Mark Rubin – photo © George Brainard
Mark Rubin, who bills himself as “Jew of Oklahoma” and served as co-fouder of Austin, TX’s Bad Livers with Danny Barnes and Ralph White, is back with a new bluegrass single which he offers as a bit of 21st century social commentary.
Over the years Mark has found a varied career as a radio host, lecturer, humorist, musician, and storyteller, involved in all sorts of ethic musical formats.
The new song is Amazon Warehouse, which Rubin wrote and sings. It reimagines the labor organizing songs of the 1930s, which told of the sorry conditions in coal mines and steel mills, and updates the lyrics to sing of scanner guns, automated aisles, and digital surveillance. Always possessed of a sharp wit, Mark delivers a protest song for the new age, and keeps it lighthearted in doing so.
Rubin plays guitar, banjo, and bass, assisted by Rurik Nunan on fiddle.
Those who lived through the bellyaching songs of the ’60s should get a kick out of this one. Have a listen.
Amazon Warehouse is available now from popular download and streaming services online, and directly from the artist at bandcamp. Radio programmers are invited to contact Rubin for an airplay copy.
