Monica Grabin: Song Lyrics & Clips

• MP3 short clip, hi-fi play (broadband)

Also from the Grange songbooks, "The Farmer is the Man" has long been a favorite of mine, and again speaks to the contributions of American farms. There is a timelessness to these songs, since the cycles of boom and bust have a habit of repeating themselves.

The farmer comes to town with his wagon loaded down,
The farmer is the man who feeds us all.
If you'll only look and see I think you will agree,
That the farmer is the man who feeds us all.

The farmer is the man, the farmer is the man,
Lives on his credit until fall,
Then they take him by the hand and they lead him from his land,
And the middleman's the one that gets it all.

Oh, the lawyer hangs around while the butcher cuts a pound,
But you know that it's the farmer feeds them all.
And the preacher and the cook they go strollin’ by the brook,
But the farmer is the man who feeds us all.

The farmer is the man, the farmer is the man
Lives on his credit until fall,
With the interest rates so high it's a wonder he don't die,
And the mortgage man's the one that gets it all.

Well the banker says he's broke and the merchant's up in smoke,
They forget that it's the farmer feeds them all.
It would put them to the test if the farmer took a rest,
Then they'd know that it's the farmer feeds us all.

The farmer is the man, the farmer is the man,
Lives on his credit until fall,
His pants are wearing thin, his condition is a sin,
But the farmer is the man who feeds us all.