work, and the banking system was promising, and muses bitterly that after near collapse. The Great Depression is typically taught through history textbooks, all the sacrifices he made to achieve the but the music of this time allows students to learn about this era through different American Dream, he is reduced to stand- perspectives. ing in a bread line “bumming” change from other unfortunates. No song captures the gloomy spirit of ...Once I built a railroad The Great Depression witnessed many the Great Depression more than “Brother I made it run musical styles—from the light hearted- Can You Spare a Dime?”, written for a Made it race against time ness of popular music to the sadness of the Broadway musical, “New Americana,” Once I built a railroad blues, gospel, which offered inspiration, which flopped. Two days before the Now it’s done to the tension between populism and the musical closed, Bing Crosby stepped Brother, can you spare a dime? popular front. Americans who suffered into a studio and recorded his version the deprivation of the times sang lyrics of the song, with his melodious baritone, This stanza describes how the that reflected their plight. No one style which would prove to stand the test of American Dream came crashing down of music has been more intricately woven time. The lyrics juxtapose the optimism on the song’s antihero. He recalls his hard into the political culture of the times than of the American spirit with the grim reali- work and patriotism, reminisces about the blues. Blues music was sometimes ties of the times: former times when the future looked also referred to as the “Roosevelt’s Blues,” because so many songs conveyed politi- cal commentary on Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who was president for the greater part of the Depression.1

African Americans and the

Photograph by Deb Palmer Depression The Great Depression hit almost all Americans, but it hit African Americans especially hard. They had been on the bottom rung of the economic ladder before the Depression hit, and, although most had precious little to lose, pros- pects for even subsistence work were especially poor once the Depression was under way. Unemployment in the “prosperity decade” had been much higher among blacks than whites. “The Negro was born in depression,” Clifford Burke told Studs Terkel (a Chicago radio personality of that era, who remains an

J a n u a r y / F e b r u a r y 2 0 0 7 15 All photography taken at the FDR Memorial in Washington, DC.

The second room of the Memorial Photograph by Deb Palmer contains bronze statues by George Segal including people standing in a breadline (see page 15), and this one depicting a man listening to a Roosevelt “fire- side chat” on the radio.

active historian and social commentator McCoy sang in his ‘Charity Blues’ that William Ledbetter, known as “Lead today). “It only became official when he would love to have a PWA job, which Belly.” Lead Belly was born on the Jeter it hit the white man.”2 The Depression would bring him money instead of the Plantation near Mooringsport, Louisiana, made a bad situation even worse; by ‘beef and meat’ relief from ‘Mr. Charity on January 29, 1885, and then when he 1932, unemployment among blacks Man’ on ‘Charity Street’.”5 was five years old, he moved with his reached approximately 50 percent.3 Even As a result of the PWA, Roosevelt won parents to Leigh, Texas. His uncle first New Deal programs aimed at alleviat- by a landslide among blacks in the 1936 interested him in music by buying him ing joblessness and poverty fell short election. In September 1936, 20,000 an accordion. By the age of 21, Lead when it came to African Americans—the people filled Madison Square Garden for Belly left home and traveled throughout National Recovery Administration (cre- a re-election rally. Van Rijn writes that Texas and Louisiana, where he tried to ated in June of 1933 and presided over by 300 followers of Elder Michaux’s Happy eke out a living playing the guitar, and Hugh Johnson), whose sole purpose was Am I radio preacher program enlisted a also got jobs as a cotton picker, railroad to “restore employment and prosperity,” special train carrying 20 by 24 paintings worker, and other rough labor jobs when had done such a poor job with employ- of Christ, Lincoln, and Roosevelt titled his musical abilities failed to bring in ment and relief for African Americans “The Three Emancipators.” “Christ sufficient cash. that in the black community it became was termed the emancipator from sin; In 1916, Lead Belly was sent to jail in known as “Negro Run-Around” and Lincoln emancipator from bondage, and Texas on an assault charge. He escaped, “Negroes Rarely Allowed.”4 To counter Roosevelt the emancipator from social but two years later he was arrested again this situation, FDR appointed Harold injustices.”6 Though blacks had little on murder charges and sentenced to 30 Ickes, a progressive who had been access to political power in the 1930s, years hard labor in Huntsville, Texas. president of the Chicago branch of the African Americans used music to express Seven years later, Lead Belly managed NAACP to direct the Public Works dissent. to gain his release with a pardon from Administration (PWA). In Roosevelt’s Governor Pat Neff. Legend has it that he Blues, Guido Van Rijn notes that as a Music as Social Commentary was granted the pardon after appealing tribute to this program, “in August 1934, One of the greatest African American to the governor in a song. Mississippi-born blues guitarist Charlie blues songwriters at this time was Huddie Despite his success, Lead Belly was

