Source: John Prine: singer-songwriter critically ill with Covid-19 symptoms, family says | Music | The Guardian He's got COVID-19 and I understand on a ventilator. Regardless of the outcome, we can enjoy his good works of a well lived life: Bob Wilson
Source: Pandemic Threatens Musician’s Life When We Need His Art Most “Dear Abby,” the first Prine song I heard, made me laugh out loud. It’s about fretting over trivial matters: “Dear Abby, Dear Abby, My fountain pen leaks My wife hollers at me and my kids are all freaks Every side I get up on is the wrong side of bed If it weren’t so expensive I’d wish I were dead Signed Unhappy” Prine responds to the complainer with hilarious common sense: “Unhappy, Unhappy, You have no complaint You are what you are and you ain’t what you ain’t So listen up buster, and listen up good Stop wishing for bad luck and knocking on wood.” “Sam Stone” is about a heroin-addicted Vietnam veteran who returns with a Purple Heart – and eventually dies from an overdose: “There’s a hole in daddy’s arm where all the money goes … ” Prine said most Vietnam War songs at the time were about protest. He wanted to address returning vets’ struggles. “Sam Stone” remains regrettably relevant amid America’s opioid epidemic. “Hello in There” is about a lonely elderly couple wishing their children would visit. It’s more powerful than ever as millions of elderly people self-isolate at home: “So if you’re walking down the street sometime And spot some hollow ancient eyes, Please don’t just pass ’em by and stare As if you didn’t care, say, ‘Hello in there, hello.'” Right now, I’m appreciating Prine, who’s 73, more than ever – because he’s hospitalized in critical condition, another victim of COVID-19. I fully concur. Bob Wilson
John Prine Lyrics "Some Humans Ain't Human" Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Some humans ain't human Some people ain't kind You open up their hearts And here's what you'll find A few frozen pizzas Some ice cubes with hair A broken Popsicle You don't want to go there Some humans ain't human Though they walk like we do They live and they breathe Just to turn the old screw They screw you when you're sleeping They try to screw you blind Some humans ain't human Some people ain't kind You might go to church And sit down in a pew Those humans who ain't human Could be sittin' right next to you They talk about your family They talk about your clothes When they don't know their own nice person From their own elbows Jealousy and stupidity Don't equal harmony Jealousy and stupidity Don't equal harmony Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm [Spoken:] Have you ever noticed When you're feeling really good There's always a pigeon That'll come shit on your hood Or you're feeling your freedom And the world's off your back Some cowboy from Texas Starts his own war in Iraq Some humans ain't human Some people ain't kind They lie through their teeth With their head up their behind You open up their hearts And here's what you'll find Some humans ain't human Some people ain't kind Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm
