I Wish I Was a Mole In the Ground
- I Wish I Was a Mole In the Ground
Infobox Song
Name='I Wish I Was a Mole In the Ground'
Caption=
Type=
Artist=Bascom Lamar Lunsford
alt_artist=
Album=
Published=1924
Released=
Recorded=
Genre=Roots and Folk music
Length=
Writer=
Composer=traditional
Label=General Phonograph Company
Producer=
I Wish I Was a Mole In the Ground is a traditional American folk song. It was most famously recorded and archived in the Library of Congress by Bascom Lamar Lunsford in 1924. It has also been recorded by many other performers. [ Folk Music - An Index to Recorded Resources [http://www.ibiblio.org/keefer/m10.htm#Molinthg Mole In the Ground] ]
As stated in his own words within his recordings, Mr. Lunsford considered himself an archivist and never took credit for this song or any songs he recorded. He traveled the western mountains of North Carolina and learned this song from the "locals" as it was his goal and passion to archive songs that he heard growing up for historical reference.
The song is sometimes known by one of its verses, "Tempie let your hair roll down", and is the basis for the campfire song "I Wish I Was a Little Bar of Soap"
Literature
The song is mentioned by Salman Rushdie's character Ormus in his work, "The Ground Beneath Her Feet". [cite web |last=Rollason |first=Christopher |title=Rushdie's Un-Indian Music: The Ground Beneath Her Feet |page=8 |format=web article |url=http://72.14.205.104/search?q=cache:ukvJrnY1urcJ:www.geocities.com/athens/oracle/6752/rushdie.pdf+%22Mole+in+the+Ground%22+Rushdie&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us |accessdate=2008-09-27]
The author Greil Marcus cites the song as a perfect example of nihilism in his book "".
Recordings
* Bascom Lamar Lunsford on Anthology of American Folk Music Smithsonian Folkways 1952
* Cisco Houston
* Patrick Sky "Two Steps Forward, One Step Back"
Published Versions
* Rise Up Singing page 147
References
* Roud 4957
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