Flashback: Working For a Living — A Labor Day Playlist

Ah, Labor Day. A day for backyard barbecues, mattress sales and, ostensibly, a celebration of labor and workers’ contributions to society. But in the event of the hypothetical barbecue, what music should you play? After some suggestions from the helpful invisible friends on Facebook, here’s a proletariat playlist to celebrate the holiday:

“Maggie’s Farm,” by Bob Dylan: Scrubbing floors for Maggie’s a tough job, especially when her brother’s paying you in nickels and dimes, and her father puts his cigar out in your face. Oof.

“Working in the Coal Mine,” by Allen Toussaint: The DEVO cover of this song was among the most suggested songs for this list, and while it’s fantastic, sometimes it’s worth spinning the bluesy original version.

“Take This Job and Shove It,” by Johnny Paycheck: This one was the single-most requested song, which suggests it … ahem … still connects with audiences. Really, one of the most cathartic songs around, especially when you crack open a cold beer and blast it after a hard day.

“Which Side Are You On,” by Billy Bragg: A hard-scrabble British labor rally song that resonates with pain, determination and moral certitude: “It'll take much more than the Union law/To knock the fight out of a working man.”

“Clampdown,” by the Clash: A punk-rock blast in the face of soul-sucking jobs everywhere: “The men at the factory are old and cunning/You don't owe nothing, so boy get running/It's the best years of your life they want to steal.”

“Sixteen Tons,” by Tennessee Ernie Ford: Ford’s 1955 rendition of Merle Travis’ 1947 classic was another favorite suggestion, and with good reason: It’s Sisyphean portrayal of a coal mine laborer is pretty much part of the cultural consciousness: “Another day older and deeper in debt …”

“9 to 5,” by Dolly Parton: Curiously, very few of the suggestions in our far-from-scientific polling came from female musicians. The major exception was Parton’s high-energy hit. It’s a great song for blowing off frustrations, and Parton remains one of country music’s brightest lights.

“Wild Sex (In the Working Class),” by Oingo Boingo: From back in Danny Elfman’s provocateur phase with his big-horned punk-tinged rock outfit, this one manages to capture the steam of one of the things that keeps some people going through the work day.

“This Ain’t No Picnic,” by the Minutemen: Unabashed aggression and blistering, no-nonsense rock with a simple message: “Punch in, punch out/Eight hours, five days/Sweat, pain and agony/On Friday I'll get paid.”

“Clocked In,” Black Flag: A lot of the best labor-oriented songs capture a feeling of being caged, and few catch as earnestly and assertively as these West Coast punks.

“Pay Me My Money Down,” Bruce Springsteen: Really, we could have put any Springsteen song here. Certainly, we could have gone with “The Ghost of Tom Joad,” “Factory” or “Born in the USA,” but there’s something joyous and appealing in this gem from Springsteen’s “Seeger Sessions.”

“She Works Hard for the Money,” by Donna Summer: Summer based this song on a real person: Chasen's Restaurant restroom attendant Onetta Johnson, who is named in the song. Maybe it’s that touch of reality that gives this disco-era dance number it’s edge.

“Working Man,” by Rush: The Canadian rockers’ first hit, this one is a bit more of a straight-ahead rock song than some of the band’s more algebraic numbers that would come later. There’s some excellent Alex Lifeson guitar work, but this is about as down-to-earth as the prog rockers ever get.

“The Job That Ate My Brain,” by the Ramones: “I can't take this crazy pace/I've become a mental case Yeah/this is the job that ate my brain.” Yeah. We’ve all been there, haven’t we?

“Just Who Is The 5 O'clock Hero?,” by the Jam: This snapshot of blue collar dissatisfaction from the English mod favorites bristles with energy and potential, even as singer-songwriter Paul Weller uses understatement and tight control to turn his lyrics into kindling.

“Work Song,” by Nina Simone: One of the greatest singers of the 20th century, Simone’s meditation on poverty, crime and labor remains has relevant now as it did when she recorded it in 1966.

“Back on the Chain Gang,” by the Pretenders: In all honesty, this one’s really more about losing someone to drugs than it is about actual labor, but it’s still a great song and it’s hard to resist putting it back-to-back with Simone’s “Work Song.” So there.

“To Hell With Poverty,” by Gang of Four: These ’80s punks had it right: “To Hell with poverty/we’ll get drunk on cheap wine.”

“Bang on the Drum,” by Todd Lundgren: This one was a surprisingly common suggestion. Evidently the sentiment, “I don’t want to work/I just want to bang on the drum all day” is a fairly common one. Who knew?

“Silver Lining,” by Stiff Little Fingers: This Irish punk song is equal parts optimistic and dangerous, embracing both sides of its dichotomy with glee, particularly as it dissects the apocalyptic language frequently used to keep workers in their place.

“Working Class Hero,” by John Lennon: This is Lennon at his most bitter and biting, and he manages to be scathing without raising his voice: “Keep you doped with religion, and sex, and T.V./And you think you're so clever and classless and free/But you're still (expletive) peasants as far as I can see.”

“Respect,” by Aretha Franklin: And really, that’s all anyone’s really looking for, isn’t it?

Visit Telegram.com for a Spotify playlist comprising most of the songs on this list. Email Victor D. Infante at [email protected] and follow Pop Culture Notebook on Twitter @TGPopCulture.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Working For a Living: A Labor Day Playlist