Wold was born in Oakland, California. When he was four years old, his parents split up. His father played boogie-woogie piano and Wold tried to learn when he was five or six, but could not. At the age of eight, he learned to play the guitar from K. C. Douglas, who worked at his grandfather's garage, later realizing that he had been taught the blues. Douglas wrote the song "Mercury Blues" and had played with Tommy Johnson in the early 1940s. Wold left home at 13 to avoid abuse at the hands of his stepfather, and lived rough and on the road in Tennessee, Mississippi and elsewhere, until 1973. He would travel long distances by hopping freight trains, looking for work as a farm labourer or in other seasonal jobs, often living as a hobo. At various times, Wold worked as a carnie, a cowboy and a migrant worker. Paraphrasing H. L. Mencken, Wold described this time of his life by saying "Hobos are people who move around looking for work, tramps are people who move around but don't look for work, and bums are people who don't move and don't work. I've been all three."
When asked about his nickname, Wold has said: "because it's just true: I always get seasick". When he was ill on a ferry from Norway to Copenhagen, later in his life, a friend began playfully using the name and, despite Wold not rising to it for a while, it stuck. When asked about his name on British Sunday morning television show, Something for the Weekend, he replied, "I just get sick on boats". On Top Gear, when asked about his name, Wold replied "Well, I guess I just don't like boats!"
Wold made his first UK television appearance on Jools Holland's annual Hootenanny BBC TV show on New Year's Eve 2006. He performed a live rendition of "Dog House Boogie" on the "Three String Trance Wonder" and the "Mississippi Drum Machine". After that show his popularity exploded in Britain, as he explained in an interview:
"I can't believe it, all of the sudden I'm like the cat's meow!"
He was well received in the UK, winning the 2007 MOJO Award for Best Breakthrough Act and going on to appear at major UK festivals such as Reading, Leeds and Glastonbury. In 2007 he played more UK festivals than any other artist.
Wold toured early in 2008, playing in various venues and festivals in the UK. He was joined on stage by drummer Dan Magnusson. KT Tunstall also dueted with Wold at the London Astoria in January 2008.[20] Wold also played many other festivals throughout the world in 2008, including Fuji Rock in Japan, East Coast Blues & Roots Music Festival in Australia, also in April 2008,[21] and Roskilde in Denmark.
Wold's major-label debut, I Started Out with Nothin and I Still Got Most of It Left was recorded with Dan Magnusson on drums, was released by Warner Music on September 29, 2008, and features Ruby Turner and Nick Cave's Grinderman.
He has toured the UK extensively since 2007 being supported by Duke Garwood, Gemma Ray, The Sugars, Billie the Vision and the Dancers in January 2008, Amy LaVere in October 2008, Melody Nelson at the Brighton Dome on 7 October, and Joe Gideon & The Shark in January 2009. His tours in October 2008 and January 2009 were all sold out and included performances at the Royal Albert Hall, the Edinburgh Queen's Hall, the Grand Opera House in Belfast, the Apollo in Manchester, the City Hall in Newcastle and the London Hammersmith Apollo.
In 2009, Wold was nominated for a Brit Award in the category of International Solo Male Artist, That same year, BBC Four broadcast a documentary of Wold visiting the southern USA entitled Seasick Steve: Bringing It All Back Home. On January 21, Wold hosted "Folk America: Hollerers, Stompers and Old Time Ramblers" at the Barbican in London, a show that was also televised and shown with the documentary on BBC Four as part of a series tracing American roots music.
In an interview with an Australian magazine, Wold attributes much of his unlikely success to his cheap and weather-beaten guitar, "The Trance Wonder" and reveals the guitar's mojo might come from supernatural sources. "I got it from Sherman, who is a friend of mine down in Mississippi, who had bought it down at a Goodwill store. When we were down there last time he says to me, 'I didn't tell you when you bought it off me, but that guitar used to be haunted'. I say, 'What are you talking about, Sherman?'. He says, 'There’s 50 solid citizens here in Como who'll tell you this guitar is haunted. It's the darnedest thing – we’d leave it over in the potato barn and we'd come back in and it would be moved. You'd put it down somewhere and the next morning you’d come back and it would have moved. When you took that guitar the ghost in the barn left'. He told me this not very long ago and I said to him, 'Sherman! Why didn't you tell me this before?' and he said, 'Well the ghost was gone – I didn't want it around here no more!'"
