i
A wager, a wager .............................................. 187
Across the Miles ............................................... 171
Adieu to Old England ......................................... 78
Against the Snow ................................................ 77
All the Little Chickens ...................................... 134
Annan Water ..................................................... 159
Antelope .............................................................. 87
Aragon Mill ......................................................... 85
As I Roved Out ................................................... 67
Banks of the Bann ............................................... 32
Battle of Sowerby Bridge .................................. 130
Benjamin Bowmaneer ....................................... 131
Bitter Withy ...................................................... 121
Black is the colour............................................. 138
Bold Reynolds ................................................... 148
Bonny Bunch of Roses ........................................ 79
Bonny Hawthorn ................................................. 48
Brigg Fair ............................................................ 33
Bring us a Barrel ................................................. 15
Bringing in the Sheaves .................................... 142
Broken Token...................................................... 30
By Creekwater Side .......................................... 161
Byker Hill............................................................ 95
Candlelight Fisherman ...................................... 169
Cap't Ward and the Rainbow .............................. 61
Carrying Nelson Home ..................................... 186
City Lament ...................................................... 140
Claudy Banks .................................................... 149
Cold and Lonely Winter ...................................... 59
Constant Lovers .................................................. 21
Cruel Mother ..................................................... 100
Dark Eyed Sailor ................................................. 34
Derby Ram .......................................................... 62
Distant Hills ...................................................... 147
Dockyard Gate .................................................... 37
Doin' the Manch .................................................. 12
Drift from the Land ........................................... 156
Drowned Sailor ................................................... 35
English Ale........................................................ 151
Fakenham Fair .................................................... 58
Farewell to the Gold .......................................... 178
Farmer's Arms ..................................................... 38
Farmer's Boy ....................................................... 44
Feed the Children ................................................ 20
Fiddlers Green ................................................... 139
Fisherman’s Song ................................................ 98
Flandyke Shore ................................................. 180
Flash Company .....................................................1
Flowers of the forest ........................................... 41
Foggy Dew .......................................................... 26
Follow Me Home ................................................ 80
Friar in the Well .................................................. 91
Frisco Bay ......................................................... 146
Funeral Song ....................................................... 53
God on Our Side ............................................... 112
Grandfathers Clock ........................................... 127
Gray Funnel Line ................................................ 96
Green Banks of Grain ....................................... 157
Happy as a Baby ................................................. 68
Hey that's no way to say goodbye ..................... 132
Holly and the Ivy .............................................. 183
Home Lads Home ............................................... 24
I wish there were no prisons ............................. 179
I would the war were over .................................. 27
It came upon a Midnight Clear ......................... 117
January Man ..................................................... 110
Jim Johnson ........................................................ 82
Jim Jones ............................................................ 73
John Barleycorn .................................................... 2
John Barleycorn #2 ............................................. 28
Jolly Fellows as Follows the Plough................. 175
Joy of Living..................................................... 133
Jukebox as she Turned ...................................... 182
Kathy’s Song .................................................... 181
King George Hunt ............................................ 168
Laidly Worm ........................................................ 8
Laundralovamat .................................................. 71
Leaving of Liverpool ........................................ 173
Left Left Right Steady Man ................................ 83
Length of Yarn ................................................... 10
Lily Marlene ....................................................... 55
Linden Lea ........................................................ 101
Lish Young Buy-a-Broom .................................. 60
Little Musgrave .................................................. 16
London Danny .................................................. 192
Lord Franklin .................................................... 177
Lovely Joan ........................................................ 43
Lover’s Ghost ................................................... 135
Luckiest Sailor .................................................. 152
Mad Tom of Bedlam........................................... 42
Man of Double Deed ........................................ 189
Mary Hamilton ................................................. 153
Masters of War ................................................. 113
Morley Main ....................................................... 81
Mutton Pie .......................................................... 49
My Eldorado ..................................................... 119
My flower, my companion and me ................... 166
New York Gals ................................................. 106
No More World to Live In ................................ 145
Normandy Orchards ........................................... 25
Northern Tide ................................................... 155
Nutting Girl ........................................................ 69
Nutting Time .................................................... 170
Old Black Mare .................................................. 63
Old Brown Hen ................................................... 93
Old Man’s Retreat ............................................ 194
One Too Many Mornings ................................. 160
Paddy the Swagman.......................................... 124
Ploughboys ......................................................... 31
Polly's father ....................................................... 45
Poor Old Horse ................................................. 107
Prospect Providence ............................................. 6
Pull Down Lads ................................................ 162
Put Another Log On The Fire ........................... 176
Raglan Road ....................................................... 86
Rambling Comber............................................... 56
Recruited Collier................................................. 65
Rolling Home ................................................... 128
Rose of Allandale ............................................. 174
Sailor Cut Down ................................................. 74
Sailor Home From Sea ..................................... 188
Sally Free and Easy ............................................ 66
Sally Gardens...................................................... 47
Sammy Shuttleworth's Party ............................. 103
ii
Seeds of Love ..................................................... 52
Severn to the Somme ........................................ 108
Shelter ............................................................... 150
Shenandoah ....................................................... 105
Shining down on Sennen .................................. 109
Shipyard Apprentice ......................................... 193
Shropshire Lad .................................................... 54
Sir Eglamore ..................................................... 190
Spencer The Rover ............................................. 22
Squire of Tamworth ............................................ 75
St. Aubin Sur Mer ............................................... 50
Streams of Lovely Nancy ................................... 99
Sweet Minerva .................................................. 184
Tattooed Lady ................................................... 185
Thank you for the Years ..................................... 23
The Drovers ........................................................ 51
The First Time .................................................... 97
The King ............................................................. 29
The last of the widows ...................................... 191
The New Road .................................................. 136
The Snow it Melts the Soonest ........................... 40
Three Day Millionaire ...................................... 126
Three Maids a- Milking.................................... 158
Tomahawking Fred .......................................... 163
Universal Soldier ................................................ 88
Up in the North................................................... 89
Valentine's Day .................................................. 39
Volunteer Organist ............................................. 64
Waltzing Matilda .................................................. 4
War Song.......................................................... 167
Wassail ......................................................143, 164
We shepherds are. .............................................. 46
Wedding Song .................................................... 57
When first I came to Caledonia. ....................... 102
When the Ship Comes In .................................. 115
When The Snows Of Winter Fall ..................... 172
Where brumbies come to water ........................ 129
Where Raven Feed ........................................... 165
Whitby Lad....................................................... 123
White Cockade ................................................. 144
Willey 'Ole Lad .................................................. 36
Winds of Freedom .............................................. 70
Yarmouth Town ............................................... 111
You are my Morning ........................................ 120
1
Flash Company
1.
Once I loved a young girl as I loved my life,
And I thought in my mind I could make her my wife,
With her white cotton stockings and her high ankle shoes,
And she wears a yellow handkerchief wherever she goes.
Chorus
So wear this yellow handkerchief in remembrance of me,
And wear it round your neck love, in flash company,
Flash company my boys, like a great many more,
If it hadn't been for flash company I'd never have been so poor.
2.
Fiddling and dancing were all my delight,
But keeping flash company has ruined me quite,
Has ruined me quite, my love, like a great many more,
If it hadn't have been for flash company, I'd never have been so poor.
3.
Once I had a colour as red as the rose,
But now I'm as pale as the lily that grows,
Like a flower in the garden all my colour has gone,
Don't you see what I have come to from loving this one.
2
John Barleycorn
1.
Oh there were three men out of Kent, my boys,
For to plough for corn and rye,
And they made a vow and a solemn vow,
John Barleycorn would die.
2.
So they sowed him into furrows,
And they sowed rye o'er his head,
And these three men home rejoicing went,
John Barleycorn was dead.
3.
But the sun shone warm and the wind blew soft,
And it rained in a day or so,
John Barleycorn felt the sun and rain,
And he soon began to grow.
4.
But the rye began to grow as well,
The rye grew slow but tall,
John Barleycorn grew short and strong,
And he proved them liars all.
5.
So they hired men with sickles,
To cut him off at the knee,
They rolled him and bound him around the waist,
Served him most barbarously.
6.
So they hired men with pikels,
To toss him on to a load,
And when they'd tossed poor John Barleycorn,
They tied him down with cords,
7.
So they hired men with threshels,
To beat him high and low,
They came smik smak upon poor Jack's back,
Till the flesh began to flow.
3
John Barleycorn (2)
8.
Then they put him into the kiln, me boys,
Thinking to dry his bones,
But the miller served him worse than that,
For he ground him between two stones.
9.
Then they put him into the mashing tub,
Thinking to burn his tail,
And when he came out they changed his name,
And they called him home brewed ale.
10.
So put your wine into glasses,
And your cider into pewter cans,
Put little Sir John in the old brown jug,
For he proved the strongest man.
11.
To me right-fol-derry, fol-de-diddle-oh,
To me right-fol-derry-oh,
To me right-fol-derry, fol-de-diddle-oh,
To me right-fol-derry-oh,
4
Waltzing Matilda
Eric Bogle
1.
When I was a young man I carried my pack,
And I lived the free life of a rover,
From the Murray’s green basin to the dusty outback,
I waltzed my Matilda all over,
Then in nineteen fourteen, the country said son,
It's time to stop rambling, there's work to be done,
And they gave me a tin hat and they gave me a gun,
And they sent me away to the war,
And the band played Waltzing Matilda,
As the ship pulled away from the quay,
And amid all the cheers, the flag waving and tears,
We sailed off to Galipoli.
2.
How well I remember that terrible day,
How blood stained the sand and the water,
And how in that hell-hole they called Suavla Bay,
We were butchered like lambs at the slaughter,
Johnny Turk he was ready, he'd primed himself well,
He chased us with bullets and rained us with shell,
And in five minutes flat he'd blown us to hell,
Nearly blew us right back to Australia,
And the band played Waltzing Matilda,
As we stopped to bury our slain,
We buried ours, and the Turks buried theirs,
Then we started all over again.
3.
Well those that were left, we tried to survive,
In that hell-hole of blood, death and fire,
And for nine weary weeks I kept myself alive,
Though around me the corpses piled higher,
Then a big Turkish shell knocked me arse over head,
And when I awoke in my hospital bed,
When I saw what they'd done, I wished myself dead,
Never knew there were worse things than dying,
5
Waltzing Matilda [2]
For I'll go no more waltzing Matilda,
All along the green bush far and near,
For to hump tent and pegs, a man needs both legs,
No more waltzing Matilda for me.
4.
So they collected the crippled, the wounded and lame,
And they shipped us right home to Australia,
The legless, the armless, the blind, the insane,
Those proud wounded heros of Suavla,
And as the ship pulled into circular quay,
I looked at the place where my legs used to be,
And thanked Christ there was nobody waiting for me,
To cry and to mourn and to pity,
And the band played Waltzing Matilda,
As they carried us down the gangway,
But nobody cheered, they just stood there and stared,
And they turned all their faces away.
5.
And now every April I sit on my porch,
And I see the parade pass before me,
And I watch my old comrades, how proudly they march,
Re-living old dreams and past glory,
And the old men walk slowly, all bent stiff and sore,
The tired old men of a forgotten war,
And the young men ask me, what are they marching for,
And I ask myself the same question,
And the band play Waltzing Matilda,
And the old men still answer the call,
But year by year, the old men disappear,
Soon no-one will march there at all.
Waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda,
Who'll come a'waltzing Matilda with me,
And their ghosts can be heard as they pass by the billabong,
Who'll come a'waltzing Matilda with me.
6
Prospect Providence
Keith Marsden
1.
Fifty years, man and boy, have I worked the mill,
Though I never could stand the place,
I got to the top by my own boot strap,
And not 'cos they liked my face,
I've made a good life for my child and wife,
I've respect from my fellow men,
But the gaffer's giving me the gold watch next week,
And he'll never see me again.
Chorus
Prospect, Providence, Perseverance, Albert, Valley and Crank,
I've spent my time in the dust and grime, with never a word of thanks,
Though the wages were low and the hours were long,
And the gaffers were hard lads, hard,
But the last time's coming, thank god, coming soon,
When I'll walk up the damn mill yard.
2.
There'll be no more sweating on a sea coil dam,
In the heat of a summer day,
There'll be no more choking on the rag 'oil dust,
There'll be no more thratching for pay,
There'll be no more tryin' to mend a clapped out loom,
When the noise makes you climb the wall,
There'll be no more measuring the gaffer's boot,
With the seat of your overall.
3.
There'll be no more bawling of a weaver out,
When her piece make's the menders grieve,
"Well me shuttles where all cracked and I'd too many trapped,
And the weft wasn't fit to weave",
Then the spinner finds fault with the willeyer's blend,
Who says that his rags were too cheap,
And the blame get's passed on down the line ,
Till the gaffer goes and kicks the sheep.
7
Prospect Providence [2]
4.
Though the pension's low, I've a bit put by,
That'll do for the wife and me,
With enough left over for the odd glass of beer,
And a few days by the sea,
And I'll roll a few woods and I'll now find time,
For the jobs that I use to shirk,
I'll have so much on that I'll wonder then,
How I ever found time for work.
5.
Though the pension's low, still the prices rise,
My wife's going out of her mind,
And I'm no longer sure what it's all been for,
The year-long, life-long grind,
And I'd dust so long, that my lungs have gone,
And I cannot get my breath,
I can't laugh or talk or even walk,
And I long for the peace of death.
8
The Laidly Worm
The king has gone from Bamburgh castle, long may the princess mourn,
Long may she stand at her castle wall awaiting his return.
Now as it came out on a day that the king had brought the queen with him
home,
And all the lords in our country to welcome them did come.
The king said, wondering while he spake, this princess of the North,
Surpasses all of female kind in beauty and in worth.
The envious queen replied to this, well he might have excepted me,
Now in a few hours I will bring her down to a low degree.
I will turn her into a worm that warps about the stone,
And one she will never be till Childe Wynd's return.
The lady stood at her bower door, laughing, who would her blame,
But 'ere the next day's sun went down a long worm she became.
And seven miles east and seven miles west and seven miles north and south
No blade of grass or corn would grow, so venomous was her mouth.
So news went east and news went west and over the sea did go,
Where the child of Winde got whit of it which filled his heart with woe.
He called then to his merry men, they thirty were and three,
I wish I was at Spindleston this desperate worm to see.
We have no time now here to waste, now quickly let us sail,
For my only sister Margaret I think something doth ail
So they built a ship without delay, with masts of the rowan tree,
And shimmering sails of silk so fine and set her on the sea.
Now the queen stood at her castle walls to see what she could see,
And there she spied the gallant ship come sailing on the sea.
When she spied the silken sails full glancing in the sun,
To sink the ship she sent away her witch wives every one.
9
Laidly Worm [2]
But their spells were vain and the hags returned to the queen in sorrowful
mood,
Saying that witches have no power where there is rowan tree wood.
Well the worm jumped up and the worm jumped down and plaited around a
stone,
And as the ship came to the land she banged it off again.
So the Childe ran out of her reach and beached on Budle sands,
And jumping into the shallow water he quickly got to land.
And there he drew his berry brown sword and laid it at her head,
Saying that if you do me harm then I will strike you dead.
Oh quit thy sword, and bend thy bow, and give me kisses three,
For if I'm not one 'er the sun goes down, then one I shall never be.
So he quit his sword and bent his bow and he gave her kisses three,
She crept into a hole, a worm, and out stepped a lady.
So he's taken his mantle from him about, and it he's wrapped her in,
And they have up to Bamburgh castle as fast as they can win.
Now his absence and her serpent shape the king had long deplored,
And now rejoiced to see them both again to him restored.
But the queen they wanted, whom they found was sick and sore afraid,
Because she saw her power must yield to Childe Wynd's who said.
Woe be to thee thou wicked witch, and an ill death way thou die,
As thou has likened Margaret, then likened thou shalt be.
I will turn you into a toad that on the ground does wend,
And one thou shalt never be till this world has an end.
Now on the ground near Ida's tower there crawls a loathsome toad,
That venom spits on every maid it meets upon the road.
10
Length of Yarn
John Kirkpatrick
1.
All through the town, in a hundred houses,
In every one the light still burns,
All through the town by a hundred hearths,
For a word of news the hearts are yearning,
Deaf to the log fires hissing and cracking,
Deaf to the kettle singing and whistling,
Only one sound fills their ears,
And that's the sound of the storm waves crashing.
2.
An old one sits in her empty room,
And grim she glares at the candle flame,
No need to watch her hands at work,
Or the ball of wool at her feet unrolling,
It's a year to the day since the carrier's cart,
Brought home her son all drenched from drowning,
Brought him home to his new young wife,
And paid no heed to his mother's mourning.
3.
Oh cursed be the creaking waggoner's wheels,
That freeze my blood each time they pass,
Cursed be the sea who's angry waves,
Robbed me of my son, robbed me of my sleeping,
And cursed and cursed be the sweet young wife,
Who stole a son from his mother's loving,
Stole him living, stole him dead,
And scarcely gave him three months mourning.
4.
Nine months I held him in my womb,
And my son's blood ran free with mine,
Nine months I held him to my breast,
His food all milk of a mother's making,
Then nine long years I watched him grow,
And nine years more to make him man,
Now all I have is dead and gone,
She's a hard and heartless whoring hussy.
11
Length of Yarn [2]
5.
All through the town the lantern swings,
As the creaking wheels come rolling by,
All trough the town the doors fling wide,
To see who still stands and who they carry,
Here's one more home that's lost a man,
And one more home that's gained a grieving,
But an old one's tears are bitter and hard,
As she stares at the cloth on the body clinging.
6.
I knew the man that sheared this fleece,
For that was the hand of my father dear,
I knew the hand that spun the yarn,
For that was the hand of my own sister,
And mine the hand that knit this smock,
And mine the son that wore my stitching,
Now here it lies on another man's back,
And it grieves my mind beyond all telling,
7.
See here there's a place where a length of yarn,
Is tied in knots all ragged and charred,
That's the time when the candle fell,
And burned my wool to a smouldering cinder,
Oh damn the work to make it good,
And damn the wool and damn the candle,
And damn this man who wears my cloth,
And damn the one who gave it's wearing.
8.
A young one sits in her empty room,
In floods the tears come rolling down,
She feels her belly gently stir,
And feels her breast a'gently swelling,
Here's one more child that's lost it's father,
And one more woman that's lost her man,
Here's one more woman all alone,
With one more hurt that's hard to carry,
And all for a length of yarn
12
Doin' the Manch.
Keith Marsden
I was eighteen when me dad first took me to a pub,
And I've never, ever, seen him quite so mad,
"A pint of your usual sir ?" the barman said,
But he was asking me, not dad.
"If surfeiting the appetite will sicken and so die,
I'll not long have a boozer for a son,
They say there's twenty seven pubs from here to Odsal Top,
And tonight you'll have a pint in every one."
We kicked of at the Majestic, Little Alex kicked us out,
When dad said he was scared what he might catch,
We didn't mean to set on fire the White Swan and the Devonshire,
But dad was always careless with his match-es. The Oddfellows knew we'd been because of riots in the Queens,
But I was right till dad said then,
We should have had a nip in the Blue Lion and the Griffin,
So we'll have to go back down and start again.
We should have had a nip in the Blue Lion and the Griffin,
So we'll go back down and do the Manch again.
We thought we'd make a start with a quiet game of darts,
Before we'd gone a beer to far,
But we were chucking arrows in the Albany snug,
And the board was in the public bar,
There were arrows in the ceiling, there were arrows in the floor,
There were arrows in the barmaid's thigh,
Till a very ugly landlord, with a very ugly club,
Suggested we should both go forth and multiply.
Broken glasses they were counting as we slipped out of the Fountain,
And the Talbot crowd were still in hot pursuit,
In the fighting, father all-but killed the landlord of the Talbot,
When the silly bugger criticised his suit,
And we were walking on our knees by the time we reached the Fleece,
But I was right till dad said then,
13
Doin the Manch [2]
Like it lad, or lump it, we have missed the Horse and Trumpet,
So we'll have to go back down and start again.
We should have had a nip in the Blue Lion and the Griffin,
Like it lad, or lump it, we have missed the Horse and Trumpet,
So we'll go back down and do the Manch again.
