Ain't Nothing But A Man

Was John Henry "Real" or "No Real"?

Most Americans of my generation and older are acquainted with the legend of John Henry -- that steel drivin' man who pitted human strength against a steam drill and won. He dropped dead, though, after his victory, so the songs and story goes.

I remember him, based on paintings or drawings in folklore and history books, as this massive, black man; heavy hammer raised high, ready to strike a spike into the railroad tracks. His claim was that he could do it faster and better than this new invention, the steam-powered drill. The classic story of Man against Machine.

John Henry told the Captain:

"A Man Ain't Nothing But A Man.
Before I Let Your Steam Drill Beat Me Down.
I'll Die With A Hammer In My Hand."

All legends, we are told, are based on some truth. I thought there might be some truth to the story but that it probably got embellished as it passed from people to people, region to region.

And, then, just recently at my local library, I came across a book on display, Ain't Nothing But A Man. My Quest To Find The Real John Henry (National Geographic, 2008). It was in the children's section and I thought it would be a good book for my younger daughters. However, after reading it, I see it might be more suited for middle schoolers and above. Written by Scott Reynolds Nelson, a professor of history at Williams & Mary College in Williamsburg, VA., the book is a detective-like account of how the author searched for, compiled, and analyzed material and stories that led him to the "Real John Henry."

Yes, there was a real John Henry. In fact, Nelson wrote an adult book of his search, Steel Drivin' Man: John Henry: The Untold Story of an American Legend that won an award for being one of the best history books of 2006.

More than 40,000 African-American men built and repaired the train tracks that wind throughout the South. We see them in old photographs taken in the latter part of the 19th and early 20th centuries. I often wonder as I look at the photographs what life was really like for them.

Some of their stories come to us through their songs. As the hammer teams lined up track, hammered them in place and blasted through tunnels, they sang songs to keep in rhythm with the work. There are hundreds of versions of songs about John Henry, and as Nelson points out, some of them contain specific information. (Listen to a Smithsonian Field Recording of John Henry, 1947-48).

Studying the various versions of these songs, culling through old ledgers and engineering reports, exploring old railroad tunnels, finding a clue in an old post card and the uncovering by a contractor in the 1990s of 300 bodies buried in the sands of an old penitentiary led Nelson to Virginia where the "real" John Henry was laid to rest.

It's a fascinating and chilling story to read because Nelson uncovers information about the most likely cause of John Henry’s death and the message hidden in the legendary songs to other steel drivin’ men.

Incidentally, the lore of the legend of John Henry was so big in African-American communities that many boys were named after him. The name of my father’s oldest brother? None other than John Henry Martin.

War Against Women in The Congo

The decade-long war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo claims at least 45,000 lives a month, according to an article in The Guardian written last year.

A brutal and vicious aspect of that war has been the violence against women. During the Monday, Feb. 9, 2009 broadcast of Democracy Now, Amy Goodman interviewed Playwright, V-Day Founder Eve Ensler and Congolese Gynecologist Dr. Denis Mukwege, who are raising awareness on the war on women in the DRC.

It's shocking, heartbreaking, outrageous...but definitely a call to action.

As a son of a loving and inspiring mother who taught me respect for women and all human beings; as a husband of a loving, thoughtful and caring wife; as brother of four sisters and father of four daughters, I pledge to dedicate my time and resources to fighting violence and abuse (both physical and mental) of women -- the first teachers of man -- at home and abroad.

Also, in my blog, I will be highlighting the accomplishments of women throughout history from the ancient to the present.

Billy Elliot: Good In Whatever Country You See It

Back in 2007, when I attended a West End performance of Billy Elliot the Musical, a woman sitting next to meet at The Victoria asked whether Americans would appreciate the British humor and context of the musical when it arrived in the states. I indicated my appreciation, but I was an American in London, which would have suggested some brush with British culture. She raised a good question, something I’d wondered since hearing that the production would make its way to Broadway. Through its book and lyrics (Lee Hall), music (Elton John), the musical conveys a greater sense of the British class and culture out of which the story and Billy emerge than the film did. I wondered how a work with more background on the 1984 strike, which accelerated the death of the domestic mining industry, and jabs at Margaret Thatcher (“Merry Christmas Maggie Thatcher. We all celebrate the day, because it’s one day closer to your death”) would fare with an American audience unfamiliar with the strike.

No such barriers were on display at the matinee performance I saw Feb. 7, 2009. Americans laugh out loud at the Maggie Thatcher putdowns and other British-isms and are in awe over the talent displayed by Kiril Kulish, the Billy for that performance, and all the other young performers ( Frank Dolce as Michael and all the girls are stars in their own right). Okay, some attempts at the regional British accent are uneven and move in and out, but the producers are to be commended for not snipping out jokes or references. People who want to know what a pasty is (a meat and potato pie) can read the glossary (“The Miner’s Strike 101”) in Playbill. The London performance has a glossary, too.

Of course, there are some people who just don’t get theatre no matter where it comes from. In the women’s restroom I overheard a woman complaining because she had hoped the musical would end as the movie does, with Billy making that awesome stage entrance for Swan Lake. Anyone looking for the stage version to end like the film probably needed to stay home, get some popcorn, and pop in the DVD. It would have been cheaper. I won’t spoil things for people who may want to see the musical –I didn't tell anyone about this scene after I saw the show in 2007 –so I’ll just say there's an older Billy in a brilliant scene. It moves the story along in a splendid way.

I don’t know if I was aware of this the first time I saw the musical, but many people, myself included, find themselves shedding a few tears at points in the performance. We owe some of that to Elton John’s stirring music. His Once We Were Kings, which is sung by the miners as they go down into the mine after losing the strike, can make you want to go march with them – or march with somebody –even as it all seems futile. We’re happy for Billy but know that part of his story is the devastated people he is leaving.

Meeting Across the River

The half-time Super Bowl performance by Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band this past Sunday triggered memories of my first musical encounter with the Boss. I was a freshman at a small, liberal arts college in Connecticut during the fall of 1975 and my roommate borrowed this album – Born to Run -- from a friend. I recall the picture of Springsteen, guitar in hand, leaning on the back of his saxophone player Clarence Clemons, whose full body with saxophone extended to the back of the album cover.

I’m pretty sure we played the whole album and liked it. But it wasn’t the now famous songs Born to Run and Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out that stirred my emotions and imagination that night, although I enjoy the lyrics and music of those tunes. It was a song about a man who needed to get across the river – probably from New Jersey to Manhattan – to complete some murky deal with a man who you had to be careful around. So he turns to his friend Eddie for cash and, maybe, Eddie can get them a ride to the Meeting Across the River.

My roommate and I must have played the song several times, mesmerized by Springsteen’s laid back delivery accompanied by piano and the searching, haunting tone of the trumpet played by Randy Brecker. I could vividly see a man who probably had gotten himself in one too many bad deals and if this one didn’t pan out – “they ain't going to be looking for just me this time.”

Listening to a version of the song on YouTube the other day – a performance in 1977 by Springsteen with piano accompaniment – one of my sisters described it as “sweet, sad music.” Another sister, a jazz musician, noted the jazz influences and said the song shows “a mellow side” of Springsteen that she likes.

That it does. That it does. And in my memory I see two freshmen smiling, sitting in their dorm room, discovering the Boss for the first time.

"Hey, Eddie, can you lend me a few bucks
And tonight can you get us a ride
Gotta make it through the tunnel
Got a meeting with a man on the other side."