Songs:80 Acres (75992)

From WWR

Contents 1 Trivia, story behind the song, etc. 2 Lyrics 3 Listener comments about 80 Acres (75992) 4 Tags

Trivia, story behind the song, etc.

• • when my wife and I bought our old farm, I became fascinated with the deed-- this leather-bound document with the names of all the landowners who'd ever called this piece of ground "home". It dates back to the mid-1800's and the first owner was Bailey Needham. I began to try to imagine who some of these people were-- what brought them here, why they left.... And then, when we got the keys from the seller, Dortha Starnes, she told us the thing she'd miss more than anything about the place was walking the boundary line (on an old 80 acre farm, that's a quarter mile by a half mile). That for me, was the last piece of the puzzle to finish the song.... (from Tim Grimm's website)

Lyrics

   80 Acres (Tim Grimm)

    It's been five hundred seasons since the feet of Bailey Needham
    walked this ground and deemed it a place to settle down
    and in his eyes was purpose and in his hands was fire
    and in his heart he knew somehow that this was hallowed ground

    So with some determination and a one-man crosscut saw
    Bailey cleared a cabin site early in the call
    He felt a peace within him as he came to work and toil
    with care and understanding growing values in the soil

    (chorus)
    And everyday at sunrise, he'd walk the boundary line
    and on little bits of paper, he'd make notes from time to time
    and he came to know the seasons and he came to know the land
    and he swore no place that he would rather be
    than walkin' through the tall grass
    nearer my God to thee

    William Gresham had a daughter, her name was Cora Logan
    a wide-eyed girl of wonder and recent wife of James
    when William died he left her the deed to 80 acres
    and the wisdom of tradition to survive Depression's pains

    So with 10 fine cows, a flock of hens and buildings straight and true
    her sons would hoe the corn with her and pick blackberries too
    the water in their springs would run the whole year Ôround
    and her husband's handmade hickory chairs were favorites in the town

    (chorus)
    And every day at sunrise, She'd....

    Well I don't pretend to own it, but this paper says it's mine
    this farm is a long memory runnin' back in time
    through the generations, whose hopes were not in vain
    to live a life in harmony, I hope to do the same

    With history in our favor, we've set out on a course
    and the ghost of Bailey Needham is a gentle guiding force
    though what we do and how we live might seem against the grain
    freedom is finding beauty in the simple and the plain

    (chorus)
    And every day at sunrise We...

 

    © 2000 Steel Cabinet Publishing BMI

Listener comments about 80 Acres (75992)

Tags

The information below this box is from the Whole Wheat Radio databases and cannot be changed by editing this page. You can add to or edit everything above this box by clicking the "edit" link in the row of tabs at the top of the page. To add music to the library see information for artists.

80 Acres by Tim Grimm SONG
on the album Heart Land Buy Tim Grimm at CD-Baby Heart Land	Request this song: 80 Acres (Only logged in and authenticated users can make requests.) Overall rating: (5 votes) Your rating: You have to login to give your opinion about songs. Length: 5:41 Times played: 11 People hearing: 299 Times requested: 2 First played: May 12th, 2004 Last played: Feb 10th, 2008 Previously played: Sep 14th, 2007 Song ID#: 75992	Listener rankings: 5 stars=Dale G 4 stars=sparx ♦ Jim ♦ Firewalk ♦ Kelli