Just then we chanced to meet a young lady of the street,
And Lord had she some lovely wares to sell,
Unfortunately dad was some what sick upon her dog,
But after fourteen pints he wasn't feeling well,
As he searched for his teeth he found the dog underneath,
Jumped back and knocked the poor woman flat,
I've had pork pies, pints, pickled eggs and pies tonight,
But I can't remember eating that.
Well the Station and the Junction then both showed us no compunction,
As they threw us in the street upon our ear,
We'd all sorts of hell on in the New Inn and the Nelson,
And we had the Wickham landlord close to tears,
As newts we were pissed as, as we staggered into Listers,
But I was right till dad said then,
Trouble now of course is, we've forgot T'Waggon and Horses,
So we'll have to go back down and start again.
We should have had a nip in the Blue Lion and the Griffin,
Like it lad, or lump it, we have missed the Horse and Trumpet,
Trouble now of course is, we've forgot T'Waggon and Horses,
So we'll go back down and do the Manch again.
Then dad pinched a bulldozer so that we could ride in style,
But he flattened three police cars straight away,
His driving wasn't polished and in no time he'd demolished,
Hong Kong Harry's corner Chinese take-away,
As the chinee with his chopper chased us up to Chellow street,
His nearness to me necktie wasn't nice,
When me breath began to steady I said, he were mad enough already,
Did you have to order curried cat and rice.
14
Doin the Manch (3)
We had Whitbread's we had Webster's we had Hammond's we had Hay's,
We had John Smith's and Sam Smith's too,
We were right bloody gluttons with some OBJ by Dutton's,
And Bas both red and blue,
We had Ind-Coupe and Alsopp's and some Ramsdens that was all slops,
But I was right till dad said then,
We've missed out all the Bentley's we've not had a drop of Tetley's,
So we'll have to go back down and start again.
We should have had a nip in the Blue Lion and the Griffin,
Like it lad, or lump it, we have missed the Horse and Trumpet,
Trouble now of course is, we've forgot T'Waggon and Horses,
We've missed out all the Bentley's we've not had a drop of Tetley's,
So we'll go back down and do the Manch again.
The police, with a van, cleared the Yorkshire Divan,
The landlord and his wife and kids as well,
The Foresters was quite, there was not a sign of riot,
For the customers were all inside the cells.
There were specials running up the street and firemen rushing down,
Troops and tanks were standing by at Odsal Top,
Some nuns who came to pray for peace just stayed to sober-up the priest,
Who got so drunk he tried to kiss a cop.
There was still a hue and cry in both the Woodman and Red Lion,
And the Craven Heifer tried to bar the door,
We thought we might get drunk if we'd another in the Truncliffe,
So we though we'd better have one to be sure,
As we fell through the doors on all fours at Mary Shaw's,
I was right till dad said then,
You can have a little rest now you're half way through the test
Then we'll have to go back down and start again.
We should have had a nip in the Blue Lion and the Griffin,
Like it lad, or lump it, we have missed the Horse and Trumpet,
Trouble now of course is, we've forgot T'Waggon and Horses,
We've missed out all the Bentley's we've not had a drop of Tetley's,
You can have a little rest now you're half way through the test
So we'll go back down and do the Manch again.
15
Bring us a Barrel
1.
No man that's a drinker takes ale from a pin,
For there is too little good stuff there within,
Four and a half is it's measure in full,
Too small for a sup, not enough for a pull.
Chorus
So bring us a barrel and set it up right,
Bring us a barrel to last us the night,
Bring us a barrel no matter how high,
We'll drink it up lads, we'll drink it dry.
2.
The poor little firkin's nine gallon in all,
Though the beer it be good, the size is too small,
For lads that are drinkers like you and like I,
The poor little firkin will quickly run dry.
3.
So when that I'm dying and on my death bed,
Down by my side place a fine full hogshead,
That if down below I must go when I die,
Me and old nick, we can soon drink it dry.
4.
So bring forth the puncheon and roll out the butt,
For they are the measures before us to put,
The pots will go round and good ale it will flow,
And we'll be content for an hour or so.
16
Little Musgrave.
As it fell on one holy-day,
As many be in the year,
When young men and maids did go,
Their matins for to hear
Little Musgrave came to the church door,
When the priest was at the mass,
He had more mind for the fair ladies,
Than he had of Our Lady's grace.
The one of them was clad in green,
Another was clad in pall,
And then in came my Lord Barnard's wife,
The fairest of them all.
She cast her eye on Little Musgrave,
As fair as the summer sun,
And then bethought him, Little Musgrave,
This lady's heart I've won.
I have loved thee, Little Musgrave,
Full long and many a day,
So I have loved you, fair Lady,
Yet never a word durst say.
I have a bower in Bucklesfordberry,
Full daintily it is dight,
If thou'lt wend thither, thou Little Musgrave,
You'll lie in my arms tonight.
Quote he, I thank thee, fair lady,
This kindness thou showest me,
And whether it be to my well or woe,
This night I will lodge with thee.
With that beheard a little foot page,
By his lady's coach as he ran,
Says he, though I am my lady's foot page,
Yet I am Lord Barnard's man.
17
Little Musgrave. (2)
Then he's cast off his hose and shoon,
Set down his feet and ran,
And when the bridges were broke down,
He bent his bow and swam.
Awake! Awake! thou Lord Barnard,
As thou art a man of life,
Little Musgrave is at Bucklesfordberry,
Along with your wedded wife.
If this be true, thou little foot page,
This thing thou tellest me,
Then all the land in Bucklesfordberry,
I freely give to thee.
But if it be a lie, thou little foot page,
This thing thou tellest me,
On the highest tree in Bucklesfordberry,
Then hanged thou shalt be.
He called up his merry men all,
Come saddle me my steed,
This night I must to Bucklesfordberry,
For I never had greater need.
But some they whistled and some they sang,
And some they thus could say,
Whenever Lord Barnard's horn it blew,
Away Musgrave away.
Methinks I hear the threstle cock,
Methinks I hear the Jay,
Methinks I hear Lord Barnards horn,
Away Musgrave Away.
Lie still, lie still, thou Little Musgrave,
And huggle me from the cold,
Tis nothing but a shepherd's boy,
Driving his sheep to the fold.
18
Little Musgrave.(3)
By this Lord Barnard came to his door,
And lighted a stone upon,
And he has pulled out three silver keys,
And opened the doors each one.
Little Musgave had laid him down,
To take a little sleep,
When he aroused ...............
Lord Barnard.....................
Was standing at his feet.
He lifted up the coverlet,
He lifted up the sheet,
Dost thou like my bed, Little Musgrave,
Do you find my lady sweet.
I find her sweet quoth Little Musgarave,
The more ‘tis to my pain,
I would gladly give three hundred pounds,
That I were on yonder plain.
Arise, arise, thou Little Musgrave,
And put thy clothes on,
It shall ne'er be said in this country,
I have killed a naked man.
I have two swords down by my side,
They are both sharp and clear,
Take you the best and I the worst,
We'll end this matter here.
The first stroke Little Musgrave struck,
He hurt Lord Barnard sore,
The next stroke that Lord Barnard struck,
Little Musgrave ne'er struck more.
With that bespake this fair lady,
In bed where she did lay,
Though thou art dead my Little Musgrave,
Yet I for thee will pray.
19
Little Musgrave. (4)
And wish well to thy soul will I,
So long as I have life,
So will I not for thee Barnard,
Thou I'm thy wedded wife.
Lord Barnard drew his great broadsword,
And loudly he did call,
He struck his lady through the heart,
And pinned her against the wall.
A grave, a grave, Lord Barnard cried,
To put these lovers in,
But lay my lady on the upper hand,
For she comes of the nobler kin.
20
Feed the Children
Eric Bogle
Have you seen the children, that disturb our paradise?
Staring from the TV with helpless, dying eyes,
No trace of anger, at the betrayal of the trust,
That left them to die like starving dogs in the famine's bitter dust.
Chorus.
But if you close your ears, you won't hear them crying,
And if you close your eyes, you won't see them dying,
And if you close your heart, your mind won't condemn.
If the future's born with every birth: How much is a child's life worth,
Feed the children of the Earth: Or the future dies with them.
And have you seen the madmen, that strut the World stage,
Rattling nuclear sabres, as they prance and preen and rage,
Threatening our destruction, as humanity holds it's breath,
Living on fear and bigotry, while the children starve to death.
Chorus.
But if you close your ears, you won't hear them crying,
And if you close your eyes, you won't see them dying,
And if you close your heart, your mind won't condemn.
If the future's born with every birth: How much is a child's life worth,
Feed the children of the Earth: Or the future dies with them.
21
Constant Lovers
As I was a'walking down by the sea shore,
Where the wind it did whistle and the waves they did roar,
I heard a young maid make a terrible sound,
Like the wind and the waves it did echo around, crying,
Chorus,
Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, my love is gone,
He's the youth I adore,
He's gone, and I never will see him no more.
She'd a voice like a nightingale, skin like a dove,
And the songs that she sang they were all about love,
When I asked her to marry me, marry me please,
The reply that she gave, my love's drown in the seas, crying,
I said I have gold and I've silver besides,
In a coach and six horses with me you would ride,
She said I'll not marry, nor yet prove a wife,
I'll be constant and true all the days I have life, crying,
Then she spread her arms wide and she took a great leap,
From the cliffs that were high to the billows so deep,
Saying the rocks of the ocean shall be my death bed,
And the shrimps of the sea shall swim over my head, crying,
And now every night at six bells they appear,
When the moon it shines bright and the stars do appear,
These two constant lovers with each others charms,
Rolling over and over in each other arms, crying,
22
Spencer the Rover
Well Spencer the rover had wandered all over,
And wandered most parts of Great Britain and Wales,
He being so reduced, it caused great confusion,
And that was the reason he went on the road.
In Yorkshire, near Rotherham, He went on his travels,
Being weary of travelling, he sat down to rest,
At the foot of yonder mountain, where there runs a clear fountain,
With bread and cold water himself did refresh.
And it tasted far sweeter than the gold he had wasted,
Far sweeter than honey, and gave more content,
Till the thought of his babies lamenting their father,
Brought tears to his eyes and caused him to lament.
As night was approaching, to the woods he resorted,
With woodbine and ivy his bed for to make,
He dreamed about sighing, lamenting and crying,
Go home to your family and rambling forsake.
Last fifth of November, I've reason to remember,
When first I appeared to my family and wife,
They looked so surprised to see my arrival,
To see such a stranger once more in their sight.
And my children ran around me with their pretty prattling stories,
Their pretty prattling stories to drive care away,
And now we're together like birds of one feather,
Like bees in one hive and together we'll stay.
And now that I'm placed in my cottage, contented,
With woodbine and roses hanging all round my door,
I'm as happy as them that's got thousands of riches,
Contented I'll stay and go rambling no more.
23
Thank you for the Years Eric Bogle
Well, old friend, here I am, I told you I'd be back,
And as usual , mate, I'm bloody late, it's seventy five years down the track,
For the last time here I stand, in this familiar foreign land,
With all the friends I left behind, forever in their time.
But of all the ghosts of all the boys that haunt this lonely glade,
There's just one of them wears your cheery grin, and your Queensland joker's
face,
When I drown in old and bloody dreams, of young men's helpless dying
screams,
I feel your hand give my arm a shake, and your voice say "steady mate"
Well the country that you died for mate, you wouldn't know it now,
The future that we dreamed of got all twisted up somehow,
The peace that we were fighting for, the end to stupid senseless war,
So it wouldn't happen to our kids, well, old mate, it did.
But thank you for the gift of years and the flame that brightly burns,
For the years you bought and the lessons taught,
Though often wasted and unlearned,
"Lest we forget" cry the multitude, as if I ever, ever could,
So forgive an old man's tears, and thank you for the years.
24
Home Lads Home
1.
Overseas in India, the sun was dropping low,
With tramp and creak and jingle, I heard the gun teams go,
And something seemed to set me, dreaming as I lay,
Of my old Hampshire village, at the quiet end of day.
Chorus.
And it's home lads home, all among the corn and clover,
Home lads home, when the working day is over,
For there's rest for horse and man, when the longest day is done,
And we'll all go home together at the setting of the sun.
2
Brown thatch and gardens blooming, with lily and with rose,
The Meon runs beside them, so quiet where it flows,
Wide fields of oats and barley, and the elderflower like foam,
The sky all gold with sunset and the horses going home.
3
Captain, Boxer, Traveller, I see them all so plain,
With tasselled ear-caps nodding all along the leafy lane,
Somewhere a bird is calling, and the swallow swooping low,
And the lads are sitting sideways, and singing as they go.
4
Well gone is many a lad now, and many a horse gone too,
Of all them lads and horses in those old fields I knew,
For Dick fell at Givetchy, and Prince beside the guns,
On that red road of glory just a mile or two from Mons.
5
Dead lads and shadowy horses but I see them all so plain,
I see them and I knew them, and I call them each by name,
Riding down through Swanmore, when the west is all aglow,
And the lads are sitting sideways and singing as they go.
And it's home lads home, with the sunset on their faces,
Home lads home, to the quiet happy places,
Where there's rest for horse and man, when the longest day is done,
And we'll all go home together, at the setting of the sun.
25
Normandy Orchards
Keith Marsden
1.
They're building a camp on the cornfields at Allingham,
Bulldozers churning and changing the land,
Long barbed wire fences and acres of tarmac,
Nissen huts ranged where the crops used to stand,
Wide-eyed young village girls giggling and staring,
At tanks and transporters that darken the sky,
There's convoys of lorries with fresh faces peering out,
Some of the young men come learning to die.
Chorus;
And they say you can still hear the village hall band,
Gray ghostly couples still glide round the floor,
But Normandy orchards were waiting to welcome,
New partners for death in the mad dance of war.
2.
Mother has started a comforts committee,
But revered John's more concerned about sin,
Hughes at the White Swan is rubbing his hands a lot,
Watching the troops and the profits roll in,
Eager young squadies with over-done courtesy,
Tipping their caps to the girls going by,
But they're too soon from school to be licentious soldiery,
All of then young men come learning to die,
3.
And mother would have a blue fit if she knew about,
Lieutenant Johnson and walks in the wood,
She's laid down the law and she's always gone on,
About men being beasts so a girl must be good,
But even she'd laugh at our clumsy propriety,
Me far too fearful and him far too shy,
She may even pity his lonely bewilderment,
One of the young men come learning to die,
4.
Peace came to Allingham many long years ago,
Time going by healed the scars on the land,
Tanks on the village green just a fond memory now,
Corn grows again where the huts used to stand,
But as I walk in the woods on a summer's night,
By the trees edge when the wind starts to sigh,
I fancy I hear voices raised up in harmony,
Lost, wasted young men come learning to die.
26
The Foggy Dew
1.
When I was a young lad I lived on my own and I followed the weaving trade,
The only thing I ever did wrong was to court a fair young maid,
I courted her one winter's morning and all through the summer too,
And the only thing I ever did wrong was keep her from the foggy dew.
2.
One night she came to my bedside as I lay fast asleep,
She laid her head upon my bed and bitterly she did weep,
She wept and sighed, she tore her hair, she said "what can I do",
For tonight I'm resolved to sleep with you, for fear of the foggy dew.
3.
So all the first part of the nigh how we did sport and play,
And all the second part of the night she in my arms did lay,
And when brave daylight did appear she said, "I am undone",
Fear not fair maid be not afraid, for the foggy dew is gone.
4.
One night she started to weep and moan, I said "now what's up with you",
She said "I'd never have been this way if it hadn't of have for you",
So I got my boots and my jacket on, and I fetched my neighbour too,
But do what we would we could do her no good, and she died in the foggy
dew.
5.
So now I'm a batchelor and I live with my son and we follows the weaving
trade,
And when I look in his face I see the eyes of that fair young maid,
It reminds me of that winter's morning and part of that summer too,
And all the times she lay with me for fear of the foggy dew.
27
I would that the war were well over
1.
In the meadow one morning when pearly with dew,
A sweet pretty maiden plucked violets blue,
I heard her clear voice making all the woods ring,
Oh my love is in Flanders to fight for the king,
And I would that the war were well over,
I would that the war were all done.
2.
I'll pluck a red robin so jaunty and gay,
For I have my Robin though he's far away,
His jacket is red and his cheek like the rose,
And he sings of his Nell as to battle he goes,
And I would that the war were well over,
I would that the war were all done,
3.
Ten thousand of bluebells now welcome the spring,
Oh when will the church bells for victory ring,
And our heros return, and all England rejoice,
And then I'll be wed to the lad of my choice,
And I would that the war were well over,
I would that the war were all done,
28
John Barleycorn #2
There were three men came from the west,
Their fortunes for to tell,
And the life of John Barleycorn as well.
They laid him in three furrows deep,
Threw clods all on his head,
Then these three men made a solemn vow,
John Barleycorn was dead.
They let him lie for a very long time,
Till the rain from heaven did fall,
Then little Sir John sprung up his head,
He did amaze them all.
They let him lie till the midsummer day,
Till he looked both pale and wan,
Then little Sir John grow a long long beard,
And so became a man.
They hired men with the scythes so sharp,
To cut him off at the knee,
They rolled him and tied him around the waist,
They served him barbarously.
They hired men with the crab-tree sticks,
To cut him skin from bone,
And the miller has served him worse than this,
For he ground him between two stones.
They've wheeled him here, they've wheeled him there,
They've wheeled him to a barn,
And then they served him worse than that,
They've bunged him in a vat.
They have worked their will on John Barleycorn,
But he lived to tell the tale,
For they pour him out of an old brown jug,
And they call him home brewed ale.
29
The King
Joy, health, love and peace,
Be all here in this place,
By your leave we will sing,
Concerning our king.
Our king is well dressed,
In silks of the best,
In ribbons so rare,
No king can compare,
We have travelled many miles,
Over hedges and stiles,
In search of our king,
To you we bring,
We have powder and shot,
To conquer the lot,
We have cannon and ball,
To conquer them all,
Now Christmas is past,
Twelfth night is the last,
We bid you adieu,
Great joy to the new.
30
Broken Token
1.
As I walked out one bright May morning,
A fair young maid I chanced to see,
I asked her if she had a sweetheart,
And this reply she gave to me.
2.
`Tis seven long years since I had a sweetheart,
`Tis seven long years since I did him see,
And seven more I will wait upon him,
Till he returns to marry me.
3.
Oh I don't know how you can love a sailor,
I don't know how you can love a slave,
For perhaps he's married, or perhaps he's buried,
And laying in his cold watery grave.
4.
Well if he's married I wish him happy,
And if he's buried I wish him peace,
But for his sake I will never marry,
For he's the one I love the best.
5.
So he put his hand into his pocket,
His fingers being so long and thin,
Took out a ring that was bent and broken,
And when she's seen it down she fell.
6.
So he's taken her up all in his arms,
And kisses gave her three by three,
Saying who am I but your own darling William,
Come home again for to marry you.
31
Ploughboys
1.
Come all you young ploughboys and help me to sing,
I will sing in the praise of you all,
For if we don't labour how can there be bread,
I will sing and make merry with all.
2.
It's of two young brethren, two brethren born,
It's of two young brethren bold,
And the one was a shepherd and a tender of sheep,
And the other was a planter of corn.
3.
We will moil it we will toil it through mire and through clay,
We will plough it up deep, fine and wide,
Then along comes the seedsman to sow it with corn,
And the harrow to rake it in row.
4.
Here's April, here's May, here's June and July,
What pleasure to watch the corn grow,
In August it ripens, we reap and sheaves tie,
And go down with our scythes for to mow.
5.
And when we have gathered up every sheaf,
And gleaned up every ear,
We will make no more ado but to plough and to sow,
And provide for the harvest next year
32
The Banks of the Bann
1.
When first to this country a stranger I came,
I placed my affections in a comely young dame,
She being fair and tender, her waist small and slender,
Fond nature had formed her for my overthrow.
2.
On the banks of the Bann, it was there I first met her,
She appeared like some angel or Egypt's fair queen,
Her eyes were like diamonds or stars brightly shining,
She's the fairest of all in the world that I've seen.
