Leo Kottke (born September 11, 1945) is an acoustic guitarist. He is known … Read Full Bio ↴Leo Kottke (born September 11, 1945) is an acoustic guitarist. He is known for a fingerpicking style that draws on blues, jazz, and folk music, and for syncopated, polyphonic melodies. He overcame a series of personal obstacles, including partial loss of hearing and a nearly career-ending bout with tendon damage in his right hand, to emerge as a widely recognized master of his instrument. He currently resides in the Minneapolis area with his family.

Focusing primarily on instrumental composition and playing, Kottke also sings sporadically, in an unconventional yet expressive baritone described by himself as sounding like "geese farts on a muggy day".[1] In concert, Kottke intersperses humorous and often bizarre monologues with vocal and instrumental selections from throughout his career, played solo on 6- and 12-string guitars.

The Banks Of Marble
Leo Kottke Lyrics

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I've traveled 'round this country
from shore to shining shore
It really made me wonder
the things I heard and saw

I saw the weary farmer
plowing sod and loam
l heard the auction hammer

just a-knocking down his home

But the banks are made of marble
with a guard at every door
and the vaults are stuffed with silver
that the farmer sweated for

I've seen the weary miner
scrubbing coal dust from his back
I heard his children cryin'
"Got no coal to heat the shack"

But the banks are made of marble
with a guard at every door
and the vaults are stuffed with silver
that the miner sweated for

I've seen my brothers working
throughout this mighty land
l prayed we'd get together
and together make a stand

Then we might own those banks of marble
with a guard at every door

and we might share those vaults of silver
that we have sweated for

Overall Meaning

The song "Banks of Marble" by Leo Kottke and Iris Dement is a powerful commentary on the stark inequality and exploitation entrenched in our society. The singer of the song has traveled across the country and has witnessed the harsh realities faced by farmers, coal miners, and other working-class people. He saw a weary farmer who is about to lose his home due to the bank's auctions. He experienced the distress of a coal miner who was struggling to earn enough to heat his family's small house.

In contrast, the singer notes that the banks are made of marble, and guarded by security personnel, while the vaults are filled with silver, that the farmers and miners - the working-class, have sweated for. The discrepancy between the wealthy and the poor is laid bare, and the injustice of a system where poverty-stricken individuals work hard to earn for a living, only for their earnings to end up in the hands of the affluent is highlighted.

The song calls for a united front against such a system. The singer hopes that he and his brothers can come together, own the banks of marble, and share the vaults of silver, which they have sweated for. The song's message is an appeal for action and solidarity against the injustices of society. It reminds us that it is only when we stand together that we can challenge and change the system that perpetuates such vast disparities.

Line by Line Meaning

I've traveled 'round this country
I have journeyed across this nation

from shore to shining shore
from coast to coast

It really made me wonder
it truly caused me to ponder

the things I heard and saw
the sights and sounds that I witnessed

I saw the weary farmer
I witnessed an exhausted farmer

plowing sod and loam
tilling soil

l heard the auction hammer
I heard the sound of an auctioneer's gavel

just a-knocking down his home
as he sold off his house

But the banks are made of marble
however, the banks are constructed from expensive, durable material

with a guard at every door
protected at all entrances by security personnel

and the vaults are stuffed with silver
precious metals are kept in abundance within the vaults