Today’s post was written by Paul.
Bob Amos, formerly the front man for the bluegrass band Front Range, is possibly the most underrated writer of acoustic music in the last 30 years.
After Front Range disbanded, Bob put out a solo album called Wherever I Go on the Hayden’s Ferry label in the late 90’s or early 2000’s. Every song on the album was great.
“Mr. Beford’s Barn” was my second favorite track on that album, behind “Be Thou My Vision.”
I hadn’t thought of “Mr. Beford’s Barn” in many years, but I was recently reminded of it thirteen months ago (indirectly) by a young handyman who visited Granny’s house to see about fixing her kitchen floor.
He was in his early 20’s and was immediately taken with Granny and engaged in conversation with her. He told her how well-built her house is and that her floor would be fine indefinitely and didn’t actually need fixing. Granny beamed with pride as she told this young man that Pap built the house, as well as most of the other houses in the holler where we live.
In the conversation, the handyman said that he and his wife bought a house in the Ranger area that was built in 1879, that they were remodeling it and would raise a family in it. I asked him if the house was built with nails or wooden pegs. He said that it was built with pegs and that structurally, it was very strong and sound. My mind immediately went back to the beautiful song written by Amos.
Perhaps because I had such a close relationship with my own father, there are parts of the song that almost bring me to tears, mainly the line: “and he said, as his eyes looked far away, build it right, and it will last forever and a day.” The song never explicitly says so, but it just seems so clear to me that the old man is repeating what his father told him while they were building the barn.
Bob Amos lives and performs around 20 minutes from where my nephew, Mark, lives with his wife and sons in New Hampshire. Mark (who is a big fan of Mr. Amos’ music) said that he would go see Mr. Amos perform and meet him in person, but he is too intimidated.
Mr. Amos still performs music regularly, often with his lovely daughter. You can find them on YouTube.
Another masterpiece that Mr. Amos wrote is “The Hills that I call Home.” You can hear me and Pap sing it here.
Pap and I also really liked the Amos original “Fergus County Jail.” You can hear us give it a stab here. My nephew Mark is in the middle playing the mandolin.
Paul
Original singles released on Spotify.
Shepherd of My Soul (Album released in 2016).
The Wilson Brothers Words of Life Album released in the 70s.
Thank you so much for sharing this song. It is beautiful. And perfect. It might be my new most favorite.
What a beautiful song and how perfectly you sang it. Thank you for sharing! You and the girls should take a road trip up to CT and take Mark to meet up with Mr. Amos. It would be a wonderful thing if you all performed together. Blessings to you and the family.
I’m a day late and a dollar short, but wonderfully well done. It was back when Daddy was well up in his 90s that I ran across a poem by Red Steagall wrote and is the title of a book of his poetry, “The Fence that Me and Shorty Built.” I don’t recall whether he had a web site at the time or how it was that I got ahold of him, but I ordered pair of copies – one for Daddy and one for me, and I must’ve told him something about Daddy and how that poem reminded me of his way of doing things. In Daddy’s copy, he inscribed “To Commodore, who taught his children how to build their fences straight.”
Here is Red doing a wonderful job of framing and reciting his poem:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wx9FADTUlwY
How can I buy a mug
Lisa, we sell them in our Etsy shop, but are currently sold out. Here’s the link: https://www.etsy.com/shop/BlindPigAndTheAcorn We will have more available in a month or so. Thank you!
Beautiful ❤️
Beautiful
I’m so impressed with your family’s talents & skills. My son & grandson are the only members of our family who can build/fix anything. My son learned from is paternal GrandPa & passed it on. I so wish I could. Can’t imagine the sense of accomplishment & pride that must come from building your own home. You guys are amazing.
Wow great song! The other 2 songs were with your Dad was priceless! Enjoyed all three!
Wow great song!
You remind me so much of James Taylor on this song!
I just loved this song, the story behind it, and the story of Granny and the handyman. My hubby built our log cabin with his own two hands from top to bottom. The only things he hired someone for was laying the blocks for our basement and building our rock chimney. He still worked with the man that we hired the whole time…mixing the cement by hand in a wheelbarrow, and carrying blocks and rocks. He would get up early in the mornings, shingle the roof, and then go to work in the coal mines on afternoon shift. Then he would work on it every weekend all day long. Friends and neighbors would stop by and help a bit, and to see how the house was coming along. I cooked and kept anyone that stopped to help him fed. I often wonder if our children will sell our house someday, as they both have homes of their own. Maybe one of the grandchildren will want it. Either way, it will have served its purpose. I think it will be one of those homes that are still standing far into the future, as it was built that way. I also love big old barns. They just give me a good feeling when we drive by one. I am not sure exactly what it is…I just know I really enjoy looking at them. Thank you, Paul, for the lovely song!!