3.
Now it was her cruel parents that first caused us variance,
Because they were rich and above my degree,
But I will endeavour to gain my love's favour,
Although she is come from a high family.
4.
Now my name it is Delanney, it's a name that won't shame me,
And if I had saved money I never would have roamed,
But drinking and sporting, night-rambling and courting,
Were the cause of all my ruin and my absence from home.
5.
Well if I had all the riches that there are in the Indies,
I'd put rings on her fingers and gold in her ears,
And there on the banks of the lovely Bann river,
In all kinds of splendour I would live with my dear.
33
Brigg Fair
1.
It was on the fifth of August, the weather being fine,
Onto Brigg fair I did repair for love I was inclined.
2.
I got up with the lark in the morning and my heart was full of glee,
Expecting there to meet my dear long time I wished to see.
3.
I looked over my left shoulder to see whom I could see,
And there I spied my own true love come tripping down to me.
4.
For it's meeting is a pleasure and parting is a grief,
But an inconstant lover is worse than any thief.
5.
The green leaves they will wither and the branches will decay,
Before that I prove false to thee, to the girl that loves me
34
Dark Eyed Sailor
1.
A young lady so charming and fair,
Was walking out for to take the air,
She met a sailor by the way,
So I paid attention, so I paid attention,
To hear what they might say
2.
Said William, why do you walk alone,
For the day's near gone and the night comes on,
She said, as tears from her eyes did fall,
Tis a dark eyed sailor, tis a dark eyed sailor,
Has caused my downfall.
3.
Said William, chase him from your mind,
For better sailors than him you'll find,
Your love is hot but will soon grow cold,
Like a winter's morning, like a winter's morning,
When snow covers the ground.
4.
Oh he had dark eyes, and jet-black hair,
And his pleasing tongue did my heart ensnare,
Upright he was, not a rogue like you,
To entice a maiden, to entice a maiden,
To sleight the jacket blue.
5
Oh `tis seven long years since he left this land,
A golden token he took off his hand,
He broke the token in half with me,
Now the other's rolling, now the other's rolling,
At the bottom of the sea.
6.
William then did her the token show,
Which set the maiden's heart aglow,
Welcome, William, I've house and lands,
And a store of silver, for my sailor lover,
So handsome true and bold.
35
Drowned Sailor
1.
On Stope Brow, on Stope Brow, a fair young maid did dwell,
She loved a handsome sailor, and he loved her as well,
He promised he would marry her when back he did return,
But oh what misfortune the world it does contain.
2.
As they were a'sailing, a'sailing by night,
The moon it was a'shaded and dismal was the night,
The storm it was a'raging and the waves the vessel bore,
Till it dashed these young sailors all on the rocky shore.
3.
Now some of them were single and some of them had wives,
But all of these young sailors had to swim all for there lives,
And this unhappy sailor who tried his life to save,
Instead of being married, did find a watery grave.
4.
Now as she was a'walking from Stope brow to 'Bay,
She spied a handsome sailor lad who on the sand did lay,
The nearer she drew near to him, it brought her to a stand,
For she spied it was her true love by the marks upon his hand.
5.
She kissed him, caressed him, ten thousand times all o'er,
She said these awful billow waves have washed my love ashore,
And then this pretty damsel, she lay down by his side,
And in a few moments she's kissed him and died.
6.
This couple were a'buried in robin hood's churchyard,
And to them a memorial stone at their head was raised,
So all of you young lovers who do this way pass by,
Just shed a tear of pity from out your glistening eye.
36
Willey 'Ole Lad
Keith Marsden
1.
Oh Mary lass what's this you're doing, and what's this you're getting into,
We're respectable folk and we're chapel, and yon city lad will not do,
Your mother was always a mender, and your grandma before her was too,
I started off low but I'm head spinner now,
And yon willey 'ole lad's not for you,
Chorus.
And I dare say he's young now and handsome,
And his eyes are a fine smiling blue,
But he's clogs, and he'll al'us be clogs lass,
Yon willey 'ole lad's not for you.
2.
He'll never have seat to his trousers, you'll never have jam for your bread,
No five pound a week house like ours is, but a back-to-back midden instead,
Then one kid a year till you're thirty, and a worn out old woman you'd rue,
That you shook your soft hear when your old father said,
Yon willey 'ole lad's not for you.
3.
And when he's forty and fat with the boozing, and the women he's had turn
away,
When his money on horses he's losing, while you've still the rent man to pay,
When it's all'us your fault with your nagging, and the beer makes him nasty
and bad,
When you lay there and dread that he'll want you in bed,
Will you still love your willey 'ole lad.
4.
So if you want my consent to wed him lass, I fear you'll be wanting a while,
If it's him that you meet at the altar it'll not be my arm down the aisle,
Just cherish your grace for a while lass, and dream silly dreams while you can,
When you'd spent all your youth you'd have long years for truth,
With your man still a willey 'ole lad.
37
Dockyard Gate
1.
Come all you married seamen bold, these words to you I'll write,
Just to let you know how the game do go when you are out of sight,
Just to let you know how the lads on shore go sporting with your wives,
While you are out on the stormy seas, a'venturing your sweet lives.
2.
And now our ship is outward bound and ready to set sail,
"May the heavens above protect my love with a sweet and pleasant gale,
And keep him far all from the shore and never to return,
Until his pockets are well lined and then he's welcome home".
3.
So a last farewell she takes of him and she begins to cry,
A'taking out her handkerchief to wipe her flowing eye,
"O my husband he has gone to sea, how hard it is my case,
But still on shore there's plenty more to come and take his place".
4.
Then she goes to her fancy man and this to him does say,
"My husband he has gone to sea, tomorrow is half-pay day,
Now you come down to the dockyard gate and wait till I come out,
And this merry day we'll sweat his half pay in drinking ale and stout".
5.
So they spent the day in sweet content till his half-pay was no more,
"O never mind my love" she said, "he's working hard for more,
Perhaps he's at the masthead high a'dying of the cold,
Or perhaps he's at his watch on deck, our joys he can't behold".
6.
And now our ship is homeward bound , brought up in Plymouth Sound,
She hears the gun, my husband's come, to him I must go down,
She runs into her neighbour's house and says, "I'm in a spot,
Lend me your gown for mine's in pawn, it's the only one I've got".
7.
Then she goes down to the dockyard gate and tries for to get in,
She loudly for her husband calls and runs and kisses him,
Saying "oh how happy we will be now you are on the shore,
You'll stay at home with me my love and go to sea no more".
38
Farmer's Arms
1.
Come all you young fellows that delights in being mellow,
Come listen to me and sit easy,
For a pint when it's quiet, come lads let us try it,
Dull thinking can drive a man crazy.
Chorus.
I have lawns, I have bowers, I have fruit, I have flowers,
And the lark is my morning alarmer,
So my jolly boys now, her's good health to the plough,
Long life and success to the farmer.
2.
Come sit at my table, my friends if you're able,
Let me hear not one word of complaining,
For the jingling of glasses all music surpasses,
And I love to see bottles a'draining,
For here I am king, I can glance, wink and sing,
Let no man abroad pass a stranger,
Just show me the ass that refuses a glass,
And I'll treat him to hay in a manger.
3.
Let the wealthy and great sit in splendour and state,
I envy them not I declare it,
For I eat my own ham, my own chicken and lamb,
I shear my own fleece and I wear it,
By ploughing and sowing, by reaping and mowing,
Good nature provides me with plenty,
I've a cellar well stored, and a plentiful board,
And my garden supplies every dainty.
39
Valentine's Day
1.
Last Valentine's day, bright Phebus shone clear,
We had not been a'hunting for the space of one year,
(repeat 1st two lines)
I mounted black clover, that horse of great fame,
For to hear the horn blow, and the word tally-ho.
Refrain
Tally-ho, tally-ho, hark for'ard away tally-ho.
2.
Hark, hark into cover, colonel Whindam did cry,
He had no sooner spoke than the fox he espied,
Tally-ho was the word then and crack the whip,
And that being the signal, my hounds I let slip.
3.
Then up stepped Jim Norris, and he cared not a pin,
When he pushed at the stream and his horse tumbled in,
And as he crossed over he spied the bold ren',
With her tongue hanging out, turning back to her den.
4.
Our hounds and our horses, they all were so good,
As ever broke cover or dashed through a wood,
So come fill up your glasses and round let us drink,
For while we are hunters we never will shrink.
40
The Snow it Melts the Soonest
The snow it melts the soonest when the wind begins to sing,
And the corn it ripens fastest when the winter's setting in,
And when a woman tells me that we face she'll soon forget,
Before we part I'll wad a crown, she's fein to follow me yet.
2.
The snow it melts the soonest when the wind begins to sing,
And the swallow skims without a thought as long as it is spring,
But when spring goes and the winter blows we love an' yea'll be fain,
For all your pride to follow me were it cross the raging maine.
3.
The snow it melts the soonest when the wind begins to sing,
And the bee the flew when summer shone in winter cannot sting,
I've seen a woman's anger melt between the dusk and morn,
So surely it's no harder thing to tame a woman's scorn.
4.
So never give me farewell here, no farewell I'll receive,
For I shall sit upon the stile and kiss and take your leave,
And I'll stay here till the woodcock crows and the martlet takes it's wing,
For the snow it melts the soonest when the wind begins to sing.
41
Flowers of the forest
Eric Bogle
I.
Well how do you do private Willie Mc'bride,
Do you mind if I sit down here by your graveside,
And rest for a while in the warm summer sun,
I've been walking all day and I'm nearly done,
Well I see by your gravestone you were only nineteen,
When you joined the glorious fallen in nineteen sixteen,
Well I hope you died quick and I hope you died clean,
Oh Willie Mc'bride was it slow and obscene.
Chorus
Did they beat the drums slowly, did they play the fifes lowly,
Did the rifles fire o'er you as they lowered you down,
Did the bugles play the last post in chorus,
Did the pipes play the flowers of the forest.
2.
And did you leave a wife or a sweetheart behind,
In some loyal heart is your memory enshrined,
And though you died back in nineteen sixteen,
To that faithful heart are you always nineteen,
Or are you just a stranger without even a name,
Forever enclosed behind a glass frame,
In an old photograph torn and tattered and stained,
And fading to yellow in a brown leather frame.
3.
Well the sun it shines down on these green fields of France,
The wind it blows gently and the red poppies dance,
The trenches have vanished now under the plough,
There's no gas and no barbed wire, no guns firing now,
But here in this grave yard it's still no-man's land,
And countless white crosses in mute witness stand,
To man's blind indifference to his fellow man,
And a whole generation that were butchered and damned.
4.
And I can't help but wonder now Willie Mc'bride,
Do all those who lie here know why they died,
Did you really believe them when they told you the cause,
Did you really believe that this war would end wars,
For the suffering, the sadness, the glory and the shame,
The killing and the dying, it was all done in vain,
For Willie Mc'Bride it's all happened again,
And again, and again, and again, and again.
42
Mad Tom of Bedlam
1.
To see Mad Tom of Bedlam, ten thousand miles I've travelled,
Mad Maudlin goes on dirty toes to keep her shoes from the gravel,
Chorus
Still I sing, bonny boys,
Bonny mad boys,
Bedlam boys are bonny.
For they all go bare and they live by the air,
And they want no drink or money.
2.
I went down to Satan's kitchen, to get my food one morning,
And there I got souls piping hot all on the spit a'turning,
3.
My staff has murdered giants, and my bag a long knife carries,
To cut mince pies from children's thighs, with which to feed the fairies,
4.
The spirits white as lightning would on my travels guide me,
The moon would quake and the stars would shake whenever they a'spied me,
5.
And when that I had murdered the man in the moon to a powder,
His staff I'll break and his lug I'll shake and there'll howl do demon louder,
43
Lovely Joan
1.
A fine young man it was indeed,
He was mounted on his milk white steed,
He rode, he rode, himself all alone,
Until he came to lovely Joan.
2
Good morning to you pretty maid,
And twice good morning sir she said,
He gave her a wink and she rolled her eye,
Said he to himself I'll be there by and by.
3.
Oh don't you think those pooks of hay,
A pretty place for us to play,
So come with me like a sweet young thing,
And I'll give you this golden ring.
4.
Then he pulled off his ring of gold,
My pretty little miss do this behold,
I'll freely give it for your maidenhead,
Her cheeks they blushed like roses red.
5.
Give me that ring into my hand,
And I shall neither stay nor stand,
For it would be more use to me,
Than twenty maidenheads said she.
6.
And as they made for the pooks of hay,
She leapt on his horse and she tore away,
He called, he called, but all in vain,
But Joan she ne'er looked back again.
7.
Nor did she think herself quite safe,
Not till she came to her true love's gate,
She'd robbed him of his horse and ring,
And left him to rage in the meadow green.
44
Farmer's Boy
1.
The sun had set behind yon hill across the dreary moor,
When weary and lame a boy there came up to a farmer's door,
Can you tell me where'er there be one as can give me employ,
To plough and sow, to reap and mow, to be a farmer's boy,
To be a farmer's boy.
2.
My father's died and my mother's left with five children large and small,
And what is worse ,the young lad said, I'm the eldest of them all,
Though little I be, I would work hard I you would me employ,
To plough and sow, to reap and mow, to be a farmer's boy,
To be a farmer's boy.
3.
And if it be no lad you want, one favour I've to ask,
To shelter me till break of day from this cold winter's blast,
At break of day I'll haste away, elsewhere to seek employ,
To plough and sow, to reap and mow, to be a farmer's boy,
To be a farmer's boy.
4.
The farmer's wife cried, try the lad, let him no longer seek,
Oh father do, the daughter said, as the tears rolled down her cheeks,
For a lad as'll work is hard to find, so father him employ,
Don't let him go, but let him stay, to be a farmer's boy,
To be a farmer's boy.
5.
In course of time the lad grew up, and the good old couple died,
They left the lad the farm they had, and the daughter for his bride,
Now the lad as was the farm now has, he often laughs and smiles with joy,
And he blesses the day he came that way, to be a farmer's boy,
To be a farmer's boy.
45
Polly's father lived in Lincolnshire
1.
Polly's father lived in Lincolnshire, he was the owner of a farm,
And every year I'd go there to help to reap the corn,
I rambled through the clover, and help to make the hay,
And when harvest time is over, this is what I say.
Chorus
Oh now, Polly now, you're the girl for me,
Oh now Polly I fancy I can see,
You in your father's orchard, pulling apples from the tree,
And sorting out the rosy ones and handing them to me.
2.
Polly's father was a farmer, but if I had my way,
I'd not go there once a year, but stop there every day,
For a country life's a healthy life, in the meadows to roam,
I like it best when day is done to drive the cattle home.
Chorus
Oh now, Polly now, you're the girl for me,
Oh now Polly I fancy I can see,
You in your father's orchard, pulling apples from the tree,
And sorting out the rosy ones and handing them to me.
46
We shepherds are the best of men
1.
We shepherds are the best of men that ere trod English ground,
And when we reach an ale house we value not a pound,
We drink our liquor freely and we pay before we go,
For there's no ale on the wold, where the stormy winds do blow.
2.
A man who is a shepherd must have a valiant heart,
And must not be faint hearted, but bravely play his part,
He must not be faint hearted, be it ice or rain or snow,
For there's no ale on the wold, where the stormy wind do blow.
3.
When I kept sheep on Blockly hill, it made my heart to weep,
To see the ewes hang out there tongues and hear the lambs to bleat,
So I plucked up my courage and o'er the hills did go,
To pen my sheep in their fold while the stormy winds did blow.
4.
And when I'd safely penned my sheep I turned my back in haste,
Onto some jovial company, good liquor for to taste,
For drink and jovial company, they are my heart's delight,
While my sheep safely sleep, all the fore part of the night.
47
Sally Gardens
1.
Down by the Sally Gardens my love and I did meet,
She passed the Sally Gardens on pretty snow white feet,
She bade me take love easy, as the leaves grow on the tree,
But I was young and foolish, and with her could not agree,
2.
Now in a field by the river, my love and I did stand,
And on my drooping shoulder, she laid her snow white hand,
She bade me take love easy, as the grass grows on the weir,
But I was young and foolish, and now am full of tears.
48
Bonny Hawthorn
1.
One midsummer morn when all nature was gay,
I met lovely Nancy a'taking the air,
One midsummer morn when all nature was gay,
I met lovely Nancy a'taking the air,
I said my lovely creature, come tell me where you dwell,
Beside the bonny hawthorn that blooms in the vale.
That blooms in the vale,
That blooms in the vale,
Beside the bonny hawthorn that blooms in the vale.
2.
Now hark bonny miss to the birds in yon grove,
How sweetly they sing when invited to rove,
Now hark bonny miss to the birds in yon grove,
How sweetly they sing when invited to rove,
I said my lovely creature, come tell me where you dwell,
Beside the bonny hawthorn that blooms in the vale.
That blooms in the vale,
That blooms in the vale,
Beside the bonny hawthorn that blooms in the vale.
3.
She pressed me and said that her love was sincere,
No one on the green was so charming and fair,
She pressed me and said that her love was sincere,
No one on the green was so charming and fair,
So I listened with great pleasure to her charming tender care,
Beside the bonny hawthorn that blooms in the vale.
That blooms in the vale,
That blooms in the vale,
Beside the bonny hawthorn that blooms in the vale.
49
Mutton Pie
1.
Come me jolly lads if you want to learn to plough,
Come to Iron Ed's and he'll show you how,
That there be true me lads as I have heard 'em say,
He wants you to plough four acres in a day,
Chorus
To me fal de diddle di do, fal de diddle day.
2.
He has four horses, they are very thin,
And their ribs are real right tight to their skin,
There's one knock-a-kneed, and t'other swung in't back,
And he learns 'em to go wi' a wupp-gee-back.
3.
Our old maister he went to the fair,
He bought four horses, and one was a mare,
One was blind and the other couldn't see,
The other had it's head where it's arse ought to be.
4.
Our old mistress got a maid called Alice,
And she thinks she's fit to live 'iv a palace,
Live 'iv a palace and be a queen,
I'm damned if she is fit to be seen.
5.
Up come Bullocky and this he did say,
There's a ewe been dead for a month and a day,
Fetch her up Bullocky, fetch her on the sly,
It'll make these lads some rare mutton pie.
6.
Fetch her up Bullocky, fetch her on the sly,
It'll make these lads some rare mutton pie,
He put her on the table, the maggots running thick,
And Bullocky were wallopin' 'em off wi' a stick,
7.
When the old cow died we had some stew,
When the old pig died we had bacon too,
Then the old missus she took sick,
I left that place lads, damn near quick.
50
St. Aubin Sur Mer
1.
We had to make a landing from a lousy L. C. I.
And the landing ramp was swaying like a Portsmouth dockyard drunk,
She'd pitched us and she'd heaved us till we had to land or die,
And by the time we'd made it all the tank support had sunk,
So a seasick, sodden, rabble we ran blindly everywhere,
As the germans thinned the numbers out at St. Aubin Sur Mer.
2.
We'd practised, aye we'd practised at this great invasion plan,
Storming undefended beaches on a friendly Cornish shore,
But when the tanks were grinding through the wounded in the sand,
We knew we weren't on Blighty exercises any more,
And we grew up very quickly moving out through street and square,
Shooting first and asking after, at St. Aubin Sur Mer.
3.
We had patriotic heros, we had make-believe old sweats,
But non had come with nineteen fourteen innocence, for fun,
If we did the job again for them, this tine they'd not forget,
And there'd be a golden future when the present job was done,
But hero, sweat, or dreamer, the old reaper didn't care,
As the german swung his scythe through us, at St. Aubin Sur Mer.
4.
And now I see the glory of the brave new world they've made,
From the slaughter and the sacrifice, the maiming and the pain,
And I see our lying leaders as they posture and parade,
And trample on the dead men's dreams as they ride to war again,
So don't tell me I was lucky to come back from over there,
For the lucky ones died with their dreams, at St. Aubin Sur Mer.
51
The Drovers
1.
Oh I was a lad when I first saw the sight,
The meeting of beasts and of men,
The calves on the halter, the dogs running free,
When the drovers were on the road again.
