Although Uncle Tupelo broke up before it achieved commercial success, the band is renowned for its impact on the alternative country music scene. The group's first album, No Depression, became a byword for the genre and was widely influential. Uncle Tupelo's sound was unlike popular country music of the time, drawing inspiration from styles as diverse as the hardcore punk of The Minutemen and the country instrumentation and harmony of the Carter Family and Hank Williams. Farrar and Tweedy lyrics frequently referenced Middle America and the working class of Belleville.
Moonshiner
Uncle Tupelo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
For seventeen long years
And I spent all my money
On whisky and beer
And I go to some hollow
And set up my still
If whisky don't kill me
Lord, I don't know what will
And I go to some barroom
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
Uncle Tupelo's song "Moonshiner" is a classic example of a folk song with deep, introspective lyrics. The song is about a man who has devoted himself to making moonshine for about seventeen years. He has spent all his money on whiskey and beer, and the only hope he has is that he doesn't die because of all the alcohol. The setting of the song is a hollow where the man makes his moonshine. He talks about how his life is consumed by trying to get by with nothing else but his moonshine.
The song then switches to a bar room setting where the man is drinking with his friends. He wishes that the women in the bar could follow him and see how much he spends. He then mentions how much he loves women with sweet breath. The next verse is an outline of what the man wants in life. He wants to eat when he’s hungry, drink when he’s dry and get two dollars when he’s hard up. He also wants religion when he dies.
The chorus of the song talks about how life is like a bottle and that it’s worth nothing when it's empty. The song is a testament to the destructive effects of alcohol addiction and the monotony of being consumed by something that will consume you. The lyrics are deeply introspective and illustrate the bleakness of a life that is confined to one thing.
Line by Line Meaning
I've been a moonshiner
I have been producing and selling illegal liquor for a long time
For seventeen long years
I have been doing this activity for a period of 17 years
And I spent all my money
I have wasted all my earnings
On whisky and beer
On the intoxicating drinks which I produced and sold illegally
And I go to some hollow
I go to a secluded area
And set up my still
And start producing illegal liquor with my equipment
If whisky don't kill me
I am aware of the danger of consuming the illegal liquor to my health
Lord, I don't know what will
However, since I've been doing this for so long, I do not know how else I would sustain myself
And I go to some barroom
I go to a pub or a bar
To drink with my friends
To spend time drinking with my companions
Where the women they can't follow
Where it's not appropriate for women to be present
To see what I spend
To keep an eye on my expenses
God bless them pretty women
I appreciate beautiful women
I wish they was mine
I desire to have them to myself
With breath as sweet as
Having an enticing smell
The dew on the vine
Like the freshness of early morning
Let me eat when I'm hungry
Allow me to have food when I feel 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
With even a small amount of money when I don't have any
Religion when I die
Despite everything else, I still want to be remembered for my faith in God after I die
The whole world is a bottle
The entire world is similar to a container of alcohol
And life is but a dram
And life is just a small quantity of liquor
When the bottle gets empty
When the world drains you of everything
Lord, it sure ain't worth a damn
It's not worth anything at all
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: BOB DYLAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ana Souto
I've been a moonshiner
For seventeen long years
And I spent all my money
On whisky and beer
And I go to some hollow
And set up my still
If whisky don't kill me
Lord, I don't know what will
And I go to some barroom
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
GotLotsaFaith
Couple things....
1.) Peter Buck (R.E.M.) produced this LP... Just sayin' ... It may be one reason it sounds so fucking nice.. Whatever--who gives a fuck..
Two.) I have found, by and large, a great song usually has one particularly poignant lyric or phrase to draw wayward listeners into a blind alley and make a mugging that much more likely... For me, personally, it is held in the line:
"... Where the women, they can't follow... to see what I spend...etc... "
This has paralyzing effects; it comes off as devastatingly manly while holding beautifully humble, yet somehow, both these extremes occur at once; and it is upon this line that the entire experience hinges, however abstractly.
I'm sure Freud would have a field day with my case in point, but one cannot help the way a great song makes one feel. And, honestly, so few songs evoke a primal level of consternation and contemplation; thus, whenever one does, it needs to be acknowledged, completely. I tried to do that.
Thank you UT and PB.
rangers1919
This song has been around for a long, long time, and has unknown origins. People were performing it in the US and Ireland in the 1930's. This is my favorite version, even above Bob Dylan's version.
bernard mauge
Likewise
Shane Wilder
The harmonica in this song punches me right in the heart, in the best possible way.
J L
Ironically, the more country the sound, the less likely your chances are of hearing it on country radio. This is a great country song here, thanks for posting.
James Harleman
The pain in jay's voice combined with the harmonica makes this an incredible song
John Oberholtzer
There just isn't enough harmonica music in the world. Thank you, Uncle Tupelo!
Sooner in Texas.
John Oberholtzer gotta be my favorite instrument for sure... Can't beat a harp when it sounds like that!
Michael C Aoun
The first time I saw them was probably 1985 at a huge outdoor campus party called "Bid Day Bash" at Mizzou (The University of Missouri Columbia). This is the "three hour away town" that inspired much of the lyrics of Whiskey Bottle. You can still see the sign that plainly says "Liquor and Guns", although it actually says "Liquor, Guns & Ammo". It's inside Shakespeare's Pizza now. They were still mostly a cover band and the crowd wasn't really interested in the covers they were playing (I remember they did a Black Flag cover). When they covered Jump by Van Halen though, the people got excited because they heard something they knew (I have a feeling the band was doing it as a joke though). I got to see them many more times, mostly at Mississippi Nights and I got to see their final two shows there. I've searched long and hard for something that does the same thing for me that Uncle Tupelo did, but I haven't found it yet. Son Volt comes close. Uncle Tupelo's music is timeless and unsurpassed.
Michael Garrity
Still one incredibly powerful song after all these years!!
Michael Garrity
Unfreaking believable 57 fucking DISLIKES-
how in the fuck could anyone with any brain cells dislike this song?? I guess people that do not know or appreciate REAL MUSIC---raised up on a diet of that shit they call music that comes from out of Nashville that gets played on the big commercial stations that is music that is all nice and pretty and wrapped up in pretty bow---music that might taste good but only makes you sick, fat and hungry for more--this sort of music is music for the mind, heart and soul---