At Manlihood.com our mission is to educate, equip and entertain men in an engaging way. Fridays, we focus a bit on the entertainment, offering #manlymusicfriday – where we feature songs from a variety of genres that reflect the values of true masculinity. Want more ManlyMusic? Check out our playlist on Spotify!
Who knows if Muddy Waters is definitely representing himself as a mannish boy or a boyish man – or if he’s making a commentary on men not growing up the way they should.
Hard to say with the blues.
He speaks of a confidence here in dealing with women – though I can’t say it’s as manly as it ought to be…. the blues is still fun to jam out.
At Manlihood.com our mission is to educate, equip and entertain men in an engaging way. Fridays, we focus a bit on the entertainment, offering #manlymusicfriday – where we feature songs from a variety of genres that reflect the values of true masculinity. Want more ManlyMusic? Check out our playlist on Spotify!
Men, there are better ways to impart manliness on our sons than to name them “sue” and leave – but the way Cash tells this tale is definitely powerful.
“A Boy Named Sue”
My daddy left home when I was three
And he didn’t leave much to ma and me
Just this old guitar and an empty bottle of booze.
Now, I don’t blame him cause he run and hid
But the meanest thing that he ever did
Was before he left, he went and named me “Sue.”
Well, he must o’ thought that is quite a joke
And it got a lot of laughs from a’ lots of folk,
It seems I had to fight my whole life through.
Some gal would giggle and I’d get red
And some guy’d laugh and I’d bust his head,
I tell ya, life ain’t easy for a boy named “Sue.”
Well, I grew up quick and I grew up mean,
My fist got hard and my wits got keen,
I’d roam from town to town to hide my shame.
But I made a vow to the moon and stars
That I’d search the honky-tonks and bars
And kill that man who gave me that awful name.
Well, it was Gatlinburg in mid-July
And I just hit town and my throat was dry,
I thought I’d stop and have myself a brew.
At an old saloon on a street of mud,
There at a table, dealing stud,
Sat the dirty, mangy dog that named me “Sue.”
Well, I knew that snake was my own sweet dad
From a worn-out picture that my mother’d had,
And I knew that scar on his cheek and his evil eye.
He was big and bent and gray and old,
And I looked at him and my blood ran cold
And I said: “My name is ‘Sue!’ How do you do!
Now your gonna die!!”
Well, I hit him hard right between the eyes
And he went down, but to my surprise,
He come up with a knife and cut off a piece of my ear.
But I busted a chair right across his teeth
And we crashed through the wall and into the street
Kicking and a’ gouging in the mud and the blood and the beer.
I tell ya, I’ve fought tougher men
But I really can’t remember when,
He kicked like a mule and he bit like a crocodile.
I heard him laugh and then I heard him cuss,
He went for his gun and I pulled mine first,
He stood there lookin’ at me and I saw him smile.
And he said: “Son, this world is rough
And if a man’s gonna make it, he’s gotta be tough
And I knew I wouldn’t be there to help ya along.
So I give ya that name and I said goodbye
I knew you’d have to get tough or die
And it’s the name that helped to make you strong.”
He said: “Now you just fought one hell of a fight
And I know you hate me, and you got the right
To kill me now, and I wouldn’t blame you if you do.
But ya ought to thank me, before I die,
For the gravel in ya guts and the spit in ya eye
Cause I’m the son-of-a-bitch that named you “Sue.'”
I got all choked up and I threw down my gun
And I called him my pa, and he called me his son,
And I came away with a different point of view.
And I think about him, now and then,
Every time I try and every time I win,
And if I ever have a son, I think I’m gonna name him
Bill or George! Anything but Sue! I still hate that name!
At Manlihood.com our mission is to educate, equip and entertain men in an engaging way. Fridays, we focus a bit on the entertainment, offering #manlymusicfriday – where we feature songs from a variety of genres that reflect the values of true masculinity. Want more ManlyMusic? Check out our playlist on Spotify!
Iron Maiden may not be everybody’s cup of tea. It’s a little heavy metal hair band for many. But their hard hitting music and lyrics often convey some really neat imagery. This song in particular paints a picture of a soldier’s valor on the field of battle. That’s pretty manly, if you ask me!
“The Trooper”
You’ll take my life but I’ll take yours too
You’ll fire your musket but I’ll run you through
So when you’re waiting for the next attack
You’d better stand there’s no turning back.
The Bugle sounds and the charge begins
But on this battlefield no one wins
The smell of acrid smoke and horses breath
As I plunge on into certain death.
The horse he sweats with fear we break to run
The mighty roar of the Russian guns
And as we race towards the human wall
The screams of pain as my comrades fall.
We hurdle bodies that lay on the ground
And the Russians fire another round
We get so near yet so far away
We won’t live to fight another day.
We get so close near enough to fight
When a Russian gets me in his sights
He pulls the trigger and I feel the blow
A burst of rounds take my horse below.
And as I lay there gazing at the sky
My body’s numb and my throat is dry
And as I lay forgotten and alone
Without a tear I draw my parting groan.
At Manlihood.com our mission is to educate, equip and entertain men in an engaging way. Fridays, we focus a bit on the entertainment, offering #manlymusicfriday – where we feature songs from a variety of genres that reflect the values of true masculinity. Want more ManlyMusic? Check out our playlist on Spotify!
This week we feature Tennessee Ernie Ford’s song 16 Tons – because any man who has ever had to work hard for a living knows this lament well.
Men, I’ll encourage you to dream of a better future for yourself, but at the same time, no matter whether you “owe the company store” or whether you are your own boss, work is work… and your ability to enjoy it starts in your own mind!
Every Friday, we feature a song that speaks to the heart of men. We’re here to Equip, Educate, and ENTERTAIN after all, right? This is Manly Music Friday. For more Manly Music – check out our Manly Music Playlist on Spotify
This weeks featured Manly Music is from The Head and the Heart.
The song speaks about a “rough and rowdy” man yearning to be a productive man, but he struggles with his addictions. He wants to be free, and he wants mercy.
Men, let’s strive to work hard, to do good, to be free, and to walk in mercy!
Lyrics:
I wish I was a slave to an age-old trade
Like ridin’ around on railcars and workin’ long days
Lord have mercy on my rough and rowdy ways
Lord have mercy on my rough and rowdy ways
Call it one drink too many
Call it pride of a man
But it don’t make no difference if you sit or you stand
‘Cause they both end in trouble and start with a grin
Yeah they both end in trouble and start with a grin
We do it over and over and over again
We do it over and over and over again
Oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh
Oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh
Oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh
I know there’s California, Oklahoma
And all of the places I ain’t ever been to but
Down in the valley with whiskey rivers
These are the places you will find me hidin’
These are the places I will always go
These are the places I will always go
I am on my way
I am on my way
I am on my way back to where I started
Oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh
Oh-oh (One more for the stars and the eyes of the walls)
Oh-oh-oh-oh (I hear your name)
Oh-oh
I saw your face in the crowd and you came out
You saw me walkin’
You got a sign on the door and it reads to me
Just like the grass and the sun and the water
Oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh
Oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh
Oh-oh
I am on my way
I am on my way
I am on my way back to where I started
California, Oklahoma
And all of the places I ain’t ever been to
Down in the valley with whiskey rivers
These are the places you will find me hidin’
These are the places I will always go
These are the places I will always go
So I wish I was a slave to an age-old trade
Lord have mercy on my rough and rowdy ways
