Barbecue Bob (Robert Hicks, Walnut Grove, Georgia, September 11, 1902 – Lit… Read Full Bio ↴Barbecue Bob (Robert Hicks, Walnut Grove, Georgia, September 11, 1902 – Lithonia, Georgia, October 21, 1931) was an American Piedmont blues musician. He used a bottleneck regularly on his 12-string guitar, playing in an elemental style that relied on an open Spanish tuning reminiscent of Charley Patton. He had a strong voice that he embellished with growling and falsetto, and a percussive singing style.
His nickname came from the fact that he was a cook in a barbecue restaurant. One of the two extant photographs of Bob show him playing his guitar while wearing a full length white apron and cook's hat.
He and his brother, Charlie Hicks, together with Curley Weaver, were taught how to play the guitar by Curley's mother, Savannah "Dip" Weaver. Bob began playing the 6-string guitar but picked up the 12-string guitar after moving to Atlanta, Georgia in 1923–1924. He became one of the prominent performers of the newly developing early Atlanta blues style.
In Atlanta, Hicks worked a variety of jobs, playing music on the side. While working at Tidwells' Barbecue in a north Atlanta suburb, Hicks came to the attention of Columbia Records talent scout Dan Hornsby. Hornsby recorded him and decided to use Hicks's job as a gimmick, having him pose in chef's whites and hat for publicity photos and dubbing him "Barbecue Bob".
During his short career he recorded 68 78-rpm sides. He recorded his first side, "Barbecue Blues", in March 1927. The record quickly sold 15,000 copies and made him the best selling artist for Columbia up to that date. Despite this initial success, it was not until his second recording session, in New York during June 1927, that he firmly established himself on the race market. At this session he recorded "Mississippi Heavy Water Blues", a song inspired by the major floods taking place in Mississippi at that time. This song, as well as his other blues releases, gained considerable popularity, and his records sold much better than those of other local blues musicians.
The two part duet with crosstalk, "It Won't Be Long Now" was recorded with his brother Charlie (a/k/a Charlie Lincoln, or Laughing Charlie) in Atlanta on November 5, 1927. In April 1928 Bob recorded two sides with the female vocalist Nellie Florence, whom he had known since childhood, and also produced "Mississippi Low Levee Blues", a sequel to "Mississippi Heavy Water Blues". In April 1930, he recorded "We Sure Got Hard Times Now", which contains bleak references to the early effects of The Depression. Although Barbecue Bob remained predominantly a blues musician, he also recorded a few traditional and spiritual songs including "When the Saints Go Marching In", "Poor Boy, Long Ways from Home" and "Jesus' Blood Can Make Me Whole".
Barbecue Bob also recorded as a member of The Georgia Cotton Pickers in December 1930, a group that included guitarist Curley Weaver and harmonica player Buddy Moss. As a group they recorded a handful of sides including their own adaptation of Blind Blake's "Diddie Wa Diddie" (recorded as "Diddle-Da-Diddle") and the Mississippi Sheiks' "Sitting on Top of the World" (recorded as "I'm On My Way Down Home"). These were the last recordings that Bob recorded.
He died in Lithonia, Georgia, of a combination of tuberculosis and pneumonia brought on by influenza, at the age of 29, on October 21, 1931. His recording of "Mississippi Heavy Water Blues" (about the 1927 flood) was apparently played at his graveside before burial.
Bob developed a "flailing" or "frailing" style of playing guitar more often associated with the traditional clawhammer banjo (as did his brother, and, initially, Curley Weaver). He used a bottleneck regularly on his 12-string guitar, playing in an elemental style that relied on an open Spanish tuning reminiscent of Charley Patton. He had a strong voice that he embellished with growling and falsetto, and a percussive singing style.
Bob had some influence on Atlanta blues musicians such as the young Buddy Moss (who played harmonica with him on The Georgia Cotton Pickers recordings), but his way of playing was quickly overshadowed by the finger-picked Piedmont blues style that rose in popularity by the late 1920s/early 30s as can be heard in the development of the recordings of Curley Weaver.
Bob's elder brother, Charley, also played blues and was recorded by Columbia under the name "Laughing" Charley Lincoln. However, he never received the same acclaim as his brother.
Robert Hicks was an extrovert young man of 24 when Columbia's Dan Hornsby arranged his first recording session in March 1927, and had only moved into Atlanta from the countryside a few years before. When he recorded He had learned guitar, along with their friend Curley Weaver, from Curley's mother; all three played in a similar style, favouring the big, booming sound of the 12-string guitar, and relishing the contrast of pulsing bass riffs with the whine of a bottleneck on the treble strings. Barbecue Blues was a good seller, but it was at his second session, in New York in June 1927, that Bob firmly established himself with black record buyers, and thus with Columbia; Mississippi Heavy Water Blues, inspired by the catastrophic floods that had occurred that very month, was a considerable seller, and as a result Robert became Atlanta's most-recorded blues singer of the 20s. It was probably his success that persuaded Columbia to record both his brother Charlie and, in 1928, Curley Weaver.
