Membe… Read Full Bio ↴Side project of Hot Water Music that play rockin' rock music.
Members include Chuck Ragan (of Hot Water Music)on acoustic guitar and vocals, Chris Wollard (HWM, The Draft)also acoustic guitar and vocals, Samantha Jones (bitchin') scoustic bass and vocals, Rob McGregor (producer for several HWM albums) playing harmonica, and Bill Clower (of Radon) on drums.
Rumbleseat is an acoustic project, with songs that range in sound from folk to bluegrass, with Chuck Ragan's and Wollard's trademark gravely sounding vocals.
Moonshiner
Rumbleseat Lyrics
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For seventeen long years
And I spent all my money
On whiskey and beer
And I go to some hollow
And set up my still
If whiskey don't kill me
Lord, I don't know what will
To drink with my friends
Where the women they can't follow
To see what I spend
God bless them pretty women
I wish they was mine
With breath as sweet as
The dew on the vine
Let me eat when I'm hungry
Let me drink when I'm dry
Two dollars when I'm hard up
Religion when I die
The whole world is a bottle
And life is but a dram
When the bottle gets empty
Lord, it sure ain't worth a damn
The lyrics to Rumbleseat's Moonshiner paint a picture of a man who has been making moonshine for nearly two decades and has spent all his earnings on drinks and booze. He sets up a still in a hollow and risks his life to make whiskey. The singer heads to some barroom to drink with his friends where he spends his money. The women in the barroom can't join him, so he blesses them before saying he wishes they were his. He then makes a request, "Let me eat when I'm hungry, let me drink when I'm dry, two dollars when I'm hard up, religion when I die." These are basic necessities that he wants to be taken care of, as his work is perilous and has no guarantee. Even though he is making moonshine, there is nothing else he is good at or can do.
In the final verse, the world is compared to a bottle and life to a dram. Once the bottle's empty, life seems pointless. This verse encapsulates the attitude of the singer; while life is indeed short, it should be lived to the fullest instead of being drowned in alcohol. The lyrics are full of longing for some basic necessities, but there is also a sense of resignation that his life is what it is.
Line by Line Meaning
I am a moonshiner
I illegally distill and sell liquor, known as moonshine.
For seventeen long years
I've been doing this for a very long time
And I spent all my money
I have used up all of my savings
On whiskey and beer
On my own supply and other alcoholic beverages
And I go to some hollow
I retreat to a secluded area
And set up my still
I prepare my equipment for moonshine production
If whiskey don't kill me
If the excessive drinking of my own product doesn't kill me
Lord, I don't know what will
I don't know what will kill me
And I go to some barroom
I frequent a bar
To drink with my friends
To drink with my companions
Where the women they can't follow
Where women are not allowed to enter
To see what I spend
To see how I spend my money
God bless them pretty women
I appreciate the beauty of women
I wish they was mine
I wish I had them as my partners
With breath as sweet as
Their breaths are as refreshing as
The dew on the vine
The moisture on grapevines in the morning
Let me eat when I'm hungry
Allow me to have food when I'm hungry
Let me drink when I'm dry
Allow me to have a drink when I'm thirsty
Two dollars when I'm hard up
Give me two dollars when I'm in financial difficulties
Religion when I die
Give me consolation of religion when I die
The whole world is a bottle
The world is like a bottle that contains everything
And life is but a dram
And life is just like a drink
When the bottle gets empty
When everything comes to an end
Lord, it sure ain't worth a damn
It isn't worth anything at all
Lyrics © HIPGNOSIS SONGS GROUP, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: BILL SHEPHERD, . TRADITIONAL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind