It was the centerpiece of one of the very first concept albums, and it inspired one of Bruce Springsteen’s finest ballads.*
Woody Guthrie recorded “Tom Joad” in two parts for his 1940 Dust Bowl Ballads album, because at almost seven minutes, his retelling of John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath was too long to fit on a single side of a 78 rpm record.
As a result, the two parts became known as “Tom Joad Part 1” and “Tom Joad Part 2,” even though they are clearly meant to be heard as a single song.
Dust Bowl Ballads was Woody Guthrie’s very first and most successful commercial recording, and through it he brought widespread awareness to the plight of displaced Dust Bowl farmers and agricultural workers.
More than a half-century later, Bruce took inspiration from Guthrie’s Steinbeck homage (along with his already established fondness for John Ford’s film from the same year) and wrote his own song to highlight the plight of the invisible homeless and jobless. Bruce recorded an album around “The Ghost of Tom Joad” in his home studio in California (ironically, Guthrie recorded his own song in New Jersey) and embarked on a marathon worldwide tour to support it.
Bruce played “The Ghost of Tom Joad” at almost every show on the tour (usually as the opener), but one night early in the third leg of the tour, he threw his audience a curve ball: without explanation, he opened the show with Guthrie’s song instead of his own.
Bruce gave no explanation for the set list shake-up, but it was almost certainly inspired by his upcoming appearance at a Woody Guthrie tribute concert four days later in Akron, where he again opened with “Tom Joad.”
Bruce continued opening with Guthrie’s ballad for an entire month before reverting back to his original opener. After that, he only played “Tom Joad” twice more (the following summer in Australia), and then never again.
Until earlier this month, that is.
On May 13, 2021, Bruce was awarded the annual Woody Guthrie Prize by the Woody Guthrie Center, and he worked up an acoustic mini-set for the occasion. Unsurprisingly, he opened with “Tom Joad,” in a particularly heartfelt reading, particularly in the song’s final verse.
“Tom Joad” isn’t one of Bruce’s most well-known covers, but it holds a special place of importance for inspiring him to turn Steinbeck’s classic tale into a modern-day call for social activism.
*In a way, “Tom Joad” inspired two of Bruce’s officially released tracks, because Guthrie set his song to the melody of “John Henry,” which Bruce released a version of in 2006.
Tom Joad
First performed: September 25, 1996 (Akron, OH)
Last performed: May 13, 2021 (Colts Neck, NJ)
