I love the way they teased the folk scene, which was completely ridiculous in many respects - but NEVER did this movie mock or ridicule the music. Fantastic.
I saw them live too and then we hung out after the show (got signatures) and then I was invited to a barbecue the next day! We still regularly speak and hang out when we are all in the same city. Did you get the bbq and friends for life too?
the thing about "A Mighty Wind" --- these guys coulda gone through a time warp to 1961 and appeared at Folk City and no one would have blinked. The song and the singing are both top notch.
The progression of this video is really very cool. First off, during the intro and whatnot, everyone realizes how lucky they are to get to see what appears to be the newest incarnation of Spinal Tap. They're probably expecting to see something really funny, and the intro mostly delivers. But after one verse, specifically when the clapping drops out, you get the feeling folks are actually being pulled in. And by the end, after you've heard the harmonies, the guitar train horn, the crescendos, the smooth ending, you realize ... this was actually a really good musical performance and these guys really nailed it in yet another genre. I keep coming back to this video every so often. Just like Spinal Tap, The Folksmen so delicately walked the line between "it's a gag" and "it's a real group" that you sometimes can't decide if they're one or the other. And, really, they are both.
I showed A Mighty Wind to my elderly parents (who had brought me up on just this sort of music), and they got the joke IMMEDIATELY and loved the film, even listening to the songs in the closing credits, one of which was nominated for an Oscar.
I watch this every year instead of The Oscars, and that was the first time I'd heard the song. It was so good, so perfect, and so perfectly explained the movie. Everything a "Best Song" should be, and not a tack-on mood piece for a Lord of the Rings movie.
@@HumansFreshlyBorn I don't watch much TV so never heard of M.M. until I binged on B.C.S. "What a great actor " I thought, displaying such intelligence and believability in his roll as Chuck the electrophobic brother of Saul. I was mind boggled when my younger sister pointed out he was Lenny in "Lenny and Squiggy" and never making the connection that it was him in "Spinal Tap" and "A Mighty Wind" An amazing talent !
Just came across this years later, but it was still fun to watch. Whether they're the Folksmen or Derek Smalls, David St Hubbins and Nigel Tufnel in Spinal Tap, these guys are talented musicians as well as funny men.
I dunno, as an old folk music enthusiast, this is a pretty good parody. Additionally, Mark Twain would have adored it. He loved bad poetry about disasters.
I love how Michael McKean's LENNY AND THE SQUIGTONES come up in the related videos who actually were a real music duo performing under that name prior to starring in those roles on the TV show LAVERNE & SHIRLEY (1979 - 1984). Harry Shearer played with the group prior to the show and Christopher Guest played on the 1979 album LENNY AND THE SQUIGTONES credited as Nigel Tufnel, the character Guest would play in THIS IS SPINAL TAP in 1984.
Hard to believe that bassist Harry Shearer turns 80 in December 2023. His acting credits as a child start in 1956. Appeared on "Leave It To Beaver" when he was just 13.
I think the closest approximation is the Kingston Trio--I think that group was the main inspiration for this group in 'A Mighty Wind'. What a great movie!
Heard this on the car radio ages ago, and it game me chills. Remembered the lyrics "i'll stop that iron horse" out of the blue today and googled it, so glad to finally know the name of the song and the band.
What makes this work, and I mean the whole Spinal Tap and Mighty Wind bit is that they actually care about, and like the music. They might be playing characters, but the music isn't an act. They know how it works. That makes all the difference.
Perfect send-up. Amazing that these are are songs written for the film by Guest-McKean-Shearer, et al. Brilliant, whether you love or despise folk music.
@@echowit I heard this all started when they found out that Alan Barrows and Nigel Tufnel accidentally married the same woman. That's some twisted business there, only in the music industry I guess.
The Folksmen or Spinal Tap? Either way comedy genius aided by wonderfully skilful and intelligently composed music with sharp, whitty lyrics. FANTASTIC.
These guys were true musical geniuses. Forget Hendrix, Page,Van Halen, Jeff Beck, Mickey Dolenze.......these guys are the real deal. Spinal Tap and the Folksmen should be in the Rock n Roll hof.....posthumously.....so to speak. 4:16
Folk music is broad enough to include satires of itself. Yes, the Folksmen are singing folk music, and doing it well! The Folksmen are hardly the first people to use folk music to parody folk music, especially many of the overly serious, self-important "protest" songs of that 1960s.. Back in the '60s, Tom Lehrer wrote and sang a number of satirical songs about folk music that are now classics.
I love how they lead into their performance with a sense of lighthearted, almost nerdy irony, and then end up performing an intensely somber folk melody. The audience is transformed from a mental state of petty bathos to respectful state of introspective contemplation. Shakespeare was right, "life is a stage."
