Bing Crosby - Brother Can You Spare a Dime

Perhaps the best known Depression-era song, Brother (or Buddy) Can You Spare a Dime? was initially recorded by Bing Crosby and Rudy Vallee but has also been a host of other singers, including Al Jolson, Peter Paul and Mary, Tom Waits and George Michael. It was written and first appeared in 1931 at the height of America's economic woes; it was used in a musical, featured in Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidential election campaign and reached number one on the sales charts.

The lyrics tell of the feelings of despair and betrayal felt by the working classes, who had built the infrastructure and fought for their country in World War I - but were now suffering the indignity of soup queues and shanty towns:

"They used to tell me I was building a dream, and so I followed the mob,
When there was earth to plow, or guns to bear, I was always there right on the job.
They used to tell me I was building a dream, with peace and glory ahead,
Why should I be standing in line, just waiting for bread?

Once I built a railroad, I made it run, made it race against time.
Once I built a railroad; now it's done. Brother, can you spare a dime?
Once I built a tower, up to the sun, brick, and rivet, and lime;
Once I built a tower, now it's done. Brother, can you spare a dime?"

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Great Depression
• 1931
• Bing Crosby
• unemployment

[toftmf]

Germain considering the current economy. Like a couple of verses from "This Land Is Your Land" that you posted that Woody Guthrie wrote about the Great Depression.

[musicinhistory]

Maybe it should be re-released as Brother Can You Spare a Bail-Out.

[TheBethany1991]

@Neville6000 Yes! Let's update this and express ourselves with it! Instead of "I was the kid with the drum" we could say "I was the kid with the ...." thoughts are welcome. We could mention 9/11 and dump "Yankadoodlydum".

[TheBethany1991]

Half a million boots went slogging through hell recently. And their no jobs for them and the "teaprrty" does not care...they totally recent Keen's economics, which has basically worked for over 70 years and the greatest irony is that many of the same people who are protesting against government sure do enjoy their social security and medicare. Irony!

[JFranzicles]

Hey, thats Lt. Tasha Yar's dad....

[n2tunes]

listen to the george michael live w pavaratti version. just awesome

[Neville6000]

Actually, keep the original title, but change the lyrics-the line 'Once I built a railroad' becomes 'Once I built an airline' and the part about lining up for bread becomes a line about going to a food bank.

[toftmf]

Don't get me started on those issues.