Towpath Tune

Ask an American to sing a song about a canal and chances are good the response will start with “Low bridge, everybody down!”—the open to the refrain of “Erie Canal,” a campfire anthem that conjures images of barge crews and mule teams. Bruce Springsteen’s embrace of the tune has rekindled debate as to whether “Erie Canal” is folk music or a folky commercial song.

Liner notes to Springsteen’s 2006 LP , describe “Erie Canal” as “written in 1905 by Thomas S. Allen as ‘Low