The Big Red Song Book

Extract

In The Big Red Songbook, Archie Green, David Roediger, Franklin Rosemont, and Salvatore Salerno have thoughtfully documented twentieth-century Wobbly song in all of its foot-stompin' glory. In 1909, the Spokane branch of the International Workers of the World compiled twenty-four songs into a little red book called Songs of the Industrial Workers of the World, with the intention “to destroy the old myths that have enslaved us for so long. We will have songs that hold up flaunted wealth and threadbare morality to scorn, songs that lampoon our masters.” The Big Red Songbook documents all the songs of revolt from 1909–1973 (including many that were not included in the first go-round), provides extensive bibliographies and references, a discography, and even a glossary for decoding the “vernacular surrealisms” of hobo-slang and radical industrial unionism.