S o c i a l E d u c a t i o n 16 arrested again in 1930 for attempted 1938 at the hands of a jealous husband. Tell him I ain’t made a penny all homicide and sent to the Louisiana State He writes of dislocation and the burdens this week. Penitentiary, where he met John and Alan of life in the 1930s. This dislocation and Tell him I’m just as broke as I can be, Lomax, ethno-musicologists who were migration in America was not just from oh just knock him down... gathering material at that time for their the Midwest to California, but from the Tell him I’ll have the money some- classic book, The Folk Songs of North South to the North, especially to Chicago. time. America. The Lomax father-and-son team “Even with the lack of employment in the recorded hundreds of songs and man- North, black migration from the rural The dreaded knock of the rent collec- aged to get Lead Belly once again paroled South amounted to some 400,000 blacks tor on his door calls to mind the fact that (either for good behavior or partly due during the Great Depression.”7 In “Sweet he is totally broke like everyone else and to the release of his most famous song, Home Chicago,” Johnson sings of set- can’t pay him, yet he lives in hope that “Goodnight Irene”). Lead Belly continued ting out with his meager possessions for one day his lot will improve. Williamson to create songs up to his death in 1949, Chicago, the “California” of impover- was murdered in 1948. being increasingly associated with leftist ished Southern blacks. Tampa Red, a blues singer known as the factions in the late 1930s. “Guitar Wizard,” recorded “Turpentine Lead Belly’s opinions and lyrics flow Oh, baby don’t you want to go Blues” in Chicago on May 7, 1932. The from his experience of being a member Oh, baby don’t you want to go turpentine business offered absolutely of a racial minority in the South. In one Back to the land of California, miserable working conditions for the of his earliest songs, recorded around the to my sweet home Chicago most underprivileged classes, who were time of World War I, titled “Red Cross the only ones willing to take on such jobs. Store Blues” (the Red Cross headquarters In “Ramblin on My Mind,” the theme Workers sweated in insect-infested pine in small American towns also served as of dislocation is linked to the theme of forests of the Deep South, cutting slashes army recruitment centers at the time), he love gone sour. The flight to the open into trees, and collecting the pine residue resists attempts to enlist him to fight. He road is associated with the leaving of a that flowed into cans pegged to the trees. tells his girlfriend, Justine, that he has woman for the arms of another, a recast- African Americans were often reduced no intention of enlisting, as the thought ing of the hope for a better future that the to doing jobs that were so distasteful of war and noble causes rings hollow to nation as a whole cherished in a scenario that even desperate whites wouldn’t do a man who has suffered hardships and of personal human relationships. “Cross them. Not only was this work hard and persecution all of his life in the very land Roads Blues,” his most famous song of all, miserable, but it was also insecure, with he is asked to defend. focuses on a life of misery always on the periods of employment infrequent, and Lead Belly claimed a repertoire of move. He sings of loneliness and the deep times between jobs seemingly endless, 500 songs, and many of these songs com- anxiety of a rootless life on the road, fall- as reflected in the lyrics to “Turpentine mented on the tough economic times of ing to his knees begging God for mercy, Blues.” the Great Depression. In one song, titled and being passed by those from whom he “Tight Light That,” he depicts how the is seeking rides as if he weren’t even there, So Lordy please tell me severe economic climate led to the ero- a biting comment on the lack of concern What we turpentine people gonna sion of traditional roles and expectations, for the plight of African Americans in do as well as morality, by wryly singing of the 1930s. Lordy please tell me two preachers he caught stealing corn John Lee Williamson, better known What we turpentine people gonna from his cornfield. These desperate and as “Sonny Boy” Williamson, was one of do less than honorable men of the cloth were the first blues harmonica players. Born in But we got to lay off a month or also caught stealing some of his chickens. Jackson, Tennessee, in 1912, he moved two. Lead Belly seems to enjoy recounting the to Chicago in 1934, where he became unseemly deeds of those who preach to one of the key founders of the Chicago Jobs were in short supply to begin with others about moral life. blues scene. In “Collector Man Blues,” during the Depression, and competition While Lead Belly was the most famous recorded in November 1937, he relates for them provoked racial violence, includ- of the African American singers who what life was like for so many during the ing lynchings in the South.8 McElvaine used music as social commentary, he Great Depression: notes that “...a white clerk in Marianna, was certainly not the only one. Robert Florida, said in the wake of a lynch mob Johnson is a man well known to historians Who is that knockin’ on that attack on a store that employed blacks, of music, as well as blues aficionados, door? ‘a nigger hasn’t got no right to have a job but he is little known generally. No one I believe that’s the collector man. when there are white men who can do knows where or when he was born, or Man, go tell him I ain’t got a dime the work and are out of work.’”9 where he was buried after his murder in today. In “Western Bound Blues,” recorded

