Utah Phillips - singer, songwriter, activist, raconteur and unionist

[gogo]

Utah Phillips - singer, songwriter, activist, raconteur and unionist

Aidin Vaziri, Chronicle Staff Writer

 

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

 

Bruce "U. Utah" Phillips, the Grammy-nominated folk singer known for his bushy white beard, tireless tour schedule and equally tireless work for social justice, died of congestive heart failure Friday at his home in Nevada City. He was 73 and had been having health problems in recent years.

 

Mr. Phillips rose to prominence on the folk scene with the single "Moose Turd Pie," a song from his 1973 debut album "Good Though!" That song was about serving moose feces to fellow laborers during the time Mr. Phillips worked as a cook in a railroad gang. With a career that lasted four decades, the songwriter most recently collaborated with Ani DiFranco on the 1999 album "Fellow Workers." The two were nominated for a Grammy in 2000 for best contemporary folk album.

 

Born in Cleveland, Ohio, on May 15, 1935, Mr. Phillips ran away from home as a teenager. He took the name U. Utah Phillips in tribute to musician T. Texas Tyler, and spent several years living as a stowaway on trains, an experience he documented in many of his songs. He settled in Nevada City 21 years ago.

 

Family spokesman Jordan Fisher Smith told the Associated Press that Mr. Phillips had been suffering from chronic heart disease since 2004. His health forced him to cut back on roadwork after nearly 40 years of extensive touring. But the singer stayed close to his fans through a folk music radio show, podcasts and blog posts by his son, Duncan.

 

While an irrepressible comedian onstage, Mr. Phillips took his social commitments seriously. A brief stint in the Army that included a tour of Korea in 1956 inspired his work with the peace movement. For a while, Mr. Phillips was a railroad tramp, drinking heavily and ending up in a homeless shelter in Salt Lake City operated by an anarchist.

 

The son of labor organizers, he ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate from Utah on the Peace and Freedom Party ticket in 1968. He also made a run for the presidency in 1976. Later, he founded the Peace and Justice Center in Nevada City and helped start the Hospitality House, a local homeless shelter.

 

"He was a man who was amazingly funny," Smith said. "And what I saw in the last two years of his life was a human being even more beautiful than he was in performance."

 

Mr. Phillips is survived by his wife, Joanna Robinson, three children of his own and two stepsons.

 

Funeral arrangements will be announced.

[Dreamin']

Very sad news. I was fortunate enough to see him perform at the Vancouver Folk Festival a few years ago. R.I.P.

[Golden Smoghead]

Pacifica ran an interview with him from 2004 this morning, seems to have been a good soul. RIP

[markosis]

That is horrible news. Although I never saw him, his collaborations with Ani DiFranco were very inspiring and moving for me. RIP.

[LouieB]

I saw Utah a couple times including a benefit that the Wobbies (IWW, before they left Chicago) put on for some striking child care workers, one of whom is now my wife. Utah has been ailing for many years sadly and I think there was a benefit for him here recently. In fact I think he has been ill the better part of the last couple decades. He was one of the greats, without being flashy or self promoting.

 

One of the last great anarchists as well as a great musician and particularly a great story teller. partictularly about trains, hobos and politics. (I did not know he was actually from Cleveland.....pretty funny.)

 

LouieB

[dannygutters]

shoot, he's one of the guys I had hoped to see before he died. Good songs. Check out the live recording 'Rebel Voices'.

 

Utah taught me that,

 

A Long memory is the most radical idea in America.

 

"Time is an enormous, long river, and I'm standing in it, just as you're standing in it.

My elders are the tributaries, and everything they thought and every struggle

they went through and everything they gave their lives to, and every song they

created, and every poem that they laid down flows down to me - and if I take

the time to ask, and if I take the time to see, and if I take the time to reach

out, I can build that bridge between my world and theirs. I can reach down

into that river and take out what I need to get through this world."

[markosis]

/\ Hell yes.

 

I dig the part about "decade packaging" as a journalistic tool to decrease awareness about important events and important ideas. Also (reciting from a speech to a graduating college class):

 

"You are about to be told once again that you are America's most valuable natural resource......Have you seen what they do to valuable natural resources? Have you seen a strip mine, have you seen a clear cut in the forest, have you seen a polluted river? They're gonna strip mine your souls, they're gonna clear cut your best ideas for the sake of profit, and the profit system follows the path of least resistance, and the path of least resistance is what makes the river crooked."

