Assemblyman Pat Burke and Sportsmen’s Foundation Launch ‘9 to 5’ Original Song Contest

By Robert J. McLennan
(Image above: Based on photo of Labor Day parade, Main St., Buffalo, N.Y., circa 1900, via Library of Congress)

We’re heading into Labor Day weekend, so what better time to find out about a new initiative focusing on labor songs?

Assemblyman Pat Burke, the Sportsmen’s Americana Music Foundation and members of Western New York’s labor and arts communities on Thursday announced the launch of “9 to 5: Songs for Working People of Buffalo,” an original song contest that will bring together Western New York musicians to create a new album celebrating organized labor and the experiences of working people.

This writer was invited to attend the press conference at the Sportsmen’s Tavern on Thursday morning (Sept. 3) on behalf of The Buffalo Hive, but also in recognition of a lifetime of work in the labor movement and involvement with the Buffalo Music Coalition and the SAM Foundation.

Musicians and songwriters from Western New York are invited to submit original songs inspired by work, workers, unions, economic dignity, solidarity and the role working people have played in shaping Buffalo and Western New York.  The music can come from any genre: rock ‘n roll, folk, jazz, blues, rap, hip-hop, punk, rhythm and blues, country, Americana, bluegrass, New Orleans, honky-tonk, Celtic, pop, soul, polka, surf music, western swing or world music. You get the idea, anything goes, whatever music you do is fair game.

“This is a labor town, and I think the story of working people in Buffalo deserves its own soundtrack,” Burke said at the press conference. “Some of the most powerful music ever written has come from people telling the truth about what it means to work for a living — the pride that comes with it, the struggle, the unfairness, the friendships, the humor and the fight for something better. We want to hear what that sounds like in Buffalo today.”

The album’s title, “9 to 5: Songs for Working People of Buffalo,” pays homage to the late Dolly Parton and her iconic working-class anthem “9 to 5” (which, by the way, was covered brilliantly last weekend by the hard-working, seven-piece New Orleans style band, The Brass Machine). 

The song might have first appeared in the movie, “9 to 5,” but it became a well-known song about the difficulties of the working life.  It stands out partly because not enough artists and musicians use their platform to comment on what is so central to everyone’s quality of life, or lack thereof.

“Dolly Parton proved that a song about work and working people doesn’t have to be a lecture or fit into a particular musical box,” Burke said. “It can be funny. It can be angry. It can be country, rock, hip-hop, punk, folk, R&B or something we haven’t thought of. That’s why we’re making this a contest and opening it up to musicians across Western New York. We don’t want to tell artists what Buffalo’s working-class song should sound like. We want them to tell us.”

The WNY music community is very diverse and has an incredibly wide range of talented songwriters, musicians, singers and performers.  Burke’s call for original music should lead to an expansion beyond the usual folk and rock traditions normally represented in labor-themed music, not that there’s anything wrong with folk and rock.  It comes down to whatever music you choose to help tell the story you want to tell.  

Musicians are encouraged to think hard about the big picture they’re attempting to interpret.  Songs could be about jobs and careers and finding your place in the world of work.  They could be about unions and organizing, and the importance of working people having a voice on the job.  

Trying to make ends meet, the pressures on your family and community, solidarity among workers, being treated with dignity and respect at work, inequality or simply the everyday experience of working for a living are all ripe topics for song lyrics.  And going home at the end of the day, proud of what you’ve accomplished and feeling good about yourself, as opposed to the contrary, may be worthy of reflection in a song.  Working people spend roughly half of their waking hours at work, or thinking about work; maybe more.  What have you got to say about it?

This writer spoke at the press conference about the interconnectedness of work and music.  My thoughts: Bruce Springsteen is the most obvious example of a songwriter addressing the concerns of working people, but labor songs have always been important to the labor movement. 

On Sept. 25 at The Cave, Yellow Jack and the Buffalo Music Coalition will present “Sing On, Neighbor, Sing! A Woody Guthrie Singalong Concert.”  This will be a great night of solidarity and camaraderie for anyone interested in workers’ issues and a chance to see a fantastic lineup of musicians led by the rowdy-roots band, Yellow Jack.  

Woody Guthrie wanted to give a voice to the disenfranchised working class and inspire collective action against social and economic injustice. 

