Born and raised in Maywood, Illinois, Prine learned to play the guitar at age 14. He attended classes at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music. After serving in West Germany with the U.S. Army, he returned to Chicago in the late 1960s, where he worked as a mailman, writing and singing songs first as a hobby and then as a club performer.
A member of Chicago's folk revival, a laudatory review by critic Roger Ebert built Prine's popularity. Singer-songwriter Kris Kristofferson heard Prine at Steve Goodman's insistence, and Kristofferson invited Prine to be his opening act, leading to Prine's eponymous debut album with Atlantic Records in 1971. The acclaim Prine earned from his first LP led to three more albums for Atlantic. He then recorded three albums with Asylum Records. In 1981, he co-founded Oh Boy Records, an independent label where he released most of his subsequent albums.
Widely cited as one of the most influential songwriters of his generation, Prine was known for humorous lyrics about love, life, and current events, as well as serious songs with social commentary and songs that recollect sometimes melancholy tales from his life.
Prine was the son of William Mason Prine, a tool-and-die maker, and Verna Valentine (Hamm), a homemaker, both originally from Muhlenberg County, Kentucky. He was born and raised in the Chicago suburb of Maywood. In summers, they would go back to visit family near Paradise, Kentucky. Prine started playing guitar at age 14, taught by his brother, David. He attended classes at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music, and graduated from Proviso East High School in Maywood, Illinois. He was a U.S. Postal Service mailman for five years and was drafted into the United States Army during the Vietnam War era, serving as a vehicle mechanic in West Germany before beginning his musical career in Chicago.
Prine is widely regarded as one of the most influential songwriters of his generation. He has been referred to as "the Mark Twain of songwriting".
Johnny Cash, in his autobiography Cash, wrote, "I don't listen to music much at the farm, unless I'm going into songwriting mode and looking for inspiration. Then I'll put on something by the writers I've admired and used for years—Rodney Crowell, John Prine, Guy Clark, and the late Steve Goodman are my Big Four ..."
Roger Waters, when asked by Word Magazine in 2008 if he heard Pink Floyd's influence in newer British bands such as Radiohead, replied, "I don't really listen to Radiohead. I listened to the albums and they just didn't move me in the way, say, John Prine does. His is just extraordinarily eloquent music—and he lives on that plane with Neil [Young] and [John] Lennon." He later named Prine as among the five most important songwriters.
Prine's influence is seen in the work of younger artists, whom he often mentored, including Jason Isbell, Amanda Shires, Brandi Carlile, Sturgill Simpson, Kacey Musgraves, Margo Price, Tyler Childers, and Robin Pecknold.
The last song Prine recorded before he died was "I Remember Everything", released on June 12, 2020, alongside a music video. It was released following the two-hour special tribute show, A Tribute Celebrating John Prine aired on June 11, 2020, which featured Sturgill Simpson, Vince Gill, Jason Isbell, Kacey Musgraves, Bonnie Raitt, Rita Wilson, Eric Church, Brandi Carlile and many other country artists and friends.[45] On the first night of the 2020 Democratic National Convention, Prine singing "I Remember Everything" was the soundtrack to the COVID-19 memorial video.
Way Back Then
John Prine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We're doing the things we do
You are acting just like me
I'm acting just like you
Do you remember
When you were my friend?
That's the way I'd like things
Just like way back then
Baby's sleeping
Brother is on the run
I am out undoing
All the good I've done
If you loved me
Tell you what I would do
Wrap the world in silver foil
Bring it home to you
Lately, I feel
That I can't pretend
I may never, ever see
The likes of you again
I take a walk, I come back home
Then I sit a spell
Watch the ponies dance around
The empty wishing well
Night has fallen
I've said the things I did
The only baby sleeping
Is when I was a kid
Do you remember
When you were my friend?