The Folksmen - Blood on the Coal Lyrics Artist: The Folksmen Album: A Mighty Wind Heyo! SONGLYRICS just got interactive. Highlight. Review: RIFF-it. RIFF-it good. It was April 27 in the year of 91 Bout a mile below the surface and the warm kentucky sun The late shift was ending and the early shift was late. The foreman ate his dinner on a dirty tin plate (Chorus:) Blood on the tracks, blood in the mine, Brothers and sisters what a terrible time. Ole 97 went in the wrong hole, Now my number 60 has blood on the coal, Blood on the coal, blood on the coal. The slag pits were steamin' it was 7: 25, Every miner worked the coal face, Every one of them alive The train came round the corner, You could hear the tressel groan, But the switcher wasn't listnin' so he left the switch alone! (Chorus) The walls began to tremble and the men began to yell, You could hear that lonesome whistle like an echo out... well They dropped their picks and shovels and to safety they did run, For to stay among the living in the year of 91! (Chorus) An Irishman named Murphy said "I'll stop that iron horse!" And he stood to thrwart it's passage, And it crushed him dead of course. And I hope he hears the irony when e're this tale is told, The train that took his life was burning good Kentucky coal, Hey! (Chorus) Unfortunately we're not authorized to show these lyrics.
A Mighty Wind is the movie this comes from, so yes. There is also a 2 1/2 hr video of Spinal Tap Unplugged out there, which is awesome and features Folksmen songs as well. Get it if you can find it! ❤
They filmed a cut scene for A Mighty Wind outside my apartment building in the West Village in 2002; I got all their autographs on a Mojo magazine (wish I could find it).
I have to admit, I am still bitter when I hear the Folksmen play. I was arrested at one of their first concerts for cooking bacon on a wood burning pot belly stove I smuggled into the arena. I would have shared, but they tackled me too quickly.
Oh, yeah. With just a little bit of dialing down, these tunes would have passed muster, back in the day. Even the producers were taken aback at peoples' reactions. "Hey, WAIT a minute, you're not supposed to LIKE this stuff!"
"Let's get the Six-Fingered Man from the Princess Bride, Lenny from Laverne and Shirley, and Mr. Burns from the Simpsons together in a folk band! It's gold, baby!"
One thing I find endlessly amusing about the Folksmen on MADtv, is that in the mid 80s, Spinal Tap was the musical guest on an episode of Saturday Night Live.
Harry Shearer looks exactly like the guy on the old website "Global Village" about 20 years back, posting videos to teach you how to play the double bass. That guy was not Harry, but the likeness is uncanny, especially with the double bass!
I would argue that this is real folk music. These guys may have done this whole act as a gag, but they put a lot of heart into it.
It's frightening how good they are.
II was raised in the 70s folk scene ,it's the weirdest thing , if you try to fake folk music , you just end up with folk music , it is it's own spoof.
Just like with Spinal Tap, they are a legit band
Everything they do together is amazing. They're legends. Whether the characters in the band are fictional or not, the music is real.
Most American "folk music" is nothing such.
I saw the Folksmen play at the Isle of Lucy festival with Spinal Tap and it was one of the best concerts ive ever seen.
Was Desi Arnez the MC?
Was Stumpy Joe Peeps the drummer at the time?
These three guys, individually and together are phenomenally talented.
I love the way they teased the folk scene, which was completely ridiculous in many respects - but NEVER did this movie mock or ridicule the music. Fantastic.
Saw them live, spoke with all of them after the show, got all their signatures on my mighty wind dvd. I'll never forget it.
I saw them live too and then we hung out after the show (got signatures) and then I was invited to a barbecue the next day! We still regularly speak and hang out when we are all in the same city. Did you get the bbq and friends for life too?
@@NathanHassall LOL way to one up the dude. Geeeeez
@@brendansutton5030 I once shot pool with some guy and,well I guess that has nothing to do with this,but hey,at least it really happened.
I once shared a yogurt with Jamie Lee Curtis.
Did they also sign Smell the Glove for you?
They once opened for themselves and got booed of the stage.
Aaecus - No shit?
@@danalexander2149 Opening for themselves as Spinal Tap, yeah.
They opened as The Folksmen for Spinal Tap. People came to see Spinal Tap.
@@butcherboy2008 I prefer Tap TBH, much funnier. I am actually a bit of a folkie, but this doesn't do much for me
I think it was at the Royal Albert Hall. But it’s true - no one realised that The Folksmen are closely related to Spinal Tap...