J a n u a r y / F e b r u a r y 2 0 0 7 17 on May 7, 1932, Tampa Red sings of Notes the dislocation experienced by so many 1. Guido Van Rijn, Roosevelt’s Blues: African-American Blues and Gospel Songs on FDR (Jackson, Miss.: who left home to ride the freight trains, University of Mississippi Press, 1997), 32-33. or even to walk to where job prospects 2. Robert McElvaine, The Great Depression in America were hoped to be better. 1929-1941 (New York: Times Books, 1984), 187. 3. Ibid., 87. 4. Ibid., 158. If you lose your money, don’t lose 5. Van Rijn, 105-106. your mind 6. Ibid., 106-107. If you lose your money, don’t lose 7. Robert Cantwell, When We Were Good (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1996), 67. your mind 8. Stevens, Robert L. and Jared A. Fogel, “The And if you lose your sweet woman, Depression in the South: Seymour Fogel’s Images of African-Americans,” Social Education 62, no. 2 well brother you better not mess (1998). with mine 9. McElvaine, 188. 10. Van Rijn, 200. He cautioned at the beginning of the 11. Ibid., 207. song that the loss of one’s money should 12. Nathan Miller, Theodore Roosevelt: A Life (New York: William Morrow & Co., 1992), 363. not cause the more serious loss of one’s sanity. In addition to the songs written References about the misery of living during the Eyerman, Ron and Andrew Jamison. Music and Social Movements. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Depression a significant number were a list of artists who recorded songs with Press, 1998. written to encourage hope and inspira- political import: tion. Titles such as “No Bread Line in Lomax, Alan. The Folk Songs of North America. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1960. Heaven,” “Roosevelt Blues,” “Don’t Take (seven [songs]) John Lee “Sonny Boy” Away My WPA,” “President Roosevelt Williamson (1914-1948); William is Everybody’s Friend,” and “Tell Me “Big Bill” Broonzy (1898-1958); Josh Why You Like Roosevelt” played on White (1915-1969); Bill Gaither (1910- Teaching Activities radios throughout the Great Depression 1970); (six [songs]) Huddie “Lead During the Great Depression, musi- and into World War II. Otis Johnson, a Belly” Ledbetter (1889-1949); Lonnie cians used a range of musical styles Miami disc jockey, recorded “Tell Me Johnson (1889-1970); (five [songs]) Rev. to depict the troubled times: light Why You like Roosevelt,” in April 1946 J.M. Gates (c. 1884-c.1942); Louis hearted popular music, melancholy one year after the president’s death: Jordan (1908-1975); (four [songs]) blues, inspirational gospel, popu- “Champion” Jack Depree (1910- lism, and popular front. An analysis of Depression-era song lyrics can Tell me why you like Roosevelt? 19920); Charley Jordan (c. 1890-1954); reveal a great deal about socio-eco- 11 Wasn’t no kin Buster “Buzz” Ezell (18??-195?). nomic circumstances and musical Huh, God Almighty; was a poor diversity from 1929 to 1941. The fol- man’s friend. Roosevelt’s attitude toward African lowing activity, comparing and con- Americans has been called contradic- trasting lyrics of the 1930s, has been This is probably the most important tory and paternalistic.12 On the one hand, adapted from Education Programs at the Franklin D. Roosevelt library. song about how the president was per- he established programs ostensibly to Provide students with four copies ceived by the black population. Jackson’s help the poor. But such programs as the of the Lyrics Analysis Worksheet. song is divided into five parts, which National Recovery Administration, the After playing four songs in the compare Roosevelt to other administra- Works Progress Administration, and the classroom, have students answer the tions including Abraham Lincoln’s. The Office of Price Administration were tar- questions on their worksheets. The teacher may also provide writ- main theme is that the president did not gets of criticism. Despite a mixed record ten lyrics for the students. set himself above others, but identified on civil rights, FDR inspired hope and with the common man. Van Rijn writes, confidence in many African Americans. “The song shows how Roosevelt advanced His Civil Works Administration and Negroes in different fields and explained Publics Works Administration programs how the Roosevelt myth arose.”10 were hailed enthusiastically, and his lead- Robert L. Stevens is chair of the Department When Wall Street crashed, the total ership after Pearl Harbor proved decisive of Curriculum and Instruction at the University number of blues and gospel songs fell, but to marshaling black political support. His of Texas at Tyler. Jared A. Fogel is director of the number of songs with political com- legacy lives on in blues lyrics of the Great Fogel Arts in Statesboro, Georgia. mentary increased. Van Rijn provides Depression.

