Sixteen Tons
Encyclopedia
"Sixteen Tons" is a song about the life of a coal miner
, first recorded in 1946 by American country
singer Merle Travis
and released on his box set album Folk Songs of the Hills
the following year. A 1955 version recorded by Tennessee Ernie Ford
reached number one in the Billboard
charts, while another version by Frankie Laine
was released only in the United Kingdom, where it gave Ford's version competition.
, a folk singer
and songwriter
who had been a Kentucky coal miner, claimed on a 1966 recording for Folkways Records
to have written the song as "Nine-to-ten tons" in the 1930s. Davis' recording of his version of the song appears on the albums George Davis: When Kentucky Had No Union Men and Classic Mountain Songs from Smithsonian.
According to Travis, the line from the chorus "another day older and deeper in debt" was a phrase often used by his father, a coal miner himself. This and the line "I owe my soul to the company store" is a reference to the truck system
and to debt bondage
. Under this scrip
system, workers were not paid cash; rather they were paid with non-transferable credit vouchers which could be exchanged for only goods sold at the company store. This made it impossible for workers to store up cash savings. Workers also usually lived in company-owned dormitories or houses, the rent for which was automatically deducted from their pay. In the United States the truck system and associated debt bondage persisted until the strikes
of the newly formed United Mine Workers
and affiliated unions forced an end to such practices.
recorded Sixteen Tons in 1955 as the b-side of his cover of the Moon Mullican
standard, "You Don't Have to Be a Baby to Cry
". It hit Billboard
s Country Music
charts in November and held the #1 position for ten weeks, then crossed over and held the number 1 position on the pop music
charts for eight weeks, besting the competing version by Johnny Desmond
. In the United Kingdom, Ford's version competed with versions by Edmund Hockridge
and Frankie Laine
. Laine's version was not released in the United States but sold well in the UK: it was released on October 17 and by October 28 had sold 400,000 copies. On November 10, a million copies had been sold; two million were sold by December 15. The Platters
recorded another early cover in 1957.
The song has been covered by a wide variety of musicians:
Also:
Television
Films
Stage
Parodies and inspirations
In Russia
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
, first recorded in 1946 by American country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
singer Merle Travis
Merle Travis
Merle Robert Travis was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and musician born in Rosewood, Kentucky. His lyrics often discussed the life and exploitation of coal miners. Among his many well-known songs are "Sixteen Tons", "Re-Enlistment Blues" and "Dark as a Dungeon"...
and released on his box set album Folk Songs of the Hills
Folk Songs of the Hills
Folk Songs of the Hills is Merle Travis's classic collection of traditional songs from his native Muhlenberg County, Kentucky, including original compositions evoking working life on the railroads and in the coal mines. Each song, accompanied by Travis on his own acoustic guitar, is introduced by...
the following year. A 1955 version recorded by Tennessee Ernie Ford
Tennessee Ernie Ford
Ernest Jennings Ford , better known as Tennessee Ernie Ford, was an American recording artist and television host who enjoyed success in the country and Western, pop, and gospel musical genres...
reached number one in the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
charts, while another version by Frankie Laine
Frankie Laine
Frankie Laine, born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio , was a successful American singer, songwriter, and actor whose career spanned 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to his final performance of "That's My Desire" in 2005...
was released only in the United Kingdom, where it gave Ford's version competition.
Authorship
While the song is usually attributed to Merle Travis, to whom it is credited on his 1947 recording, George S. DavisGeorge S. Davis
George S. Davis , known as The Singing Miner, was a folk singer and songwriter who worked as a coal miner, and then as a disc jockey on local radio in Hazard, Kentucky from 1947 until 1969.-Career:...
, a folk singer
Folk Singer
Folk Singer is a 1964 album by Muddy Waters. Waters plays acoustic guitar, backed by Willie Dixon on string bass, Clifton James on drums, and Buddy Guy on acoustic guitar...
and songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
who had been a Kentucky coal miner, claimed on a 1966 recording for Folkways Records
Folkways Records
Folkways Records was a record label founded by Moses Asch that documented folk, world, and children's music. It was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution in 1987, and is now part of Smithsonian Folkways.-History:...
to have written the song as "Nine-to-ten tons" in the 1930s. Davis' recording of his version of the song appears on the albums George Davis: When Kentucky Had No Union Men and Classic Mountain Songs from Smithsonian.
