Labor Sings! Exhibit


Almanac Singers "Keep That Oil A-Rollin'" Written by Woody Guthrie and Butch Hawes

You oil field workers, come and listen to me.
I'm goin' to tell you a story abut old John D.
That company union made a fool out of me.
That company union don't charge no dues.
It leaves you a-singing them Rockefeller blues.
That company union made a fool out of me.

CHORUS:

Takes that good old C.I.O. boys
To keep that oil a-rollin', rollin' over the sea.

(Repeat after each verse)

Drilling oil to beat Japan.
But the company union don't give a damn.
That company union made a fool out of me.
The oilfield workers and the NMU
Going to beat Hitler, and damn quick, too.
That company union made a fool out of me.

Old Berlin to Tokyo
The tanks can't roll if the oil don't flow.
That company union made a fool out of me.
Canada to Mexico
They're joining up with the C.I.O.
That company union made a fool out of me.

C.I.O. is the place for me.
When this war is over, I want to be free<.br> That company union made a fool out of me.
I'm a union man in a union war.
It's a union land I'm a-fighting for.
That company union made a fool out of me.

Recorded with "Boomtown Bill," and written by Woody and Butch Hawes, this catchy tune also linked union organizing with the win-the-war effort. The NMU referred to the National Maritime Union, of which Woody was a staunch member while in the Merchant Marine during the war.

Illustration: Songs of the Almanac Singers (Bob Miller, 1942)