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Billy Ed Wheeler '53
Tracy,
This version of Steve Goodman doing one of my most recorded songs, "Coal Tattoo," came from a Lexington, KY lawyer whose clients are coal miners and their families who are constantly taken advantage of by uncaring (and unscrupulous) big coal companies. Tony is an avid collector of coal mining songs. I hope you can imagine my thrill at hearing Steve's rendition of this song. He wrote "City of New Orleans," and was a fantastic guitar player. He died young in 1984.
In my previous email to you I forgot to say where I worked when I was at WWC for 5 years. My first job was at the dairy where I milked 18 cows before breakfast. This experience, getting up at pre-dawn, was the inspiration for my song, "Winter Sky," recorded by Judy Collins.
My second job was at the woodworking shop, where I learned to carve nice things in maple and walnut. I'll send you an example. My instructor was Hardy Davidson, descended from the first settlers in the Swannanoa Valley, right after the Revolution.
Third was stone masonry. I helped build the science building. When Mary and I got married, I used this skill by laying stone for retaining walls for our new house. Almost everything I learned at WWC has proved valuable to me down through the years. I also learned that work is noble and a necessary part of living.
Best,
Billy Edd