 

(it sounds funnier on cd, with the audience laughing and all)

[LouieB]

Bruce wrote a few folk standards including "Rocksalt and Nails,"

"Starlight on the Rails," "Green Rolling Hills of West Virginia" (Analogman you there??) and "Daddy' What's a Train". But my favorite part of his repetoire were the old union songs, particularly those from the Little Red Songbook or Hallejujah I'm a Bum and Dump the Bosses off your Back. I guess I am old enough and nostalgic enough that I wish there were more singers of those kinds of songs now. Times have changed. Few people have posted here which seems to be an indication of how unknown he has become. I once also saw him with songpartner Rosalie Sorrels I believe, or maybe I just think I did (I have seen both); I have a vague recollection of this show at Holsteins on Lincoln Ave (just down the street from where Lounge Ax ended up), but I am not sure if I saw each of them there separately or together.....so it goes.

 

LouieB

[jc4prez]

Bruce wrote a few folk standards including "Rocksalt and Nails,"

"Starlight on the Rails," "Green Rolling Hills of West Virginia" (Analogman you there??) and "Daddy' What's a Train". But my favorite part of his repetoire were the old union songs, particularly those from the Little Red Songbook or Hallejujah I'm a Bum and Dump the Bosses off your Back. I guess I am old enough and nostalgic enough that I wish there were more singers of those kinds of songs now. Times have changed. Few people have posted here which seems to be an indication of how unknown he has become. I once also saw him with songpartner Rosalie Sorrels I believe, or maybe I just think I did (I have seen both); I have a vague recollection of this show at Holsteins on Lincoln Ave (just down the street from where Lounge Ax ended up), but I am not sure if I saw each of them there separately or together.....so it goes.

 

LouieB

 

You right Lou there aren't enough people singing those kinds of songs these days.

 

 

This is from Democracy Now the other day

http://www.democracynow.org/2008/5/27/utah..._legendary_folk

[CortezTheKiller]

I saw Utah a couple times including a benefit that the Wobbies (IWW, before they left Chicago) put on for some striking child care workers, one of whom is now my wife. LouieB

The Wobblies are still around?

[LouieB]

You right Lou there aren't enough people singing those kinds of songs these days.

 

 

This is from Democracy Now the other day

http://www.democracynow.org/2008/5/27/utah..._legendary_folk

Nice article by DN. Great network there...

 

 

The Wobblies are still around?

Nothing ever disappears any more...don't you know....

 

The event I am refering to took place in 1975 I believe, maybe even the winter of 74 since frankly alot of that part of my life is starting to run in together. The Wobs were still based in Chicago at that point. I believe some time in the 1980s they moved to the more politically aware city of Portland Oregon (someone can try and find out the exact information, in this case I am close enough time and geography wise) and kind of took on some new energy; now they even represent some workers (Starbucks among others....a friend's son who is an anarchist punk out in Portland has worked with them on some campaigns of some sort.) I mean yea, even in the 1970s the Wobs were a bit of an anacronism, but what a nice, but strange group they were. They supported the picket line (as did I) that lasted from morning into 11 PM. We actually would stand around and sing and stuff. Somewhere I have a woodcut poster of Joe Hill that they were producing during those years. There is a trememdous amout of nostalgia attached to the IWW and singers like Utah. Everyone should own a copy of this just for those rare occasions when you want to get motivated...It appears that the national office is now in Cincinnati, Ohio, not Portland. The Wobs were always traveling organizers....

 

LouieB

[CortezTheKiller]

Nice article by DN. Great network there...

 

 

Nothing ever disappears any more...don't you know....

 

The event I am refering to took place in 1975 I believe, maybe even the winter of 74 since frankly alot of that part of my life is starting to run in together. The Wobs were still based in Chicago at that point. I believe some time in the 1980s they moved to the more politically aware city of Portland Oregon (someone can try and find out the exact information, in this case I am close enough time and geography wise) and kind of took on some new energy; now they even represent some workers (Starbucks among others....a friend's son who is an anarchist punk out in Portland has worked with them on some campaigns of some sort.) I mean yea, even in the 1970s the Wobs were a bit of an anacronism, but what a nice, but strange group they were. They supported the picket line (as did I) that lasted from morning into 11 PM. We actually would stand around and sing and stuff. Somewhere I have a woodcut poster of Joe Hill that they were producing during those years. There is a trememdous amout of nostalgia attached to the IWW and singers like Utah. Everyone should own a copy of this just for those rare occasions when you want to get motivated...It appears that the national office is now in Cincinnati, Ohio, not Portland. The Wobs were always traveling organizers....

 

LouieB

I actually own a copy of The Little Red Songbook. I belt out "Overalls and Snuff" on a nightly basis. I'm in the process of designing a course examining 20th century working-class protest music. I've read quite a bit recently about Joe Hill and the I.W.W. From a scholarly perspective, they sort of fell off the radar during WWI. So I was surprised to see a reference to them. Good stuff. Thanks for posting.

