Hobo
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| An early description of the hobo is given in a 1898 article titled, ''Tramps and Hoboes. Lines of Distinction Between Knights of the Road'': | An early description of the hobo is given in a 1898 article titled, ''Tramps and Hoboes. Lines of Distinction Between Knights of the Road'': | ||
| "...The term "hobo" was not originally of evil significance. It originated in the West, when the great tide of humanity swept in that direction; and it was applied to the many who, failing of their first hopes, were forced to the necessity of tramping from community to community in quest of employment. A hobo is a better sort of man than a tramp, has more self-respect, is usually young, and may, I believe, be called a tramp in the first stage. Many hobos are merely men out of work; who were forced to the road by circumstances which they could not control." | "...The term "hobo" was not originally of evil significance. It originated in the West, when the great tide of humanity swept in that direction; and it was applied to the many who, failing of their first hopes, were forced to the necessity of tramping from community to community in quest of employment. A hobo is a better sort of man than a tramp, has more self-respect, is usually young, and may, I believe, be called a tramp in the first stage. Many hobos are merely men out of work; who were forced to the road by circumstances which they could not control." | ||
| + | ===Music=== | ||
| + | |||
| + | ====Artists==== | ||
| + | |||
| + | Musicians known for hobo songs include: [[Tim Barry]], [[Baby Gramps]], [[Railroad Earth]], [[Harry McClintock]], [[Ramblin' Jack Elliott]], [[Utah Phillips]], [[Jimmie Rodgers (country singer)|Jimmie Rodgers]], [[Seasick Steve]], and [[Boxcar Willie]].{{cn|date=February 2022}} | ||
| + | |||
| + | ====Songs==== | ||
| + | |||
| + | Examples of hobo songs include: | ||
| + | * "Be a Hobo" by [[Moondog]] | ||
| + | * "[[Big Rock Candy Mountain]]" by [[Harry McClintock]], recorded by various artists including [[Burl Ives]], [[Tom Waits]], [[Lisa Loeb]], [[Baby Gramps]], [[The Restarts]] and [[Harry Dean Stanton]] | ||
| + | * "Driver Pull" by [[Tim Barry]] | ||
| + | * "[[Hallelujah, I'm a Bum]]," recorded by Harry McClintock, [[Al Jolson]], and others | ||
| + | * "Hard Travelin'" by [[Woody Guthrie]] | ||
| + | * "[[Here Comes Your Man]]" by the [[Pixies (band)|Pixies]], about hoboes travelling on trains in California and dying because of earthquakes | ||
| + | * "[[Here I Go Again]]" by [[Whitesnake]], featuring the lyric, "Like a hobo I was born to walk alone," later changed to "like a drifter" | ||
| + | * "Hobo" by [[The Hackensaw Boys]] | ||
| + | * "Hobo Bill", "[[Ain't Got No Home (Woody Guthrie song)|I Ain't Got No Home]]," and "Mysteries of a Hobo's Life," performed by [[Cisco Houston]] | ||
| + | * "Hobo Bill's Last Ride" by [[Jimmie Rodgers (country singer)|Jimmy Rogers]], also recorded by [[Manfred Mann's Earth Band]] | ||
| + | * "Hobo Blues" and "The Hobo" by [[John Lee Hooker]] | ||
| + | * "Hobo Chang Ba" by [[Captain Beefheart]] | ||
| + | * "Hobo Flats" by [[Oliver Nelson]] | ||
| + | * "Hobo Flats" by [[Count Basie]] | ||
| + | * "Hobo Jungle" by [[The Band]] | ||
| + | * "Hobo Humpin' Slobo Babe" by [[Whale (band)]] | ||
| + | * "Hobo Kinda Man" by [[Lynyrd Skynyrd]] | ||
| + | * "Hobo, You Can't Ride This Train" by [[Louis Armstrong]] | ||
| + | * "The Hobo" by [[Merle Haggard]] | ||
| + | * "The Hobo Song" by [[John Prine]], also covered by [[Johnny Cash]] | ||
| + | * "The Hobo Song" by [[Jack Bonus]], also recorded by [[Jerry Garcia]]'s bluegrass group, [[Old & In the Way]] | ||
| + | * "The Hobo Song" by [[Kevin Roth]], from the [[Shining Time Station]]'s [[Christmas special]], '''Tis a Gift'' | ||
| + | * "[[Hobo's Lullaby]]" (a.k.a. "Weary Hobo") by [[Goebel Reeves]], recorded by various artists, including [[Woody Guthrie]], [[Arlo Guthrie]], [[Emmylou Harris]], [[Pete Seeger]], [[The Kingston Trio]], and Ramblin' Jack Eliot | ||
