Tag Archives: Tall Man

Longshot Apparel started a shirt company for tall men, and now we’ve found the man who has started the record label for tall singers. Eric Hanke created his own label Ten Foot Texan Records, because as his bio puts it:

“He’s the kind of guy who naturally stands out in a crowd. For one thing, he’s usually the tallest one in it, unless it’s a gathering of hoops players. But he also stands out among his singer-songwriter peers in Austin and elsewhere…”

Thankfully, I stumbled upon his music thanks to a music review by David Bowling featured in the Seattle PI. The lyrics to his new song Factory Man are unmistakably in support of the U.S. worker. The premise is the shutting down of American factories and outsourcing our jobs.

So have mercy on me, dear Uncle Sam,
I’m just trying to do the very best I can
I make an honest wage, working with my hands
So have mercy on me, ‘cause I’m a factory man

Notes from his perspective:
This is a true story. However, the place made brakes for Ford trucks, and not GM cars (flows better in song). This is the story of the foundry in St. Joseph, MI where my Grandpa retired from. He worked there as a tool and die maker. Three generations of men in my family had worked there including my Grandpa, my Great-Grandfather on my Mom’s side, and my Dad. When I wrote the song, the story pertained to this place in particular, but it came to have a broader appeal as similar manufacturing operations in the rust belt closed, or outsourced jobs to save in labor costs. Later, the entire U.S. auto industry fell into crisis.

Eric Hanke has true bird’s eye view of the American worker. Thanks for putting those feelings into song. Made in the USA is the motivation for so much these days. Take a listen to him from a recent music showcase: