Bags Wrapped Tight, Keyed To Every City Light---Greg MacPherson--Maintenance Ep

This is a fantastic little 5 song Ep from Winnipeg troubadour Greg MacPherson. Heartfelt passionate edgy folk music, a bridge from the old school protest singers to the modern day. He has feet set firmly in both worlds. In a world where concerns about poverty and egalitarianism are buried under mountains of advertising mantras, his music is like a breath of fresh air. The spirit of Woody Guthrie and John Steinbeck live on in his straightforward and razor sharp lyrics.

Dark Glasses And A Reason Not To Go Back Home

And we need this today, as the sad results of our last election approach, and the war on the lower 90% of our country resumes in earnest. Soon the unemployed will become part of the poor and disdained for not having enough training or not willing to work below a living wage. Soon it will be not within the role of government. As I've said before, when class war works in one direction in our country, when the middle class and poor stand to benefit. When the rich get richer, it is just part of the national order of things. People are blabbing all day about Freedom, without acknowledging that there is an economic component that is integral to a free society. We need more brave honest voices like Greg McPherson, full of fight and confidence.

And there is that cracker of a Clash cover, a kick ass version of Bankrobber from the Sandanista! album. Silly person that I am, I imagine that in that song Joe Strummer was singing "Kramden was a Busdriver", instead of Daddy was a Bankrobber. You know, Jackie Gleason from the Honeymooners. I can't help myself sometimes. Macpherson has a university degree in labor history which is very evident on these tracks. Of particular note is the poignant tale Company Store, which recounts the dynamics of life in a mining town.

"Half the town will die from the mine or the cold, the other half will leave when the mine decides to close. The people who are left will starve to death at the hands of the Company Store. They'll bring the Army in on us when the Union gets to close to them."

Whew. The song is quite reminiscent of Richard Thompson's take on the old song Blackleg Miner. Another killer is the closer, the ironic Good Times. "Good times coming back again, I hear them touching down on the runway." The other two songs Wide Turn and Slowstroke are also very good songs but they don't grab you as much as the other three. Wide Turn is a nostalgic bucolic sounding tune, while Slowstroke is an effective series of character portraits. The songwriting is full of affecting imagery and power and on a literary level beyond the scope of most artists. In addition to this Ep Greg has another 6 full length albums which I have not heard. But I can vouch for this excellent disc. And you can get it used really cheap on Amazon.