If it wasn't for Berklee's Songwriting MOOC on Coursera, I would never have known of Gillian Welch's gem of a song. "One More Dollar" is a stellar track from her debut album Revival (1996), which is clearly retro-gazing in its sonic influences. As AllMusic's Mark Deming notes, however, Revival's lack of sonic innovation is counterbalanced by its ability to affect soul-searing empathy and its "unaffected sincerity":
"Welch and her partner, David Rawlings, are not mere revivalists in the old-timey style; Welch's debts to artists of the past are obvious and clearly acknowledged, but there's a maturity, intelligence, and keen eye for detail in Welch's songs."
While the lyrics clearly point to a rural American setting, the story of homesickness, geographic mobility and loneliness that Welch etches with exquisite melancholy can be universally understood by everyone - whether its someone in the privileged global expat circuit, a Third World migrant worker, or a refugee seeking employment in a foreign country:
'A long time ago I left my homeFor a job in the fruit treesBut I missed those hills with the windy pinesFor their song seemed to suit meSo I sent my wages to my homeSaid we'd soon be togetherFor the next good crop would pay my wayAnd I would come home foreverOne more dime to show for my dayOne more dollar and I'm on my wayWhen I reach those hills, boysI'll never roamOne more dollar and I'm going home'
Lyrics source:
Welch captures the perseverance and precariousness of her lyrical persona with some brilliant verses that establish an empathic connection without unnecessary melodrama: 'So when the dice came out at the bar downtown/ I rolled and I took my chances' and 'A long time ago I left my home/ Just a boy passing twenty/ Could you spare a coin and a Christian prayer/ For my luck has turned against me'.
This song strongly reminds me of Tracy Chapman's iconic "Fast Car" and Nathan Wiley's "Bottom Dollar Baby" by virtue of its ability - via minimalist poeticism - to capture the grittier side of the American Dream and the psychic costs of economic hardship. If you don't typically listen to country songs, you'll want to make an exception for "One More Dollar".
