Man On The Levee
Lyrics, Music, and Performance by Michael McNevin
Many years ago, on 4th of July in Sacramento, California, I heard a black man playing jazz trumpet on the Sacramento River Delta. The song I’ve written about that experience is titled Man on the Levee. It’s about celebrating life while playing on the delta breeze. In this song, the Sacramento breeze has now become the breeze of the Mississippi Delta. The trumpet takes on the tone of a civil war bugle. The fireworks, and the battlefield smoke, goes Blue and Grey, colors of the uniforms of the North and South. The song goes back further; centuries of fighting for freedom, repeating history, all the way back to Moses. The last verse is contemporary; peace time, folks in their lawn chairs enjoying fireworks in the Sacramento sky. It’s a patriotic song for soldiers of war (no matter which war), and it’s a song of being together as a country celebrating freedom. And most importantly, this song is meant to recognize this particular black jazz musician, and his perspective on what his family and ancestors have gone through to obtain freedom. Freedom means different things to different people. I wrote this song a long time ago. I think it remains relevant to this day.
The Bandcamp Link of Man on a Levee
https://michaelmcnevin.bandcamp.com/track/the-man-on-the-levee
The Lyrics to Man on a Levee
There's a man on the levee blowin' trumpet all night
Bounces off the water like a moth off a light
The old Sacramento feels like the Mississippi might
A warm delta breeze, fly a soul like a kite
Full moon, silver dollar, throw a light on the drift
Play a tune for Big Muddy deep and wide as a wish
Play one for the homesick too long on a trip
One reason to leave, one reason to live
And who's barely beginning to make it all right
The man on the levee blowin' trumpet all night
Battlefield smoke on a hill, Blue and Gray
They all fall down when the bugler plays
Play one for the stretcher, one for the brave
One for the life of a cotton field slave
And who's barely beginning to make it all right
The man on the levee blowin' trumpet all night
They say every swan in England belongs to the Queen
No matter where they're swimming, every pond every stream
And if they want their freedom, they better hide in the reeds
Like Moses in the Bulrushes, Martin Luther in a dream
4th of July all the neighbors come out
With their lawn chairs and children, see the colors rain down
No rifles, no cannons, just old cornfields now
Where the old folks remember how freedom came south
And who's barely beginning to make it all right
The man on the levee blowin' trumpet all night
The man on the levee blowin' trumpet all night
© Michael McNevin. All Rights Reserved
credits
Michael McNevin - Vocals and Acoustic Guitar
Larry Jonutz - Trumpet
Bruce Kaphan - Dobro
Paul Olguin - Upright Bass
Rich Kuhns - Accordion
Mary Kelly - Background Vocal
Recorded and Produced by Bruce Kaphan in Niles CA, 2000.
© Michael McNevin. All Rights Reserved
Michael McNevin / Mudpuddle Music
Web: www.michaelmcnevin.com
Email: info@michaelmcnevin.com
P.O. Box 2235 Fremont CA 94536
Photo by Dennis Andersen Photography
Michael McNevin writes songs that read like short stories. Seasoned vocals, accomplished guitar work, and vivid lyrics paint pictures of the characters and places of his travels, and of his roots in the train town of Niles, California, in the SF East Bay hills. He’s shared concert bills with Johnny Cash and The Carter Family, Shawn Colvin, Donovan, Richie Havens, and he’s been a main stager at some of the bigger music festivals around including Strawberry, High Sierra, Kerrville, Philly Folk, and SummerFolk, and he’s played thousands of solo shows throughout the US and parts of Europe. He is a winner of the Kerrville New-Folk award in Texas, 8-Time West Coast Songwriter “Song Of The Year” award, and chosen “Top 12 DIY Artist Of The Year” by The Performing Songwriter magazine. He's also placed 3rd at the Troubador Competitions at both Telluride and Rocky Mountain Folks Fests in Colorado. Michael also owns and operates The Mudpuddle Shop, a creative hive on Niles Blvd, now in it’s 15th year. From songwriter concerts and workshops, jams and gatherings, the ‘puddle’ has hosted hundreds of concerts and cattle calls for touring artists and local musicians. His original Etch A Sketch drawings hang on the walls, waiting for an earthquake.
http://www.michaelmcnevin.com/
The Youtube Video of a Rough Live Version of Man on a Levee
Performed by Michael McNevin, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOqUQt29bZY
You can support Michael with tips on Paypal or Venmo too:
PayPal.me/MudpuddleMusic
Venmo.com/MichaelMcNevin
Thanks for tipping, its how i make a living!