Woody Guthrie song with a tune he borrowed from the
Carter Family and a chorus which I borrowed from the
Incredible String Band.
This world is not my home
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqRpyG0W96k
I ain't got no home
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12EvtfwDCM4
Ducks on pond (last two verses)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90jFKaVDP2k
Surprise surprise THIS WORLD IS NOT MY HOME was written by (Albert E. Brumley) in 1937.
Brumley was born near Spiro, Oklahoma on October 29, 1905. Pre-Dustbowl Oklahoma was
primarily made up of sparse agricultural communities; Brumley's family was no different.
He spent much of his early life chopping and picking cotton on his family's farm.
Same old territory as Woody Guthrie.
Everybody borrows from everybody else.
Though the themes of the songs are quite different. Diametrically opposed in fact, since one
is spiritual while the other is temporal. Given that Guthrie was heavily involved with the labour
movement, he had a keen eye for the injustices that befell the poor and downtrodden.
The evictions and farm seizures of the depression years made many people homeless,
and they left the hell of the dust-bowl for the promised land of California.
Famine and poverty always sees the movement of people across borders.
It is in human nature to want a better life, but somebody will always be around to
build a wall, be it political, or concrete to stop the influx of desperate people.
Guthrie wanted to break down the walls.