The Fabulous History of the Churchill Falls Barrel Races-Jay Munly

[00:00.00][Spoken] [00:00.05]Papa never said much but now Papa say, "It is best so." [00:05.00]Though I'm not certain because after he speak, our mama cleared her throat [00:12.12] [00:20.08]Come on! [x16] [00:28.18] [00:38.16]Yeah he had drag us all over these Americas [00:41.69]From Buenos Aires up to Billings, Montana [00:46.88]Today we’re in the southern states of America [00:49.86]Somewhere, somewhere, working in some iron cave [00:55.30]My papa had his pick axe propped above his head [00:59.74]And without another swing, he heard that voice [01:04.41]And he heard what is said, and he cried out [01:08.44] [01:08.96]Christ, oh not again [01:17.53]He dropped his pick axe right there on the cave floor [01:21.26]Headed on up out and made a left turn [01:26.75]That’s north east to you and I [01:30.43] [01:30.69]My 13 years old sister she gathered up the rest of the family [01:35.24]To see what our papa was going this time, this time [01:39.44]We got outside, we could tell by the hitch in his walk [01:43.91]By the stoop in his shoulder [01:47.62]By the angle of his mining boots [01:50.18]He was going back home [01:53.11]Back home to Labrador [01:56.42]Where we were welcome no more [01:58.41] [02:00.94]And she called [02:02.09]Christ, we gotta stay right here [02:09.56]We got places here [02:14.55]We cannot disappear [02:19.59] [02:20.12]Yeah the whole family got caught up in his hullabaloo [02:24.77]Picking up those mining rocks whipping them at my papa [02:30.33]My sister, she took her pick axe [02:33.28]Tried to spade it through my father’s back [02:36.60]But she missed cause she throws like a woman [02:40.44]But my sweetheart, my mama, she took off her iron necklace [02:46.94]And she cranked my father in the back of the head [02:50.24]He slowed down, and with a sweep of his great right arm [02:55.64]He swept up all these articles [02:59.67]He swept up that pick axe [03:01.42]He swept up them mining rocks [03:03.45]He swept up that iron necklace [03:06.09]And he put ‘em in his sack [03:08.65]He headed back to Labrador [03:10.85]Where we were welcome no more [03:13.04]Back home to Labrador [03:14.89]Where we were welcome no more [03:16.44] [03:16.85]Come on! [x16] [03:26.94] [03:29.50]Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he went to Buffalo, New York [03:35.24]He came to Montreal, spoke to some of my relations there [03:41.59]He made a left turn at Trois-Rivières [03:47.89]And he came to Churchill Falls [03:52.51]He looked 127 meters up into the sky [03:57.76]I don’t know your American conversion [04:01.84]And a blanch came over his face [04:05.34]And his decision was made [04:09.33]So he took out my sister's pick axe [04:15.66]Started hacking away at this maple tree [04:19.42]He cut 16 even pieces [04:22.73]Put them in a shape of a barrel [04:28.30]He started hacking away at the stump of this maple tree [04:32.30]To make a bottom for the barrel [04:37.31]He started hacking away at this stump of a maple tree [04:40.58]To make a top for the barrel [04:46.45]He put the barrel on his back [04:48.47]Hitched about a mile up Churchill River [04:51.18]Threw the barrel in the water, into the river [04:55.10]Threw himself into the barrel, into the water, in the river [05:00.19]And started floating down Churchill River [05:07.67]Inside the barrel, he came to Churchill Falls [05:13.02] [05:13.33]Went down [05:13.78]Down [x14] [05:21.51]And down [05:23.10] [05:23.34]He was a bit pissed off at the good fortune of his continued life [05:30.55]You see, he’d been making holes his whole life [05:37.71]Hiding down inside [05:40.74]And now this one he made from his daughter’s own pick axe [05:46.56]He made too well, too well [05:50.95]So he took this hole of a barrel [05:55.21]Propped it underneath Churchill River [05:57.61]Let it fill up with water from Churchill Falls [06:02.47]He took his rucksack [06:03.75]Emptied out the mining rocks [06:10.44]Put ‘em inside the barrel [06:11.69]He took that pick axe, put it inside the barrel [06:15.27]He took my sweetheart, my mama’s necklace wrapped around his wrist [06:21.72]He got inside that barrel [06:26.79]And he held that top of the barrel above his head [06:36.87]And the water sent him down! [06:39.09] [06:41.73]You see, there were all these people gathered around [06:47.01]To see what this man was doing at Churchill Falls [06:51.74]He was crouched down inside that barrel [06:56.47]Those mining rocks rubbing against his buttocks [07:04.82]That pick axe rubbing against his groin, rubbing against his chin [07:13.78]And that iron necklace wrapped around his wrist [07:18.02]And the people outside, they swore they heard my father say this [07:22.46]Immerse me full Fall River to deliver me my crimes [x2] [07:36.80] [07:41.87]Ladies and gentlemen [07:44.06]That is the fabulous history of the Churchill Falls Barrel Races [07:49.47]And to this day, the contestants of the barrel races [07:56.36]For some reason unbeknownst to them [08:00.88]They must wear an iron necklace around their wrist [08:04.23]And the caller of the race, he doesn’t call 1, 2, 3 [08:09.37]He doesn’t call "ready, steady, go" [08:11.12]He doesn’t call "on your marks" [08:14.00]But he calls this [08:16.82] [08:17.39]Come on [x16] [08:29.02] [08:29.33][Spoken] [08:31.42]Papa, where you goin' this time [08:34.11]Kept walking, with this hitch in his legs [08:38.26]My sister burn up [08:39.60]We gotta stay right here [08:42.18]Keeps on, with the northern angle to his boots [08:47.51]We gotta face this hell