According to Travis, the line from the chorus "another day older and deeper in debt" was a phrase often used by his father, a coal miner himself. This and the line "I owe my soul to the company store" is a reference to the truck system
Truck system
A truck system is an arrangement in which employees are paid in commodities or some currency substitute , rather than with standard money. This limits employees' ability to choose how to spend their earnings—generally to the benefit of the employer...
and to debt bondage
Debt bondage
Debt bondage is when a person pledges him or herself against a loan. In debt bondage, the services required to repay the debt may be undefined, and the services' duration may be undefined...
. Under this scrip
Scrip
Scrip is an American term for any substitute for currency which is not legal tender and is often a form of credit. Scrips were created as company payment of employees and also as a means of payment in times where regular money is unavailable, such as remote coal towns, military bases, ships on long...
system, workers were not paid cash; rather they were paid with non-transferable credit vouchers which could be exchanged for only goods sold at the company store. This made it impossible for workers to store up cash savings. Workers also usually lived in company-owned dormitories or houses, the rent for which was automatically deducted from their pay. In the United States the truck system and associated debt bondage persisted until the strikes
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
of the newly formed United Mine Workers
United Mine Workers
The United Mine Workers of America is a North American labor union best known for representing coal miners and coal technicians. Today, the Union also represents health care workers, truck drivers, manufacturing workers and public employees in the United States and Canada...
and affiliated unions forced an end to such practices.
Cover versions
Tennessee Ernie FordTennessee Ernie Ford
Ernest Jennings Ford , better known as Tennessee Ernie Ford, was an American recording artist and television host who enjoyed success in the country and Western, pop, and gospel musical genres...
recorded Sixteen Tons in 1955 as the b-side of his cover of the Moon Mullican
Moon Mullican
Aubrey Wilson Mullican , known as Moon Mullican, was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and pianist. However, he also sang and played jazz, rock 'n' roll and the blues...
standard, "You Don't Have to Be a Baby to Cry
You Don't Have to Be a Baby to Cry
"You Don't Have To Be A Baby To Cry" is a 1963 single by British girl group duo The Caravelles. The single reached #3 in the Billboard Hot 100 in America, and a more modest #6 in the UK Singles Chart. The song had previously charted in the US by Ernest Tubb and Tennessee Ernie Ford."You Don't Have...
". It hit Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
s Country Music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
charts in November and held the #1 position for ten weeks, then crossed over and held the number 1 position on the pop music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
charts for eight weeks, besting the competing version by Johnny Desmond
Johnny Desmond
Johnny Desmond , born Giovanni Alfredo De Simone, was a popular American singer.-Early years:...
. In the United Kingdom, Ford's version competed with versions by Edmund Hockridge
Edmund Hockridge
Edmund Hockridge was a Canadian baritone and actor who had an active performance career in musicals, operas, concerts, plays, and on radio...
and Frankie Laine
Frankie Laine
Frankie Laine, born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio , was a successful American singer, songwriter, and actor whose career spanned 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to his final performance of "That's My Desire" in 2005...
. Laine's version was not released in the United States but sold well in the UK: it was released on October 17 and by October 28 had sold 400,000 copies. On November 10, a million copies had been sold; two million were sold by December 15. The Platters
The Platters
The Platters were a vocal group of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound was a bridge between the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the burgeoning new genre...
recorded another early cover in 1957.
The song has been covered by a wide variety of musicians:
- 1955 Sung live by Elvis Presley in his early '50s concerts, but never recorded.
- 1960: Bo DiddleyBo DiddleyEllas Otha Bates , known by his stage name Bo Diddley, was an American rhythm and blues vocalist, guitarist, songwriter , and inventor...
released a version on his album Bo Diddley Is a GunslingerBo Diddley Is a GunslingerBo Diddley Is a Gunslinger is the fifth album by American rock and roll pioneer Bo Diddley released in December 1960 by Checker Records. The album title comes from the album's first track called "Gunslinger" and the cover art has Bo Diddley dressed in Western-style clothing. The songs for Bo...
