# Music by Genre > Bluegrass, Newgrass, Country, Gospel Variants >  Bluegrass songs involving farming

## Jessbusenitz

Ok, I searched and didn't come up with anything.... So our group is doing a gig at a old time tractor show, and I'm looking for possible bluegrass songs about farming.  The only one that came right to mind was "Between the rows" by Blue Highway.... I know there are a ton of country songs that can be tweaked, but what are you bluegrass suggestions?  :Confused:  Jess

----------


## MikeEdgerton

James King's "30 Years of Farming" (written by Fred Eaglesmith). Fred Eaglesmith's "John Deere B" (very fitting) or "Bailin'". Haggard's "In my next life". Marty Stuart's "Farmer's Blues". I can go probably think of a few more. They should all be on You Tube.

----------


## MikeEdgerton

30 Years of farming

----------


## MikeEdgerton

John Deere B by Fandango Sky

In my next life



Farmer's Blues

----------


## MikeEdgerton

I missed the "know tons of country songs that can be tweaked". Ignore those.

----------


## Jessbusenitz

Thanks for all the suggestions! Funny thing is I went to a "new to me" jam  and they played "30 years of farming", but I didn't catch the title or much of the lyrics as I was trying to figure out the tune.....

----------


## MikeEdgerton

The Old Home Place would be another.

----------

John Soper, 

Misty Stanley-Jones

----------


## UsuallyPickin

Devil take the Farmer .... Dave Gordon  ..... Dry Branch Fire Squad

----------


## BradKlein

The Boy Who Wouldn't Hoe Corn - really a folk song with countless variations but Allison Kraus and Dan T established a BG version.

Gospel Plow - it's a metaphorical plow, but still…

Daddy Keeps On Plowin', Mark Johnson

Tiny Broken Heart - Louvins

The First Whippoorwill - 'Our love was planted… like the farmer plants his grain… but there will never be a harvest…

John Deere Tractor - Larry Sparks

Let the Harvest Go to Seed - Peter Rowan

Pig in a Pen

Nellie Kane - Hot Rize, I think they eventually get some farming done

Sharecropper's Son - Ralph Stanley

----------


## GTison

Bill Monroe: Lonesome Old Farmer, on Jimmy Campbell's pieces of Time CD
Larry Sparks: John Deere Tractor
Lost & Found: Hey it's good to be back home again (John Denver), ( for that matter you could do Denver's Country Boy too.)
Nashville Bluegrass Band:  Blackbirds & the Crows
Danny Paisley:  Raising cane in Texas (Gene Watson)

----------


## AlanN

Haggard's Farmer's Daughter.

And these guys have a farming tune or 2.

----------


## Denny Gies

One good one not mentioned yet is Dan Tyminski's "Makin' Hay" from his "Wheels" CD.

----------


## BradKlein

Alabama - Louvin Brothers
begins: '...your beautiful sunlight. Your fields of sericea, potatoes, and corn…

And you get a good conversation starter, 'who knows what sericea is?'

----------


## mandocrucian



----------


## John Ritchhart

Sweet Allis Chalmers. I think Country Gazette did it.

----------


## Rush Burkhardt

Chris Warner's last album, Goin' to the Dance includes a song written by my friend, Carroll Swam, called "Taxes, Troubles and Heartaches" which tells a relevant, albeit sad, song about farming! Maybe too poignant for tractor folks, but give it a listen! It mentions the tractor being left to rust; where most tractor collectors get their collectibles!
 :Popcorn:

----------


## Mickey King

Hot Corn Cold Corn should go over well with tractor folks!