Chorus
Oh the drover's day is done, and the drover's way is run,
For they've railways laid, and they've taken the trade,
And the drover's day is done.
2.
We cursed down the valleys, we cursed up the hills,
We stumbled through marsh, bog and fen,
Each year was the last but we knew in the spring,
That the drovers would be on the road again.
3.
Oh we had the freedom of high moor and fell,
No fences or walls bound us then,
The meeting of old friends at farmstead or fair,
When the drovers were on the road again.
4.
But times are a'changing and farmers in greed,
Have turned out the proud droving men,
Our children will starve lest we find other work,
And the drovers are on the road again.
5.
I'm old and there's no place at hirings for me,
For who wants the bent, broken men,
I wish god would bring back the world that I knew,
When the drovers were on the road again.
52
Seeds of Love
1.
I sowed the seeds of love, I sowed them in the spring,
In April, May and June likewise,
While the small birds did sweetly sing,
While the small birds did sweetly sing.
2.
My garden was planted well, with flowers everywhere,
But I'd not the liberty to choose for myself,
The flower that I loved dear,
The flower that I loved dear.
3.
The gardener was standing by, and I asked him to choose for me,
He chose me the violet, the lily and the pink,
But these I refused all three,
But these I refused all three.
4.
The violet I did not like, because it fades so soon,
The lily and the pink I did overthink,
And vowed I would wait till June,
I vowed I would wait till June.
5.
For in June there's a red rose bud, and that's the flower for me,
And I often plucked at that red rose bud,
Till I found the willow tree,
I found the willow tree.
6.
The gardener was standing by, and he asked me to take great care,
For in the middle of that red rose bush,
There lurks a sharp thorn there,
There lurks a sharp thorn there.
7.
But I told him I'd take no care, until I felt the smart,
And often I plucked at that red rose bush,
Till it pierced me to the heart,
Till it pierced me to the heart.
8.
So a posy of hyssop I'll take, no other flower I'll touch,
That all the world may plainly see,
I loved one flower too much,
I loved one flower too much.
53
Funeral Song
1.
They wheeled the coffin down the aisle, the choirboys sweetly sang,
The organ played a requiem, and one sad church bell rang,
He'd always been a quiet man, not given to a spree,
So we stood alone to bury dad, me poor old mam and me,
Chorus
Then all his other wives came in, weeping down the isle,
We had to send for extra chairs, they queued for half a mile,
They came from near, they came from far, they filled up every pew,
He must have been a mormon, and me mother never knew,
Till all his other wives came back, to share the co-op ham tea,
And they brought a lot of kids with them, that looked a lot like me.
2.
He was a travelling salesman, he said he worked in lady's tights,
We all'us thought that was his job, not what he did at night,
And though I'd known him twenty year, still I never guessed,
Why when he had some time at home, he needed so much rest.
3.
The priest were old and feeble, and he made a bad job worse,
By trying to marry mother to the chap who drove the hearse,
And one wife rang up to ask us, were we going to cremate,
And could we keep him on a low light, 'cos she thought she might be late.
4.
One wife were only my age, she'd a warm look in her eye,
She said, "you look so like your dad, it makes me want to cry,
I only live in Peel Street, come and see me by and by,
For I've something that your father liked, he'd have wanted you to try".
54
The Shropshire Lad
1.
The gas was on in the institute, the flare was up in the gym,
A man was running a mineral line, a lass was singing a hymn,
When Captain Webb, the Dawley man, Captain Web from Dawley,
Came swimming along the old canal, that carries the bricks to Lawley,
Swimming along, swimming along, swimming along from Severn,
Paying a call at Dawley Bank, while swimming along to heaven.
2.
The sun shone low on the railway track, and over the bricks and stacks,
And in at the upstairs windows of the Dawley houses backs,
When we saw the ghost of Captain Webb, Webb in a water sheeting,
Come dripping along in a bathing dress, to the Saturday evening meeting,
Dripping along, dripping along, to the congregational hall,
Dripping and still he rose over the cill, and faded away in the wall.
3.
There wasn't a man in Oakengates who hadn't got hold of the tail,
And over the river in Ironbridge, and down by Coalbrookdale,
How Captain Webb the Dawley man, Captain Webb from Dawley,
Rose rigid and dead from the old canal that carries the bricks to Lawley,
Rigid and dead, rigid and dead, to the Saturday congregation,
Paying a call at Dawley Bank on the way to his destination.
55
Lily Marlene
1.
Underneath the lantern, by the barrack gate,
Darling I remember that's where you used to wait,
It's there that you whispered tenderly,
That you loved me, you'd always be,
My Lily of the lamplight, my own Lily Marlene.
2.
Time would come for roll call, time for us to part,
Darling I'd caress you and press you to my heart,
And there in the far off lantern light,
I'd hold you tight and kiss goodnight,
My Lily of the lamplight, my own Lily Marlene.
3.
Orders came for sailing somewhere over there,
All confined to barracks, it was more than I could bare,
I knew you were waiting in the street,
I heard your feet but could not meet,
My Lily of the lamplight, my own Lily Marlene.
4.
Resting in a billet just behind the lines,
Even though we're parted your lips are close to mine,
And there where the lantern softly gleams,
Your sweet face it haunts my dreams,
My Lily of the lamplight, my own Lily Marlene.
56
Rambling Comber
1.
Ye combers all both great and small, come listen to my ditty,
For it is ye, and only ye, regard my fall with pity,
For I can write, read, dance and fight, indeed it's all my honour,
My failing is that I love strong beer, I am a rambling comber.
2.
Its on the tramp I am forced to scamp, me shoes are all a tatter,
My hose unbound, they trail the ground, I seldom wear a garter,
I have a coat, scarce worth one groat, and badly want for another,
But it's oh my dear how I love strong beer, I am a rambling comber.
3.
I have no watch, I have a patch, on both sides of my britches,
My hat's all torn and my wig's all worn, my health is all my riches,
Would that I had a giggling lass, my coat all for to border,
With scraps and bows, well I would hold those, I'd hold them all in order.
4.
For a tailor's bill I seldom fill, I never do take measure,
I make no dept that would me let in the taking of my pleasure,
Nor ever will till I grow old, and I must give it over,
And then old age would me engage, for being a rambling comber.
5.
So a pitcher boy I will now employ, while I have cash or credit,
I'll rant and roar and I'll call for the score and I'll pay them when I have it,
For this is always on my mind, let me be drunk or sober,
A jug of punch, my thirst to quench, and a quart of old October,
For it's oh my dear, how I love strong beer, I am a rambling comber.
57
Wedding Song
1.
Come hand me down ye powers above,
The man that first created love,
For I've a diamond in my eye,
Where all my joys and comfort lie,
Where all my joys and comfort lie.
2.
I'll give you gold, I'll give you pearl,
If you can fancy me, dear girl,
Rich costly gowns for you to wear,
If you can fancy me my dear,
If you can fancy me my dear.
3.
Oh it's not your gold will me entice,
To leave off pleasures to be a wife,
For I don't mean or intend at all,
To be at any young man's call,
To be at any young man's call.
4.
Oh go your way, you scornful dame,
Since you've proved false I'll prove the same,
For I don't care, and I shall find,
Another fair maid to my mind,
Another fair maid to my mind.
5.
Now wait young man, don't be in haste,
You seem to think your time you waste,
Let reason rule your roving mind,
And onto you I will prove kind,
And onto you I will prove kind.
6.
So to church they went the very next day,
And were married by asking as I've heard say,
And now that maid she is his wife,
She'll prove his comfort day and night,
She'll prove his comfort day and night.
58
Fakenham Fair
1.
I never really fell in love, till I went up to Fakenham fair,
And chanced for to meet with a carnival girl, a'selling of chances there,
A try for a lamp or a spanish shawl, or a golden filligree,
And all the time her eyes were saying, oh come take a chance on me.
Chorus
So swing around the merry-go-round, give the wheel of fortune a whirl,
The finest prize at Fakenham fair is a pretty carnival girl.
2.
Her hair was brown, her eyes were blue ,and her lips were soft and red,
A shape like her's I had never seen, and my eyes nearly popped from my head,
Now I was young and innocent, but even I could see.
The way she smiled and winked her eye, she said come take a chance on me.
3.
The young folk said, she ain't for you, now what will the old people think,
But I took my chance and I won that girl, as quick as an eye could wink,
And the very best day in all my life, whatever comes to pass,
Was the day that I went up to Fakenham fair, and I won me a carnival lass.
59
Cold and Lonely Winter
1.
Summer's gone; October; the green becomes the brown,
All the leaves are red and gold before they touch the ground,
Before they touch the ground, my love, before they touch the ground,
The long and lonely winter will be here.
2.
The whitethroat and the robin are nowhere to be found,
The redwing is upon the land before you turn around,
Before you turn around my love, before you turn around,
The long and lonely winter will be here.
3.
The traveller has left the road so very long and still,
The sun will hide the winter long, before she leaves the hill,
Before she leaves the hill my love, before she leaves the hill,
The long and lonely winter will be here.
4.
Summer's gone; October; the seasons are all gone,
There's very little time to love before the year is done,
Before the year is done my love, before the year is done,
And the long and lonely winter will be here.
60
Lish Young Buy-a-Broom
1.
As I was travelling in the north country,
Down by Kirkby Stephen I happened for to be,
As I was walking up and down the street,
A pretty little buy-a-broom I chanced for to meet.
Chorus
And she was right, I was tight, everybody has their way,
It was the lish young buy-a-broom that led me astray.
2.
She kindly invited me to go a little way,
Yes was the answer to her that I did say,
There was me with my music walking down the street,
And her with a tambourine was beating hands and feet.
3.
Straight-way to Kendal we steered her and I,
Over yon green mountain the weather being dry,
We each had a bottle filled up to the top,
And whenever we were feeling dry we took a little drop.
4.
Now night coming on and good lodging we did find,
Eatables of all sorts and plenty of good wine,
Good bed and blankets just for we two,
And I rolled her in my arms me love, well wouldn't you do too.
5.
Well early in the morning we arose to go our way,
I called for the landlord to see what was to pay,
Fourteen and sixpence just for we two,
Then a quinea on the table my darlin' then she threw.
6.
Well the reason that we parted I now shall let you hear,
She started out for Germany right early the next year,
I me not being willing to cross the raging sea,
Here's a health to my buy-a-broom wherever she may be.
61
Cap't Ward and the Rainbow
1.
Come all ye jolly mariners as loves to take a dram,
I'll tell you of a robber bold that o'er the sea did come,
He's written a letter to the king on the eleventh of July,
To see if he will accept of him his jovial company.
2.
Oh no, no, says the king these things can never be,
For I fear you are a robber bold, a robber on the sea,
So he has built a gallant ship and set her on the sea,
With four and twenty mariners to guard his bonny ship wi'.
3.
And they sailed up and they sailed down so stately blith and free,
Until they spied the king's Reindeer a'sailing on the sea,
Why hide ye here ye tinkers, ye silly cowardly thieves,
Why hide ye here ye tinkers and hold your king in grief.
4.
And they fought from one o'clock in the morn, till it was six at night,
Until the king's high Reindeer was forced to take a flight,
Go home, go home ye tinkers and tell the king from me,
Though he may reign king on good dry land, I will reign king on the sea.
62
Derby Ram
1.
As I was going to Derby all on a market day,
I spied the biggest ram, sir, that ever was fed on hay,
Chorus
And indeed, my lads, it's true my lads, I never was known to lie,
And if you'd have been in Derby you'd have seen the same as I.
2.
The horns that grew upon this ram, they reached up to the moon,
A lad went up in January and he didn't come back till June.
3.
The wool that grew upon this ram, it reached down to the ground,
And every hoof that he put down, it covered an acre of land.
4.
The butcher that cut it's throat was drowned in the blood,
And the lad that held the basin he was washed away in the flood.
5.
Took all the men of Derby to carry away his bones,
Took all the women of Derby to roll away his stones.
6.
And all the lads of Derby came begging for his eyes,
To make them some footballs for they were a football size.
7.
And all the ringers of Derby came begging for his tail,
To ring St Peter's passing bell at the top of derby jail.
8.
And all the women of derby came begging for his ears,
To make them leather aprons for to last them forty years.
63
Old Black Mare
1.
I am a country carrier and a jolly old soul am I,
I whistle aid sing from morn till night and trouble I defy,
I've one to bear my company and of work she does her share,
It isn't my wife upon my life but a rattling old black mare.
Chorus
Round go the wheels, trouble I defy,
Jogging along together, my old black mare and I.
2.
And when the loads are heavy, or travelling up a hill,
I'm at her side assisting her, she works with such a will,
She knows I love her well enough, for of the whip I spare,
It isn't my wife upon my life, but a rattling old black mare.
3.
Then when the town we reach, she rattles o'er the stones,
She picks her hooves up handsomely, she's not like these old drones,
The young 'uns come to meet us and the old 'uns laugh and stare ,
At the driver smart, and the carrier's cart,
And the rattling old black mare.
64
Volunteer Organist
1.
The preacher in the village church, one Sunday morning said,
Our organist is ill today, won't someone play instead,
An anxious look came on the face of every person there,
As eagerly they watched to see who'd fill the vacant chair.
2.
A man then staggered down the aisle, his clothes were old and torn,
How strange a drunkard seemed to me in church on a Sunday morn,
But as his fingers touched the keys, without a single word,
The melody that followed was the sweetest ever heard.
Chorus.
And the scene was one I'll n'er forget as long as I may live,
And just to see it all again, all earthly wealth I'd give,
The congregation all amazed, the preacher old and gray,
The organ and the organist who volunteer to play.
3.
Not an eye was dry within the church, the strongest man grew pale,
For the organist in melody had told his own life's tale,
The sermon that the preacher gave was nothing to compare,
With that of life's example seated in the organ chair.
4.
And when the service ended not a soul had left their seat,
Except the poor old organist who started for the street.
Along the aisle and out the door he slowly made his way,
The preacher turned and bowed his head, saying brethren let us pray.
Chorus.
And the scene was one I'll n'er forget as long as I may live,
And just to see it all again, all earthly wealth I'd give,
The congregation all amazed, the preacher old and gray,
The organ and the organist who volunteered to play.
65
Recruited Collier
1.
Oh what's the matter with you my lass, and where's your dashing Jimmy,
Oh the soldier lads have picked him up, and sent him far from me,
Last pay-day he went round the town, and them red coated fellows,
Enticed him in and made him drunk, and he'd better gone to the gallows.
2.
The very sight of his cockade it set us all a'crying,
And me, I nearly fainted twice, I thought that I was dying,
Me father would have paid the smart, and he ran for the golden guinea,
But the sergeant said he'd kissed the book, so now they've got young Jimmy
3.
When Jimmie talks about the war it's worse than death to hear him,
I must go out and hide my ears, because I cannot bear him,
A brigadier or a grenadier he says they're sure to make him,
And there he sits and cracks his jokes and bids me not forsake him.
4.
As I walk o'er the stubble fields, below there runs the seam,
I thought of Jimmie hewing there, but it was all a dream,
He hewed the very coals we burn, and when the fire I'm lighting,
To think the coals were in his hands, it sets my heart a'grieving.
5.
For seven years I followed him, now I must live without him,
There's nothing left for me to do but sit and think about him,
So break my heart and then it's o'er, so break my heart my dearie,
And I'll lie in the clod green ground, for of single life I'm weary.
66
Sally Free and Easy
1.
Sally free and easy, that should be her name,
Sally free and easy, that should be her name,
Took a sailors love for a nursery game.
2.
But the love she gave me, wasn't made of stone,
But the love she gave me, wasn't made of stone,
It was sweet and hollow like a honeycomb.
3.
I think I'll wait till sunset, I'll see the ensign down,
I think I'll wait till sunset, I'll see the ensign down,
Then to the sea in a boat go down.
4.
Sally free and easy, that should be her name,
Sally free and easy, that should be her name,
When my body's landed, I hope she dies of shame.
67
As I Roved Out
1.
As I roved out one bright May morning,
To view the fields and the flowers gay,
Whom should I spy but my own true lover,
As see sat under the willow tree.
2.
I took off my hat and I did salute her,
I did salute her most courageously,
When she turned around the tears fell from her,
Saying "false young man it's you have deluded me."
3.
A diamond ring I own I gave you,
A diamond ring to wear on your right hand,
But the vows you gave you went and broke them,
And married the lassie that had the land.
4.
If I married the lassie that had the land my love,
It's that I'll rue till the day I die,
When misfortune comes no man can shun it,
I was blind-folded I'll not deny.
5.
And when I go to my bed of slumber,
The thoughts of my true love go in my mind,
When I turn around to embrace my darling,
Instead of gold it's brass I find.
6.
And I wish the queen would call home her army,
From the West Indies, America and Spain,
And every man to his own wedded woman,
In hopes that you and I will meet again.
68
Happy as a Baby
1.
You're all the best things in my life rolled into one
You're everything that I enjoy, you're all my fun,
You're the miracle that cures my every pain,
The doctor that I trust when I'm insane,
No matter what I do or say, you understand,
And when I stray you haul me back onto dry land,
I'm so hopelessly a victim of your charms,
I'm as happy as a baby in your arms.
2.
You're every day of sunshine that I can recall,
You're every warm familiar picture on my wall,
You're the secret to the turn in every tune,
A word I use instead of moon or June,
If I were told to wait a year outside your gate,
I'd take a tent and sleeping bag, accept my fate,
I'm so hopelessly a victim of your charms,
I'm as happy as a baby in your arms.
3.
Happy as a baby, rocking in the tree,
Knowing that you're underneath,
What better guarantee,
I've found the piece that makes this jigsaw here complete,
When you're beside me I don't contemplate defeat,
You're the shelter in the face of all my storms,
There's none can take you're place , don't be alarmed,
For I'm hopelessly a case for all your charms,
I'm as happy as a baby,
So rock-a-bye your baby,
Happy as a baby in your arms.
69
Nutting Girl
1.
Come all ye jovial fellows and listen to my song,
It is a little ditty and it won't contain you long,
Its of a brisk young fair maid, and she lived down in Kent,
Arose one summer morning and she a'nutting went.
Chorus
To my fal-lal, to me ral-tal-lal, sing whack-fol the dear-o-day,
And what few nuts she had, poor girl, she threw them all away.
2.
Now it's of this brisk young farmer, a'ploughing of his land,
He called onto his horses, and he bade them gently stand,
And he sat down all on his plough, all for a song to sing,
His voice was so melodious it made the valley ring.
3.
Now it's of this brisk young damsel a'nutting in the wood,
His voice was so melodious it charmed her as she stood,
She could no longer stay,
And what few nuts she had, poor girl, she threw them all away.
4.
She walked up to young Johnny, as he sat on his plough,
Said she, young man, I really feel, I cannot tell you how,
So he took her to some shady broom and there he laid her down,
Said she, young man, I think I feel the world go round and round.
5.
So come all you local women, and a warning by me take,
If you should a'nutting go, don't stay out too late,
For if you should stay too late, to hear that ploughboy sing,
You might have a young farmer to nurse up in the spring.
70
Winds of Freedom
1.
Talk with me a while
And I will tell you how the sickness came,
They marched into our towns
And forced the language of the crown,
And those that would defy where forced to die,
They stacked our fiddles high,
And burned away our very lives,
No sound of skirling pipes,
We were left without a single right,
And those that would defy where forced to die.
Blow the winds of freedom over me,
I'm dying on my knees,
And I just can't find the will to fight,
This never-ending war,
Blow the winds of freedom over me,
I'm dying, all my dreams are broken,
I can't find the will to fight any more,
2.
Talk with me a while,
And I will tell you how the sickness spread,
They mocked our native dress,
And made us cover up our legs
And those that would defy where forced to die,
The spirit of our land,
Was crushed between their very hands,
They took away our life,
We couldn't sing or dance amidst the strife,
And those that would defy where forced to die.
3.
Talk with me a while,
And I will tell you how the sickness stayed,
They said that we were wild,
Because we followed nature's ways,
And those that would defy where forced to die,
They cut away our tithes,
Of seasons, fields and river sides,
They left us without scope,
To change the spirit without hope,
Never being free to laugh again.