. - 1960: The song was released in SpanishSpanish languageSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
by the CatalanCatalan peopleThe Catalans or Catalonians are the people from, or with origins in, Catalonia that form a historical nationality in Spain. The inhabitants of the adjacent portion of southern France are sometimes included in this definition...
singer José GuardiolaJosé GuardiolaJosé Guardiola, is a Spanish singer of popular music who sang in Spanish and Catalan. He did mostly Spanish versions of foreign songs and reached his maximum fame in Spain and Latin America in the early 1960s with versions of songs like Sixteen Tons, Mack the Knife and Ya Mustafa... - 1964: Louis Neefs, Belgian singer, played and recorded the song live in BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
- 1966: Stevie WonderStevie WonderStevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...
recorded a version influenced by Motown and soul musicSoul musicSoul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of... - 1967: Tom JonesTom Jones (singer)Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...
's version with a rock edge, on his album Green, Green Grass Of Home - 1972: A blues-rockBlues-rockBlues rock is a hybrid musical genre combining bluesy improvisations over the 12-bar blues and extended boogie jams with rock and roll styles. The core of the blues rock sound is created by the electric guitar, piano, bass guitar and drum kit, with the electric guitar usually amplified through a...
version was recorded by CCSC. C. S. (pop group)Collective Consciousness Society, more commonly known as CCS, were a British musical group, led by blues guitarist Alexis Korner.Formed in 1970 by musical director John Cameron and record producer Mickie Most, CCS consisted largely of session musicians, and was created primarily as a recording outfit... - 1973: Jerry ReedJerry ReedJerry Reed Hubbard , known professionally as Jerry Reed, was an American country music singer, innovative guitarist, songwriter, and actor who appeared in more than a dozen films...
recorded a version for his Hot A' Mighty! album - 1976: A country rockCountry rockCountry rock is sub-genre of popular music, formed from the fusion of rock with country. The term is generally used to refer to the wave of rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s, beginning with Bob Dylan and The Byrds; reaching its greatest...
version by the Don Harrison BandDon Harrison BandThe Don Harrison Band were a 1970s American roots band that featured Don Harrison on vocals, guitar and keyboards, Stu Cook on bass and piano and Doug Clifford on drums and percussion. Stu Cook and Doug "Cosmo" Clifford were both former members of Creedence Clearwater Revival. Rounding out the...
made the lower reaches of the charts in Australia - 1986: A version by English punk band The RedskinsThe RedskinsThe Redskins were a 1980s English band, notable for their left-wing politics and catchy, danceable songs. Their music combined influences from soul, rockabilly, pop and punk rock.- History :...
on their 1986 album Neither Washington Nor Moscow - 1986: Anna DominoAnna DominoAnna Domino is a Tokyo-born indie rock artist who has released several albums under that moniker, notably for Les Disques du Crepuscule and Factory Records. Notable performers Domino has collaborated with include The The, Blaine L. Reininger and Virginia Astley. She is also one half of the duo...
covered the song on her eponymous 1986 album - 1987: Johnny CashJohnny CashJohn R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
released a countryCountry musicCountry music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
version on his album Johnny Cash Is Coming to TownJohnny Cash Is Coming to TownJohnny Cash Is Coming to Town is an album by American country singer Johnny Cash, released in 1987 , and his first for Mercury Records. It was re-released in 2003, paired with Boom Chicka Boom on a single CD... - 1987: Melbourne hip hop duo Mighty Big Crime released a hip-hop version.
- 1990: A rendition of the song by Eric BurdonEric BurdonEric Victor Burdon is an English singer-songwriter best known as a founding member and vocalist of rock band The Animals, and the funk rock band War and for his aggressive stage performance...
was used for the opening to the comedy film Joe Versus the VolcanoJoe Versus the VolcanoJoe Versus the Volcano is a 1990 comedy film written and directed by John Patrick Shanley and starring Tom Hanks and—in three roles—Meg Ryan. The film is writer Shanley's directorial debut and the first of three films pairing Hanks and Ryan....