| + | * "Hobo's Meditation" by Jimmie Rodgers, recorded by [[Linda Ronstadt]] on the album ''[[Trio (Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris album)|Trio]]'' | ||
| + | * "Hobos on Parade" by [[Shannon Wright]] | ||
| + | * "Homeless Brother" by [[Don McLean]] | ||
| + | * "Hopscotch Willie" by [[Stephen Malkmus]] | ||
| + | * "[[I Am a Lonesome Hobo]]", "Only a Hobo," and "Ramblin' Gamblin' Willie" by [[Bob Dylan]] | ||
| + | * "[[I Take a Lot of Pride in What I Am]]" by [[Merle Haggard]] | ||
| + | * "[[Jack Straw (song)|Jack Straw]]" by [[Robert Hunter (lyricist)|Robert Hunter]] and [[Bob Weir]] | ||
| + | * "[[Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet]]" a recording by composer [[Gavin Bryars]] of a hobo singing on a London street | ||
| + | * "[[King of the Road (song)|King of the Road]]" by [[Roger Miller]] | ||
| + | * "Kulkurin Valssi" (Hobo Waltz) by [[Arthur Kylander]] | ||
| + | * "Lännen lokari" (Western Logger) by [[Hiski Salomaa]] | ||
| + | * "Last of the Hobo Kings" by [[Mary Gauthier]] | ||
| + | * "[[Like a Hobo]]" by [[Charlie Winston]] | ||
| + | * "Mary Lane" by [[Fred Eaglesmith]] | ||
| + | * "Morning Glory" by [[Tim Buckley]], lyrics by [[Larry Beckett]] | ||
| + | * "My Traveling Star" by [[James Taylor]] | ||
| + | * "Never Tire of the Road" by [[Andy Irvine (musician)|Andy Irvine]] | ||
| + | * "Orange Claw Hammer" by [[Captain Beefheart]], which contains the lyric, "I'm on the bum where the hobos run, the air breaks with filthy chatter." | ||
| + | * "Papa Hobo" and "Hobo's Blues" by [[Paul Simon]] | ||
| + | * "[[Ramblin' Man (Hank Williams song)|Ramblin' Man]]" by [[Hank Williams Sr.]] | ||
| + | * "Sergeant Small" by [[Andy Irvine (musician)|Andy Irvine]] | ||
| + | * "[[Streets of London (song)|Streets of London]]" by [[Ralph McTell]] | ||
| + | * "Waiting for a Train" by Jimmie Rodgers | ||
| + | * "Way Out There" by Bob Nolan, recorded by the Sons of the Pioneers | ||
| + | * "Western Hobo" by [[The Carter Family]] | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==See also== | ||
| + | * [[Freight Train Riders of America]], a brotherhood of hobos | ||
| + | * [[Freighthopping]] | ||
| + | * [[Hobo nickel]], an art form associated with hobos | ||
| + | * [[Kirby, Texas|Kirby]], [[Texas]], the "hobo capital of Texas" | ||
| + | * [[Shoulder pole]] | ||
| + | * [[Wobbly lingo]], the jargon of the [[Industrial Workers of the World]] | ||
| + | * [[Hobo (typeface)]], designed by [[Morris Fuller Benton]] for [[American Type Founders]] in 1910 | ||
| + | |||
| {{GFDL}} | {{GFDL}} | ||
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Hobo is a term that refers to a late 19th and early 20th century subculture of wandering homeless people, particularly those who make a habit of hopping freight trains. The iconic image of a hobo is that of a downtrodden, shabbily-dressed and perhaps drunken male, one that was solidified in American culture during the Great Depression. Hobos are often depicted carrying a bindle and/or a sign asking for money.
The hobo imagery has been employed by entertainers to create wildly successful characters in the past, two of them being Emmett Kelly's "Weary Willy" and Red Skelton's "Freddy the Freeloader".
Hobos, themselves, seem to differentiate themselves as travelers who are willing to do work, whereas a "tramp" will travel but will not work and a "bum" will do neither.
An early description of the hobo is given in a 1898 article titled, Tramps and Hoboes. Lines of Distinction Between Knights of the Road: "...The term "hobo" was not originally of evil significance. It originated in the West, when the great tide of humanity swept in that direction; and it was applied to the many who, failing of their first hopes, were forced to the necessity of tramping from community to community in quest of employment. A hobo is a better sort of man than a tramp, has more self-respect, is usually young, and may, I believe, be called a tramp in the first stage. Many hobos are merely men out of work; who were forced to the road by circumstances which they could not control."