S o c i a l E d u c a t i o n 18 Lyrics Analysis Worksheet Handout 1

Step 1. Observation A. Listen to the song. Form an overall impression of the song. Jot down or describe your overall feeling (e.g., sadness or joy). Next, examine individual lyrics. B. Use the chart below to list musicians, style, and lyrics in the song.

Musicians Style Lyrics

Step 2. Inference Based on your analysis above, list three things you might infer from the song. 1. ______2. ______3. ______

Step 3. Questions A. What questions do these lyrics raise in your mind? E. List two things the song tells you about life in the United States ______at the time it was written: ______B. Where could you nd the answers? ______F. Write a question to the composer that is left unanswered by ______this song. ______C. Why do you think this song was written? ______G. How might this song be useful to historians? ______D. What evidence in the song helps you know why it was written? Quote from the lyrics. ______

Teacher’s note: An excellent source for songs of this time period is Smithsonian Folkway Recordings, 750 9th Street NW, Suite 4100, Washington, DC 20560-0953, www.Folkways.si.edu or www.Folklife.si.edu.

J ANUARY / F EBRUARY 2 0 0 7 19 Handout 2 Musical Styles

In addition to the blues, there were several other musical styles that refl ected life during the Great Depression: popular music, populism, and popular front. Students should compare and contrast the lyrics to these other styles to better understand the America of the 1930s.

Popular

Artist Title Sample Lyrics

Ella Fitzgerald “It’s Only a Paper Moon” ______

David Franklin “When My Dreamboat Comes Home” ______

Cli Friend ”The Merry Go Round Broke Down” ______

Bing Crosby “You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby” ______

Johnny Mercer “Jeepers Creepers” ______

Tom Gerun “Cheerful Little Earful” ______

Ira Gershwin ”Strike Up the Band” ______

Populism

Artist Title Sample Lyrics

Carter Family “Will the Circle Be Unbroken?” ______

Jimmy Rogers “The Singing Brakeman” or ______

“America’s Blues Yodler” ______

Emry Arthur “I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow” ______

Harry McClintock “Big Rock Candy Mountain” ______

Popular Front

Artist Title Sample Lyrics

Ralph Chaplin “Solidarity Forever” ______

Alfred Hayes “I Dreamed I Saw Joe Hill” ______

Earl Robinson ”Red, White and Blue but Mostly Red” ______

Florence Reese “Which Side Are You On?” ______

Woody Guthrie “The Ballad of Pretty Boy Floyd” or ______

“Talkin’ Dust Bowl Blues” or ______

“Hard Travelin’” ______

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