. Recorded in the early 1980s, it was not released until 1998 on the album Nightwinds Dying. In 1992 he recorded another version, which was released as the only studio track on the live album "Access All AreasAccess All Areas (1993 album)Access All Areas is a live album by Eric Burdon and Brian Auger Band recorded in on May 10, 1993.-History:When they first met in 1991, Auger asked Burdon if he wants to play with him. Burdon agreed and they formed the "Eric Burdon – Brian Auger Band"...
" in 1993. - 1991: It was featured as a secret track on progressive thrash metal band ConfessorConfessor (band)Confessor is a doom metal band from North Carolina, USA. By their technically complex interpretation of traditional doom style, they are also well-known name within progressive metal circles...
's album Condemned - 1993: The Swedish doom metal band Memento MoriMemento Mori (band)Memento Mori was a Swedish doom metal band with power metal influences. The band was founded by Messiah Marcolin and Mike Wead in 1992 after Messiah left Candlemass. After two albums, however, Messiah left the band; the third album was sung by a different singer. For the fourth album, Messiah...
recorded a version of this song as a hidden track on their debut album Rhymes of LunacyRhymes of LunacyRhymes of Lunacy is the debut album by Memento Mori. It was released in 1993 by Black Mark Productions.-Track listing:# "The Rhyme" – 1:04# "The Seeds of Hatred" – 6:09# "Morbid Fear" – 4:19# "The Caravan of Souls" – 5:54...
. - 1995: TuffTuff (band)Tuff is an American glam metal band formed in 1985 in Phoenix, Arizona, by guitarist Jorge DeSaint and bassist Todd Chase . The band was completed with the arrival of drummer Michael Lean and short-lived vocalist Terry Fox, who left the band shortly afterwards to pursue an ice skating career...
, a hard rock band, released a cover version on their album Religious Fix - 1995: A traditional roots country version was released by Corb Lund on the album Modern Pain
- 1998: ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
band Hello DaveHello DaveHello Dave formed when singer/songwriter Mike Himebaugh picked up a guitar while in school at Eastern Illinois University. The band began playing small bars and frat parties on campus with members- Himebaugh, Frank Gerage and Pat Wagner...
did a rendition on their 16 Tons album. - 1998: HungarianHungaryHungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
rock band RepublicRepublic (band)Republic is a Hungarian rock band formed in Budapest in 1989. Their style is a unique mix of Western rock music and traditional Hungarian folk music. The band is popular in its native country and among Hungarian speaking minorities in other parts of the world....
recorded a cover version called "Tizenhat tonna feketeszén" ("16 tons black coal") on their album Üzenet (Message). - 1999: Serbian hard rock band Riblja ČorbaRiblja CorbaRiblja Čorba is a Serbian and former Yugoslav rock band. Their presence on the scene has lasted from 1978 to today. They reached their peak of popularity in the 1980s, but it has declined in the 1990s, partly due to controversial political attitudes of the band's leader Bora Đorđević...
recorded a cover version called "16 noći" (Trans. "16 nights") on their album Nojeva barkaNojeva barkaNojeva barka is the fourteenth studio album from Serbian and former Yugoslav rock band Riblja Čorba, released in 1999.... - 1999: A slow, jazzy version by Stan RidgwayStan RidgwayStanard 'Stan' Ridgway is an American multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter known for his distinctive voice, dramatic lyrical narratives, and eclectic solo albums and was the original lead singer of the band Wall of Voodoo...
appeared on the album Anatomy - 2005: A rock version released by EelsEels (band)Eels is an American indie rock band formed by singer/songwriter Mark Oliver Everett, better known as E...
was on their live album "Sixteen Tons (10 Songs) - 2007: Presidential candidate Dennis KucinichDennis KucinichDennis John Kucinich is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1997. He was furthermore a candidate for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States in the 2004 and 2008 presidential elections....
