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When I Was A Boy

from Reap the Wind by Steve Macdonald

supported by
Terry England
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Terry England Such a fun song, in my case from the perspective of one who witnessed the era 2nd hand. I love the singing audience. Must have been a really fun performance.
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  • The two-decade wait is over- this book contains all 15 songs from 'Reap the Wind', including 'When I Was A Boy' by Frank Hayes!

    Featuring cover artwork by Jane Irwin and music notation for 'Discovery' transcribed by Dr. Mary Crowell!

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about

Winner, 1998 Pegasus Awards, Best Filk Song

Jan DiMasi had made a call for new computer songs for Duckon in June, 1997; and this was Frank Hayes' entry. We could barely stop laughing- and we were all singing the chorus with Frank before the end of the song. Art Warneke videotaped Frank's performance of the piece, and brought it to my house for a party we had that August. I promptly lifted it. And, after getting Frank's permission; I immediately started playing it wherever I went.

This song won the Pegasus Award for Best Song at the Ohio Valley Filk Festival in Columbus, Ohio, in October 1998. This recording is from the very first Pegasus Nominees Concert on the Friday night of the convention.

lyrics

When I Was A Boy
Copyright © 1997 by Frank Hayes, Firebird Arts & Music (BMI)

When I was a boy our Nintendo
Was carved from an old Apple tree
And we used garden hose to connect it
To our steam-powered color tv.

But it still beat that ancient Atari
'Cuz I almost went blind, don'tcha know,
Playing Breakout and Pong on a video game
Hooked up to the radio.

And we walked twenty miles to the schoolhouse
Barefoot, uphill both ways,
Through blizzards in summer and winter
Back in the good old days.
Back when Fortran was not even Three-tran
And the PC was only a toy
And we did our computing by gaslight
When I was a boy.

When I was a boy all our networks
Were for hauling in fish from the sea--
Our bawd rate was eight bits an hour (and she was worth it!),
And our IP address was just 3.

And you kids who complain that the World Wide Web
Is too slow oughtta cut out your bitchin',
'Cuz when I was a boy every packet
Was delivered by carrier pigeon

And we walked twenty miles to the schoolhouse
Barefoot, uphill both ways,
Through blizzards in summer and winter
Back in the good old days.
Back when Fortran was not even Two-tran
And the mainframe was only a toy
And we did our computing by torchlight
When I was a boy.

When I was a boy our IS shop
Built relational tables from wood,
And we wrappered our data in oilcloth
To preserve it the best that we could.

And we carried our bits in a bucket,
And our mainframe weighed 900 tons,
And we programmed in ones and in zeros
And sometimes we ran out of ones.

And we walked twenty miles to the schoolhouse
Barefoot, uphill both ways,
Through blizzards in summer and winter
Back in the good old days.
Back when Fortran was not even One-tran
And the abacus? Only a toy!
And we did our computing in primordial darkness
When I was a boy.

credits

from Reap the Wind, released July 1, 2020
Steve Macdonald: Vocals, Guitar
OVFF 14: Everything Else

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about

Steve Macdonald Hamburg, Germany

A Michigan native transplanted to Germany, Steve Macdonald has been performing his brand of folk and folk-rock all across the USA and in Europe.

His concerts have been described as energetic, funny, and heartwarming. He sings songs from his life; as well as standards that everyone can sing to.

“A powerhouse, intense and focused.” – (A Fan)

“He’s clumsy and runs at the mouth.” – (His Big Sister)
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