Contents |
[edit]
Music
[edit]
Artists
Musicians known for hobo songs include: Tim Barry, Baby Gramps, Railroad Earth, Harry McClintock, Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Utah Phillips, Jimmie Rodgers, Seasick Steve, and Boxcar Willie.Template:Cn
[edit]
Songs
Examples of hobo songs include:
- "Be a Hobo" by Moondog
- "Big Rock Candy Mountain" by Harry McClintock, recorded by various artists including Burl Ives, Tom Waits, Lisa Loeb, Baby Gramps, The Restarts and Harry Dean Stanton
- "Driver Pull" by Tim Barry
- "Hallelujah, I'm a Bum," recorded by Harry McClintock, Al Jolson, and others
- "Hard Travelin'" by Woody Guthrie
- "Here Comes Your Man" by the Pixies, about hoboes travelling on trains in California and dying because of earthquakes
- "Here I Go Again" by Whitesnake, featuring the lyric, "Like a hobo I was born to walk alone," later changed to "like a drifter"
- "Hobo" by The Hackensaw Boys
- "Hobo Bill", "I Ain't Got No Home," and "Mysteries of a Hobo's Life," performed by Cisco Houston
- "Hobo Bill's Last Ride" by Jimmy Rogers, also recorded by Manfred Mann's Earth Band
- "Hobo Blues" and "The Hobo" by John Lee Hooker
- "Hobo Chang Ba" by Captain Beefheart
- "Hobo Flats" by Oliver Nelson
- "Hobo Flats" by Count Basie
- "Hobo Jungle" by The Band
- "Hobo Humpin' Slobo Babe" by Whale (band)
- "Hobo Kinda Man" by Lynyrd Skynyrd
- "Hobo, You Can't Ride This Train" by Louis Armstrong
- "The Hobo" by Merle Haggard
- "The Hobo Song" by John Prine, also covered by Johnny Cash
- "The Hobo Song" by Jack Bonus, also recorded by Jerry Garcia's bluegrass group, Old & In the Way
- "The Hobo Song" by Kevin Roth, from the Shining Time Station's Christmas special, 'Tis a Gift
- "Hobo's Lullaby" (a.k.a. "Weary Hobo") by Goebel Reeves, recorded by various artists, including Woody Guthrie, Arlo Guthrie, Emmylou Harris, Pete Seeger, The Kingston Trio, and Ramblin' Jack Eliot
- "Hobo's Meditation" by Jimmie Rodgers, recorded by Linda Ronstadt on the album Trio
- "Hobos on Parade" by Shannon Wright
- "Homeless Brother" by Don McLean
- "Hopscotch Willie" by Stephen Malkmus
- "I Am a Lonesome Hobo", "Only a Hobo," and "Ramblin' Gamblin' Willie" by Bob Dylan
- "I Take a Lot of Pride in What I Am" by Merle Haggard
- "Jack Straw" by Robert Hunter and Bob Weir
- "Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet" a recording by composer Gavin Bryars of a hobo singing on a London street
- "King of the Road" by Roger Miller
- "Kulkurin Valssi" (Hobo Waltz) by Arthur Kylander
- "Lännen lokari" (Western Logger) by Hiski Salomaa
- "Last of the Hobo Kings" by Mary Gauthier
- "Like a Hobo" by Charlie Winston
- "Mary Lane" by Fred Eaglesmith
- "Morning Glory" by Tim Buckley, lyrics by Larry Beckett
- "My Traveling Star" by James Taylor
- "Never Tire of the Road" by Andy Irvine
- "Orange Claw Hammer" by Captain Beefheart, which contains the lyric, "I'm on the bum where the hobos run, the air breaks with filthy chatter."
- "Papa Hobo" and "Hobo's Blues" by Paul Simon
- "Ramblin' Man" by Hank Williams Sr.
- "Sergeant Small" by Andy Irvine
- "Streets of London" by Ralph McTell
- "Waiting for a Train" by Jimmie Rodgers
- "Way Out There" by Bob Nolan, recorded by the Sons of the Pioneers
- "Western Hobo" by The Carter Family
[edit]
See also
- Freight Train Riders of America, a brotherhood of hobos
- Freighthopping
- Hobo nickel, an art form associated with hobos
- Kirby, Texas, the "hobo capital of Texas"
- Shoulder pole
- Wobbly lingo, the jargon of the Industrial Workers of the World
- Hobo (typeface), designed by Morris Fuller Benton for American Type Founders in 1910
Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Hobo" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.
