Willie Nile - Game of Fools

Willie Nile (real name: Robert Anthony Noonan) came from a musical family. His grandfather was a vaudeville pianist and his uncles played boogie-woogie. Nile began playing piano at age eight and took classical music lessons until he was a teenager, when he taught himself his first rock & roll song. He soon began to compose short songs and continued the habit into his college years, when during the summers he made trips into New York City to frequent clubs like Folk City and the Gaslight.

After college, he went to Greenwich Village, determined to make a name for himself as a latter-day troubadour, which he did throughout the 70's and became a fixture in the Village. He released his first album in 1980 which garnered high critical praise. After his second album, he ran into legal issue with his record company and did not release a new album for the next 10 year, although he continued to write songs and tour.

Hard Times in America is off a great 1992 EP of the same name. The song seems to have relevance, even today.