That's the way I'd like things
Just like way back then
In "Way Back Then," John Prine tells a story about reminiscing a friendship from the past. The first stanza sets the scene of the present, where it seems two people have grown distant, and now things are not the same anymore. They seem to be mimicking each other, reflecting each other's behavior, as they may not have much left to talk about. They are caught up in their known habits, and perhaps it’s time to let the past go, but it seems hard to do.
In the second stanza, Prine shares his own experience of undoing all the good he has done. He is aware of what he is doing and how it affects others around him. He knows he's gone astray and finds it challenging to stay on track. If only his loved one still loved him, he would go to any extent to make it up to them. But it seems he has pushed them away, and now it may be too late. The line "wrap the world in silver foil and bring it home to you" signifies the lengths he's willing to go to make amends and heal their relationship.
The last stanza talks about the reality of the situation, where it's hard to go back to the way things used to be. "I may never, ever see the likes of you again" implies that the person he's referring to has already left his life. He goes for a walk, wandering around the empty wishing well, watching the ponies dancing, lost in thoughts of what could have been. The last two lines, "That's the way I'd like things, just like way back then," signify his hope and longing for the old days, the friendship and the companionship that once was, but now seems lost forever.
Line by Line Meaning
Night is falling
The day is ending.
We're doing the things we do
We are repeating our usual actions and patterns.
You are acting just like me
You are similar to me in the way you act.
I'm acting just like you
I am similar to you in the way I act.
Do you remember
Do you recall?
When you were my friend?
The time when we were close companions.
That's the way I'd like things
I wish for things to be this way now.
Just like way back then
Just like in the past.
Baby's sleeping
The baby is asleep.
Brother is on the run
My sibling is avoiding something.
I am out undoing
I am undoing what I have accomplished.
All the good I've done
All the positive things I have achieved.
If you loved me
When you have affection for me.
Tell you what I would do
I will tell you what I would do.
Wrap the world in silver foil
Cover the world in a layer of silver.
Bring it home to you
Deliver it to you.
Lately, I feel
Recently, I have been sensing.
That I can't pretend
I cannot fake how I feel.
I may never, ever see
I most likely won't see.
The likes of you again
Someone like you ever again.
I take a walk, I come back home
I go outside and return to my dwelling.
Then I sit a spell
I sit for a while.
Watch the ponies dance around
Observe the horses prancing.
The empty wishing well
The out-of-use wishing container.
Night has fallen
It has become nighttime.
I've said the things I did
I have spoken my part.
The only baby sleeping
The only infant sleeping.
Is when I was a kid
Was in my childhood.
Do you remember
Do you recall?
When you were my friend?
When we were close companions.
That's the way I'd like things
I wish for things to be like that.
Just like way back then
Just like in the past.
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: PRINE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ruth Boykin
Awesome as always! Thank you, John!!
Patty McDaniel
Thinking of you John Prine, Keep fighting ✌
Ardel Courvelle
Gone but never forgotten....The Best....
Ian Toney
Night is falling
We're doing the things we do
You are acting just like me
I'm acting just like you
Do you remember
When you were my friend?
That's the way I'd like things
Just like way back then
Baby's sleeping
Brother is on the run
I am out undoing
All the good I've done
If you loved me
Tell you what I would do
Wrap the world in silver foil
Bring it home to you.
Lately I feel
That I can't pretend
I may never ever see
The likes of you again
I take a walk, I come back home
Then I sit a spell
Watch the ponies dance around
The empty wishing well.
Night has fallen
I've said the things I did
The only baby sleeping
Is when I was a kid
Do you remember
When you were my friend?
That's the way I'd like things
Just like way back then.
Songwriter: John Prine
ten littleindians
I have no idea why the sudden surge in uploads to YouTube but you will never hear me complaining!
Thanks for the visiting my ears again.
Otto
One year later. Time for your medicine!
A different world, one where Mr. Prine's gift matters most.
Ian Toney
RIP sweet John 💘
Barbara Smith
Sudden surge probably because he's ill with Corona virus🙏
Barry Allison
That was written over a year ago or didn't you notice that