Monday, October 15, 2012

Music Monday ~ ALL THE JOES

After preparing the previous post on Joe Biden, a song was spinning in my head: Eddy Raven's Joe Knows How to Live - I saw last week that he knows how to debate too! I went on from finding that song on YouTube to remembering other "Joe" songs - Husband contributed a few too. Joe affords an easy rhyme, so he springs up all over the place in song. Videos of some of a select few follow, along with a list of some others.


Joe Knows How to Live (Eddy Raven)




Joe Hill - best known version is by Joan Baez - available at YouTube, but I rather like Paddy Reilly's clear telling of the story.

This is kind of relevant to Friday's post about the Walmart strikers. (From the lyrics: "Where working men defend their rights, It's there you'll find Joe Hill". Joe Hill was a labor icon of the early 20th century, itinerant miner, songwriter and union activist who was executed by a Utah firing squad in 1915. The song’s refrain: “I never died, said he" . Full story at spartacus.schoolnet




Happiness Is Just a Thing Called Joe - Ella




GI Joe - Waylon (best line "....... "I still think the boys got screwed over in Vietnam.")



Also Joes: a couple too sad for inclusion:
Good For Nothing Joe (Lena Horne, Kay Starr etc.)
Li'l Joe (Red Sovine)

Then there was a Joe as a supporting character in Sinatra's One for My Baby & One for the Road...."Set 'em up Joe...." "Joe I know you're getting anxious to close..."

and a Joe left behind in Jambalaya: "Goodbye Joe, me gotta go, me oh my oh....."

Still more Joes:

Hello Joe - (Blondie)
Goodbye Joe (Laura Nyro)
Ragtime Cowboy Joe (various).

4 comments:

Sonny G said...


I like the many Joes you've chosen. Thanks for another enjoyable post.

I hope you dont mind if I add a couple of my own favorites.

Joe Sharocco , my Godfather, a kind an protective man with a booming voice and a fierce spirit- a scorpio.

Joe Florio , my uncle with the most beautiful smile, twinkling eyes and tender heart- a cancer.

Twilight said...

Sonny ~~ Of course I don't mind - welcome it, in fact! :-)

I like their surnames too!

I don't have any Joes in my life or in my family tree, or among acquaintances over the years as far as I can remember. I knew a few Josephines and a Jo-Ann during long ago school days; I recall a Giuseppe from years ago too, but quite surprisingly nobody called simply "Joe".

anyjazz said...

A good collection!

I worked for a Mary-Jo once. And from grade school there was Jo-Jo the dog-faced Monkey boy.

Twilight said...

anyjazz ~ Thanks for the additions. There was Pal Joey too (aka Sinatra).
:-)