----------


## mandomurph

"Farms of Yesterday" by the Gibson Brothers is one of my favorites right now.  No banjo but a nice mando break.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZWcRui9Rus

----------


## MikeyG

> "Farms of Yesterday" by the Gibson Brothers is one of my favorites right now.  No banjo but a nice mando break.
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZWcRui9Rus


I'm surprised this wasn't mentioned sooner.  It's one of my favorites too.  Eric Gibson puts a lot of emotion into the singing and Joe Walsh's intro, break and outro are VERY tasteful.  The chorus "They build 'em bigger now, they got more land, they got more cows.  Maybe they have found a better way.  It's hard to say - but I miss that old farm of yesterday".  Simple but BRILLIANT lyrics, a wonderful and heartfelt song.
MikeyG

----------


## KEB

I'd second Farms of Yesterday-- The Gibson Brothers don't get enough love around here. Damn fine modern traditional Bluegrass. 

You'd probably get a lot of people who laugh at 40 Acres and a Fool by Del McCoury Band.

----------


## bradlaird

Georgia Mules and Country Boys (the Osborne Brothers) is a good 'un...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzdqYjRQQh4

----------


## journeybear

There's always this, particularly appropriate for this event:



Should be able to find a local percussionist.

----------


## farmerjones

"32 Acres of Bottom Ground"

"Fields Have Turned Brown"

I like the more contemporary song, "John Deere Green."

----------

Amanda Gregg

----------


## Beanzy

I wonder could you convincingly do a BG version of the blues song "Big Green And Yeller" by Seasick Steve?

----------


## Marty Jacobson

Not quite bluegrass...



And Hill Farmer's Blues:

----------


## Tom Coletti

Name any bluegrass tune; there's at least a 48% chance that it's about farming.

--Tom

----------


## BradKlein

You know, it's funny Tom, but when I really put my mind to, it seemed that not that many BG tunes are explicitly about FARMING or set on a farm. There's often an implication that folks are in a rural setting, or have left the farm, but the fairly short list above of actual bluegrass songs makes me think the true percentage is well under 1 per cent! Which surprised me.

----------


## Jessbusenitz

Thanks guys for all the suggestions! This will at least give us something to throw around and see what we can come up with.

----------


## AlanN

Well, at least it's got farm in the title

----------


## Andy Alexander

Another Gibson Brother's song written by Seth Sawyer, "Long Forgotten Dream"

----------


## Mike Bunting

Here's one from up my way.

----------


## palosfv3

Peter Rowan's Rainmaker starts at 4:00

----------


## allenhopkins

_Homestead On the Farm_



_California Cottonfields_



_Milk Cow Blues_



Just scratchin' the surface (no pun intended)...

----------


## Spencer

Art Stevenson and High Water have recorded a song called John Deere that was also written by Fred Eaglesmith, not the same as John Deere B, as far as I can tell.




Spencer

----------


## Charles E.

The Farmer Is The Man

----------


## AlanN

This

----------


## Grommet

Hot Corn Cold Corn should go over well with tractor folks! 

    Mickey


Works for Me!

Scott

----------


## fatt-dad

cluck ol' hen.

f-d

----------


## journeybear

I was discussing the movie "Nashville" elsewhere and wondering whatever became of Ronee Blakley, who played the queen of country music in that fictional universe. She had a couple of great songs in the film and showed so much promise, but after a stint singing backup in Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue, she seemed to fade into obscurity. Anyway, as I recall we first see her singing this snappy number. It may not be strictly bluegrass, but it's upbeat country - pretty close. Due to the lyrical content, especially of the refrain, it may require a female singer, if you have one. (PS: The subtitles are in Croatian.)



The audio is better in this version.

----------


## Rroyd

The late Billy Joe Foster wrote one that Ricky Skaggs recorded entitled "Give Us Rain" and another that the Whites recorded, called "Before the Prairie Met the Plow."  Another that I heard done by a family Bluegrass band years ago was "The Auction,"
wonderfully sung by an 8-year-old, and there wasn't a dry eye in the house when he finished.

----------


## Phil Goodson

Larry Sparks' "John Deere Tractor"
"old home place" mentions leaving the 'plow in the field'

at least some suggestion of farming.....

----------

