Clunk Go The Shovels
(Song by: Mary Garvey – Performance Notes below)
Mary Garvey
LYRICS
CHORUS
Clunk go the shovels crack go the trees
Boom goes the dynamite that blasts us to our knees
Every man jack among us says mister foreman please
Won’t you kindly let us stop for our bread and jam and tea.
There’s a man who works the clay name of Billy O’Shea
He has a team of oxen who will haul it all away
To some it would be work but to him it seems like play
The cut is getting deeper thanks to Billy O’Shea.
The teamster for the ponies is Guiseppe Desimone
He feeds them so well they are never gaunt or boney
He leads them down the trails that are slippery and stony
The cut is getting deeper thanks Guiseppe Desimone.
Chorus
The man who mixes powder is our own Jacob Crowder
If you tell him it’s too noisy he will just go make it louder
If it blows to kingdom come he could not be any prouder
The cut is getting deeper thanks to Jacob Crowder.
Then Pierre LeBlanc he works here with the bank
If you ever had a payday you just have him to thank
He stood out in the pouring rain and in the mud he sank
The cut is getting deeper thanks to Pierre LeBlanc.
Chorus
There is Richard Bayer he is our chief surveyor
When this project’s over he wants to be our mayor
He knows every bit of rock and dirt in every single layer
The cut is getting deeper thanks to Richard Bayer.
Next is Chun Ching Hock he arrived here at the dock
And soon commenced to cooking with his cleavers and his wok
He brought many of his countrymen to chisel at the rock
The cut is getting deeper thanks to Chun Ching Hock.
Chorus
And here is Lars Canute he wears a 14 boot
And the ladies all agree that he is such a handsome brute
He doesn’t cut the trees down he just pulls them by their roots
The cut is getting deeper thanks to Lars Canute.
Chorus
PERFORMANCE NOTES
- Words and music by Mary Garvey
- Performed by:
- Mary Garvey (lead vocals)
- Bruce Baker (guitar, vocals)
- Doug Bright (bass)
- Recorded at Jack Straw Cultural Center