From the first, Barbecue Bob's music was instantly recognisable, both for the characteristic guitar style and for his warm, nasal singing voice. He could sound fiercely involved with his material, as on Barbecue Blues, ironically detached, as he did when performing Mama You Don't Suit Me!, or crushed by rejection, alike on Crooked Woman Blues and the traditionally based How Long Pretty Mama. The two-part It Won't Be Long Now, in crosstalk and duet with Charlie, is probably an example of the kind of material Robert performed on the medicine show with which he is known to have visited the small town of Waycross, in southwest Georgia, about which he made up a blues.
Barbecue Bob's lyrics are remarkable for their blending of traditional formulae with a wry originality that is all his own. He was well acquainted with traditional songs; the content of Barbecue Blues and Motherless Chile Blues is almost proverbial, and the session where he cut versions of two well-known gospel songs also produced Easy Rider Don't You Deny My Name and a stunning account of Poor Boy A Long Ways From Home. Barbecue Bob rapidly impressed himself on his fans' minds as sharp, clever and original.
His nickname came from the fact that he was a cook in a barbecue restaurant. One of the two extant photographs of Bob show him playing his guitar while wearing a full length white apron and cook's hat.
He and his brother, Charlie Hicks, together with Curley Weaver, were taught how to play the guitar by Curley's mother, Savannah "Dip" Weaver. Bob began playing the 6-string guitar but picked up the 12-string guitar after moving to Atlanta, Georgia in 1923–1924. He became one of the prominent performers of the newly developing early Atlanta blues style.
In Atlanta, Hicks worked a variety of jobs, playing music on the side. While working at Tidwells' Barbecue in a north Atlanta suburb, Hicks came to the attention of Columbia Records talent scout Dan Hornsby. Hornsby recorded him and decided to use Hicks's job as a gimmick, having him pose in chef's whites and hat for publicity photos and dubbing him "Barbecue Bob".
During his short career he recorded 68 78-rpm sides. He recorded his first side, "Barbecue Blues", in March 1927. The record quickly sold 15,000 copies and made him the best selling artist for Columbia up to that date. Despite this initial success, it was not until his second recording session, in New York during June 1927, that he firmly established himself on the race market. At this session he recorded "Mississippi Heavy Water Blues", a song inspired by the major floods taking place in Mississippi at that time. This song, as well as his other blues releases, gained considerable popularity, and his records sold much better than those of other local blues musicians.
The two part duet with crosstalk, "It Won't Be Long Now" was recorded with his brother Charlie (a/k/a Charlie Lincoln, or Laughing Charlie) in Atlanta on November 5, 1927. In April 1928 Bob recorded two sides with the female vocalist Nellie Florence, whom he had known since childhood, and also produced "Mississippi Low Levee Blues", a sequel to "Mississippi Heavy Water Blues". In April 1930, he recorded "We Sure Got Hard Times Now", which contains bleak references to the early effects of The Depression. Although Barbecue Bob remained predominantly a blues musician, he also recorded a few traditional and spiritual songs including "When the Saints Go Marching In", "Poor Boy, Long Ways from Home" and "Jesus' Blood Can Make Me Whole".
Barbecue Bob also recorded as a member of The Georgia Cotton Pickers in December 1930, a group that included guitarist Curley Weaver and harmonica player Buddy Moss. As a group they recorded a handful of sides including their own adaptation of Blind Blake's "Diddie Wa Diddie" (recorded as "Diddle-Da-Diddle") and the Mississippi Sheiks' "Sitting on Top of the World" (recorded as "I'm On My Way Down Home"). These were the last recordings that Bob recorded.
He died in Lithonia, Georgia, of a combination of tuberculosis and pneumonia brought on by influenza, at the age of 29, on October 21, 1931. His recording of "Mississippi Heavy Water Blues" (about the 1927 flood) was apparently played at his graveside before burial.
Bob developed a "flailing" or "frailing" style of playing guitar more often associated with the traditional clawhammer banjo (as did his brother, and, initially, Curley Weaver). He used a bottleneck regularly on his 12-string guitar, playing in an elemental style that relied on an open Spanish tuning reminiscent of Charley Patton. He had a strong voice that he embellished with growling and falsetto, and a percussive singing style.
Bob had some influence on Atlanta blues musicians such as the young Buddy Moss (who played harmonica with him on The Georgia Cotton Pickers recordings), but his way of playing was quickly overshadowed by the finger-picked Piedmont blues style that rose in popularity by the late 1920s/early 30s as can be heard in the development of the recordings of Curley Weaver.
Bob's elder brother, Charley, also played blues and was recorded by Columbia under the name "Laughing" Charley Lincoln. However, he never received the same acclaim as his brother.
