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The year of the gun.....

I guess we're going to be talking a lot about gun control this year....

I imagine there's a variety of opinions on this subject at No Depression, but can you back up your opinion with a good country (whatever that is) song?

Here's some advice from the Man in Black:

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Permalink Reply by Lost Hills on January 22, 2013 at 8:38pm

Down The River

i was eightteen
my brother was twenty-one
one saturday evening
when all the work was done
we went down to the river,
had some trot lines to run

my brother walter
had a fight the week before
knocked a boy named wilson
through the pool hall door
they said you don't mess with wilson
unless you want a war

we put the boat in the water,
i made the engine run
loaded the lantern
against the sinking sun
and my brother walter
was loading his gun
and we went down the river

down past the coal docks
we wre running our lines
heard some drunken boaters
racing up behind
it was wilson and his cousin,
they had trouble on their minds

they passed on by us,
probably going to tend their pots
we headed up the river
with the fish we'd caught
but before we made the landing,
i thought i heard a shot
back down the river

my brother walter fell over the side
i couldn't find him no matter how i tried
and looked along the bank
but i couldn't find where they'd hide

they drug the river,
they searched it up and down
couldn't find his body
so they decided that he'd drowned
but i knew better
and wilson bragged around town

so one night i floated down
right above wilson's shack
i hid in the woods
till i saw him walk out back
i put a bullet in his head
and dropped him in his tracks
and we went down the river

down below the trestle
where the water runs slow
i chained him to an anvil
and then i let him go
and five years later
i ain't told a soul

and i ain't done much fishing,
i hardly wet a line
the death of my brother
is still heavy on my mind
i've been thinking wilson's cousin
better find a place to hide
cause i'm going down the river
yeah i'm going down the river

More lyrics: http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/c/chris_knight/

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Permalink Reply by Jeff Newport on January 23, 2013 at 11:52am

Gil Scott-Heron's "Gun," recently redone by Giacomo Gates.

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Permalink Reply by Randy Brown on January 25, 2013 at 7:09am

Steve Earle: "Billy Austin"

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Permalink Reply by Randy Brown on January 25, 2013 at 7:12am

Fred Eaglesmith: "Seven Shells"

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Permalink Reply by Ken murphy on January 26, 2013 at 1:53pm

Hi , as I'm from Ireland I am not touching gun control with a 20 foot pole.
On the subject of music however can I toss a Tom Ovans song into the ring ?
The song is "Bakersfield tonight " from the album "Honest Abe and the Assassins " and is one of the most chilling songs I have ever heard . On the subject of Tom Ovans , he seems to be the invisible man of Americana and I have been buying up his back catalogue over the past few months .In my opinion he is a stand alone genius and I am surprised and fairly frustrated that I never come across any articles on him. He seems to keep a low profile and not tour much .Unfortunately no video to share with you as not too many of him doing the rounds .

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Permalink Reply by Sibylle on January 30, 2013 at 8:57pm

Here's an intriguing overview of Tom Ovans, as well as lyrics and notes to "Bakersfield Tonight" and the rest of the album. No music, but it's a start:

http://beattrade.com/?page_id=166

The Home page has a photo show and links to a lot more if you explore the Tom Ovans dropdown menu:

http://beattrade.com/