If you like folk music, then there’s a bridge in Glenville you ought to know about.
Or rather, for Simon Rieffel to sing about.
The Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake junior recently penned a parodic ode to the infamous Glenridge Road bridge. The bridge is known for its low height causing crashes oft likened to a sardine can for the way the tops of trucks peel off from scraping it. The effect is incessant enough to have inspired Rieffel’s song, “Can Opener Bridge,” a folksy diddy about the town’s efforts to curb crashes.
“I wrote the song as a public service announcement,” the teen said. “I hope that maybe it’ll prevent the next truck from hitting the bridge.”
He was inspired by the likes of Cheryl Wheeler and Loudon Wainwright III — two artists who frequently add a comedic flair to their songs — as well as folk greats such as Pete Seger, Woodie Guthrie and Bruce Springsteen.
The tractor trailer driver in the blue hoodie at left failed to negotiate the clearance of the Glenridge Road bridge between Maple Avenue and Bruce Street in Glenville Monday, Oct. 19, 2020. PETER R. BARBER/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER . .
“I think that using music as a vehicle for change and making the world a better place is something that I really like about folk music, and that was my goal with this song,” he said.
Rieffel also drew inspiration from “M.T.A” by The Kingston Trio, a song that chronicles a man named Charlie navigating Boston’s sprawling transit system.
Thanks Everyone for the amazing showing! Special shoutout to the BHBL select choir for singing along and to Spartan Studios for recording this video.
“Also, the chorus of my song pays tribute to the Erie Canal song,” he said. “So that’s a little bit of local history there.”
The song starts with a scene-setting description of the bridge, not-so-subtly pointing out the amalgamation of signage directing drivers away. The song pokes fun at the bridge’s reputation but remains a ballad to the camaraderie it inspires.
A Trans Ontario Express carrier struck the Glenville Road railroad overpass Sunday afternoon, Nov. 15, 2020, severely damaging its trailer. STAN HUDY/THE DAILY GAZETTE. .
Rieffel isn’t the first to come up with a creative solution to the phenomenon. In January, Glenvillian Kassondra Paull equipped a towering decorative skeleton with a sign warning drivers of the upcoming obstacle.
Currently, Rieffel is humbly basking in the attention the song has gotten, but he has more musical goals going forward.
The tractor trailer truck that struck the Canadian Pacific railroad bridge is pulled over to the side of Glenridge Road in Glenville awaiting a tow truck Monday, Dec. 5, 2022. PETER R. BARBER/THE DAILY GAZETTE. .
“I plan on doing some recording and releasing some songs in the near future,” he said.
He’s performed the song locally at open mics hosted by venues such as Caffe Lena and regularly livestreams on his Youtube channel @simonelijahmusic.