's rendition of the song on January 8 received fairly widespread TV coverage, and appeared on YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos.... - 2007: Lawrence "Lipbone" ReddingLawrence "Lipbone" ReddingLawrence "Lipbone" Redding is an American born songwriter, guitarist, singer, composer and performance artist. He is most noted for his ability to imitate accurately brass instruments and incorporate them into live musical performances. The name LIPBONE is a contraction of “Lip Trombone”...
covered the song on his album, Hop The Fence - 2010: Lance Guest, portraying Johnny CashJohnny CashJohn R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
, on the original BroadwayBroadway theatreBroadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
cast recording of Million Dollar QuartetMillion Dollar Quartet"Million Dollar Quartet" is the name given to recordings made on Tuesday December 4, 1956 in the Sun Record Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. The recordings were of an impromptu jam session among Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash. It was arguably the first... - 2011: Tom MorelloTom MorelloThomas Baptiste "Tom" Morello is a Grammy Award-winning American guitarist best known for his tenure with the bands Rage Against the Machine, Audioslave, his acoustic solo act The Nightwatchman, and his newest group, Street Sweeper Social Club...
, political activist and guitarist for Rage Against the MachineRage Against the MachineRage Against the Machine is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1991, the group's line-up consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commerford, guitarist Tom Morello and drummer Brad Wilk...
and The NightwatchmanThe NightwatchmanThe Nightwatchman is the alter-ego and solo act of Rage Against the Machine, Street Sweeper Social Club and former Audioslave guitarist Tom Morello...
; on the EP "Union Town", released by NewWest Records
Also:
- Brave ComboBrave ComboBrave Combo is a polka/rock band based in Denton, Texas. Founded in 1979 by guitarist/keyboardist/accordionist Carl Finch, they have been a prominent fixture in the Texas music scene for more than twenty-five years...
recorded a cumbiaCumbiaCumbia is a music genre popular across Latin America. The cumbia originated in the Caribbean coast of Colombia, where it is associated with an eponymous dance and has since spread as far as Mexico and Argentina...
version - RehabRehab (band)Rehab is an American Southern rock, country, and alternative hip hop band. The band has recorded seven albums, including two each for Epic Records and Universal Republic. They are mainly known for their 2008 hit, "Bartender Song "....
covered it on the independently released album Cuz We Can - RockapellaRockapellaRockapella is an American a cappella musical group formed in 1986 in New York City. Their name is derived from the words "rock" and "a cappella". They sing original vocal music and a cappella covers of pop and rock songs; over time, their sound has evolved from high-energy pop and world music...
recorded an a cappellaA cappellaA cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
version - This Bike is a Pipe BombThis Bike Is a Pipe BombThis Bike Is a Pipe Bomb was a folk-punk band from Pensacola, Florida, USA. Their first recording was released in 1997 on Ghostmeat Records. Their later releases have been on Plan It X Records and No Idea Records, but now appear on their own label Plan-It X South. This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb...
made a folk-punk version - A version called "靜心等" (Jìng Xi Deng, "Wait patiently") is a well-known hit in TaïwanTaiwanTaiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, interpreted by ChineseChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
singer 張露 (Chang Loo or Zhang Lu) and by Teresa TengTeresa TengTeresa Teng , was an immensely popular and influential Chinese pop singer from Taiwan. Teresa Teng's voice and songs are instantly recognized throughout East Asia and in areas with large Asian populations...
(鄧麗君, Deng Lijun).
In popular culture
Music- The ClashThe ClashThe Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...
used Tennessee Ernie Ford's version as their intro music for their 1980 US tour, called "The 16 Tons Tour". - Rock band Faith No MoreFaith No MoreFaith No More is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed originally as Faith No Man in 1981 by bassist Billy Gould, keyboardist Wade Worthington, vocalist Michael Morris and drummer Mike Bordin. A year later when Worthington was replaced by keyboardist Roddy Bottum, and Mike...
covered a snippet of the song as an intro to "Let's Lynch the Landlord" (another cover) at live concerts in the early 90's.
