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.
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 1 .
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 2 .
And the straw boss 3 said "Well, a-bless my soul."
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.
I was born one mornin', it was drizzlin' rain.
Fightin' and trouble are my middle name.
I was raised in the canebrake 4 by an ol' mama lion.
Cain't no-a high-toned woman make me walk the line.
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.
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.
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.
The lyrics on the most recent version are sanctioned by the composer, or owner of the rights to the lyrics, however, there may be lyrics that are more complete on the prior version(s) that have been submitted by a contributor to mp3lyrics.org
See this song in a different language (automatic translation)
Tennessee Ernie Ford Sixteen Tons Lyrics Information:
"SIXTEEN TONS" 5
Written by: Merle Travis-1946 6
Produced by: Lee Gillette
Performed by: Tennessee Ernie Ford 78
First released: 9
Single: October 1955
Album: 1960
If you don't see the green, footnote reference numbers in the above version of
the lyrics, try going to the previous version. There you should find the
corrected and updated lyrics and the footnote references.
1 The company store was a general store that was owned by the mining company.
Miners resented the company store because their prices were much higher than an
independent retail stores, their grocery and supply bills were deducted from
their earnings before they received their pay, and trading was compulsory.
Moreover, the debts which a miner piled up in the store bound him as securely
to his employer as miners were bound to feudal barons in medieval Scotland.
When an mine owner was unable to expand his mining capacity or the volume of
his sales, he would increase the number of his miners. This would so cut each
man's working time and earnings that it left no surplus to spend outside the
camp. Because of this "monopoly," the company store could charge whatever it
wanted for groceries and supplies. John McBride, president of the United Mine
Workers of America (1892-1894), related how an unscrupulous, Ohio coal mine
operator of his acquaintance made a profit of only $287 in a year. During the
same period his stores netted a profit of $22,000.
2 Throughout the coal mining areas in the USA there are seams of coal which
run for miles and miles in various directions. A multitude of mines tap into a
single seam by way of shafts or through strip-mining (depending upon the depth
of the seam in a particular area). These various seams are numbered. For
instance, in Illinois the #5 and #6 seams are very productive. In western
Kentucky the #9 seam is the most heavily mined.
3 A "straw boss" is a worker who acts as a boss or crew leader but has few
regular duties. The origin of term evolved because on a farm, the actual boss
attended to the grain going into the thresher while a second man watched after
the straw coming out of the thresher and had very little to do, hence the
sobriquet.
4 Canebrake is an English noun meaning an area of land with a thick dense
growth of sugarcane, bamboo, or similar plant material.
5 Tennessee Ernie Ford's 1955 version of "Sixteen Tons" was on the B-side of
his cover of "You Don't Have to Be a Baby to Cry." It was issued on October 15,
1955 and entered the U.S. Country chart at #40 on November 11, 1955, from there
it began its steady climb to #1 on November 26, 1955 where it remained for 10
weeks. Also, it spent 8 weeks at #1 on the pop charts, making Ford a crossover
star. On Dec 3, 1955, Billboard reported that the song had "already passed the
1,000,000 disc sales mark." Eventually, it became Ford's "signature song."
6 George Davis, the son of a coal miner, claims to have composed "Sixteen
Tons" during the 1930s, and feels that Merle Travis and Tennessee Ernie Ford
capitalized on his song through changing the lyrics and chords somewhat. There
doesn't seem to be any record of a lawsuit ever being filed and every reference
I've seen credits Merle Travis as the composer.
See George Davis lyrics here
See/hear Merle Travis lyrics here
7 Ernest Jennings Ford (February 13, 1919–October 17, 1991), better known as
Tennessee Ernie Ford, was a recording artist and radio & television host who
enjoyed success in the country & western, pop and gospel musical genres. Ford
scored hit on the pop charts in 1955 with his rendition of "Sixteen Tons," a
coal-miner's lament about the mines of Kentucky. Its fatalistic tone contrasted
vividly with the sugary, pop ballads and the rock & roll that was just starting
to dominate the charts at the time. Ford hosted his own primetime variety
program, The Ford Show, which ran on NBC from 1956 to 1961. In an ironic play
of words, the show was named not after Ernie, but rather, the sponsor - Ford
automobiles. Over the years, Ford was awarded three stars on the Hollywood Walk
of Fame, for radio, records, and television. He was awarded the Presidential
Medal of Freedom in 1984, and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame
in 1990.
8 Originally recorded by, Merle Travis in 1947.
Also covered by:
Eddy Arnold,
Michael Ballew,
Ned Beatty,
Brave Combo,
Big Bill Broonzy,
Oscar Brown, Jr.,
Eric Burdon,
CCS,
The Cactus Brothers,
Johnny Cash,
Frank Chacksfield,
Eugene Church
Joe Cocker,
Charlie Daniels,
Danny Davis,
George Davis,
Jimmy Dean,
The Delltones,
Johnny Desmond,
Bo Diddley,
Dave Dudley,
The Golden Gate Quartet,
Lorne Greene,
Harvey & the Wallbangers,
Heart of America Barbershop Chorus,
The Hi-Lo's,
Homer & Jethro,
Engelbert Humperdinck,
Jason & the G-Men,
Tom Jones,
B.B. King,
Frankie Laine,
The Moonshine Mountain Boys,
Lester "Roadhog" Moran & the Cadillacs,
Louis Neefs,
The Nighthawks,
The Platters,
Jim Post & Friends,
Charley Pride,
James & Bobby Purify,
Freddy Quinn,
The Rattles,
Jerry Reed,
Stan Ridgway,
Leon Russell,
Kate Smith,
Red Sovine,
Johnnie Taylor,
Hank Thompson,
Tuff,
Two Dogs Trading Post,
The Weavers,
Western Flyer,
Roger Whittaker,
Mac Wiseman,
Stevie Wonder,
et al.
9 Appears on: *
Single(s):
(1)Tennessee Ernie Ford
A-side: "You Don't Have to Be a Baby to Cry"
B-side: "Sixteen Tons"
(a) Capitol, 7-Inch, Vinyl, 45rpm Single, #F-3262, US-1955.
(b) Capitol, 10-Inch, Vinyl, 78rpm Single, #CP-1007, Australia-1955.
(c) Capitol, 10-Inch, Vinyl, 78rpm Single, #CL-14500, UK-1955.
(2) Tennessee Ernie Ford
A-Sixteen Tons
B-Mule Train
(a) Capitol-Starline, 7-Inch, Vinyl, 45rpm Single, #6007, US-1961 10 .
(b) Capitol-Starline, Reissued, 7-Inch, Vinyl, 45rpm Single, #2S-006-85369, US-1978.
* The albums and records listed here may have different versions of the song
than the one that was transcribed. Also, this list is not intended to be the
complete discography on which this song appears.
10 Transcribed from this record.
Use this code to link to lyrics Sixteen Tons Tennessee Ernie Ford Sixteen Tons Lyrics (more examples)