Robert Hicks was an extrovert young man of 24 when Columbia's Dan Hornsby arranged his first recording session in March 1927, and had only moved into Atlanta from the countryside a few years before. When he recorded He had learned guitar, along with their friend Curley Weaver, from Curley's mother; all three played in a similar style, favouring the big, booming sound of the 12-string guitar, and relishing the contrast of pulsing bass riffs with the whine of a bottleneck on the treble strings. Barbecue Blues was a good seller, but it was at his second session, in New York in June 1927, that Bob firmly established himself with black record buyers, and thus with Columbia; Mississippi Heavy Water Blues, inspired by the catastrophic floods that had occurred that very month, was a considerable seller, and as a result Robert became Atlanta's most-recorded blues singer of the 20s. It was probably his success that persuaded Columbia to record both his brother Charlie and, in 1928, Curley Weaver.
From the first, Barbecue Bob's music was instantly recognisable, both for the characteristic guitar style and for his warm, nasal singing voice. He could sound fiercely involved with his material, as on Barbecue Blues, ironically detached, as he did when performing Mama You Don't Suit Me!, or crushed by rejection, alike on Crooked Woman Blues and the traditionally based How Long Pretty Mama. The two-part It Won't Be Long Now, in crosstalk and duet with Charlie, is probably an example of the kind of material Robert performed on the medicine show with which he is known to have visited the small town of Waycross, in southwest Georgia, about which he made up a blues.
Barbecue Bob's lyrics are remarkable for their blending of traditional formulae with a wry originality that is all his own. He was well acquainted with traditional songs; the content of Barbecue Blues and Motherless Chile Blues is almost proverbial, and the session where he cut versions of two well-known gospel songs also produced Easy Rider Don't You Deny My Name and a stunning account of Poor Boy A Long Ways From Home. Barbecue Bob rapidly impressed himself on his fans' minds as sharp, clever and original.
Brother Can You Spare A Dime?
Barbecue Bob Lyrics
We have lyrics for 'Brother Can You Spare A Dime?' by these artists:
Abbey Lincoln They used to tell me I was building a dream And…
Abbey Lincoln & Stan Getz They used to tell me I was building a dream And…
Abbey Lincoln feat. Stan Getz They used to tell me I was building a dream And…
Bing Crosby with Lennie Hayton & His Orchestra They used to tell me I was building a dream…
Bing Crosby with Lennie Hayton and His Orchestra They used to tell me I was building a dream And…
Charlie Palloy Once I built a railroad, made it run Made it race…
Connie Francis They used to tell me I was building a dream And…
George Michael Once I build a railroad, made it run Made it race…
Jackson Browne They used to tell me I was building a dream And…
Maxine Sullivan They used to tell me I was building a dream And…
Spanky & Our Gang They used to tell me I was building a dream And…
The Dave Brubeck Quartet They Used To Tell Me I Was Building A Dream And So…
Tom Waits Once i built a railroad, i made it run I made…
Tony Scott They used to tell me I was building a dream And…
We have lyrics for these tracks by Barbecue Bob:
Atlanta Moan Lord nobody knows Atlanta like I do, Lord nobody knows Atla…
Bad Time Blues Bad time are fallin' me, tell the world the panic…
Barbecue Blues Woke up this morning gal 'Twixt midnight and day With my han…
Mississippi Heavy Water Blues I was walking down the Levee with my head hanging…
Motherless Chile Blues If I mistreat you, gal, I sure don't mean no…
She Shook Her Gin I got a gal on Second Avenue She can do thing…
She's Gone Blues When you were down, sick down on your bed When you…
We Sure Got Hard Times Got a song to sing you, and it's no excuse I've…
When the Saints Go Marching In Oh, when the saints go marching in Oh, when the saints…
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
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@jazibahsyed1326
they used to tell me i was building a dream
and so i followed the mob
when there was earth to plow or guns to bear
i was always there, right on the job
they used to tell me i was building a dream
with peace and glory ahead-
why should i be standing in line just waiting for bread?
once i built a railroad i made it run
made it race against time
once i built a railroad, now its done
brother can you spare a dime?
once i built a tower up to the sun
brick and rivet and lime
once i built a tower , now its done
brother can you spare a dime?
once in khaki suits gee we looked swell
full of that yankee doodle de dum
half a million boots went slogging through hell
and i was the kid with the drum
say don't you remember they called me Al
it was Al all the time
why don't you remember , I'm your pal
say buddy can you spare a dime
@raf1425
Adjusting for inflation this song today should actually be titled "Brother Can you Spare $1.45"
@masonsykes2240
This deserves more likes.
@maxstirnersego
it still rhymes!
@awepossum1059
That's actually true! A loaf of broad costs $1.45 today and it costed $0.10 back then!
@bmack7762
That's funny because my silver dimes pre-65 are worth 1.45
@pfgpowell
Ho, ho
@dcbandnerd
This song feels awfully relevant again.
@slavyslav
Those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it
@eastcoastrailproductions5559
dcbandnerd this dumb corona stuff isn’t gonna make anything like the Great Depression
@heheheiamasuperstarcatgirl8485
@East Coast Rail Productions >22 million unemployed 4 weeks into the 2020 economic meltdown compared ~18.5 million unemployed during the peak of the great depression, which was about 3-4 years in
yeah it wont get anywhere near as bad :)