16 Tons ~ Sixteen Tons ~ Song Lyrics ~ YouTube Video

At the moment, I've got a very bad sore throat which takes my vocal range down to sometimes more than an octave. I can now go as low as C2 and sometimes even lower. Well, this song suits my voice and I can sing it even lower than the original singer.

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Info of song

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sixteen_Tons

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YouTube Video ~ Various Versions:

Studio Recording:

Sixteen Tons | Tennessee Ernie Ford

http://youtu.be/2zE1-48AAYc

This is the original version of the song "Sixteen Tons", by Tennessee Ernie Ford.

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Lyrics:

Sixteen Tons ~ by Tennessee Ernie Ford (Lyrics)

[V1]

Some people say a man is made outta mud

A poor man's made outta muscle and blood

Muscle and blood and skin and bones

A mind that's a-weak and a back that's strong

[Chorus]

You load sixteen tons, what do you get

Another day older and deeper in debt

Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go

I owe my soul to the company store

[V2]

I was born one mornin' when the sun didn't shine

I picked up my shovel and I walked to the mine

I loaded sixteen tons of number nine coal

And the straw boss said "Well, a-bless my soul" [Chorus]

[V3]

I was born one mornin', it was drizzlin' rain

Fightin' and trouble are my middle name

I was raised in the canebrake by an ol' mama lion

Cain't no-a high-toned woman make me walk the line [Chorus]

[V2]

If you see me comin', better step aside

A lotta men didn't, a lotta men died

One fist of iron, the other of steel

If the right one don't a-get you

Then the left one will [Chorus]

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YouTube Video ~ Various Versions by Tennessee Ernie Ford:

Live Singing:

Tennessee ernie Ford - 16 Tons

http://youtu.be/jIfu2A0ezq0

A Live Upbeat A-Go-Go Version... something about digging up an old dog and teaching it new tricks:

Tennessee Ernie Ford - 16 Tons (Go-Go Version)

http://youtu.be/92arUrGVt6k

Here he is many years later with the added humour while singing:

TENNESSE ERNIE FORD - SIXTEEN TON

http://youtu.be/bUKXxGoXR9I

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YouTube Video ~ Merle Travis (Original Singer & Composer of this song)

1st Live Version

MERLE TRAVIS - Sixteen Tons

http://youtu.be/5pfVvqLM_e4

2nd Live Version (love that joke using Chet Atkins)

Merle Travis - Sixteen Tons

http://youtu.be/Jcbn_unVhRU

Original Studio Version

Merle Travis - Sixteen Tons (original version)

http://youtu.be/Jcbn_unVhRU

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YouTube Video ~ Other Versions

Fantastic Guitar

Tommy Emmanuel - Merle Travis Medley

http://youtu.be/qwE8dDBB4U4

Acappella

"Sixteen Tons" by The Yale Spizzwinks(?) of 2005-09

http://youtu.be/PJnERje97jw

Acappella

Sixteen Tons by Eight Hole Punch, solo by Brad Franklin

http://youtu.be/cS7o2e1xFjw

An unusually low Platter Song

THE ORIGINAL PLATTERS - Sixteen Tons - Lima 2011

http://youtu.be/1zlz23YuOwQ

Tom Jones - Sixteen Tons (Original Stereo)

http://youtu.be/sLZcsQvIIvc

A High Country Version

Don Harrison Band - Sixteen Tons

http://youtu.be/mj69ZWPpihc

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Story ~ A Baby's Hug

Someone just sent me this lovely story. I hope you enjoy it too.

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A Baby's Hug

We were the only family with children in the restaurant. I sat Erik in a high chair and noticed everyone was quietly sitting and talking. Suddenly, Erik squealed with glee and said, 'Hi.' He pounded his fat baby hands on the high chair tray. His eyes were crinkled in laughter and his mouth was bared in a toothless grin, as he wriggled and giggled with merriment.

I looked around and saw the source of his merriment. It was a man whose pants were baggy with a zipper at half-mast and his toes poked out of would-be shoes. His shirt was dirty and his hair was uncombed and unwashed. His whiskers were too short to be called a beard and his nose was so varicose it looked like a road map.

We were too far from him to smell, but I was sure he smelled. His hands waved and flapped on loose wrists. 'Hi there, baby; hi there, big boy.. I see ya, buster,' the man said to Erik.

My husband and I exchanged looks, 'What do we do?'

Erik continued to laugh and answer, 'Hi.'

Everyone in the restaurant noticed and looked at us and then at the man. The old geezer was creating a nuisance with my beautiful baby. Our meal came and the man began shouting from across the room, 'Do ya patty cake? Do you know peek-a-boo? Hey, look, he knows peek- a-boo.'

Nobody thought the old man was cute. He was obviously drunk.

My husband and I were embarrassed. We ate in silence; all except for Erik, who was running through his repertoire for the admiring skid-row bum, who in turn, reciprocated with his cute comments.

We finally got through the meal and headed for the door. My husband went to pay the check and told me to meet him in the parking lot. The old man sat poised between me and the door. 'Lord, just let me out of here before he speaks to me or Erik,' I prayed. As I drew closer to the man, I turned my back trying to sidestep him and avoid any air he might be breathing. As I did, Erik leaned over my arm, reaching with both arms in a baby's 'pick-me-up' position. Before I could stop him, Erik had propelled himself from my arms to the man. Suddenly a very old smelly man and a very young baby consummated their love and kinship. Erik in an act of total trust, love, and submission laid his tiny head upon the man's ragged shoulder. The man's eyes closed, and I saw tears hover beneath his lashes. His aged hands full of grime, pain, and hard labor, cradled my baby's bottom and stroked his back. No two beings have ever loved so deeply for so short a time.

I stood awestruck. The old man rocked and cradled Erik in his arms and his eyes opened and set squarely on mine. He said in a firm commanding voice, 'You take care of this baby.'

Somehow I managed, 'I will,' from a throat that contained a stone.

He pried Erik from his chest, lovingly and longingly, as though he were in pain. I received my baby, and the man said, 'God bless you, ma'am, you've given me my Christmas gift.'

I said nothing more than a muttered thanks. With Erik in my arms, I ran for the car. My husband was wondering why I was crying and holding Erik so tightly, and why I was saying, 'My God, my God, forgive me.'

I had just witnessed Christ's love shown through the innocence of a tiny child who saw no sin, who made no judgment; a child who saw a soul, and a mother who saw a suit of clothes. I was a Christian who was blind, holding a child who was not. I felt it was God asking, 'Are you willing to share your son for a moment?' when He shared His for all eternity. How did God feel when he put his baby in our arms 2000 years ago.

The ragged old man, unwittingly, had reminded me, 'To enter the Kingdom of God , we must become as little children.'

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