"don't let it happen to you"gets me everytime
I know its supposed to be a joke, but the songs and musicianship are top notch.
I don't think people appreciate how brilliantly close to real folk these songs are.
the thing about "A Mighty Wind" --- these guys coulda gone through a time warp to 1961 and appeared at Folk City and no one would have blinked. The song and the singing are both top notch.
Naa. They would have been too freaked by neing passed through a time warp.
I think it helped most of them lived it themselves. they just had to remember.
but they would have their Spinal Tap outfits on .....and they would be like.......crap....we need to do a quick wardrobe change......heh heh
Old 97 went in the wrong hole… sure…
Not only hilarious, but amazingly good musicians.
These guys are each FILLED with amazing talent.
The progression of this video is really very cool.
First off, during the intro and whatnot, everyone realizes how lucky they are to get to see what appears to be the newest incarnation of Spinal Tap. They're probably expecting to see something really funny, and the intro mostly delivers.
But after one verse, specifically when the clapping drops out, you get the feeling folks are actually being pulled in. And by the end, after you've heard the harmonies, the guitar train horn, the crescendos, the smooth ending, you realize ... this was actually a really good musical performance and these guys really nailed it in yet another genre.
I keep coming back to this video every so often. Just like Spinal Tap, The Folksmen so delicately walked the line between "it's a gag" and "it's a real group" that you sometimes can't decide if they're one or the other. And, really, they are both.
I showed A Mighty Wind to my elderly parents (who had brought me up on just this sort of music), and they got the joke IMMEDIATELY and loved the film, even listening to the songs in the closing credits, one of which was nominated for an Oscar.
closing song was written by Annette O'Toole and husband Michael McKean
I watch this every year instead of The Oscars, and that was the first time I'd heard the song. It was so good, so perfect, and so perfectly explained the movie. Everything a "Best Song" should be, and not a tack-on mood piece for a Lord of the Rings movie.
Michael McKean is killing it on this song. Such a beast.
Amazing musician and comedian
Mans a great comedian, great musician and fantastic dramatic actor in Better Call Saul
@@HumansFreshlyBorn I first realized his acting range when he guest starred as an evil brain-clown on Star Trek: Voyager.
@@HumansFreshlyBorn I don't watch much TV so never heard of M.M. until I binged on B.C.S. "What a great actor " I thought, displaying such intelligence and believability in his roll as Chuck the electrophobic brother of Saul.
I was mind boggled when my younger sister pointed out he was Lenny in "Lenny and Squiggy" and never making the connection that it was him in "Spinal Tap" and "A Mighty Wind" An amazing talent !
Anyone still watching in 2023?
2024
March 2024 ● Hello there. 👋
It’s 2024, and I’m loving the Folksmen as much as ever!
@@davidsthubbins176 same.
And mitch and mickey.
The New main Street singers can go to hell lol
yes
Just came across this years later, but it was still fun to watch. Whether they're the Folksmen or Derek Smalls, David St Hubbins and Nigel Tufnel in Spinal Tap, these guys are talented musicians as well as funny men.
In agreeing I inadvertently took your likes to 11.
I dunno, as an old folk music enthusiast, this is a pretty good parody. Additionally, Mark Twain would have adored it. He loved bad poetry about disasters.
I love how Michael McKean's LENNY AND THE SQUIGTONES come up in the related videos who actually were a real music duo performing under that name prior to starring in those roles on the TV show LAVERNE & SHIRLEY (1979 - 1984). Harry Shearer played with the group prior to the show and Christopher Guest played on the 1979 album LENNY AND THE SQUIGTONES credited as Nigel Tufnel, the character Guest would play in THIS IS SPINAL TAP in 1984.
These three are nothing short of absolute geniuses.
"Combines the three into one fast moving diddy", LOL that's so funny, I love their work, both as Spinal Tap and as The Folksmen, they're brilliant.
The Folksmen once opened for Spinal Tap and got booed off the stage. The audience didn't realize it was them.
Hard to believe that bassist Harry Shearer turns 80 in December 2023. His acting credits as a child start in 1956. Appeared on "Leave It To Beaver" when he was just 13.
I replayed this more times than I will ever confess to.
I CAN'T WATCH THE FOLKSMEN WITHOUT SMILING THE WHOLE TIME. TALENTED, FUNNY...GEEZ!!
I think the closest approximation is the Kingston Trio--I think that group was the main inspiration for this group in 'A Mighty Wind'. What a great movie!
Kingston Trio and Peter Paul and Mary (Alan Barrows = Peter Yarrow)
I went to a couple folk music conferences in the past- their act is so accurate it’s almost hard to tell it’s satire.
Awesome actors, singers, songwritters, musicians. Wow, those guys are awesome.