Television
- Ed SullivanEd SullivanEdward Vincent "Ed" Sullivan was an American entertainment writer and television host, best known as the presenter of the TV variety show The Ed Sullivan Show. The show was broadcast from 1948 to 1971 , which made it one of the longest-running variety shows in U.S...
suggested Bo DiddleyBo DiddleyEllas Otha Bates , known by his stage name Bo Diddley, was an American rhythm and blues vocalist, guitarist, songwriter , and inventor...
sing a version of the song for his 1955 appearance on Sullivan's television show. Instead, Diddley sang a rendition of his own song, "Bo Diddley," angering Sullivan. - The expression "16 Tons" was a recurring feature in Monty Python's Flying CircusMonty Python's Flying CircusMonty Python’s Flying Circus is a BBC TV sketch comedy series. The shows were composed of surreality, risqué or innuendo-laden humour, sight gags and observational sketches without punchlines...
- usually as a label on a large fake weight that would drop out of the sky onto one of the players. - The song appeared in season 5 of The SimpsonsThe SimpsonsThe Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
episode "Bart Gets an ElephantBart Gets an Elephant"Bart Gets an Elephant" is the seventeenth episode of The Simpsons fifth season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 31, 1994. In the episode, Bart wins a radio contest and is awarded an elephant named Stampy. After Stampy wrecks the Simpsons' house and eats all the...
". - In the South ParkSouth ParkSouth Park is an American animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the Comedy Central television network. Intended for mature audiences, the show has become famous for its crude language, surreal, satirical, and dark humor that lampoons a wide range of topics...
episode "Stupid Spoiled Whore Video PlaysetStupid Spoiled Whore Video Playset"Stupid Spoiled Whore Video Playset" is episode 123 of the Comedy Central animated series South Park. It was originally broadcast on December 1, 2004...
," Butters sings a variation of "Sixteen Tons" while mining for coal to avoid being sold to Paris HiltonParis HiltonParis Whitney Hilton is an American businesswoman, heiress, and socialite. She is a great-granddaughter of Conrad Hilton . Hilton is known for her controversial participation in a sex tape in 2003, and appearance on the television series The Simple Life alongside fellow socialite and childhood...
. Dressed as a bear, he is seen digging outside singing: "Ya work 18 hours whadaya get? Parents sell ya to Paris Hilton". - The song was played by the band The NighthawksThe NighthawksThe Nighthawks are an American blues and roots music band, based in Washington, D.C. The Nighthawks currently are Mark Wenner , Paul Bell , Johnny Castle , and Mark Stutso...
in season two of the crime drama The WireThe WIREthe WIRE is the student-run College radio station at the University of Oklahoma, broadcasting in a freeform format. The WIRE serves the University of Oklahoma and surrounding communities, and is staffed by student DJs. The WIRE broadcasts at 1710 kHz AM in Norman, Oklahoma...
. It was played in the bar that was frequented by the Stevedore's union. It was also featured on the soundtrack. - The Tennessee Ernie Ford version of the song was played during the closing credits of the "Seven Twenty Three" episode of the television show Mad MenMad MenMad Men is an American dramatic television series created and produced by Matthew Weiner. The series premiered on Sunday evenings on the American cable network AMC and are produced by Lionsgate Television. It premiered on July 19, 2007, and completed its fourth season on October 17, 2010. Each...
(Season 3, Episode 7, aired 2009), in which the show's lead character was strong-armed into signing a three-year employment contract. - In the American sitcom The Big Bang TheoryThe Big Bang TheoryThe Big Bang Theory is an American sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom serve as executive producers on the show, along with Steven Molaro. All three also serve as head writers...
Sheldon Cooper sings a line of the song in the Season 2 episode "The Work Song Nanocluster". - In 2005, General ElectricGeneral ElectricGeneral Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
ran a series of ads for its new "clean coalClean coalHistorically used to refer to technologies for reducing emissions of ash, sulfur, and heavy metals from coal combustion; the term is now commonly used to refer to carbon capture and storage technology...