71
Laundralovamat
1.
Round go the clothes in the washing machine,
The water all bubbles, the air filled with steam,
I've come here today to get my clothes clean,
But my heart is as black as the coal.
2.
Just one week ago, a girl came in here,
A wonderful creature, her beauty shone clear,
I was lost in a moment, I loved her so dear,
As she emptied her big plastic bag.
3.
Blue were her Levi's and brown was her hair,
And red were her cheeks as she noticed my stare,
And white was the hankie that flew through the air,
As she flung all her stuff in the tub.
4.
So I boldly stepped up to her, and this I did say,
Do you have any change, 'cos I've got none today,
The gas meter's taken all my ten p's away,
And I've only got fifties and fives.
5.
She gave me some silver, she said she'd plenty to spare,
And the touch of her hand it was to much to bear,
Me reason went from me, flew up in the air,
And out through the roof with the steam.
6.
Do you fancy a drink love, there's a pub down the road,
It's a bit more exiting than just watching your load,
And she smiled so sweetly, I thought I'd explode,
And we both trundled off down the pub.
7.
The washing was finished by the time we came in,
We both shared one drier, we got everything in,
And to see our clothes mingle, it made my heart sing,
And I thought I had found me a bride.
72
Laundraloveamat (2)
8.
So I said, my fair damsel, shall I see you again,
I live just round the corner, it's the house on the bend,
And I'm always in thursdays around about ten,
And I held up her big plastic bag.
9.
Oh no she replied, I'm afraid that can't be,
I'm just off to college, there's a lad there for me,
I'll be with him tomorrow and how happy we'll be,
So thanks for the drink, I must go.
10.
Never again shall I see one so fair,
For ten minutes or longer I only could stare,
On the floor, a white hankie to prove she'd been there,
My love had all tumbled dry.
73
Jim Jones
1.
Oh come listen for a moment lads and hear me tell me tale,
How across the sea from England I was condemned to sail,
The jury found me guilty, and then the judge says he,
Oh for life , Jim Jones, I'm sending you across the stormy sea,
But take a tip before you ship to join the iron gang,
Don't get to gay in Botany Bay, or else you'll surely hang,
Or else you'll surely hang said he, and after that, Jim Jones,
I hope high on the gallows tree, the crows will pick your bones.
2.
Well we'd not been long upon the sea when pirates came along,
But the soldiers on our convict ship were full five hundred strong,
The opened fire and somehow drove the pirate ship away,
But I'd rather have joined that pirate ship than gone to Botany Bay,
With waves a'crashing down on us and wind a'blowing gales,
I'd rather have died in misery than gone to New South Wales,
Theres no time for mischief there they say, remember that says they,
And they'll flog the poaching out of you down there in Botany Bay.
3.
Well day and night the irons clang, and like poor galley slaves,
We toil and toil and when we die, must fill dishonoured graves,
Oh but by and by I'll slip me chains, and to the bush I'll go,
And I'll join the brave bush rangers there, Jack Donehue and Co.,
And one dark night when everything is silent in the town,
I'll shoot the tyrants one and all, I'll gun the floggers down,
I'll give the law no little shock, remember what I say,
And they'll yet regret they send Jim Jones, in chains to Botany Bay.
74
Sailor Cut Down
1.
As I was a'walking down by the Royal Albion,
Dark was the morning and dismal the day,
Who should I spy but one of my shipmates,
Wrapped up in a blanket and colder than clay.
Chorus
So beat the drum slowly and play the pipe merrily,
Sing out the death march as we carry him along,
Take him to the churchyard, fire three volleys o'er him,
For he's a young sailor cut down in his prime.
2.
He called for a candle to light him to bed,
And likewise a flannel to tie round his head,
His body was aching, his poor heart was breaking,
He was a young sailor cut down in his prime.
3.
His dear old mother and his aged father,
Had often warned him about his past live,
With the flash girls in the city his money he squandered.
With the flash girls in the city he took his delight.
4.
And now he is dead and is laid in his coffin,
Six jolly sailors will carry him along,
And each of them holding a bunch of red roses,
So they may not smell him as they march along.
5.
And there on the corner two young girls are standing,
Each to the other they whisper and say,
There goes a young sailor who's money we squandered,
There goes a young sailor cut down in his prime.
6.
And there on his tombstone these words they are written,
Come all you young sailors take a warning by me,
Don't go a'courting those flash girls in the city,
Those flash girls in the city were the ruin of me.
75
Squire of Tamworth
1.
Oh there was a young squire in Tamworth did dwell,
He courted a lady and he loved her right well,
The day was appointed for their wedding day,
And the farmer was appointed to give the bride away,
2.
When the lady saw the farmer she thought , him I'd rather wed,
So instead of being married so took to her bed,
Instead of being married she took to her bed,
And thoughts of the farmer came into her head.
3.
So coat, waistcoat and britches the lady put on,
And she went a'hunting with her dog and her gun,
To see this young farmer it was her intent,
So straight to his fields she so lovingly went,
4.
And often she fired, but nothing did she kill,
And at last this young farmer came into the field,
To see this young farmer it was her intent,
So straight up to him see so lovingly went.
5.
I thought you'd have been at the wedding, she cried,
To wait upon the squire and to give him his bride,
Oh no said the farmer, if truth I've to tell,
I can't give her away 'cos I want her myself.
6.
The lady was pleased when she heard him so bold,
She gave him her glove all embroidered with gold,
Saying that she'd picked it up as she came along,
As she came 'hunting with her dog and her gun.
76
Squire of Tamworth (2)
7.
Then the lady went home with her heart full of love,
And she put it out that she had lost her glove,
And who should ever find it and bring it back to me,
I vow and declare that his bride I shall be.
8.
The farmer was pleased when he heard of the news,
So straight to the lady he lovingly goes,
Saying lady, dear lady, I have found your glove,
Now please be so kind as to grant me your love.
9.
Me love's already granted the lady replied,
I love the sweet breath of the farmer she cried,
I'll tend to his dairy and the milking of his cow,
While the jolly young farmer goes whistling to plough.
10.
And now that they're married she tells of the fun,
How she hunted the farmer with her dog and her gun,
And now that she has him so fast in her snare,
She'll love him for ever she vows and declares.
77
Against the Snow
John Kirkpatrick
1.
Once we saw the sun come rising,
Saw the buds swell on the bough,
And hand in hand we tripped along the road.
Chorus
Now there's a cold upon the country,
There's a frost within your eyes,
And everything looks black against the snow.
2.
Once we danced the dance of passion,
Through the fields of golden corn,
You let me weave a garland for your hair.
3.
Is the reaping now all over,
Have we stripped the fields quite bear,
Is there not a single leaf upon the tree.
4.
Can we find new seed for growing,
Put new heart into the earth,
Together we can make the garden grow.
78
Adieu to Old England
Chorus
Here's adieu to old England here's adieu,
Here's adieu to five thousand old pounds,
If the world had been banished before I was born,
My troubles I'd never have known.
1.
Once I could lie in that bed,
A bed of the very best down,
But now I am glad of a bunch of wheat straw,
To keep my poor bones from the ground.
2.
Once I could drink of that beer,
The very best beer in the glass,
But now I am glad of cold water,
To quench my poor lips of the thirst.
3.
Once I could eat of that bread,
The bread of the very best wheat,
But now I am glad of a dry mouldy crust,
To give my poor body to eat.
4.
Once I could ride in my carriage,
With servants to drive me along,
But now I'm in prison, in prison so strong,
And not knowing which way to turn.
79
Bonny Bunch of Roses
1.
By the margin of the ocean, one pleasant evening in the month of June,
The pleasant warbling songsters there charming notes did sweetly tune,
T'was there I spied a female, seemingly in grief and woe,
Conversing with young Bonapart, regarding the bonny bunch of roses-o.
2.
O mother said Napoleon, as he took his mother by the hand,
O mother please be patient, until I'm able to take command,
For I'll raise a terrible army, and through tremendous dangers go,
And in spite of all the universe, I'll conquer the bonny bunch of roses-o.
3.
O son be not so venturesome, for England has a heart of oak,
And England, Ireland, Scotland, there unity will ne'er be broke,
And son look on your father, in St. Helena he lies low,
And you may follow after if you try for the bonny bunch of roses-o.
4.
He took three hundred thousand men and kings likewise to join his throng,
He was so well provided for, enough to sweep the world along,
But when he came to Moscow he was overpowered by driving snow,
And with Moscow all a'blazing, he lost the bonny bunch of roses-o.
5.
O mother dear, adieu for ever, for now I'm on my dying bed,
If I'd have lived I'd be more clever, but now I droop my youthful head,
But while my bones do moulder and weeping willows o'er me grow,
The deeds of bold napoleon will sting the bonny bunch of roses-o.
80
Follow Me Home
1.
There was none like him, neither horse or foot,
Or any other guns I knew,
But because that it was so, well of course he went and died,
Which is just what the best men do.
Chorus
So it's knock out your pipes and follow me,
And it's finish off your swipes and follow me,
Oh hark to the big drum calling,
Follow me, follow me home.
2.
His mare she neighs the whole night long,
She paws the whole day through,
And she won't take a feed for the waiting of his step,
Which is just what a beast would do.
3.
His girl she went with a bombardier,
Before the month was through,
And the banns are up in church 'cos she's got the beggar hooked,
Which is just what a girl would do.
4.
We fought about a dog, last week it were,
It were over in a round or two,
But I struck him cruel hard and I wish I hadn't now,
Which is just what a man can't do.
5.
He was all that I had in the way of a friend,
And now I'll have to find one new,
And I'd give my pay and stripe for to have the beggar back,
Which is just too late to do.
6.
So take him away, he's gone were the best men go,
Take him away, with the gun wheels turning slow,
Take him away, there's more from the place he's gone,
Take him away, with the limber and the drum.
7.
And it's three rounds blank and follow me,
And it's thirteen rank and follow me,
Surpassing the love of women,
Follow me, follow me home.
81
Morley Main
1.
They came to call for me last Monday morning
As I was hanging washing on the line,
They looked down at their boots a lot and wouldn't meet my eye,
They only said you're wanted at the mine,
I knew he was dead but funny, I could only think,
How fresh the clothes would smell if it stayed fine.
Chorus.
And you'll say it wasn't such a big disaster,
It only made the papers for a day,
I'm sure the wives who are weeping would find comfort from your news,
So tell them that and then see what they,
And ask them who's to feed the children, where they'll find the rent,
And ask how much the owners mean to pay.
2.
They'd taken all the bodies to the Royal,
All laid in rows as neatly as can be,
Some were burned, some were crushed, and some had only choked,
But none of them were very nice to see,
And it was only by the belt he always used to wear,
That I could tell which one belonged to me.
3.
They'll find some lying weasel for the inquest,
Or some poor lad that's frightened for his place,
Who'll swear he smelled tobacco just an hour or two before,
And swear the men were smoking at the face,
For it only takes a single match to shift the owners blame,
And some dead miner bears the whole disgrace.
4.
There'll be enough insurance for the funeral,
A decent place to rest, the least he's due,
Some money from the parish, or perhaps they'll find a fund,
But after that I don't know what we'll do,
For I don't suppose at twenty-nine I'll find another man,
For younger widows they'll be looking too.
82
Jim Johnson
1.
Now don't say Jim Johnson weren't with 'ee last night,
For I say him as heard him as plain as could be,
I was passing the mound when I heard a strange sound,
Under the sycamore tree,
I thought perhaps a cow had got stuck in the mud,
And had pulled out her hoof with a moo,
But I'm satisfied now that noise weren't no cow,
It was Jim kissing you.
Chorus.
You're a five foot flirt in the robes of an angel,
I wish you would leave I alone,
The way you're acting it really unnerves I,
The thing that preserves I is my joviality,
Though I got troubles as thick as the stubble,
'Tis you that's the worst of them all,
Stay out of me track, if you want to come back,
You can crawl, crawl, crawl.
2.
Now what's your excuse for last Saturday night,
The air was so peaceful and still,
When like a bolt from the blue came a hullabaloo,
A growling and a cackling so shrill,
It came to me ears as I jumped from me bed,
There's a fox at me chickens 'tis true,
I jumped into me socks and bumped into the fox,
It was Jim kissing you.
3.
Now what's your excuse for last Sunday in church,
It fair turned the poor vicar gray,
While the organist was rendering lead kindly light,
Jim Johnson was pumping away,
Then all of a sudden the organist stopped short,
The vicar flew into a stew,
When he went round behind tell me what did he find,
It was Jim kissing you.
83
Left Left Right Steady Man
1.
Rear gunner on a lancaster in spring of 'forty four,
Son, don't ever volunteer-o,
I'd seen my share of fighting and I'd had my fill of war,
Son, don't ever volunteer-o,
Over Stettin, over Norway, over Munich and Berlin,
I'd lost count of all the scraps and scrapes, near misses I'd been in,
But I only needed three more trips to get my nineteen in,
Son of mine, don't ever volunteer-o.
I got a left, left, right, steady man, oops!, go round again,
Go round again, lord what a pain,
Blind as a bat he was and where was his brain,
Left, left, right, steady man, oops!, go round again.
2.
I signed on with the new lot to make up a trip or two,
Son, don't ever volunteer-o,
I should have seen the warning signs, their flying suits were new,
Son, don't ever volunteer-o,
No-hopers, never-would-be's and all wet behind the ears,
The other fellows told me that by bed time there'd be tears,
But I never dreamt how they'd fulfil the worst of all my fears,
Son of mine, don't ever volunteer-o,
I got a left, left, right, steady men, oops!, go round again,
Go round again, lord what a pain,
On his wedding night, it was such a sight, you could hear his wife complain,
About left, left, right, steady man, oops!, go round again.
3.
It should have been an easy trip, some dams off Falkland way,
Son, don't ever volunteer-o,
The kind of trip you go to miss, to try another day,
Son, don't ever volunteer-o,
The flak was light, the fighters few, a piece of bread and jam,
Drop short to get that extra trip, for god's sake miss the dam,
Then flick your wings to spoil the film and back to blighty scram,
Son of mine, don't ever volunteer-o,
I got a left, left, right, steady man, oops!, go round again,
Knock ein again, the german gunners refrain,
And the night fighter pilot, he was laughing like a drain,
At left, left, right, steady man, oops!, go round again.
84
Left, left, right, steady man (2)
4.
He shot us through the bomb bay and he shot us through the wings,
Son, don't ever volunteer-o,
He shot away the engines and he shot away the fins,
Son, don't ever volunteer-o,
We staggered past the beaches and we put down in the drink,
All seven in one dinghy as the light began to sink,
And in the rush the skipper never even stopped to think,
Son of mine, don't ever volunteer-o,
He set the left, left, right, steady man, oops!, go round again,
To steering us back, sure he must have been cracked,
With a chump like him on compass would we see England again,
Left, left, right, steady man, oops!, lost on the maine.
5.
We paddled round in circles two whole days and two whole nights,
Son, don't ever volunteer-o,
Till gleaming through the mist and rain at last we saw some lights,
Son, don't ever volunteer-o,
"Ahoy! are we near England" shouted left-left silly bugger,
"Are you the air-sea rescue or perhaps some fishing lugger",
"Ach, nein, ve are an E boat in ze harbour of Zeebrugge"
Son of mine, don't ever volunteer-o,
I got a left, left, right, steady man oops! go round again,
Got us out of the drink, and straight into clink,
The possibility of future fatherhood for him we all made quite plain,
To left, left, right, steady man, oops!, go round again.
6.
Should have been on leave in Blackpool spending all my Nuffield pay,
Son, don't ever volunteer-o,
With holes burnt in my pockets and a new girl every day,
Son, don't ever volunteer-o,
But I'm sitting in this stalag, going mad on acorn tea,
And wishing I could be there in old A.C.R.C.
For the bleeding left, left, steady man is bunking next to me,
Son of mine, don't ever volunteer-o,
I got a left, left, right, steady man oops! go round again,
The war finished last week, but he's tunnelling again,
He's down there still digging, we're all catching the train,
Without left, left, right, steady man, oops!, go round again.
85
Aragon Mill
At the east end of town, at the foot of the hill,
There's a chimney so tall the says Aragon mill,
And there's no smoke at all coming out of the stack,
Since the mill has closed down and it's not coming back.
And I'm too old to change, and I'm too young to die,
I wonder what will become of my old girl and I.
There's no children at all in those narrow empty streets,
Since the looms have shut down it's so quite I can't sleep.
There's not use any more for those cotton mills it seems,
But the sound of the looms still haunt my dreams,
And the only sound I hear is the sound of the wind,
As it blows through the town, weave and spin, weave and spin.
Now the mill has closed down, it's the only life I know,
Where will I do now, where will I go,
And the only sound I hear is the sound of the wind,
As it blows through the town, weave and spin, weave and spin.
86
Raglan Road
1.
On Raglan Road on an August day
I saw her first and knew
That her long dark hair would weave a snare
That I one day may rue
I saw the danger but still I walked
Along the enchanted way
And I said may grief be a fallen leaf
At the dawning of the day
2.
On Grafton Street in November
We tripped lightly along the ledge
Of that deep ravine where can be seen
The true worth of passion's pledge
The queen of heart's still making tarts
And I not making hay
I loved too much and by such, by such
Is true happiness thrown away
3.
I gave her gifts of the mind
I gave her the secret sign
That's known to the artist who has seen
The true gods of sound and stone
And word and tint I did not stint
I gave her poems to say
With her own name there and her long dark hair
Like clouds over fields in May
4.
On a quiet street where old ghosts meet
I see her walking now
Away from me so hurriedly
As reason must allow
That I had wooed not as I should
This creature made of clay
When the angel woos the clay he'll lose
His wings at the dawn of day
87
The Antelope
1
Oh it was a summer's morning and the lads outside the Antelope
Where knocking back the beer, they were soaking up the sun
When two recruiting sergeants came and gave them all a button hole
That very day they marched away to learn to use a gun
2
The sergeants soon described to them the grandeur of the battle-field
How uniforms were manly and the harvest not at all
How the king he would reward them if they'd fight for him in battle
And how they'd all be heros if in battle they did fall
3
The beer was strong and the sergeant's song it filled them all with passion
As they sang to them of glory and of their countries need
So the laid aside the plough and scythe and dressed themselves in khaki
And did not doubt the value of military deeds
4
So in the sun these village lads went off to fight for England
But when they reached the trenches the sergents changed their tune
The lads they fell around them like petals from the button holes
The sergeants gave that summer as they led them to their doom
5
It's now a winter evening and I'm sitting in the Antelope
And on the wall a photograph is there for all to see
The innocence is still preserved but every face that's smiling down
Is lying dead in flanders and all so needlessly
88
The Universal SoldierBuffy St Marie
1
He's five foot two and he's six foot four
He fights with missiles and with spears
He's all of thirty one and he's only seventeen
He's been a soldier for a thousand years
2
He's a Catholic, a Hindu, an Atheist, a Jain
A Buddist, a Babtist and a Jew
And he knows he shouldn't kill and he knows he always will
Kill you for me, my friend, and me for you
3
He's fighting for Canada he's fighting for France
He's fighting for the U S A
He's fighting for the Russians and he's fighting for Japan
And he thinks he'll put an end to war this way
4
He's fighting for democracy he's fighting for the reds
And he says it's for the peace of all
He's the one who must decide who's to live and who's to die
And he never sees the writing on the wall
5
But without him how would Hitler have condemned him at Dachau
Without him Caesar would have stood alone
He's the one who gives his body as a weapon in the war
And without him all this killing can't go on
6
He's the universal soldier and he really is to blame
His orders come from far away no more
They come from you and me and brothers can't you see
This is no way to put an end to war
89
Up in the North
1
Up in the North there lived a brisk couple,
A young man and a maiden a'courting did go,
Always a'courting but never thought of marrying,
Until this young girl began for to say,
Young man, young man, what is it you mean,
Of counting I'm weary, I'm resolved to be married,
Or else from your company I must refrain.
2.
Well then I must own that I do love you dearly,
But as for to marry, well I don't feel inclined,
For when a man he gets wed, his joys are all fled,
He's freed from all liberty, bound down toward slavery,
So while I am single I'll wish you goodnight.
