Daddy’s Blues
Generations of Grit: Bag of Nails' Tribute to Hard Work and Blues
Lyrics
Well I work so hard, babe, since I was a little boy
Expresses the speaker's long history of hard work since childhood.
My father used to tell me, I’m his pride and joy
Highlights the speaker's father's pride in him as conveyed in childhood.
Well I work so hard, babe, since I was a little boy
Reiterates the theme of the speaker's lifelong dedication to hard work.
My father used to tell me, I’m his pride and joy
Reiterates the father's pride in the speaker, emphasizing its significance.
I was almost ten, when my father he came in
Recalls a moment around age ten when the father entered, setting the stage for imparting wisdom.
He told me «Son, you should know about the shape I’m in»
The father informs the son about the challenges he is facing ("the shape I'm in").
I was almost ten, babe, when my father he came in
Reiterates the age of the speaker during this pivotal conversation with his father.
That's the way my father, he taught me the blues
Highlights that the father's teachings are about experiencing and understanding the blues.
Then he took me out with him, out in the cotton fields
Describes the father taking the son to the cotton fields for a practical lesson.
To show me how babe, to plant the seeds
Explains the purpose of the father's action—to teach the son how to plant seeds.
Then he took me out with him out in the cotton fields
Reiterates the setting of the lesson in the cotton fields.
That’s the way my father he taught me the blues
Emphasizes that this experience is a crucial part of learning the blues from the father.
Well he taught me the hard workin’ way
Indicates that the father's teachings involve a rigorous, hard-working approach.
How to work with naked hands both night and day
Specifically, the father teaches the son to work with bare hands day and night.
Well he taught the hard workin’ way
Reiterates the strenuous nature of the father's method of teaching.
That’s the way my father he taught me the blues
Underlines that this demanding teaching style is an integral part of the father's blues education.
...tribute to Bill.
Includes a note about the tribute to Bill, possibly referring to someone significant in the context of the song.
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