“Charlie on the MTA” is one of the most famous songs in American Folk Music. The whimsical, yet tragic tale of an ordinary man trapped in an extraordinary rail system continues to brings laughs. Yet people forget that its origins lie in a real political problem, one that almost found a cure in a Progressive mayoral candidate.
Bess Lomax Hawes and Boston’s MTA
Bess Lomax Hawes, who passed away last year, was a pillar of the early folk scene. She was the daughter of famed musicologist John Lomax and the sister of Alan Lomax. She was also an on and off member of The Almanac Singers, along with such musicians as Pete Seeger, Lee Hays, and Woody Guthrie.
In the late 1940s, Lomax and her husband Butch Hawes (also an Almanac Singer) moved to Boston. According to WBUR, the “public transportation system was a hot-button issue among the working class.” The MTA regulations were very difficult to understand, at one point, the fare-schedule was 9 pages long.
Amidst the unrest, the MTA raised its fares through the addition of a 5 cent “exit fare.” This created a backlash from the working class, the ones who used the MTA most.
Charlie on the MTA Becomes Part of a Political Campaign
Bess Lomax Hawes, like a true folkie, aligned with the working Hawes, along with her friend Jacqueline Steiner, wrote a humorous ballad pointing out the frustration of the average straphanger. They used an old melody, best known as the tune for “The Wreck of the Old 97” for the verses. This song is known as “Charlie on the MTA.”
In the song, Hawes and Steiner encourage listeners to vote for Walter A. O’Brien. O’Brien was a Progressive Party politician who was running for mayor in 1949. One of O’Brien’s platforms was to untie the knots of the MTA system, including the removal of the exit fares. Song and candidate went hand in hand.
WBUR reports that O’Brien did not win the election, but “Charlie on the MTA” did start a signature campaign that removed the controversial fare.
The Kingston Trio Makes Charlie a Household Name
In 1959, a hot folk band from California called The Kingston Trio recorded their own version of “Charlie on the MTA,” simply called “MTA.” Propelled by the band’s fun loving attitude and front man Bob Shane’s good looks, The Kingston Trio sold a massive amount of records and made “MTA.”
There was one notable difference between Hawes’ version and The Kingston Trio’s version. Walter O’Brien, the Progressive candidate, became George O’Brien. This was so the Trio would not be associated with a potentially divisive person.
“Charlie on the MTA” lives on today, especially in the city of Boston. Boston’s subway system, now known as the MBTA, calls its rechargeable fare cards “Charliecards.” It seems that Charlie will never get off of that train.
Craig Sanders - Craig Sanders is happy to be the Suite101 Feature Writer for Folk Music, as writing and music have been his twin loves his whole ...