3.
Well then my dear John, there is one thing I'd ask you,
If you're married first, ask me to your wedding,
And if I am before you then I'll do the same,
Well the bargain being made, when up stepped a young blade,
He stepped up to her, he intended to have her,
He was a ship's carpenter's son by his trade.
4.
So she wrote John a letter, a fine loving letter,
To come to her wedding on the ninth day of June,
To come to her wedding to wait on the table,
To wait on the table all on the bridegroom,
When the letter he read, it made his heart bleed,
In sorrow he mourn-ed, his tale was soon turn-ed,
I'm a fool, I'm undone, I have lost her indeed.
90
Up in the North (2)
5.
So he saddled his horse and rode off to the station,
Thinking to meet with his true lover there,
But when he got there he was truly amazed,
To see this young girl so highly surmounted,
Which caused from his eye to fall many a tear,
If I'd have thought you'd be taken so soon,
I would not have tarried, but you I'd have married,
So jump up beside me and leave him alone.
6.
Oh no my dear John, I have much better choose-ed,
And don't you remember what you said to me?
When a man he gets wed, his joys are all fled,
He's freed from all liberty, bound down toward slavery,
So while you were single you'd wish you goodnight.
91
Friar in the Well
1
Well it's of an old friar as I have been told,
Fol-di-rol-diddle-ol-di,
He courted a maid, just sixteen years old,
Fol-di-rol-diddle-ol-di,
He came to the maid as she lay on her bed ,
And he swore he'd have her maidenhead,
To me fair-a-lair-a-liddle,
Sing twice to me lanky-down-derry-o.
2.
Oh no said the maid, for you know very well,
If we do such tings then we shall go to hell,
Oh no said the friar, you need have no doubt,
If you were in hell then I'd sing you out.
3.
Very well said the maid, you shall have this thing,
But first to me ten shilling must bring,
And while he was gone the money to fetch,
She thought to herself how the friar she'd catch.
4.
Now while he was gone, the truth for to tell,
She hung an old cloth in front of the well,
The friar returned and she bade him come in,
Oh now my dear well let us begin.
5.
So then said the maid all crafty and cunning,
I think I hear my father a'coming,
So behind the cloth the friar did skip,
And into the well did happen to trip.
6.
Well the friar called out with a pitiful sound,
Oh help me out or I will be drowned,
You said you could sing yourself out of hell,
So now you can sing yourself out the well.
92
Friar in the Well (2)
7.
But she helped him out and bade him be gone,
But the friar he wanted his money again,
Oh no said the maid, I'll have none of the matter,
For indeed you must pay me for dirtying the watter,
8.
So out of the house the friar did creep,
A'dripping his arse like a newly dipped sheep,
All young and old commended the maid,
For the very pretty trick she had played.
93
Old Brown Hen
John Tams
1
Well ee, said me mother, to me and me brother,
Will ye kill that old brown hen,
For she eats more oats than Jackson's goats,
And she'll not lay again,
Well time's is hard and we've not much cash,
So we'll have her in the pot,
So off to get the old brown hen,
Me and me brother shot.
2.
Well we chased her together, but we didn't touch a feather,
For she were a wily bod,
She hopped around upon the ground,
Like fleas on our old dog,
We catched her in the yard at last,
Why, how she scrat and fought,
You'd have thought it were an eagle,
Not an old brown hen we'd caught.
3.
Well how do I kill her, I said, in a dither,
And me brother said, I knows,
For a mate I've got's killed fowls before,
And this is how it goes,
So he grabbed her by the neck and turned,
A couple o' times, or three,
Then he pulls it hard and turns and smiles,
As if to say, now see.
4.
Well all of a hurry, feathers in a flurry,
He flung her to the floor,
And to my surprise, right before my eyes,
The funniest thing I saw,
For that fowl got up, unscrewed her neck,
And gave a startled cry,
Then blinkin' hard ran out the yard,
And out of sight did fly.
94
Old Brown Hen (2)
5.
Well strange to relate, but I know it's right,
Next morning in her shed,
That old brown hen had laid again,
And waited to be fed,
So if your old bod won't do her job,
You must heed now what I say,
Just tweak her neck, and then by heck, you'll have eggs every day.
95
Byker Hill
1
If I had another penny, I would have another gill,
I would have the fiddler play the Bonny Lass of Byker Hill,
Chorus
Byker Hill and Walker Shaw, collier lads for ever more,
Byker Hill and Walker Shaw, collier lads for ever more.
2
The Pitmen and the keelmen trim, they drink bumble mixed with gin,
Then to dance they do begin, to the tune of Elsie Marley.
3
When I first came to the dirt, I had only one pit shirt,
Now I've got me two or three, Walker pit's done well by me.
4
Geodie Johnson had a pig, he hit it with a shovel and it danced a jig,
All the way to Walker Shaw to the tune of Elsie Marley.
96
Grey Funnel Line Cyril Tawney
Don't mind the wind nor the rolling sea
The weary night never worries me
But the hardest time in a sailor's day
Is to watch the sun as it fades away
It's one more day on the grey funnel line
The finest ship that sails the sea
Is still a prison for the likes of me
But give me wings like Noah's dove
I'll fly up harbour to the one I love
There was a time my heart was free
Like a floating spar on the open sea
But now that spar is washed ashore
It comes to rest at my real love's door.
Every time I gaze behind the screws
Makes me long for St Peter's shoes
I'd walk on down that silver lane
And take my love in my arms again
Oh Lord, if dreams were only real
I'd have my hands on that wooden wheel
And with all my heart I would turn her 'round
And tell the boys that we're homeward bound
I'll pass the time like some machine
Until blue water turns to green
Then I'll dance down that Walker Shore
And sail the Grey Funnel Line no more.
And sail the Grey Funnel Line no more.
97
The First Time
(Ewan MacColl)
The first time ever I saw your face
I thought the sun rose in your eyes
And the moon and stars were the gifts you gave
To the dark and the empty skies, my love,
To the dark and the empty skies.
The first time ever I kissed your mouth
And felt your heart beat close to mine
Like the trembling heart of a captive bird
That was there at my command, my love
That was there at my command.
The first time ever I lay with you
I felt the earth move in my hand
I thought our joy would fill the earth
And last 'till the end of time, my love,
And last 'till the end of time.
98
Fisherman’s Song
By the storm torn shoreline a woman is standing
The spray strung like jewels in her hair
And the sea tore the rocks near that desolate landing
As though it had known she stood there
CHORUS:
For she has come down to condemn that wild ocean
For the murderous loss of her man
His boat sailed out on Wednesday morning
And it's feared she's gone down with all hands
Oh and white were the wave caps and wild was their parting
So fierce is the warring of love
But she prayed to the gods, both of men and of sailors
Not to cast their cruel nets o'er her love
There's a school on the hill where the sons of dead fathers
Are led toward tempests and gales
Where their God-given wings are clipped close to their bodies
And their eyes are bound round with ship's sails
What force leads a man to a life filled with danger
High on seas or a mile underground
It's when need is his master and poverty's no stranger
And there's no other work to be found
99
Streams of Lovely Nancy
Oh the streams of lovely Nancy are divided in three parts,
Where the young men and maidens do take their sweet-hearts.
It’s in drinking of good liquour makes my heart for to sing,
And the noise in yonder village makes the rocks for to ring.
At the top of this mountain, there my love’s castle stands,
All o’er built with ivory by yonder black sands.
Fine arches, fine porches, and a dimond so bright,
It’s a watch-light for a sailor on a dark and stormy night.
At the bottom of the mountain, there runs a river clear,
And a ship from the Indias did once anchor there.
With her red flag a’flying and the beating of her drum,
Sweet instuments of music and the firing of her gun.
High over the mountain where the wild foul do fly,
There is one among them that flies so very high.
If I had her in my arms, my love, by yonder black sands,
How soon I would seduce her by the slight of my hand.
So come all you little steamers that walk the meadows gay,
You write to your own true loves, where ever they be.
With her rosie lips she entices me, with her tongue she tells me no,
An angel would direct me, but where will I go.
100
Cruel Mother (Child #20)
There was a lady, a lady in York.
All along and a’loney.
She was courted by her own fathers clerk.
Down by the greenwood side-o.
She leaned her back against an oak,
But first it bent and then it broke.
She leaned her back against a thorn,
And there she had three pretty babies born.
She took a penknife long and sharp,
A stabbed them through their tender hearts.
She wiped her penknife on the grass,
The more she wiped it the more blood showed.
As she was a’walking in her own father’s hall,
She saw two pretty babes playing at the ball.
Oh babes, oh babes if you were mine,
I’de dress you up in silks so fine.
Oh mother, oh mother when we were thine,
You didn’t care to dress us fine.
Oh babes, oh babes if you can see,
What in the world will happen to me.
Oh mother, oh mother; yes, we can tell,
It’s us for heaven and you for hell.
101
Linden Lea
Williams
William Barnes Music by Vaughan
Within the woodlands, flow'ry gladed,
By the oak trees' mossy moot,
The shining grass blades, timber shaded,
Now do quiver underfoot;
And birds do whistle overhead,
And water's bubbling in its bed;
And there for me, the apple tree
Do lean down low in Linden Lea.
When leaves, that lately were a-springing,
Now do fade within the copse,
And painted birds do hush their singing,
Up upon the timber tops;
And brown leaved fruit's a-turning red,
In cloudless sunshine overhead,
With fruit for me, the apple tree
Do lean down low in Linden Lea.
Let other folk make money faster,
In the air of dark-room'd towns;
I don't dread a peevish master,
Though no man may heed my frowns.
I be free to go abroad,
Or take again my homeward road,
To where, for me, the apple tree
Do lean down low in Linden Lea.
102
When first I came to Caledonia.
When first I came to Caledonia
I got loading at Number Three
And I got lodging at Donald Norman's
He had a daughter could make good tea
And it was me and my brother Charlie
Two bigger shavers you ne'er did see
We're spearing eels in the month of April
And starving slaves out on Scataree
And I went down to Donald Norman's
To get my boots and a pound of tea
But Norman said that he would not give them
Till fish got plenty on Scataree
So I went over to their big harbour
Just on purpose for to see the spray
I spied a maiden from Boulardrie over
She seemed to me Iike the Queen of May
Now if I had pen from Pennsylvania
And if I had paper of purest white
And if I had ink of the rosy morning
A true love note unto you I'd write
But I wish I was on the deepest ocean
As far from land as I could be
And sailing over the deepest ocean
Where woman's love would not trouble me
l'd lay my head to a cask of brandy
And it's so dandy I do declare
For when I'm drinking I'm seldom thinking
How I can gain that young lady fair
When first I went to Caledonia
I got loading at Number Three
And I got boarding at Donald Norman's
He had a daughter could make good tea
103
Sammy Shuttleworth's Party
Old Sammy Shuttleworth of Lancashire
He gave a party, last neet.
All the lasses and the lads were there,
Bunged in the door hole, stuck reet!
The guests were fat and the house was small,
They got stuck in the entrance hall.
Owd Johnny Bugger got a tin of Vaseline,
He greased all the lobby and they all slid in.
Eeee! There were 'undreds on the door mat,
Eeee! There were 'undreds on the rug,
Eeee! There were dozens on the slop stone.
Little Polly Higgins went and tumbled down the plug,
Eeee. And we heard a woman screamin',
We saw some lace and naughty ribbons blue
And Aunt Maria sat on the fire
And went and burnt her Isle of Wight
And ee by gum we 'ad a right good do.
At the supper there were cow-heel stew,
Real devilled tripe and pigs' feet,
While they were gollopin' the slutch, it's true,
You could 'ave 'eard 'em, next street,
Eee what fun when old Aunt Ruth
Speared a pickled onion on her front tooth,
Eee by gum and the fun were rich
When we all started fightin' for the parson's snitch!
Eeee! There were kippers a la francais,
Eeee! and saucy little Sal
Eeee! she guzzled all the fishbones,
They stuck up her Manchester and Liverpool canal,
Eeee! she were coughin' and a splutterin'
We 'ad to send around for Doctor Drew
And all the lads they stood around
And watched the Doctor fillet her,
And ee by gum, we 'ad a right good do.
104
After supper there was dustman's knock,
Kissin' all the wenches was fine,
Owd Albert 'Iggins, the lazy lad
He started workin' overtime,
Owd Aunt May, tha knows what she did
She did an exhibition dance on the copper boiler lid,
The lid it bust and we heard a scream,
You couldn't see me poor owd Aunty May for steam,
Eeee! with her brand new evening dress on,
Eeee! there were little Polly Dwyer
Eeee! and some bugger threw a woodbine
Down her camisole and set her shuttlecocks on fire.
Eeee! and they put 'er out wi' water
Just when we'd all got a lovely view
So Albert 'Iggins got a match and set the lass on fire again,
And ee by gum we 'ad a right good do.
At the party there was lots of ale,
But we ran out of pots at 'alf time
Owd Uncle Albert used the chamber Po
And he said it tasted right fine,
Ee what fun when me Uncle 'Orace
Went and guzzled all the metal polish,
'E went black and started to cough
And the polish nearly polished Uncle 'Orace off.
Eeee! when we woke up in the mornin'
Eeee! we'd 'ad the time of all our lives,
Eeee! we were so enthusiastic
Other fellers toddled 'ome with other fellers wives
Eeee! and we thowt it all were champion,
But what that party was we never knew,
'Cos if it was a wedding a christnin' or a funeral,
Eee by gum we 'ad a right good do...
105
Shenandoah
Oh, Shenandoah, I long to hear you
Way hey, you rolling river.
Shenandoah, I long to hear you
Away, we're bound away 'cross the wide Missouri.
Oh, Shenandoah, I love your daughter
Wey hey, you rolling river.
Oh Shenandoah, I love your daughter
Away, we're bound away 'cross the wide Missouri.
Missouri she's a mighty river
Wey hey, you rolling river.
When she rolls down, her topsails shiver
Away, we're bound away 'cross the wide Missouri.
Seven years, I courted Sally
Wey hey, you rolling river.
Seven more, I longed to have her
Away, we're bound away 'cross the wide Missouri.
Farewell, my dear, I'm bound to leave you
Wey hey, you rolling river.
Oh, Shenandoah, I'll not deceive you
Away, we're bound away 'cross the wide Missouri.
106
New York Gals
As I walked down the Broadway
One evening in July
I met a maid who asked me trade
And a sailor John says I
And away, you Santee My Dear Annie
Oh, you New York girls can't you dance the polka?
To Tiffany's I took her
I did not mind expense
I bought her two gold earrings
And they cost me fifteen cents
Says she, 'You Limejuice sailor
Now see me home you may'
But when we reached her cottage door
She this to me did say
My flash man he's a Yankee
With his hair cut short behind
He wears a pair of long sea-boots
And he sails in the Blackball Line
He's homeward bound this evening
And with me he will stay
So get a move on, sailor-boy
Get cracking on your way
So I kissed her hard and proper
Afore her flash man came
And fare ye well, me Bowery gal
I know your little game
I wrapped me glad rags round me
And to the docks did steer
I'll never court another maid
I'll stick to rum and beer
I joined a Yankee blood-boat
And sailed away next morn
Don't ever fool around with gals
You're safer off Cape Horn
107
Poor Old Horse
A poor old man came riding by
And we say so, and we hope so
A poor old man came riding by
Oh, poor old horse.
Says I, "Old man, your horse will die."
Says I, "Old man, your horse will die."
And if he dies we'll tan his skin
And if he don't we'll ride him again.
For one long month I rode him hard
For one long month we all rode him hard.
But now your month is up, old Turk
Get up, you swine, and look for work
Get up you swine and look for graft
While we lays on and drags ye aft
He's as dead as a nail in the lamp-room door
And he won't come worring us no more
We'll use the hair of his tail to sew our sails
And the iron of his shoe to make deck nails
We'll hoist him up to the fore yard-arm
Where he won't do sailors any harm
We'll drop him down with a long, long roll
Where the sharks will have his body and the devil take his soul.
108
Severn to the Somme, Martin Graebe.
The swan picks over flooded fields, the heron hunts the hawthorn break.
The winter streams have drown the fields, the green grass turned to silver lake.
And through the dark and dreary days, I tend my sheep upon the hills,
And think on you though far away, and wish that you were with me still.
Like Severn’s floods, the storms of war, have drown all hopes of you and I.
With deadly grace the soldiers kill, and lords and lowly learn to die.
To serve the king, and those I love, I would have gone to play my part,
But the doctors saved me for the hills to ease my over tender heart.
You smiled so sadly when you said, though I’d remain, I’d be alone.
The carriage window framed your face, above your spotless uniform.
For women too must go the war, although they face a different fight,
And use their skills with broken men, and help them face their fears at night.
I’d read your letters on the hills, you told of madness, mud and pain.
How tired you were, how angry with the wasted lives for little gain.
Of quieter days when guns were cool, and blackbirds sung where woods have
gone,
And how you’d wish to smell again, a rose from Severn by the Somme.
I’ve walked through twisted woods and fields, that fifty years of healing
smoothed.
The painful harvest garnered there, defies a man to stand unmoved.
I’ve seen the grave in which you lie, my tears have washed the snowy stone,
And there I left a single flower, a rose from Severn by the Somme.
109
Shining down on Sennen, Mike O’Connor.
In Wallaroo it’s might fine, in Moonta and Cadena.
And they remind me of the time when first I was a streamer.
And when at night my eyelids close, my mind to far-off places goes,
The southern cross it soft light glows, when shining down on Sennen.
Underground it’s just the same as Crofty or Sellaggan.
The dust, the dark, the flickering flame, it could just be Aleggan.
We hear the same old songs again, the tunes, the tales, the family names.
The stars hear nightingale’s refrains when shining down on Sennen.
Christmas is the bravest time, we’ll drink a pint of Tawny,
And fiddler Jim will lead the mine when we sing Trelawny.
We’ve sung that song the world around, where tin and copper may be found,
The stars will hear that very sound, when shining down on Sennen.
At home the mines have closed their gates, and so said last year’s letter.
And Redruth town is no great shakes, and Pool is not much better.
But in my mind I see them still, forever climbing Cambourne hill.
The stars above the gaslights will be shining down on Sennen.
South Australia’s been real good to cousins Jack and Jenny.
And many a Cornishman can say, he’s made a pretty penny.
But Jackie this and Jackie that, this cousin Jack would eat his hat,
To see the stars that even yet, are shining down on Sennen.
In Wallaroo it’s might fine, in Moonta and Kadena.
And they remind me of the time when first I was a streamer.
And when at night my eyelids close, my mind to far-off places goes,
The southern cross it soft light glows, when shining down on Sennen.
110
January Man
Dave Goulder
Oh the January man he walks abroad in woollen coat and boots of leather
The February man still wipes the snow from off his hair and blows his hand
The man of March he sees the Spring and wonders what the year will bring
And hopes for better weather
Through April rain the man goes down to watch the birds come in to share the
summer
The man of May stands very still watching the children dance away the day
In June the man inside the man is young and wants to lend a hand
And grins at each new comer
And in July the man in cotton shirt he sits and thinks on being idle
The August man in thousands take the road to watch the sea and find the sun
September man is standing near to saddle up and leave the year
And Autumn is his bridle
The man of new October takes the reins and early frost is on his shoulder
The poor November man sees fire and wind and mist and rain and winter air
December man looks through the snow to let eleven brothers know
They're all a little older
And the January man comes round again in woollen coat and boots of leather
To take another turn and walk along the icy road he knows so well
The January man is here for starting each and every year
Along the way for ever
111
Yarmouth Town
In Yarmouth Town there lived a man
He kept a tavern by the sand
And the landlord had a daughter fair
A plump little thing with golden hair.
Well won’t you come down, wont you come down,
Wont you come down to Yarmouth Town.
Now to the tavern came a sailor man
And he asked the daughter for her hand
Why should I marry you she said
I get all that I want without being wed.
But she said if you want with me to linger
I'll tie a bit of string all around my finger
As you pass by just a pull that string
And I'll come down and I'll let you in
So at closing time the sailor man
He went to the tavern by the sand
And then he went and pulled that string
And she came down and she let Jack in
And he'd never seen such a sight before
'Cause the string round her finger was all she wore
And when he went and pulled that string
She pulled back the sheets and let him in.