[LouieB]

There isn't any way that the Wobblies can be construed as much more than an anacronism in this day and age. I suppose they survived (where groups like the Knights of Labor didn't) because they steadfastly refused to compromise and they believed in an ideology that was on the fringe not only of its own time (even up to WWI as you mention), but certainly now. They have nothing really in common with what we now think of as trade unionism. But some people will always be drawn to these ideas and eschew the general cynicism of the age, or simply want to harken back to a simpler time.

 

The vision of the wandering organizer, not tethered to an "organization" standing up for ALL workers rights, not compromising with the boss, believing in free speech, and also believing in the ablility of workers to organize around their true needs and not those invented by outsiders, seems as quaint now as a horse and buggy (or the vinyl record... ) Glad someone here is interested in talking about this. The IWW was part of my political background (I was never a real member, but one in spirit I suppose), and even now it makes me somewhat suspicious of organized labor (of which I AM a member) to really represent workers. We now live in a society where everyone is an individual and the idea that we are part of a larger, amorphous group, is a concept that is lost.

 

My father regularly sang Joe Hill when I was growing up (he was a horrible singer..), but I knew about Hill from an early age. Many years ago here we had a long thread on whether music could change the world. Most people said that was just plain stupid, music can't change anything. But songs like Joe Hill, Which Side Are You On, We Shall Overcome, etc, were vital links to various kinds of stuggles that kept the hope of followers alive. Music may not change the world, but it sure helps ease the pain. Now we just think of music as recreation and entertainment.

 

further edit-

I really have to go to work, but Utah did a wonderful album called "We Have Fed you all for a Thousand Years" on Aural Tradition Recordings (out of Vancouver) in 1981. It is a live album of a bunch of thes kinds of songs. It captures both the spirit and sound of these songs quite well. I am glad it still sits on my self, mostly unplayed, but I suppose I should give it a spin in Utah's honor and rememberance.

 

Okay, now to go off to work. Solidarity forever ....

 

LouieB

[Dreamin']

Okay, now to go off to work. Solidarity forever ....

 

LouieB

 

Music can change the world, in ways that are both personal and profound. A few years ago, when I was organizing my workplace (we were successful!), one of the first things I did was make a mix tape of songs that would inspire us to keep going when the going got tough. I played it in my car on the way to and from work every day. I wore a union button on my coat. I held meetings at my home (so that management couldn't "crash" them). It was one of the most exciting times in my life. A real "peak experience" as the humanistic psychologists used to say.

[LouieB]

 

Music can change the world, in ways that are both personal and profound. A few years ago, when I was organizing my workplace (we were successful!), one of the first things I did was make a mix tape of songs that would inspire us to keep going when the going got tough. I played it in my car on the way to and from work every day. I wore a union button on my coat. I held meetings at my home (so that management couldn't "crash" them). It was one of the most exciting times in my life. A real "peak experience" as the humanistic psychologists used to say.

First off congratulations on being successful. It is getting harder and harder and has been for the last 30 years. What union are you with or are you independent?

 

As I look back on my life (sounds like I am really really old which I am not), my union experience is certainly one of the most important and worthwhile experiences of my life (the union is still there), which included a trip to the NLRB, some protracted negotiations, a three week strike in the middle of winter, and some real gains on salaries and benefits. Feeling like you actually experienced some collective successes that will impact more than just yourself is an incredible rush. These days people rarely get to feel that.

 

LouieB

[jc4prez]

The IWW was part of my political background (I was never a real member, but one in spirit I suppose), and even now it makes me somewhat suspicious of organized labor (of which I AM a member) to really represent workers. We now live in a society where everyone is an individual and the idea that we are part of a larger, amorphous group, is a concept that is lost.

 

 

Just because the concept was lost doesn't make it wrong. Our government works very hard to suppress labor unions.

 

Have any of you read Howard Zinn's "Peoples History Of The United States".

 

 

I'm currently working on Ralph Nader's campaign team here in Illinois; one of his main issues is repleaing the Taft-Hartley anti- union law. Check it out: http://www.votenader.org/issues/taft-hartley/

[Dreamin']

First off congratulations on being successful. It is getting harder and harder and has been for the last 30 years. What union are you with or are you independent?

Thanks, Lou. Things might be a little easier for us north of the border, but I do remember that the laws in my Province changed (to make it harder) a few years ago. I think we only needed 51% of employees to sign union cards to be certified. Now, I think a majority vote is required as well.