Your home sounds so special, Brenda! I hope it can stay in your family. Thank you for sharing about it with us.
Paul, you did an awesome job with this song, beautiful, thank you!
Ron, your explanation is perfect. I love reading the Bp&A daily and I love reading everyone’s comments just as much. Even though we will never meet in this earth, I pray one day we will all have a BP&A reunion in our heavenly home, I’d love to meet you all who bring me so much enjoyment!
Good morning Paul, Tipper and Acorns. I have built 3 houses with my bare hands, re-roofed 2 and remodeled one. It is hard, rewarding work when it is done right. All 3 of the ones I built are still standing. The first one was built in 1977 when I was 19. That year I also helped our county and State start the Senior Centers that are in every county in TN and the USA. When I was 18 I helped start our county library. When I was in my late 20’s I moved north of Dallas, Tx and had the opportunity to help with the start-up of the children’s program Barney at our church in Allen ,TX. I turned my benefits over to the school and children’s church project. It’s not the places that I think about but the people’s lives that are enriched by what I did.
Barbara, you are such an interesting lady and I am amazed at all you have done in your life! I really enjoy your posts 🙂 Warmly, Allie
A wonderful story of Granny and her handyman – and how he was honest about her floor not needing repairing – and his story about his own home. I enjoyed the song Paul – thanks for sharing.
I’m really enjoying the story song series. There is an old barn at my homeplace that is still standing. I always enjoy seeing it if I am in the area. I also enjoy riding in the country and seeing old barns standing proudly in a field. They indeed don’t make things like they used to.
Paul, I loved the story of the young man who shared how well built Pap & Granny’s house is. Really touching. I actually very much enjoyed all of your writing today. It gave me a nostalgic feeling many times.
This morning we are buried in already 14” of snow with it still coming down heavily. Some
places we have drifts well over 3 feet because much wind is accompanying this storm. It’s only the fourth time we have had a blizzard warning here in Western WI since 2006 according to the local news station. The snow makes me think of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s depictions in her books. I enjoy her books very much! The drifts are so high we will have to shovel our way out.
I feel sorry for those who work in factories and are first responders etc and have to go out in this. It’s really not safe to travel, but I know some will have no choice. We are snug and warm by the woodstove and plan on just hunkering down. The high this Thursday is 51 here so it will melt fairly quickly.
Have a blessed Sunday, Acorns!
Oh Allie- I can’t believe you have that much snow! It is so warm here today in WV but the wind is howling. Stay safe and warm!
Thank you so much, Brenda! ❤️ Our total so far is 22” not counting the deeper drifts! It’s really been something!
Paul I loved the story of “Mr Beford’s Barn.” Isn’t it rare to have a repairman tell your floor doesn’t need repair because it was built so well. What a good, honest young man. Who couldn’t be taken with Granny? She was a treasure! Blessings
I think there is in any of us a desire and hope to leave something enduring behind us. We tend to think of material things as markers of a life well lived but our life experience points strongly in a different direction; toward the non-material. The whole BP&A community; makers, readers and commenters, consistently leads to relationship as the more enduring. At it’s heart, even the barn builder was about the relationship with his Dad; the barn being a symbol a reminder and a material way to touch that past. All of this tells me again and again that we poor human can never be satisfied with material alone. There is a part of us that hungers for a different kind of fulfillment. And I am convinced it is simply love. I wish I could express it better, as Bob Amos did, but I am stuck with myself. (I know I am a trial to some people and to myself sometimes as well. Smile)
Ron, I am not as gifted as you are in expressing myself with words, I think you did a good job of expressing how I feel about my relationship with my son, two grandsons, other family members and friends. I hope and pray when I am gone I will have shown all of them and will leave no doubt that I loved all of them. The materials things I leave behind won’t amount to much, but what I did during the DASH between the two dates on my headstone is very important to me.
A great song and a wonderful story about Granny and the handyman. Keep the story songs coming, please!
Well done, Paul. After that I listened to you and Granny singing “If That Isn’t Love”, and that really was beautiful. God Bless and I pray y’all have a great week ahead.
Happy Sunday! Lots of good information and good music!
I really enjoyed that song, Paul. In a time when nothing seems to be well built or last very long this song makes me reminiscent of the old days.
Paula, I agree with you. Make or build it fast, sell it at a high price, throw it away when it breaks is today’s way of doing many things, I can show you many homes and other building in my area that probably 100 years old or older. Last week a 2 story house was framed and put “in the dry” in 5 days. This was done using “stick lumber” nothing prefab. It was built on cement slab.
Even the roof was stick built? It rare these days to see a house go up without using prefabricated trusses. Back in the late 60s and 70s when I worked as a carpenter nobody had even heard of roof trusses.