" campaign featuring the song. - In the "Last Train to Oblivion" episode of the cartoon The Real GhostbustersThe Real GhostbustersThe Real Ghostbusters is an American animated television series based on the 1984 film Ghostbusters. The series ran from 1986 to 1991, and was produced by Columbia Pictures Television, DiC Enterprises, and Coca-Cola Telecommunications. "The Real" was added to the title after a dispute with...
, Peter Venkman sings this song as he shovels coal into the train furnace.
Films
- The song appeared during the opening credits of Joe Versus the VolcanoJoe Versus the VolcanoJoe Versus the Volcano is a 1990 comedy film written and directed by John Patrick Shanley and starring Tom Hanks and—in three roles—Meg Ryan. The film is writer Shanley's directorial debut and the first of three films pairing Hanks and Ryan....
. - It was also used in the undersea horror movie Leviathan.
- It appeared in the TaiwanTaiwanTaiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
movie The Wayward CloudThe Wayward CloudThe Wayward Cloud is a 2005 film directed by Tsai Ming-liang. The cast includes Lee Kang-sheng and Chen Shiang-chyi. The film was Taiwan's official entry for the 78th Academy Awards in the foreign-language category...
by Tsai Ming Liang in 2005. - Ümit Kıvanç used several versions of the song in his online movie 16 Tons - A movie about conscience and free market in 2011.
Stage
- "Sixteen Tons" is one of the many songs featured in the show Forever PlaidForever PlaidForever Plaid is an off-Broadway musical revue written by Stuart Ross in New York in 1990 and now performed internationally. The show is a revue of the close-harmony "guy groups" that reached the height of their popularity during the 1950s. Personifying the clean-cut genre are the Plaids...
, which premiered in 1992. - "Sixteen Tons" was sung by Lance Guest, portraying Johnny CashJohnny CashJohn R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
, in medley with "My Babe" sung by Robert Britton Lyons, portraying Carl PerkinsCarl PerkinsCarl Lee Perkins was an American rockabilly musician who recorded most notably at Sun Records Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, beginning during 1954...
, in the Broadway musical Million Dollar QuartetMillion Dollar Quartet"Million Dollar Quartet" is the name given to recordings made on Tuesday December 4, 1956 in the Sun Record Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. The recordings were of an impromptu jam session among Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash. It was arguably the first...
, which opened in on BroadwayBroadway theatreBroadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
in April, 2010.
Parodies and inspirations
- John DenverJohn DenverHenry John Deutschendorf, Jr. , known professionally as John Denver, was an American singer/songwriter, activist, and humanitarian. After growing up in numerous locations with his military family, Denver began his music career in folk music groups in the late 1960s. His greatest commercial success...
performed his golf-themed parody called 18 Holes in 1997. - The song inspired the Hungarian rock band RepublicRepublic (band)Republic is a Hungarian rock band formed in Budapest in 1989. Their style is a unique mix of Western rock music and traditional Hungarian folk music. The band is popular in its native country and among Hungarian speaking minorities in other parts of the world....
to write the song "16 tonna feketeszén".
In Russia
- In RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, the MoscowMoscowMoscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
concert venue Sixteen Tons is named after the song, which is played before each concert held in the club. The song has been famous in Russia since the Soviet era, but in the Platters' version. It was so influential that in the USSR several cover versions were made in Russian, as well as innumerable parodies in which "sixteen tons" referred to the weight of a bomb carried by some pilots to be dropped on a target country. There were versions with Americans about to bomb USSR, Russians about to bomb America, and also Russians about to bomb China. Lyrics tended to vary by performer.
External links
- Sixteen Tons - the history behind the legend
- West Virginia Historical Society Quarterly, Volume 15, Nos. 2 and 3, "Coal Miners and Their Communities in Southern Appalachia, 1925-1941" by Rhonda Janney Coleman.
- Part 1: http://www.wvculture.org/HiStory/wvhs1502.html
- Part 2: http://www.wvculture.org/HiStory/wvhs1503.html
- GE advertisement.
- Article describing GE campaign.
- Moscow club "Sixteen Tons"
- "Merle Haggard, He's Not," by L.H. O'Connor, May 28, 2011. http://www.roothogradio.com/2011/05/merle-haggard-hes-not/