 

I was with the BC Government and Service Employees' Union when I worked at a non-profit community services agency. Now, I belong to an independent union made up of faculty and staff at a public post-secondary institution. (Some of our most active members teach in the School of Business! haha)

[LouieB]

Just because the concept was lost doesn't make it wrong. Our government works very hard to suppress labor unions.

 

Have any of you read Howard Zinn's "Peoples History Of The United States".

 

[/url]

Not wrong....simply one that no longer has much currency. Anarcho-syndicalism is not only hard to spell and pronounce it is also total foreign to most people.

 

I have read parts of Zinn's book as well. It was de rigueur back in the day. It is an interesting take on US history.

 

Meanwhile I refuse to talk about Ralph Nader, it will only turn into an ugly argument.

 

LouieB

[jc4prez]

Not wrong....simply one that no longer has much currency. Anarcho-syndicalism is not only hard to spell and pronounce it is also total foreign to most people.

 

I have read parts of Zinn's book as well. It was de rigueur back in the day. It is an interesting take on US history.

 

Meanwhile I refuse to talk about Ralph Nader, it will only turn into an ugly argument.

 

LouieB

 

 

Regardless of how you feel about him running, he makes a lot of good points. And the one about the Taft Hartley Union Act is one point.

[LouieB]

Regardless of how you feel about him running, he makes a lot of good points. And the one about the Taft Hartley Union Act is one point.

No disagreement there. Even Utah voted last time out (for the first time in his long life) and he always said "If voting would change anything it would be illegal" (a philosophy I subscribed to when I was your age), but stopping a third Bush term needs to be more important this time out (it should have been more important the 1st and 2nd time out for Nader but it wasn't), than quibbling over the fact that politicians are in the back pockets of special interests. All that goes without saying, but at least Obama would be more to our liking than John McCain. Nader can't win, but Obama can.

 

LouieB

[CortezTheKiller]

LouieB - A couple of books I just finished that you may want to check out (if you haven't already):

Guerrilla Minstrels

Rhythm and Resistance: The Political Uses of American Popular Music

[jc4prez]

No disagreement there. Even Utah voted last time out (for the first time in his long life) and he always said "If voting would change anything it would be illegal" (a philosophy I subscribed to when I was your age), but stopping a third Bush term needs to be more important this time out (it should have been more important the 1st and 2nd time out for Nader but it wasn't), than quibbling over the fact that politicians are in the back pockets of special interests. All that goes without saying, but at least Obama would be more to our liking than John McCain. Nader can't win, but Obama can.

 

LouieB

 

Are there not more then two sides to every story? We have more then two brands of toothpaste, hell there are more then two brands of viagra. Nothing is black and white; so then why are we only given two options when it comes to politics? We have a duopoly in this country.

 

I've spoken to Nader personally and the reason he won't back out is because the democrats aren't a better option then the republicans. There is much more wrong with this country then Obama address.

 

Nader brings to the table what I (and many others) believe to be the most important issues this election. Yet none of the major party candidates properly address them. Here are his main points (which none of candidates are taking on): http://www.votenader.org/issues/

 

 

 

I will say that it is inspiring to see many americans beginning to show an interested in politics. Hopefully the interested doesn't die down after November.

 

ETA: Sorry to hijack the thread. Lou, if you want to discuss this any further feel free to shoot me a PM.

[LouieB]

ETA: Sorry to hijack the thread. Lou, if you want to discuss this any further feel free to shoot me a PM.

This is not hijacking this thread because it is about anarchism and voting, etc. something Utah had plenty of opinions about. Utah also believed completely in free speech and you are more than welcome to vote for Nader for the first time or the third is you so choose. But choices do come with consequences and by time number three most people, even progressives, radicals, anarchist, communists, or any other leftwinger should have figured out that a vote for Nader is a vote for the Republicans. (My opinion remember...) Okay so Obama (or Gore and particularly Kerry) is still the candidate of the establishment Democratic Party which means he comes with all sorts of mainstream baggage. All true!! But we KNOW the baggage that John McCain comes with, including being able to keep stuffing right wing justices on the Supreme Court to roll back out freedoms...OUR FREEDOMS. So while Obama may not do everything he is talking about (and frankly Nader could do it either since Congress still has to legislate most of what goes on) and perhaps Obama won't be able to do everything he is promising either as chief of the executive branch either, we know pretty well what McCain will do and that should be troubling to even the furthest of leftists.

 

Support Nader if you wish (his credibility is pretty well shot), but remember your actual vote for him hurts Obama and helps McCain. It is pretty simple arithmetic. If the last election even got Utah Phillips to the polling place, he must have really seen something he didn't like. (Endless war and an errosion of personal freedoms among other things...)

 

LouieB