John Prine - Some Humans Ain't Human - Fair & Square

John Prine singing "Some Humans Ain't Human" off of his 2005 album "Fair & Square"

FOLLOW JOHN:

Lyrics:
Mm Mm
Some humans ain't human
Some people ain't kind
You open up their hearts
And here's what you'll find
A few frozen pizzas
Some ice cubes with hair
A broken Popsicle
You don't want to go there
Some humans ain't human
Though they walk like we do
They live and they breathe
Just to turn the old screw
They screw you when you're sleeping
They try to screw you blind
Some humans ain't human
Some people ain't kind
You might go to church
And sit down in a pew
Those humans who ain't human
Could be sittin' right next to you
They talk about your family
They talk about your clothes
When they don't know their own ass
From their own elbows
Jealousy and stupidity
Don't equal harmony
Jealousy and stupidity
Don't equal harmony
Mm Mm
Have you ever noticed
When you're feeling really good
There's always a pigeon
That'll come shit on your hood
Or you're feeling your freedom
And the world's off your back
Some cowboy from Texas
Starts his own war in Iraq
Some humans ain't human
Some people ain't kind
They lie through their teeth
With their head up their behind
You open up their hearts
And here's what you'll find
Some humans ain't human
Some people ain't kind
Mm Mm

Singer. Songwriter. Poet. Icon.
John Prine was an artist’s artist with a list of admirers and collaborators that cut across musical genres and generations - names like Kris Kristofferson, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Bonnie Raitt, Johnny Cash, Tom Petty, Brandi Carlile, George Strait, Kurt Vile, Miranda Lambert, The Everly Brothers, Emmylou Harris, among others.

Though he was born in Maywood, Illinois, in 1946, John declared himself “pure Kentuckian” throughout his life. His parents, Willian and Verna, were natives of Paradise, Kentucky. The family would spend summers there in Muhlenberg County, where John listened to bluegrass music and studied the guitar styles of country music heroes Doc Watson and Merle Travis with his older brother, Dave.

In Maywood, he worked as a postman before being drafted into the army in 1966. It was as a postman that John began to write the songs that would connect with so many. He sang at Chicago folk clubs, where he was introduced to singer-songwriter Kris Kristopherson, who invited John to open for him in New York. It was there that Jerry Wexler, president of Atlantic Records, first heard Prine and offered him a recording contract. His self-titled debut album was released in 1971 and featured a list of songs now regarded as classics, including “Paradise,” “Angel From Montgomery,” “Illegal Smile,” Hello in There,” and “Sam Stone.” Prine received the first of his 13 Grammy nominations in 1972 for Best New Artist. He would record three more albums for Atlantic and another three with Asylum.

His profound impact on American music was amplified in 1981 when John co-founded Oh Boy Records, and independent label where he released most of his subsequent work and which gave voice and respect to so many fellow singers and songwriters.

In his distinguished career, John won four Grammys and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (2020). He was a three-time recipient of the Artist of the Year Award at the Americana Music Honors & Awards, which also honored him with the Lifetime Achievement Award for Songwriting. He won the Pen/New England Song Lyrics of Literary Excellence Award (2016) and was enshrined in the Songwriters Hall of Fame (2019). In addition, John was named Honorary Poet Laureate of Illinois (2020).

John Prine passed away on April 7, 2020 due to complications from Covid-19. The outpouring of grief and love from his fan community was staggering. Over 500,000 viewers participated in an online memorial and tribute that raised more than half a million dollars for Covid-related community causes. In 2021, the Prine family created the Hello In There Foundation to honor John’s spirit of generosity towards those in need. Fiona Prine and her sons continue to operate and expand the reach of John’s independent record label, Oh Boy Records.
#johnprine #fairandsquare

[rickwalczyk]

To the 159 who gave this a thumbs down, you ain't human.

[randyboring]

When I met my beautiful wife 40 years ago she said( let’s make a home, teach our children, pick peaches, let them find Jesus on their own....she loved John and she turned me on to his music, I love all of it....she passed away a few years ago, I pray that God gives her a ringside seat to hear John play there in heaven...

[karmayangzom]

“Have you ever noticed
when you’re feeling really good,
there’s always a pigeon
that’ll come shit on your hood.”

Sounds like the last four years…the same pigeon, over and over.

[ericlclash]

I’m a punk rocker but when my mom put this song on in the car when I was a teenager, it was my first time listening to it and I couldn’t resist the tears. This song is relevant no matter if it’s about war or discrimination or just people of power ignoring others for their own political gain.

[tyduluthmusic]

For the 3 people that gave a thumbs down...this songs for you!

[robertl.fallin]

RIP John Prine. E .. John was the most human human .

[stevelloyd]

My friend gave me this album about two months after a bad break up. I was on my way to Mississippi to help with the aftermath of Katrina. He said it's good traveling music. Oh boy did he say a mouthful there. This is (in my opinion) one of the best albums ever made. Buy any artist. I was given more than just an album. I was given a lifelong hero.

[ombpeyi]

I learned about John from my brother in 1978. Him and Bonnie were touring the country all the time then playing smaller venues. Met them both at the hotel in KC. Bonnie before the show; John after the show. Got their autographs on a couple of albums. John let us buy him a beer. Most down- to- earth dude ever!!

[mrflippy]

Sad to hear of his passing today. This song is more valid today then ever.

[corgis]

He aint dead cause I still hear him inside my head !

[jeffleblanc]

I wonder how far into that 9 Mile long cigarette he is? RIP John!!!

[petervangeest]

On the Tree of Forgiveness John writes about God's boundless love. As we all try to make sense of John's death, I hope he knows that we all have boundless love for him and his music.

[svejagre]

i would like persons with power in this wold to learn from John Prine, (and let us all learn from him as well, )but unfotunately not many enough do so. We`ve had war and have wars and destructions in our time. As the composer and songwriter Evert Taube (swedish) said and wrote in a song : " It is war and politics which is destroying our world, "

[philipmcglasson]

RIP poet. You had a heart and soul that was what Humans were supposed to have.

[danemoore]

When I was 3-7 years old my dad and I would listen to john Prime all the time. I'm now 16 and haven't listened to him in years and at 11:30 pm was listening to colter walls version of the speed of the sound if loneliness and decided to listen to some john Prime and I'm glad to say it makes me just as happy as he did over 10 years ago

[beckywhite]

Life won't be the same without John P. What an amazing man.

[playhouseinthewoods]

The GOP has proven John was right. Some humans ain’t human.

[xine]

I love the utter honesty and integrity that bleed through every line, whether he's singing a love song, articulating the problems of evil, or just making a musical witticism.

[nicpic]

I walk that road with him anytime ... the world is a mess .. thank you Mr John Prine for being a good human ..

[stanbimi]

(Rob Tannenbaum, NY Times): At seven minutes and three seconds, this track from “Fair and Square” is the longest song on any of his studio albums. A cloud of slide guitar keeps this soft waltz afloat and allows Prine to express his disapproval of, if not contempt for, so-called humans who lack empathy for others. There’s a couplet that is clearly about George W. Bush, and Prine noticed that some audience members were surprised by it. “I never tried to rub it in anybody’s face, but I thought it was pretty clear that I wasn’t a closet Republican, ” he told the Houston Press.