The Barber Green - Life (1968)

Formed in 1966 and named for an asphalt paving machine, this group was composed of high school students from Brownsville, Oregon. Located about a half hour north of Eugene, Oregon, the group gained enough local popularity to play all over their home state. Only able to have one recording session, they recorded two tracks they had rehearsed, followed by four “unreleased” tracks of improvised jamming. At one point, the group had a chance to do a USO tour of Vietnam during the Vietnam Conflict, but after the Tet Offensive, the tour was canceled. The group disbanded in 1970.

This song, written by their lead singer, David Lee Harding, was the B-side to the only release by the group. The A-Side, “Gliding Ride,” was a hit up and down the entire west coast, going as far as reaching number one on a few local stations in Oregon and California.



The Barber Green - Life (1968)

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Lyrics:

When I was young
And full of life
My dad said to me, “Son
You better take a wife”

I looked around
For the girl dad told me of
Nowhere could I find my one
My only love

Then one day, I saw her face
It was a face without a name
But when she spoke on a cloudy day
The sun came out again

She told me of her search for love
And I told her of mine
I said to myself, “I got to have this girl”
“She’s nature’s own design”

We got married, had lots of kids
And lived where the folks were fine
Me and my wife and our four kids
In a struggle for all mankind

When I was young
And full of life
My dad said to me, “Son
You better take a wife”

When I was young
And full of life

And full of life

Life