I don't even care that this is one big innuendo. This is a great song.
Come again? Did you just say " in yer end-o?"
Heard this on the car radio ages ago, and it game me chills. Remembered the lyrics "i'll stop that iron horse" out of the blue today and googled it, so glad to finally know the name of the song and the band.
there comedians and still can play their instruments , half the modern music industry fake their live shows , shows the madness we live in
Spinal Tap still rocking it.
I always imagined Johnny Cash covering this song if he were alive then.
At a slower tempo.
You could run it through AI now and get cash to sing it
Great musicians and actors !
“Old 97 got in the wrong hole” ... priceless.
That’s what she said.
Masterpiece of songwriting and performance.
What makes this work, and I mean the whole Spinal Tap and Mighty Wind bit is that they actually care about, and like the music. They might be playing characters, but the music isn't an act. They know how it works. That makes all the difference.
Perfect send-up. Amazing that these are are songs written for the film by Guest-McKean-Shearer, et al. Brilliant, whether you love or despise folk music.
These guys and Spinal Tap should go back on tour
Two years gone by no joint tour - given the rumors of intense rivalry there never will be.
@@echowit I heard this all started when they found out that Alan Barrows and Nigel Tufnel accidentally married the same woman. That's some twisted business there, only in the music industry I guess.
Good, old-time, rabble-rousing, pinko, labor song.
The Folksmen or Spinal Tap?
Either way comedy genius aided by wonderfully skilful and intelligently composed music with sharp, whitty lyrics.
FANTASTIC.
Great use of double entendre :). when ole' 97 went in the wrong hole, that pretty much gave it away.
Man I saw these guys at Woodstock, if it wasn't for the beige acid I took I'd remember if they were good or not.
"i'll stop that iron harse" love it
Thank you!!!!!
OMG Chuck, that electric guitar, and the mic...
Yup, they amped it up to 11.
These guys were true musical geniuses. Forget Hendrix, Page,Van Halen, Jeff Beck, Mickey Dolenze.......these guys are the real deal. Spinal Tap and the Folksmen should be in the Rock n Roll hof.....posthumously.....so to speak. 4:16
Lol, this is like every tragic Nova Scotian folk song combined into one.
Goddamn them all!
"Old 97 got in the wrong hole." Yeah, there's usually a bit of trouble when that happens.
Oh dear god no
....now there's blood on the coal......
@@gtbones ...blood on the coal...
Shows how much the audience appreciated these guys... not a peep during the song
they were horrified ~
three improv giants walk into an improv show and the audience is impressed.
Shannon....is that you?
I noticed there came a point from where they were clapping along at the beginning to actually listen to the lyrics and story.
Watched the movie again last week and can't seem to get their songs out of my head ever since. I just can't possibly think this is a parody band.
Mohammad Elayan I rented the movie ONLY because of them.
I’ve had Old Joe’s Place stuck in my head all afternoon
The best parody bands are indistinguishable from the real thing.
Just keep in mind this song is actually about doing it in the butt until your anus bleeds.
At the end, Mark Shubb advises, "Blood on the coal... don't let it happen to you."
Fantastic! I have been looking for this song all over the Internet ever since seeing it on MAD TV.
Thank you.
Folk music is broad enough to include satires of itself. Yes, the Folksmen are singing folk music, and doing it well! The Folksmen are hardly the first people to use folk music to parody folk music, especially many of the overly serious, self-important "protest" songs of that 1960s.. Back in the '60s, Tom Lehrer wrote and sang a number of satirical songs about folk music that are now classics.
I love how they lead into their performance with a sense of lighthearted, almost nerdy irony, and then end up performing an intensely somber folk melody.
The audience is transformed from a mental state of petty bathos to respectful state of introspective contemplation.
Shakespeare was right, "life is a stage."
The song is about sodomy.
And ALL the people are ( baked ) hams !!!
Michael McKean is amazing
I will never understand how that happened... each group rocks so much...
A terrible time, indeed! Talk about understatement
It would stand to reason that he would, since he IS the voice of Principal Skinner
Song absolutely slaps.
The Folksmen - Blood on the Coal Lyrics
Artist: The Folksmen
Album: A Mighty Wind
Heyo! SONGLYRICS just got interactive. Highlight. Review: RIFF-it.
RIFF-it good.
It was April 27 in the year of 91
Bout a mile below the surface and the warm kentucky sun
The late shift was ending and the early shift was late.
The foreman ate his dinner on a dirty tin plate
(Chorus:)
Blood on the tracks, blood in the mine,
Brothers and sisters what a terrible time.