On January 3, 2010, Wold appeared on the popular BBC motoring show Top Gear as the Star In A Reasonably Priced Car. He was the last star to drive in the blue Chevrolet Lacetti.
In February 2010, Wold was nominated for a Brit Award in the category of International Solo Male Artist for the second consecutive year.
In 2010, Wold made numerous festival appearances throughout the summer, including the Pyramid Stage at the Glastonbury Festival, the main stage at V Festival, the main stage at the Hop Farm Festival and many more.
In February 2011, Wold signed to Play It Again Sam to release his new album with the exception of the US, where it will be released on Third Man Records. Subsequently his new album You Can't Teach an Old Dog New Tricks was released on his new labels and it was announced that former Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones had played on the new album, and performed alongside Wold to promote it.
On 16 August 2014 he was the headline act at Beautiful Days in Exeter, UK, and on the 24th August he headlined at 'Victorious Festival' in Southsea, Portsmouth, UK.
Freedom Road
Seasick Steve Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And it ain't so bad
I'm goin' down that highway
I'm gonna lose my sad
He been followin' me
Eleven months or more
Well I paid my debt
They finally let me out the door
That's what I'm talkin' about
Ah well I'm walkin' free
Go where I wanna go
Some of you might understand me
If you been there before
Freedom just so fine
But we take it for granted
But when you done a little time
You be glad to have it
I walk the freedom road (x4)
You don't need to do wrong
To know what I mean
Now you've heard my song
I believe you've seen
Freedom just so fine
So don't take it for granted
You don't need to do time
To be glad you have it
We walk the freedom road
We walk the freedom road
We love that freedom road
We walk the freedom
I walk the freedom road
I walk the freedom road
I walk the freedom road
Down the road I go
Down the freedom road
(x3)
I walk the freedom road
Down the road I go
Down the freedom road
(x3)
"Freedom Road" by Seasick Steve is a song that talks about the beauty of freedom, as well as the value and significance of achieving it. The singer begins by acknowledging that he is alone but not worried about it, as he sets out on a journey on the highway. He is relieved to be out of prison, after having been there for about eleven months, and he is ready to start afresh. The song highlights that freedom is vital to everyone, and it is often taken for granted. We only appreciate it once we lose it or have it taken away from us.
Seasick Steve then emphasizes that freedom is precious, and everyone should cherish it. He encourages us to be grateful for our freedom, and we should not be blinded by everyday life's luxury. Some people have never experienced the feeling of being free or having their rights completely restricted, and maybe that's why they don't value it. The singer concludes by noting that one doesn't need to have gone to jail to appreciate freedom; it is enough to listen to the song's lyrics and take a moment to appreciate life's simple things.
Line by Line Meaning
Ah well I'm on my own
I am alone and independent
And it ain't so bad
Being alone isn't always negative
I'm goin' down that highway
I'm traveling on the main road towards my destination
I'm gonna lose my sad
I'm leaving my sadness behind as I move forward
He been followin' me
My past actions have been haunting me
Eleven months or more
I've been dealing with this situation for over 11 months
Well I paid my debt
I have paid the price for my past mistakes
They finally let me out the door
I'm free from the burden of my past
That's what I'm talkin' about
That's the situation I'm referring to
Ah well I'm walkin' free
I'm free to move and travel as I please
Go where I wanna go
I can choose my own path and make my own decisions
Some of you might understand me
Those who have been in a similar situation may relate to me
If you been there before
You know how it feels to be in my position
Freedom just so fine
Being free is an amazing feeling
But we take it for granted
We often do not appreciate our freedom until it is taken away
But when you done a little time
When you have been in prison or faced hardships
You be glad to have it
You will be grateful for the freedom you have
I walk the freedom road (x4)
I am making my way down the path of my newfound freedom
You don't need to do wrong
You don't have to make mistakes to appreciate your freedom
To know what I mean
To understand what I am saying
Now you've heard my song
Now you know my story
I believe you've seen
I believe you understand my perspective now
So don't take it for granted
Don't forget to appreciate your freedom
You don't need to do time
You don't have to go to prison to be grateful for your freedom
To be glad you have it
To feel thankful for the freedom you possess
We walk the freedom road
We all strive to achieve and maintain our freedom
We love that freedom road
We cherish and adore our freedom
Down the road I go
I continue on my journey of freedom
Down the freedom road (x3)
I continue down my path of freedom with gratitude and appreciation
I walk the freedom road
I am a proud traveler of the freedom road
Contributed by Alex V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.