A song must come in between

Woody Guthrie was an American musician, who in the earlier part of last century extensively travelled his country. Some glorify him that he took trains without ticket and some argue him being a lefty. Whatever, Woody does has lots of beautiful songs which bring into limelight the conditions of working people in the then America. ‘The Great Grand Coulee’ – is one such song. Now the contention here is that Woody was paid some good fee and comforts of a limousine to glorify these big structures along the Columbia basin as well as building the resources that America needed for the coming big war. Result - some mighty fine lines. The YouTube link does not has the original song, but this attached video has his son Arlo (Woodstock 69 fame), probably half a century later. Have a read at the lyrics too.

‘Great Grand Coulee Dam’ - An amazing example where one artist is glorified by the other.



Well the world owns seven wonders as the travelers always tell.
Some gardens and some towers, I guess you know them well.
But now the greatest wonder is in Uncle Sam's fair land.
That King Columbia River and the great Grand Coulee Dam.

She come up the Canadian Rockies where the crystal waters glide,
Comes a-roaring down the canyon to meet that salty tide
From the great Pacific Ocean to where the sun sets in the west,
That big Grand Coulee country in that land I love the best.

Oh Uncle Sam took up the notion in the year of thirty three,
For the factory and the farmer and for all of you and me.
He said: roll it on Columbia, you can roll out to the sea
But river, while you're rolling you can do some work for me.

In the misty glitter of that wild and windward spray,
Men have fought the pounding waters and met a watery grave.
Once she tore men's boats to splinters but she gave men dreams to dream,
That day that Grand Coulee dam went across that wild and restless stream.

Now from Washington and Oregon you can hear them factories a-hum,
Making corn and making manganese and light aluminum.
Always a flying fortress to blast for Uncle Sam,
That King Columbia river and the great Grand Coulee dam.

Well the world owns seven wonders as the travelers always tell.
Some gardens and some towers, I guess you know them well.
But now the greatest wonder is in Uncle Sam's fair land.
That King Columbia river and the great Grand Coulee Dam.

Woody Guthrie