Ole 97 went in the wrong hole,
Now my number 60 has blood on the coal,
Blood on the coal, blood on the coal.
The slag pits were steamin' it was 7: 25,
Every miner worked the coal face,
Every one of them alive
The train came round the corner,
You could hear the tressel groan,
But the switcher wasn't listnin' so he left the switch alone!
(Chorus)
The walls began to tremble and the men began to yell,
You could hear that lonesome whistle like an echo out... well
They dropped their picks and shovels and to safety they did run,
For to stay among the living in the year of 91!
(Chorus)
An Irishman named Murphy said "I'll stop that iron horse!"
And he stood to thrwart it's passage,
And it crushed him dead of course.
And I hope he hears the irony when e're this tale is told,
The train that took his life was burning good
Kentucky coal, Hey!
(Chorus)
Unfortunately we're not authorized to show these lyrics.
But…you did.
I had no idea people of this caliber would also be doing something like this... so cool.
Original and fresh...even after 20+ years since 'Tap
This is almost as good as a Gordon Lightfoot song.
Or vice versa.
The bassist IS infact Harry Shearer, right?
Nah, it's Seymour Skinner
No, it’s Harold Balczak.
I thought it was Jefferson “Hairy” Sprouts
Dereck Smalls
Yezzir
that's him alright. Harry Shearer..man of a 1000 voices.. does a lot of voice on Simpsons besides Skinner.
Dm (d minor) the sadist of all keys...ha
That's It!
The "saddest," unless you want to torture someone with it...
Lick My Love Pump". Part Mozart, part Bach. Sorta Mach.
a mile below the surface in the warm kentucky sun! hahaha
Why was there blood on Nichole? Is she okay? These guys are EXCELLENT! I wonder if they did more tunes….I love this!
A Mighty Wind is the movie this comes from, so yes. There is also a 2 1/2 hr video of Spinal Tap Unplugged out there, which is awesome and features Folksmen songs as well. Get it if you can find it! ❤
They filmed a cut scene for A Mighty Wind outside my apartment building in the West Village in 2002; I got all their autographs on a Mojo magazine (wish I could find it).
I work at a Railroad Museum, and it can be hard to remember it's not a mining museum, the two are so intertwined.
"...and it crushed him dead, of course."
☠️☠️☠️
I love that the "men" busted out the deep cuts!
This song is a great companion piece to “The Ballad of Harry Warden.”
They're almost unrecognizable when their in character!
*They're
This must be before the base player transitioned. Lol! What a great song!
The Original Mockumentary "This is Spinal Tap" still tracks today. 🤘
Outstanding -
I have to admit, I am still bitter when I hear the Folksmen play. I was arrested at one of their first concerts for cooking bacon on a wood burning pot belly stove I smuggled into the arena. I would have shared, but they tackled me too quickly.
Oh, yeah. With just a little bit of dialing down, these tunes would have passed muster, back in the day. Even the producers were taken aback at peoples' reactions. "Hey, WAIT a minute, you're not supposed to LIKE this stuff!"
I know this is a joke, but it's better than most of the stuff from the folk boom.
Harry Shearer has such a cool voice
You can almost hear him doing Principal Skinner in the beginning.
A very good live version.
Don't let it happen to You.
It's good to see Spinal Tap's softer side. ; )
3:41 He was really feeling that "good Kentucky coal" line. I cant blame him, it goes fairly hard.
Awesome song!
"Let's get the Six-Fingered Man from the Princess Bride, Lenny from Laverne and Shirley, and Mr. Burns from the Simpsons together in a folk band! It's gold, baby!"
Just an aside, but Chris Guest is one of the few British actors I can think of whose American accents are _never even slightly_ faulty.
Awesome.
One thing I find endlessly amusing about the Folksmen on MADtv, is that in the mid 80s, Spinal Tap was the musical guest on an episode of Saturday Night Live.
Brilliant.
I was there. Mine #60. There's STILL blood the coal..
Poor Harry always looks completely ridiculous, but in a new way each time.
The happy clapping subsided as they got drawn into the story
Fricking awesome.
They're kind of derivative of the early folk work of Spinal Tap.
Harry Shearer looks exactly like the guy on the old website "Global Village" about 20 years back, posting videos to teach you how to play the double bass. That guy was not Harry, but the likeness is uncanny, especially with the double bass!
Awesome
@tiggerfan1968 You're awesome! Thanks so much! Been listening to this song all week and wanted to know that.
@terrorseed Peter, Paul, & Mary and The Kingston trio are a couple of my favs.
When I first heard this song all of those years ago, I thought that Johnny Cash, if he were around, he would have covered it.
yes. and in spinal tap as well.
im a true fan