Folk Songs about Aging

Some are funny, some are serious.

Vance Gilbert \ Old Man's Advice \ Up On Rockfield \ Disismye
Cosy Sheridan \ Oren's Song \ Anthymn \ Wind River
Gene Autry\ That Silver Haired Daddy of Mine
Kitty Wells\ A Woman Half My Age
Tom Lehrer\ When You Are Old and Gray
Grateful Dead\ Touch of Grey
Hazel Dickens\ Old and In The Way
Rachel Sedacca\ Before I'm Old\ Patience Pays\ self
John Prine\ Fish And Whistle\ Great Days: Anthology [Disc 1]\ Rhino
Gordon Carter\ When You Get Old\ Rivers & Roads\ Self
Garrison Keillor\ As We Get Older\ The Family Radio (Disc 1)\ High Bridge
Freebo\ It Goes by Fast\ Before the Separation\ Self
John Prine & Mac Wiseman\ Don't Be Ashamed of Your Age\ Standard Songs for Average People\ Oh Boy
True North\ Too Old To Die Young\ Pluck\ Self
"Who Woulda Thunk It" by Greg Brown.

about Alzheimer's
"From His Window" by Johnsmith

Joe Crookston   -Dance and Sway
Norm Hacking\ Sammy\ Skysongs\ 3 Flamingos
John Gorka - People My Age
Jimmy Buffett - A Pirate Looks At Forty - You Had to Be There
John Eddie - Forty - Who The Hell Is John Eddie?
Merle Haggard - Footlights - Serving 190 Proof
Loudon Wainwright III - The Birthday Present - Grown Man
Bill Morrissey - Fifty - The Essential Collection
Ronny Elliot - Born In 1947 - Poisonville
The Beatles - When I'm Sixty-Four - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
The Weavers - My Get Up and Go - Together Again
Simon and Garfunkel - Old Friends - the essential
Cheryl Wheeler - 75 Septembers - Driving Home

Certified Senior Citizen \ MOSE ALLISON \ The Earth Wants You \ Blue Note
Tom Russell\ Bucking Horse Moon \ Indians Cowboys Horses Dogs
Cosy Sheridan\ Oren's Song\ Anthymn\ Wind River
Judy Small\ Fifty Something\ Mosaic\ Crafty Maid
Bill Morrissey\ Fifty\ The Essential Collection\ Rounder

The last thing on my mind, (Trainor) Hot Soup SOUP HAPPENS
Middle-aged body (with teenage emotions) Judy Fjell  DANCE IN THE MOMENT LP
This Train Still Runs, (Ian) Ronnie Gilbert & Holly Near (title cut)
The Druggist (Mabus), Herdman, Hills, Mangsen AT THE TURNING OF THE YEAR

Lou & Peter Berryman - "Older 'n Everybody," "Acme Forgetting Service" and
"Spring Chicken"

Ronnie Gilbert, "No Rocking Chair" and "Happy Birthday, Mrs. Miller"

Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer - Halfway There

Therapy Sisters - The Big One

Christine Lavin - The Polka Dancing Bus Driver... - SHINING MY FLASHLIGHT
ON THE MOON

Dierdre Flint - The Shuffleboard Queens - THE SHUFFLEBOARD QUEENS/self

Hot Soup! - (Don't Know What Was) The Last Thing on My Mind - SOUP
HAPPENS/SOUPer Music

Jez Lowe - "Limping Drinkers' Polka?" ("They drank one to remember and
another one to forget.")

Pete Seeger's "Get Up and Go" (also by the Weavers from "Wasn't That a Time")

Andrew McKnight - When I Grow Up - "Turning Pages"
Garnet Roger - What's Wrong  With This Picture - "Summer Lightning"

"I Just Don't Look Good Naked Anymore" by the VW boys-a bluegrass band.
It's on their CD "Snappy Lunch."

There's Pete Seeger's "Get Up and Go," and Faith Petric's "Geritol
Gypsy."  I think Matt Watroba recorded both of those on his CD of
songs about getting older, "The Best Is Yet To Be."

The Broadway show tune "I Remember It Well" (an older couple
affectionately disagrees about all the details of the night they met -
- what color dress she wore, etc.).

I would look through some Rosalie Sorrels albums too, although I
can't put my finger on a specific song.  I just think she's done
something along that line.

Tom Paxton's "Modern Maturity" on one of his more recent albums
(probably one of the Sugar Hill ones). [for that matter, his "Not Tonight,
Marie," about being to old to... well, you know.]

Dar Williams  "You're Aging Well" (or Joan Baez's version)

What is the name of that Christine Lavin song about her not being able to
find her glasses when they are on top of her head? Someone will tell you.

John Gorka has a very funny one on his latest CD called something like
"People Our Age"

Stefan des Lauriers - Junkyard in the Sky - Time of Wonder

"Glad Old Man" by Andrew Calhoun.

"Old Things" by Trout Fishing in America on Closer To The Truth
[Which reminds me of "Record Time (33, 45, 78)," recorded by Kathy Mattea.]

-Frank Gosar, KLCC

Jamie Anderson / Loretta and Bernadine / Center of Balance