Famous FIRST RECORDING of the famous HOBO Fantasy song of the Land Of Cockaigne

Hobo Mac Harry McClintock singing and playing guitar

Original version of the Hobo song BIG ROCK CANDY MOUNTAINS, written and sung by the chronicler of American hobo songs, Harry "Mac" McClintock. This was recorded in 1928. Lots of hobo slang in this tune.

Recorded 6 September 1928 The Hollywood Bowl, Hollywood, CA - Harry McClintock [gt/vcl solo/whistling] Born Harry Kirby McClintock in Knoxville, TN [1882 - 1957] aka "Haywire Mac"

Mac  – The Bum Song - No. 2 / The Big Rock Candy Mountains

Label:
Victor – 21704
Format:
Shellac, 10", 78 RPM

Country:
US
Released:
Nov 1928
Genre:
Folk, World, & Country
Style:
A  The Bum Song - No. 2
B  The Big Rock Candy Mountains
Record Company – Victor Talking Machine Co.
Pressed By – Victor Pressing Plant, Oakland
Written-By – H. McClintock*
Artist is listed as "Mac (Harry McClintock)".



A side (mx. BVE-46453-2) recorded Hollywood, CA, September 6, 1928.
B side (mx. BVE-46454-2) recorded Hollywood, CA, September 6, 1928.

The Talking Machine World, November 15, 1928, page 124: "List for November 16."

Orig Issue Victor Scroll10" 78 rpm record

Condition:

NEEDLE DROP ON Big Rock! VERY GOOD PLUS PLUS unworn but rubbed, BUT Big Rock has two needle drops/ stressed groove at start. First one causes skip, second one causes 3 clicks, otherwise plays E- very quiet light hiss.

Still a GREAT  COPY


"Big Rock Candy Mountain" is a song about a hobo's idea of paradise - a modern version of the medieval concept of Cockaigne, and similar to the fishermans' concept of Fiddler's Green.

History
The song is generally recognized as a turn of the century hobo ballad based on An Invitation to Lubberland, but authorship is also generally attributed to Harry McClintock since earlier written evidence of the song is not known. As a result, the song's copyright status is also in dispute. There are secondhand reports that McClintock attempted to enforce a copyright on the song but lost his lawsuit; in that case the song is in the public domain. Without further verification it must be assumed that the song is copyright by Harry McClintock.

The song was first recorded in 1928 by Harry McClintock, also known as Haywire Mac. It is probably best remembered for its recording by Burl Ives in 1949, but it has been recorded by many artists throughout the world. The most popular version, recorded in 1960 by Dorsey Burnette, reached the Billboard top ten.

The punk rolled up his big blue eyes
And said to the jocker, "Sandy,
I've hiked and hiked and wandered too,
But I ain't seen any candy.
I've hiked and hiked till my feet are sore
And I'll be damned if I hike any more
To be buggered sore like a hobo's whore
In the Big Rock Candy Mountains.

Harry McClintock (October 8, 1882 - April 24, 1957), also known as "Haywire Mac," was an American country music composer and labor organizer, best known for his song Big Rock Candy Mountain (which was in the movie O Brother, Where Art Thou?), as well as his ballad, "Hallelujah, I'm a Bum". He was also credited as being the first person to sing in public "The Preacher and the Slave" , a song by Joe Hill. He was a lifelong member of the Industrial Workers of the World. In the early 1920's he worked and organized union men in the oil fields of west Texas, where he met and recruited writer Jim Thompson who later incorporated him into several short stories using the name "Strawlegs Martin." McClintock was from Knoxville, Tennessee. Having worked as a cowboy himself, McClintock was one of the few "country" singers who had an authentic background to draw from.

Hobo is a term that refers to a subculture of wandering homeless people,[1] particularly those who make a habit of hopping freight trains. The iconic image of a hobo is that of a downtrodden, shabbily-dressed and perhaps drunken male, one that was solidified in American culture during the Great Depression. Hoboes are often depicted carrying a bindle and/or a sign asking for money/work/food.

Hoboes differentiate themselves as travelers who are homeless and willing to do work, whereas a "tramp" travels but will not work and a "bum" does neither.