1) The Highwaymen was an Am… Read Full Bio ↴There are two artists sharing this name;
1) The Highwaymen was an American country music supergroup, composed of four of the genre's biggest artists, known for their pioneering influence on the outlaw country subgenre: Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, and Kris Kristofferson. Active between 1985 and 1995, the group recorded three major label albums as The Highwaymen: two on Columbia Records and one for Liberty Records. Their Columbia works produced three chart singles, including the number one "Highwayman" in 1985.
Between 1996 and 1999, Nelson, Kristofferson, Cash, and Jennings also provided the voice and dramatization for the Louis L'Amour Collection, a four-CD box set of seven Louis L'Amour stories published by the HighBridge Company, although the four were not credited as "The Highwaymen" in this work.
Besides the four formal members of the group, only one other vocal recording artist appeared on a Highwaymen recording: Johnny Rodriguez, who provided Spanish vocal on "Deportee", a Woody Guthrie composition, from "Highwayman".
The four original members starred in a movie together: the 1986 film Stagecoach.
2) The Highwaymen were a collegiate folk group from the 1960s who had a significant impact on the folk scene of that time and remain famous for the song "Michael" and "Cotton Fields." Formed in 1958 while the band members were at college, the group broke up in 1964 after releasing eight albums and ten singles. They reunited in 1987, minus Chan Daniels (who died in 1975), for a concert for their 25th college reunion. Between then and 2009, the band has performed ten to twelve concerts a year. Today, two of the original five members (Steve Butts and Steve Trott) are still alive, with Dave Fisher dying on May 7, 2010, Gil Robbins (father of actor Tim Robbins) dying on April 5, 2011, and Bob Burnett dying on December 8, 2011.
Big Rock Candy Mountain
The Highwaymen Lyrics
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In the month of May
A burly bum came hikin'
Down the shady lane
Through the sugarcane
He was lookin' for his likin'
As he strolled along
He sang a song
Where a bum can stay
For many a day
And he don't need any money
Oh, the buzzin' of the bees
In the cigarette trees
The soda water fountain
Where the lemonade springs
And the bluebird sings
On the Big Rock Candy Mountain
There's a lake of gin
We can both jump in
And the hand outs grow on bushes
In the new-mown hay
You can sleep all day
And the bars all serve free lunches
Where the meal train stops
And there ain't no cops
And the folks are tender-hearted
Where you never throw rocks
And you never wear socks
And your hair is never parted
Oh, the buzzin' of the bees
In the cigarette trees
The soda water fountain
Where the lemonade springs
And the bluebird sings
On the Big Rock Candy Mountain
A farmer and his son
They were on the run
Through a hayfield they were bounding
Said the bum to the son
"Why don't you come
To the Big Rock Candy Mountain"?
So the very next day
They hiked away
A mile post they kept countin'
But they never arrived
At the lemonade tide
And the Big Rock Candy Mountain
Oh, the buzzin' of the bees
In the cigarette trees
The soda water fountain
Where the lemonade springs
And the bluebird sings
On the Big Rock Candy Mountain
Big Rock Candy Mountain
The Highwaymen's "Big Rock Candy Mountain" is a playful and whimsical song about a mythical utopia where all the world's problems seem to disappear. The lyrics describe a hobo's search for his ideal "land of milk and honey" where he can live a carefree life without any worries. He strolls down the shady lane singing about the idyllic location where bees buzz around cigarette trees, lemonade springs and bluebirds sing.
The song paints a picture of a place where a lake of gin is waiting for anyone to jump in, and where handouts grow on bushes. At the Big Rock Candy Mountain, one can sleep all day, and bars even serve free lunches. This land of plenty is where the meal train stops continuously, and where there are no cops to spoil the fun. The inhabitants of this land are tender-hearted, and one never has to worry about throwing rocks or wearing socks.
Despite the picturesque world painted in the lyrics, it is clear that the Big Rock Candy Mountain is a mythical location that cannot be found in real life. Even a father and son duo who try to find it fail to arrive at the lemonade tide, and the actual location remains nothing more than a fanciful dream.
Line by Line Meaning
On a summer's day
It was a warm day in the summertime.
In the month of May
It was the month of May.
A burly bum came hikin'
A strong and tough-looking homeless person was walking.
Down the shady lane
He walked on a path shaded by trees.
Through the sugarcane
He walked through fields of sugarcane.
He was lookin' for his likin'
He was searching for his preferred place to stay or live.
As he strolled along
While he walked slowly and casually.
He sang a song
He was singing a song.
Called 'The Land of Milk and Honey'
The song he was singing was titled 'The Land of Milk and Honey.'
Where a bum can stay
The song was about a place where homeless people could live.
For many a day
They could stay there for a long time.
And he don't need any money
They wouldn't need money to live there.
Oh, the buzzin' of the bees
There were many bees buzzing around.
In the cigarette trees
There were trees that produced cigarettes.
The soda water fountain
There was a fountain that dispensed carbonated water.
Where the lemonade springs
There was a natural source of lemonade.
And the bluebird sings
A bluebird was singing.
On the Big Rock Candy Mountain
All of this was happening on a mountain called 'Big Rock Candy Mountain.'
There's a lake of gin
There was a large body of gin.
We can both jump in
They can both jump in the lake of gin.
And the hand outs grow on bushes
There were bushes that gave out free things.
In the new-mown hay
There was freshly cut hay nearby.
You can sleep all day
One could sleep the entire day.
And the bars all serve free lunches
Bars served free lunch to customers.
Where the meal train stops
A train that provided meals stopped there.
And there ain't no cops
There were no police officers around.
And the folks are tender-hearted
The people there were kind and compassionate.
Where you never throw rocks
People did not throw rocks at each other.
And you never wear socks
People did not wear socks there.
And your hair is never parted
People did not comb their hair there.
A farmer and his son
A farmer and his child were together.
They were on the run
They were fleeing from something.
Through a hayfield they were bounding
They were running through a field of hay.
Said the bum to the son
The homeless person said to the farmer's son.
"Why don't you come
The person asked the farmer's son to come.
To the Big Rock Candy Mountain?"
The person invited the farmer's son to the mountain called 'Big Rock Candy Mountain.'
So the very next day
The following day.
They hiked away
They began their journey on foot.
A mile post they kept countin'
They counted the mile markers along the way.
But they never arrived
They never made it to their destination.
At the lemonade tide
They did not find the source of natural lemonade.
And the Big Rock Candy Mountain
They also did not find 'Big Rock Candy Mountain.'
Writer(s): Dave Fisher
Contributed by Madelyn G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.