According to quotes attributed to Guthrie’s radio show from the 1940s, he said:

“I hate a song that makes you think you’re not any good. I hate a song makes you think you are just born to lose. Bound to lose. No good to nobody. No good for nothing. . . . Songs that run you down or songs that poke fun at you on account of your bad luck or your hard traveling.

“I am out to fight those kind of songs to my very last breath of air and my very last drop of blood. I am out to sing songs that’ll prove to you that this is your world and that if it’s hit you pretty hard and knocked you for a dozen loops, no matter how hard it’s run you down or rolled over you, no matter what color, what size you are, how you are built, I am out to sing the songs that make you take pride in yourself and in your work.”

What I emphasized on Thursday morning was that Woody Guthrie is part of Labor’s proud history but, you know what?  We need some new songs, new Labor songs for the 21^st century, for a new generation of workers.  

Jeff Miers is the executive director of the Sportsmen’s Americana Music Foundation and a longtime Buffalo music journalist, critic and advocate for Western New York’s music community. Miers and Burke will participate in the selection of the winning songs, and this writer will be included on the panel as well.

“The story of American culture is not written by the monied classes or the corporate elite, but by working people striving for economic dignity, and this is certainly the case here in Buffalo,” Miers said. “The struggle to find meaningful work, equity, fairness and some sense of human dignity have long been prime motivators for the creation of impactful art, and in a labor town like Buffalo, one needn’t look far to find examples of such art. Music has a way of whittling experience down to its universal essentials, exposing a commonality and solidarity too often obscured by those who would have us focus solely on our differences.

“In Buffalo, Tom Joad’s ghost lingers, as does the communal consciousness that ghost represents. I look forward to hearing members of our immensely talented music community give voice to that spirit.”

Winning songs will be selected for inclusion on the album, and artists chosen for the project will be compensated for their work.  The album will be produced through the Sportsmen’s Americana Music Foundation and Black Rock EPS.  Burke secured funds for this project through the New York State budget and Buffalo’s Arts Services Incorporated, who in turn disseminates arts money into the community.  

See below for the guidelines on how to submit your song.  Significantly, this project will actually be providing work for musicians and graphic artists and studio technicians.  Work and the economy and arts and culture are always connected, and every community needs to provide media coverage for all of it.

“This isn’t about finding one particular sound or writing the kind of song somebody thinks belongs on a labor album,” Burke said. “It’s about giving talented people in Western New York a chance to tell the stories of working people in their own voice. I’m excited to hear what they come up with.”

Also in attendance with Assemblyman Burke and Miers were Grace Bogdanove, president of the Buffalo AFL-CIO Central Labor Council; Richard Lipsitz, president emeritus of the WNY Area Labor Federation; Cathy Creighton, director of Cornell University ILR’s Buffalo Co-Lab; and Lou Jean Fleron, former director of Cornell University ILR Buffalo Co-Lab. 

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CALL FOR ORIGINAL SONGS:  The “9 to 5: Songs for Working People of Buffalo” contest is open to Western New York musicians and songwriters across all musical genres. Here are the rules:

• Musicians and bands based in the Greater Buffalo Area are invited to submit one original song for consideration. Cover songs will not be accepted, and artists must own or control the rights to their submitted music.
  
• Submissions should be provided as an MP3 or WAV file and include a brief description of the artist/band and the submitted song. Both demos and fully produced recordings are welcome. Artists do not need to have access to a professional recording studio to participate; selected artists whose songs are not already fully produced will have the opportunity to record their song in a studio as part of the project.
  
• A separate open call also invites Western New York visual and graphic artists to submit concepts for the album’s cover artwork. 
  
• Submissions are requested by Friday, Nov. 13, 2026, and should be shared via Dropbox or WeTransfer and emailed to Jeff Miers at jeffmiersmusic@gmail.com.
  
• A panel of individuals from the Sportsmen’s Americana Music Foundation and the Office of Assemblyman Burke will select up to 12 songs for inclusion on the album. Selected artists will be announced in December 2026, and recording sessions will be scheduled immediately following the selections. The resulting album is tentatively scheduled for release on May 1, 2027 — May Day.

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Robert J. McLennan is the vice-president of the Buffalo Hive Board of Directors.