Now the sailor stayed the whole night through
And early next morning went back to hius crew
Where he told them all about that maiden fair
The plump little thing with golden hair.
And the story it soon got around
And the very next night in Yarmouth town
There were fifteen sailors pulling on the string
And she came down and she she let them all in.
Now all you young men what to Yarmouth do go
If you see a plump little thing with her hair hanging low
Well all you got to do is pull that string
And she'll come down and she'll let you in.
112
God on Our Side
My name it means nothing, my age it means less
And the country I come from is called the Midwest,
I was taught and brought up there the law to abide
And the people who live there have God on their side
The history book tells it, it tells it so well
The cavalry charged and the Indians fell
The cavalry charged and the Indians died
Our country was young then with God on our side
The Spanish American War had its day
And the Civil War too was soon laid away
The names of the heroes, I was made to memorize
With their guns in their hands and God on their side
Oh the First World War, boys, it came and it went
The reasons for fighting I never did get
But I learned to accept it, to accept it with pride
For you don't count the dead with god on your side
The Second World War, boys, it came to an end
We forgave the Germans and now we are friends
Though they murdered six million, in the ovens they fried
The Germans now too have God on their side
For many a dark hour I've thought about this
That Jesus Christ was betrayed by a kiss
I can't do it for you, you've got to decide
Whether Judas Iscariot had God on his side
I've learned to hate Russians all thru my whole life
If another war comes, it's them we must fight
To hate and to fear them, to run and to hide
And accept it all bravely with God on our side
But now we've got weapons of the chemical dust
If fire them we're forced to, then fire them we must
One push of the button will shock the world wide
And you never ask questions with God on your side
So now as I'm leaving, I'm weary as hell
The confusion I'm feeling, ain't no tongue can tell
The words fill my head and fall to the floor
If God's on our side, He'll stop the next war
113
Masters of War
Come you masters of war
You that build all the guns
You that build the death planes
You that build the big bombs
You that hide behind walls
You that hide behind desks
I just want you to know
I can see through your masks
You that never done nothin'
But build to destroy
You play with my world
Like it's your little toy
You put a gun in my hand
And you hide from my eyes
And you turn and run farther
When the fast bullets fly
Like Judas of old
You lie and deceive
A world war can be won
You want me to believe
But I see through your eyes
And I see through your brain
Like I see through the water
That runs down my drain
You fasten the triggers
For the others to fire
Then you set back and watch
When the death count gets higher
You hide in your mansion
As young people's blood
Flows out of their bodies
And is buried in the mud
114
You've thrown the worst fear
That can ever be hurled
Fear to bring children
Into the world
For threatening my baby
Unborn and unnamed
You ain't worth the blood
That runs in your veins
How much do I know
To talk out of turn
You might say that I'm young
You might say I'm unlearned
But there's one thing I know
Though I'm younger than you
Even Jesus would never
Forgive what you do
Let me ask you one question
Is your money that good
Will it buy you forgiveness
Do you think that it could
I think you will find
When your death takes its toll
All the money you made
Will never buy back your soul
And I hope that you die
And your death'll come soon
I will follow your casket
In the pale afternoon
And I'll watch while you're lowered
Down to your deathbed
And I'll stand o'er your grave
'Til I'm sure that you're dead
115
When the Ship Comes In
Oh the time will come up
When the winds will stop
And the breeze will cease to be breathin'.
Like the stillness in the wind
'Fore the hurricane begins,
The hour when the ship comes in.
Oh the seas will split
And the ship will hit
And the sands on the shoreline will be shaking.
Then the tide will pound
And the wind will sound
And the morning will be breaking.
Oh the fishes will laugh
As they swim out of the path
And the seagulls they'll be smiling.
And the rocks on the sand
Will proudly stand,
The hour that the ship comes in.
And the words that are used
For to get the ship confused
Will not be understood as they're spoken.
For the chains of the sea
Will have busted in the night
And will be buried at the bottom of the ocean.
A song will lift
As the mainsail shifts
And the boat drifts on to the shoreline.
And the sun will respect
Every face on the deck,
The hour that the ship comes in.
Then the sands will roll
Out a carpet of gold
For your weary toes to be a-touchin'.
And the ship's wise men
Will remind you once again
That the whole wide world is watchin'.
116
Oh the foes will rise
With the sleep still in their eyes
And they'll jerk from their beds and think they're dreamin'.
But they'll pinch themselves and squeal
And know that it's for real,
The hour when the ship comes in.
Then they'll raise their hands,
Sayin' we'll meet all your demands,
But we'll shout from the bow your days are numbered.
And like Pharaoh's tribe,
They'll be drownded in the tide,
And like Goliath, they'll be conquered.
117
It came upon a Midnight Clear
It came upon a midnight clear,
That glorious song of old,
From angels bending near the earth,
To touch their harps of gold.
Peace on the earth, good will to men,
From heaven’s all gracious king,
The world in solemn stillness lay,
To hear the angels sing.
Still through the cloven skies they come,
With peaceful wings unfurled,
And still their heavenly music floats,
O’er all the weary world.
Above it’s sad and lonely plains,
They bend on hovering wing,
And ever o’er it’s Babel sounds,
The blessed angels sing.
But with the woes of sin and strife,
The world has suffered long,
Beneath the angel strain have rolled,
Two thousand years of wrong.
And man at war with man, hears not,
The love song that they bring,
O hush the noise, ye men of strife,
And hear the angels sing.
118
And ye, beneath life’s crushing load,
Whose forms are bending low,
Who toil along the climbing way,
With painful steps and slow,
Look now! for glad and golden hours,
Come swiftly on the wing,
O rest beside the weary road,
And hear the angels sing.
For lo! the days are hastening on,
By prophet bards foretold,
When with the ever circling years,
Comes round the age of gold.
When peace shall over all the earth,
It’s ancient splendours fling,
And the whole world give back the song,
Which now the angels sing.
119
My Eldorado, Greame Miles.
I had my hopes, as we all had hopes,
All for what I’d be, and for what I’d do,
But as my youth soon bloomed and faded,
So all my hopes, they vanished too.
I never found my Eldorado,
Never walked down silver sands,
Never saw those gold pagodas,
Nor held a sunrise in my hand.
But I just dream, and dream, and dream.
And I just dream, and dream, and dream.
I was just a kid, just a scruffy kid.
But I held the world in my grubby hands.
But then the world just turned to water,
And ran through my fingers into the sand.
The terraced streets, were my grand canyon,
The shipyard cranes were my redwood trees,
The steelwork tips, were my mountain ranges,
And the brickyard ponds were my seven seas.
The public bar was full of sailors,
They laughed, they sang, they told their tales.
But I just found the darkest corner,
Put down my glass, then walked away.
120
You are my Morning, Graeme Miles.
You are the light, the silver light of dawn.
You are the song, the song the linnet sings.
You are the sun, the sun that makes me warm.
You are my morning.
You are my morning.
You are my morning.
Oh yes you are.
You are my morning.
Oh yes you are.
You are the dove, the dove that brings me peace.
You are the breeze, the breeze that sooths my brow.
You are the rain, the rain that cools my cheek.
You are my comfort.
You are my comfort.
You are my comfort.
Oh yes you are.
You are my comfort.
Oh yes you are.
You are the air in every breath I breathe.
You are the thought that never leaves my mind.
You are the pulse that makes my heart to beat.
You are my life.
You are my life.
You are my life.
Oh yes you are.
And you’re my morning.
And you’re my comfort.
And you’re my life.
Oh yes you are.
121
Bitter Withy
As it fell out upon a high holiday
Sweet hail from the heaven did fall
Our Saviour asked his mother mild
'Can I go and play at the ball?'
'At the ball, the ball, my own dear son
It's time that you was gone
But it's don't let me hear of any misdeeds
At night when you come home'
So it's up the hill and it's down the hill
Our sweet young Saviour ran
And there he saw three rich lords' sons
'Good morning sirs, each one'
'Good morn, good morn and good morn' says they
'And thrice good morn,' says he
'And which of you three rich lords' sons
Will play at the ball with me?'
'Why we are lords' we're ladies' sons
Born in a bower or hall
But you, you're nothing but a poor maid's child
You was born in an ox's stall'
'Well if I'm nothing but a poor maid's child
Born in an ox's stall
I'll make you believe in your latter end
That I'm an angel above you all'
And so he built him a bridge with the beams of the sun
And over the river ran he
Three rich lords' sons, they followed him
And drowned they were all three
And it's up the hill and it's down the hill
Three weeping mothers ran
Saying, 'Mary mild, take home your child
For ours he's drowned each one'
122
So Mary mild, took home her child
She laid him across her knee
And with a whole handful of the bitter withy twigs,
She gave him slashes three.
Oh, bitter withy, oh, bitter withy
You caused me to smart
Now the willow shall be the very first tree
To perish at the heart.
123
Whitby Lad
Come all ye bold and ye rambling boys and a warning take by me
For I'd have you quit night walking and shun bad company
(For it's:) Son oh son what have you done?
You're bound for Botany Bay
I was born and bred in Whitby town and raised most honestly
Till I became a roving blade which proved my destiny
Well I broke into some lady's house about the hour of three
And two peelers stood behind the door and they soon had an hold on me
It was at the quarters sessions that the judge to me did say
Well the jury's found you guilty you're bound for Botany Bay
Well I've seen me aged father there a-trembling at the bar
Likewise me dear old mother a-tearing her white hair
It was on the 28th of June from England we made way
And as we come down the Humber well we heard them sailors say
(Well it's:) Boys oh boys there are no joys
down there in Botany Bay
Oh there is a lass in Whitby town and the girl that I love full well
And it's if I had me liberty along with her I'd dwell.
124
Paddy the Swagman
Now Paddy the dancer a swagman of note
who followed the bidgee run
Found himself on the tucker track
and most of his food was gone.
So he pondered awhile, and, thought at last,
that as far as he could see
He’d have to catch himself a cod
to grill on the coals for tea.
So he made a line from some bailer twine
that he stole from a farmers hay
And he made a hook from a rusty nail
that had stuck in his foot that day.
He gazed with pride at his fishing gear,
and to try it could hardly wait,
But…. discovered at last as anglers do,
you’ve to cover your hook with bait.
Now he remembered a story ,
that someone had told him in the dim and distant past
That frogs were the things that anglers use
for the fish to break their fast.
But frogs was as scarce as teeth on hens
that’s what he told to me
So he scrounged around till he found a frog
at the foot of a nearby tree.
He stalked that frog on his hands and knees,
the way big hunters do
But a black snake coming the other way
had the same idea in view.
Both of them grabbed together,
but the snake was a fraction fast,
he swallowed the frog but found himself,
held tight in the swagman’s grasp.
He pulled from his pocket a flask he had,
125
of very potent grog
Breathed a sigh, said “It must be done,
I need that flaming frog.”
And he squeezed the wriggling reptiles neck
till it’s jaws were open wide,
And with tears in his eyes…. he poured that grog,
down into the snake’s inside.
It gave a gurgle, then a gulp,and then a twist or two,
And there was the frog, in the light of day,
almost as good as new.
So he picked it up and hurried away
to bait his rusty hook,
And sat himself down on a grassy verge,
by the side of a peaceful brook.
He felt a tap on his shoulder blade
and turned with his eyes agog,
There was the snake, all bleary eyed,
in it’s mouth was another frog.
Now that’s the tale that was told to me
on the camp three flat,
Maybe it’s true, maybe it’s not,
you’d best be the judge of that
But the thing … that I find hard to believe is that, the way he liked his grog,
He’d give it away to a hungry snake
for the sake of a worthless frog.
126
Three Day Millionaire
Why, I left school Friday
And I started work on Saturday
To catch the early tide
And be a galley boy's me plan
On the fishing grounds to roam
Eighteen hundred mile from home
I couldn't give a bugger, I'm a man
I shall get to deck a-learning
It's the bonus I'll be earning
And the money comes in handy
For the old ran tan
Brylcreme in me hair
Three day millionaire
I couldn't give a bugger, I'm a man
I'll get myself a suit made
To show I'm in the fishing trade
I'll put me brothel-creepers on
And swagger when I can
All me pots are pint-sized
Watch me getting paralysed
To show the younger buggers who's a man
And when I get to skipper
I'll get married, have a nipper
I'll take the lad to sea with me
And teach him all I can
I'll be a different sort of fella
Have a house out in Kirk Ella
And I'll show the bleeding neighbours who's a man
I'll be a different sort of fellow
Have a house out in Kirk Ellow
And I'll show the bleeding neighbours who's a man
127
Grandfathers Clock (Henry Clay Work)
My grandfather's clock was too tall for the shelf
So it stood ninety years on the floor
It was taller by half than the old man himself
But it weighed not a pennyweight more
It was bought on the morn on the day that he was born
It was always his treasure and pride
But it stopped, short, never to go again
When the old man died
CHORUS
Ninety years without slumbering Tic toc tic toc
His life's seconds numbering Tic toc tic toc
It stopped, short, never to go again When the old man died.
In watching its pendulum swing to and fro
Many hours he had spent when a boy
And through childhood and manhood, the clock seemed to know
And to share both his grief and his joy.
For it struck 24 when he entered at the door
With a blooming and beautiful bride,
But it stopped, short, never to go again when the old man died
CHORUS
My grandfather said that of all the servants he'd had,
Not a servant so faithful he'd found,
For it lost him no time and one favour only asked,
At the close of each day to be wound
At it kept to its place, not a frown upon its face
At its hands never hung by its side
But it stopped, short, never to go again when the old man died
CHORUS
It rang an alarm in the still of the night,
An alarm that for years had been dumb
And we knew that his spirit was reaching for flight
That his hour of departure had come
Still the clock kept the time
With a soft and muffled chime
As we silently stood by his side
But it stopped, short, never to go again when the old man died
128
Rolling Home
Round goes the wheel of fortune
Don't be afraid to ride
There's a land of milk and honey
Waits on the other side
There'll be peace and there'll be plenty
You'll never need to roam
When we go rolling home, when we go rolling home.
Rolling home, when we go rolling home
When we go rolling, rolling, when we go rolling home
The gentry in their fine array
Do prosper night and morn
While we unto the fields must go
To plough and sow their corn
The rich may steal the power
But the glory's ours alone
When we go rolling home (etc)
The frost is on the hedgerow
The icy winds do blow
While we poor weary labourers
Strive through the driving snow
Our dreams fly up to glory
Up where the lark has flown
When we go rolling home (etc)
The summer of resentment
The winter of despair
The journey to contentment
Is set with trap and snare
Stand to and stand together
Your labour's yours alone
When we go rolling home (etc)
So pass the bottle round
And let the toast go free
Here's a health to every labourer
Wherever they may be
Fair wages now and ever
Let's reap what we have sown
When we go rolling home (etc)
129
Where the brumbies come to water.
There’s a lonely grave half hidden, where the blue grass droops above.
The slab that roughly marks it, we planted it with love.
There’s a morning rank of riders, closing in on every hand,
Oh the vacant place he left us, he was best of all the band.
Now he’s lying cold and silent with his hidden hopes un-won.
Where the brumbies come to water at the setting of the sun.
There’s a well worn saddle hanging in the harness room above,
A good old stock horse waiting for the steps that never come.
And his dog will lick some other hand when the wild mob swings,
We get a slower rider to replace him on the wings.
Ah but who will kiss his wife who kneels beside the long lagoon,
Where the brumbies come to water at the rising of the moon.
We will miss him in the cattle camps, a trusted man and true.
The daddy of all stockmen was young Rory Donahue.
And we’ll miss the tunes he used to play on his banjo long and low.
We will miss the songs he used to sing of the days of long ago.
Where the shadow line lies broken ‘neath the moonbeams silver boughs,
Where the brumbies come to water at the twinkling of the stars.
130
Battle of Sowerby Bridge
The battle of Sowerby Bridge were fought 44th of March.
The King’s crack fusiliers turned up, they marched as stiff as starch.
They marched as far as Bolton Brow when the enemy hove in sight.
And they called us generals nasty names and challenged us to fight.
Chorus;
We were amongst ‘em. We were amongst ‘em.
We slished and we slashed and we slaughtered and we slew,
Till the air for miles around were blue.
For an hour and a quarter we held the foe at bay.
There were only two of us left that night and we were amongst ‘em.
At break of day down Copley way, we went to fight foe.
Our good scout Billy Higgins came and told a tale of woe.
He said “The enemy has advanced”, so we retired pell-mell.
They shouted to surrender but we shouted, “Go to hell”.
Chorus;
The enemy then retired into the wilds of Shipden Glen.
The switchback were surrounded by a hundred thousand men.
They hung their wounded out to dry along the aerial flight.
And stuffed their guts with monkey nuts and challenged us to fight..
Chorus;
We chased the enemy round the town till their stockings all fell down.
From Catherine slack to Bolton Brow and in around the town.
We came across a public house and there we raised a cheer.
For in the cellar we did find a hundred casks of beer.
Chorus #2
We were amongst it; We were amongst it;
We drunk and we drew and we drew and we drunk,
Till the air for miles around it stunk.
For and hour and a quarter we put that beer away.
There was only two carried home that night and we were amongst ‘em.
131
Benjamin Bowmaneer
Have you heard how the wars began?
Benjamin Bowmaneer.
Have you heard how the wars began?
Cast us away.
Have you heard how the wars began.
When England fought to a man?
And the proud tailor rode prancing away.
From his shear board he made a horse.
All for to ride of course.
From his scissors he made bridle bits.
To keep that horse in his wits.
As the tailor rode o’er the lea.
He spied a flea on his knee.
From his needle he made a spear.
To prick that flea in the ear.
From his thimble he made a bell.
To ring that flea’s funeral knell.
Twas thus how the wars began.
When England fought to a man?
Have you heard how the wars began.
When England fought to a man?
132
Hey, that's no way to say goodbye
I loved you in the morning, our kisses deep and warm,
your hair upon the pillow like a sleepy golden storm,
yes, many loved before us, I know that we are not new,
in city and in forest they smiled like me and you,
but now it's come to distances and both of us must try,
your eyes are soft with sorrow,
Hey, that's no way to say goodbye.
I'm not looking for another as I wander in my time,
walk me to the corner, our steps will always rhyme
you know my love goes with you as your love stays with me,
it's just the way it changes, like the shoreline and the sea,
but let's not talk of love or chains and things we can't untie,
your eyes are soft with sorrow,
Hey, that's no way to say goodbye.
I loved you in the morning, our kisses deep and warm,
your hair upon the pillow like a sleepy golden storm,
yes many loved before us, I know that we are not new,
in city and in forest they smiled like me and you,
but let's not talk of love or chains and things we can't untie,
your eyes are soft with sorrow,
Hey, that's no way to say goodbye.
133
Joy of Living (Ewan MacColl)
Farewell, you northern hills, you mountains all goodbye
Moorlands and stony ridges, crags and peaks, goodbye
Glyder Fach farewell, Coelbeg, Scafell, cloud-bearing Suilven
Sun-warmed rocks and the cold of Bleaklow’s frozen sea
The snow and the wind and the rain of hills and mountains
Days in the sun and the tempered wind and the air like wine
You drink and you drink till you’re drunk on the joy of living
Farewell to you, my love, my time is almost done
Lie in my arms once more until the darkness comes
You filled all my days, held the night at bay, dearest companion
Years pass by and they’re gone with the speed of birds in flight
Our lives like the verse of a song heard in the mountains
Give me your hand and love and join your voice with mine
And we’ll sing of the hurt and the pain and the joy of living
Farewell to you, my chicks, soon you must fly alone
Flesh of my flesh, my future, life-bone of my bone
May your wings be strong, may your days be long, safe be your journey
Each of you bears inside of you, the gift of love
May it bring you light and warmth, and the pleasure of giving
Eagerly savour each new day and the taste of its mouth
Never lose sight of the thrill and the joy of living
Take me to some high place of heather, rock and ling
Scatter my dust and ashes, feed me to the wind
So that I may be part of all you see, the air you are breathing
I’ll be part of the curlew’s cry and the soaring hawk,
The blue milkwort and the sundew hung with diamonds
I’ll be riding the gentle breeze as it blows through your hair
Reminding you how we shared in the joy of living
134
All the Little Chickens
When first I went to Yorkshire, it was many years ago,
I met with a little Yorkshire lass and I’d have you all to know,
That she was both lithe and buxom, she was beautiful and gay,
And when I went a’courtin I could hear her father say.
Treat my daughter decent, don’t do her any harm,
And when I die I’ll leave you both my tidy little farm,
My cow, my pig, my sheep, my goats,
My stock, my fields and barn.
And all the little chickens in the garden.
When first I went to court the lass she was so blooming shy,
She never said a dicky bird while other folks stood by,
But as soon as we where on our own she made me name the day,
Now listen while I tell you what her daddy used to say.
And so I wed my Yorkshire lass, so pleasing to my mind,
I never did prove false to her and she’s proved true in kind.
We’ve got three bairns and they’re grown up now,
With a grandbairn on the way.
And when I look into her eyes I can hear her father say.
135
Lover’s Ghost
I must be going I cannot tarry,
The burning Thames I have to cross,
I will be guided without a stumble,
Into the arms I love the best.
And when he came to his true love’s window,
He knelt down gently upon a stone,
And it’s through the pane he has whispered slowly,
My darling dear do you lie alone.
She raised her head from her down-soft pillow,
And snowy were her milk-white breasts,
Saying who’s there, who’s there at my bedroom window,
Disturbing me from my long night’s rest.
‘Tis I your love but don’t discover,
I pray you rise and let me in,
For I am fatigued from my long night’s journey,
Besides I am wet unto my skin.
So this young girl rose and put on her clothing,
So swift she’s let her true love in,
And it’s there they kissed and embraced each other,
Through that long night they lay as one.
Then it’s Willy dear oh dearest Willy,
Oh where’s your colour you’d some time ago,
Oh Mary dear the clay has changed me,
I am but the ghost of your William-O.
Then it’s cock, oh cock, oh handsome cockerel,
I pray you not crow before it is day,
And your wings I’ll make of the very first beaten gold,
Your comb I will make of the silver grey.
But the cock he crew, he crew so fully,
He crew three hours before it was day,
And before it was day my love had to leave me,
Not by light of the moon, nor light of the sun.
So my Willy dear, oh dearest Willy,
When shall I see you again,
When the fishes fly love, and the seas run dry love,
And the rocks they melt in the heat of the sun.
136
The New Road
John Beavis
You who puzzle on the Saviour’s deeds
Will you stop and listen where the new road leads,
First born son of the refugees,
He was raised in Nazareth, schooled in charity,
And found salvation on his knees.
Manhood found him on the Jordan shore,
Where the Baptist shivered in the rags he wore,
Plunged his cousin in the pilgrim stream
And as the dark descended, then the old road ended,
And the new road wakened from the dream.
Red sun setting over Galilee
Saw the stranger walking by the inland sea,
Four young fishermen around him twined,
And the new road headed for the Cannan wedding,
Where he turned the water into wine.
Thousands listened on the mountain slope,
Where they dined on miracles and breathed in hope,
Blind men followed with the light restored,
While the sightless Pharisees condemned as heresy,
The wide-eyed workings of the Lord.
Hallelujah the people cheered,
As the palm leaves rattled when the king draws near,
Woe! Jerusalem, the truth you shun,
And your sins ensuing are your own undoing,
Till your stones lie broken in the sun.
Thirteen gathered in the upstairs room,
While the high priests plotted for the saviour’s doom,
Blood and body in the wine and bread,
Then he kissed his enemy in sweet Gethsemane,
And twelve hours later he was dead.
137
Mary wondered at the stone flung wide,
And the tomb rang hollow as she stepped inside,
Angels sitting where the Christ had laid,
Bid her leave the prison for the son had risen,
And would talk in Galilee again.
Show by living what the Lord has done,
In the selfless giving of his only son.
Chart his passage to the last Amen,
For the climb is steady if the pilgrim’s ready,
And the new road reaches out again.
138
Black is the colour
Black is the colour of darkness
Gold is the colour of pain
Blue is the colour of freedom
Grey is the colour of rain
Black is the hair of my mistress
Gold is the ring on her hand
Blue is the question I’m asking
It’s grey and I don’t understand.
139
Fiddlers Green ( John Connelly )
As I walked by the dockside one evening so fair
To view the clear water and take the salt air
I heard an old fisherman singing this song
Oh, take me away boys my time is not long
Wrap me up in my oil skins and jumper
No more on the docks I'll be seen
Just tell my old shipmates I'm taking a trip mates
And I'll see you someday in Fiddler's Green
Now, Fiddler's Green is a place I've heard tell
Where fishermen go if they don't go to hell
Where the weather’s all clear and the dolphins they play
And the cold coast of Greenland is far far away
The sky's always clear and there's never a gale
And the fish jump on board with a flip of their tail
You can lie at your leisure, there's no work to do
And the skipper's below making tea for the crew
When you land on the dock and the long trip is through
There's pubs and there's clubs and there's lasses there too
Where the girls are all pretty and the beer is all free
And there's bottles of rum growing from every tree
Now, I don't want a harp nor a halo, not me
Just give me a breeze and a good rolling sea
And I'll play my old squeezebox as we sail along
With the wind in our rigging to sing me this song
140
City Lament Keith Marsden
I was born a city lad so I knew the place was bad,
The only thing to call it was a slum.
But despite the squalor there the people didn’t care,
And didn’t want the bulldozers to come.
And how they cried that day when we had to move away,
And pack our homes into our little carts,
Then the council knocked it flat and we all thanked God for that,
And none of us have died of broken hearts.
Chorus;
Aye the men from the town hall came and swung their big lead ball,
And one by one the streets began to fall.
Now in new electric flats, we miss the damp and rats,
And we can’t grow mushrooms on the bedroom wall.
The city streets were mean, like the houses in between,
The bricks were every shade of dirty black.
Electric lights were few and baths we never knew,
And the lavs were round the corner at the back.
Our food was frying panned and our clothes were second hand,
Shoes were something other people wore.
And when dad had drunk his dole and we couldn’t pay for coal,
We’d go and pinch some other bugger’s door.
Normally you’d choke on the ashes and the smoke,
We measured daily soot-fall by the ton.
But when the air went sweet and you could nearly see your feet,
Aye then the mayor fired a celebration gun.
In the early morn of spring you could hear the sparrows sing,
By noon the mills around had done their worst.
So by teatime over all there would hang a sooty pall,
While the sparrows sat there coughing fit to bust.
141
Then the rain would catch the grime and turn it into slime,
And spread it on the houses down below.
So in April we had showers that poisoned all the flowers,
And in winter we made black men out of snow.
Oh aye the place was rough so all us lads were tough,
The coppers came in threes when they came by.
And it hardly made them frown,
When we burnt the fish ‘ole down,
With the sergeant in the middle for the Guy.
And though now the City’s gone still it’s spirit lingers on,
And if one winters night you’re passing by,
You might catch the padding feet of some whippet long deceased,
Or hear a ghostly rag and bone man’s cry.
There’s a gang of phantom kids still out pinching dustbin lids,
But if you think you hear the sound of strife,
Don’t
stop whate’re you do for it’s nowt to do with you,
It’s some ghostly drunkard beating up his wife.
142
Bringing in the Sheaves
Jim Boyes
Though it’s way past harvest time, souls still toil and wagons rattle.
Corn still stands in rank and line, and defies us all.
We can see it in our past, blood will out and join the battle.
Though we work in different ways, we’re bringing in the sheaves.
Bringing in the sheaves, we’re bringing in the sheaves.
Though we work in different ways, we’re bringing in the sheaves.
Though we started from the land, some do choose to roam abroad.
The hand upon the gliding plough is not for everyone.
Changing seasons help us see, that those who hear a different drummer,
Though not in one harmony, are bringing in the sheaves.
Bringing in the sheaves, we’re bringing in the sheaves.
Though not in one harmony, are bringing in the sheaves.
What lay dormant in the soil, is wakened by the kiss of summer.
So the fruits of yesteryear becomes the year’s new corn.
Every stem has at it’s core, part of them that went before.
In turn they will be kept in store by bringing in the sheaves.
Bringing in the sheaves, we’re bringing in the sheaves.
In turn they will be kept in store by bringing in the sheaves.
In conclusion bear in mind, what example has begun.
What you do today in kind has power for everyone.
True strong aims will pass along, to our daughters and our sons.
So may they in years to come, be bringing in the sheaves.
Bringing in the sheaves, we’re bringing in the sheaves.
So may they in years to come, be bringing in the sheaves.
143
Wassail
Chorus
Wassail, wassail all over the town,
We are all wassailers of fame and renown,
Open your door and fill up our cup,
Or we’ll sing through your letterbox until you cough up.
Chorus
Wassail, wassail we know you’re about,
Though you sit in the dark and pretend that you’re out,
If you’re thinking of calling the police to give chase,
Just who do you think is singing the bass?
Chorus
Wassail, wassail all over your garden,
If we’ve done any damage we do beg your pardon,
We’re sorry to call upon you so late,
But we had trouble picking the lock on your gate.
Chorus
Wassail, wassail that you may believe
‘Tis more blessed to give than it is to receive,
The more that you give the more blessed are you,
The more we receive the less damage we do.
Chorus
Wassail, wassail all over for now,
You’ve seen sense now and we’ll make no more row,
Peace be upon you, all at your repose,
And we’ll come no more nigh you until the pubs close.
144
White Cockade
'Twas on a summer's morning as I rode o'er the moss,
I had no thought of enlisting, till some soldiers did me cross.
They kindly did invite me to take a flowing bowl
They advanced me (they advanced me)
They advanced me (they advanced me)
They advanced me some money, a shilling from the crown.
Oh yes, my love's enlisted and he wears a white cockade,
He is a handsome young man, likewise a roving blade.
He is a handsome young man, and he's gone to serve his king
Oh! my very (Oh! my very)
Oh! my very (Oh! my very)
Oh! my very heart is aching all for the love of him.
My love is tall and handsome and comely for to see
But by some sad misfortune a soldier now is he
And the very man that 'listed him may suffer night and day.
And I wish that (How I wish that)
And I wish that (How I wish that)
And I wish that the Hollanders would sink him in the sea.
Oh may he never prosper, and may he never thrive
On anything he turns his hand as long as he's alive.
May the very ground he walks upon, the grass refuse to grow
Since he's been the (Since he's been the)
Since he's been the (Since he's been the)
Since he's been the only cause of my sorrow, grief and woe.
Then he took out his handkerchief and wiped her flowing eye,
Leave off your lamentations, likewise your mournful cries.
Leave off your lamentations while I march o'er the plains,
We'll be married (We'll be married)
We'll be married (We'll be married)
We'll be married in Newcastle when I return again.
Oh yes, my love's enlisted, and for him I will rove
And carve his name on every tree that buds in yonder grove.
The huntsman he will holler and the hounds will loudly cry
To remind me (To remind me)
To remind me (To remind me)
To remind me of my ploughboy until the day I die.
145
No More World to Live In
We burned the forest and killed the trees,
Changed the weather as much as we please,
Pumped our effluent into the seas,
There’s no more world to live in.
We filled the valleys and levelled the mounds,
Scorched the earth for miles around,
All for the sake of a couple of pounds,
There’s no more world to live in.
Life began in the ocean blue,
It’s ending here with me and you,
Wales and elephants, tigers too,
We flushed their lives right down the loo.
Hotter than a house of glass,
The water level is rising fast,
All because of the greenhouse gas,
There’s no more world to live in.
Now you may think it’s pretty bizarre,
If I tell you to scrap your car,
You may not get to travel so far,
But we’ll have a world to live in.
We’ve been busy since time began,
We haven’t the time to follow the plan,
So give some money to those who can,
And we’ll have a world to live in.
The earth has paid a heavy old price,
Now it’s time for our sacrifice,
It won’t be fun and it won’t be nice,
But you should listen to my advice.
Plant some forests and grow some trees,
We haven’t the time to take our ease,
Don’t forget to clean the seas,
And we’ll have a world to live in.
146
Frisco Bay
In Frisco bay there were three ships
To me way-hay-hay-ahh
In Frisco bay there were three ships
A long time ago
And one of them was Noah’s old ark
All covered all over with hickory bark
They took two animals of every kind
They took two animals of every kind
The bull and the cow they started to row
The bull and the cow they started to row
Then said old Noah with a flick of his whip
Come stop this row or I’ll scuttle the ship
But the bull stuck his horn through the side of the ark
And the little black dog he started to bark
So Noah took the dog, shoved his nose up the hole
And ever since then dog’s nose has been cold
It’s a long long time and a very long time
It’s a long long time and a very long time
147
Distant Hills
Lawrence Dean
The wheel of fate goes ever on, it takes us where it will.
Some must stay and some must go beyond the distant hills.
You always were a friend to me; we’ve been through thick and thin.
These parting words I’m bound to say but how should I begin.
For I don’t know what road you’ll travel nor what lies in wait for you,
But my heart goes with you always, now adieu, dear friend adieu.
As I recall in times gone by of friendship and of cheer,
I can’t foresee much joy for me when you’re no longer here.
And far across the ocean wide wherever you may be,
As oft as I shall think of you, I hope you’ll think of me.
For I don’t know what road you’ll travel nor what lies in wait for you,
But my heart goes with you always now adieu dear friend adieu.
And so I come to wish you well forever from this day,
And fortune shine her light on you and guide you on your way.
For I don’t know what road you’ll travel nor what lies in wait for you,
But my heart goes with you always now adieu dear friend adieu.
For I don’t know what road you’ll travel nor what lies in wait for you,
But my heart goes with you always now adieu dear friend adieu.
148
Bold Reynolds
My name it is Bold Reynolds, I was born near Bonfire Hill
That was many years ago but I remember still
My brothers and my sisters as we lay near the den
With ne’er a care all in the world, my life was easy then
When I was scarcely nine months old I first met with the hounds
I heard their voices through the wood as I came above ground
I found it very easy to leave them in my wake
I wandered many miles that day it was to prove my fate
When I was on that journey I met her in a copse
She had a handsome thick red coat, straightway my heart was lost
We spent that year together, had seven cubs all told
I thanked the hounds for sending me along that distant road
Many times when I was stalking rabbits on my own
I heard the distant hunting horns that called the stragglers home
At times the hounds would follow me but I would have my fun
Across the fields and meadows I’d give them a good run
My mate and I we stayed together many seasons more
Pheasants in the wintertime I always had in store
And in the springtime I’d work hard to feed the newborn young
Hunting through the short chill night until the morning sun
Years have passed, my vixen died, now I am on my own
My legs are tired, my coat is rough, and all my seed is sown
I do not wish a lingering death, I’ll meet the hounds again
And take them on a final run, once more they’ll serve my end
My name it is Bold Reynolds, I was born near Bonfire Hill
That was many years ago but I remember still
My vixen and my young cubs as we lay near the den
But now I bid you all farewell, my life is at an end
149
Claudy Banks
'Twas on a summer's evening all in the month of May
Down in a flowery garden where Betsy she did stray
I overheard this fair maid in sorrow to complain
All for her absent lover who ploughed the raging main.
I stepped up to this fair maid and put her in surprise
I own she did not know me, I being all in disguise
Said I, "Me charming creature, me joy and heart's delight
How far have you to travel this dark and rainy night?"
"Away kind sir to the Claudy Banks if you will please to show
Pity a poor girl distracted, it's there I have to go,
I'm a-looking for a young man and Johnny is his name
And I'm told it's there on Claudy Banks today he do remain."
"If my Johnny he were here this night he'd keep me from all harm
But he's cruising the wide ocean, in tempest and in storm,
He's a-cruising the wide ocean for honour and for gain."
"But I'm told his ship got wrecked all on the coast of Spain."
When Betsy heard this dreadful news, she fell into despair,
A-wringing of her hands and a-tearing of her hair.
"Since my Johnny's gone and left me, no man on earth I'll take
But it's all me life on Claudy Banks I'll wander for his sake."
Now Johnny hearing her say so, he could no longer stand,
He fell into her arms, crying, "Betsy, I'm the man!
I am that faithful young man and whom you thought was slain
And since we've met on Claudy Banks we'll never part again."
150
Shelter
Eric Bogle
I am drowning in the sunshine as it pours down from the skies,
Something’s stirring in my heart, bright colour fills my eyes,
As from here to the far horizon your beauty does unfold,
And oh you look so lovely dressed in green and gold.
I can almost touch the ocean shimmering in the distant haze,
As stand here on this mountain on this loveliest day of days,
Round half the world I’ve drifted, left no wild oats unsown,
But now my view has shifted and I think I’ve just come home.
To the homeless and the hungry, may you always open doors,
May the restless and the weary find safe harbour on your shores,
May you always be my dreamtime place, my spirit’s glad release,
May you always be our shelter, may we always live in peace.
I am drowning in the sunshine as it pours down from the skies,
Something’s stirring in my heart, bright colour fills my eyes,
As from here to the far horizon your beauty does unfold,
And oh you look so lovely dressed in green and gold.
And oh you look so lovely dressed in green and gold.
151
English Ale
Harvey Andrews
When the Summer sun is shining England's finest hour is seen,
When the ripening barley's waving, yellow in its frame of green,
When the bird-song welcomes evening, when the sky is turning pale
Fill your glass and toast their glory with a taste of English ale.
Chorus:
English ale, O English ale, How we love our English ale.
Fill your glass and toast their glory with a taste of English ale.
When the Autumn leaves are golden, when the evening air is chill,
When the swallows leave us for a place where there is Summer still,
Just remember their returning, like the tides they never fail.
Fill your glass and toast their glory with a taste of English ale.
When the winter brings the snowstorm, when Jack Frost is lord of all
When the winds howl at your window, and the nights too quickly fall
There's a log fire warmly burning on the hill or in the dale.
Fill your glass and toast their glory with a taste of English ale.
When the Spring begins to quicken, when new scents are on the air,
When the sleepers stir and waken, when the land again is fair
Then the old men talk of childhood, old men tell such wondrous tales
Fill their glass and toast their glory with a taste of English ale.
152
Luckiest Sailor
Kingston Peridot sank 1968
Linda Kelly
I’ve been fishing the sea since a lad of fifteen,
There’s not a stretch of the ocean where I haven’t been.
And I’ve seen Northern Lights and the whale fish at play,
And I’ve slept through the dog watch; been fined half my pay.
And I’ve prayed long and hard in a westerly storm,
And I’ve dreamt of those young girls who helped keep me warm.
And I’ve sat with the old Jacks and listened with glee,
To the tales of the women, the drink and the sea.
Chorus
I‘m the luckiest sailor that Hull ever knew,
When the Kingston ship sank with the loss of her crew,
And I pray for their lives; sons and their wives,
On the day that the Perridot perished.
I was a young sailor with settle in hand,
From trawling in Iceland with white fish to land.
And I’m dressed to the nines in my rucker-back tails,
And I’m off down the Stricky to sink a few ales.
Well I’ll tell you a tale of the taxman and me,
He’s been robbing me blind since I first went to sea,
So I said to the skipper, I’ll spend time ashore,
‘Cos I’m damned if the taxman will have any more.
Then a whisper was heard that a Hull ship was down,
With no chance of a rescue, her men had all drowned,
And I supped up my ale and I knew in my head,
That that Hull ship was my ship, and my mates were all dead.
And the coins in my pocket weighed heavy that day,
And it took me no courage to give them away,
And my mind took me back to the long days at sea,
And I asked the good Lord, why my mates and not me.
153
Mary Hamilton
Word is to the kitchen gone
And word is to the hall,
And word is up to Madam the Queen
And that's the worst of all,
That Mary Hamilton's born a babe to the highest Stuart of all
"Arise, arise, Mary Hamilton,
Arise and tell to me,
What thou hast done with thy wee babe
I saw and heard weep by thee?"
"I put him in a tiny boat,
And cast him out to sea,
That he might sink or he might swim,
But he'd never come back to me."
"Arise, arise, Mary Hamilton,
Arise and come with me;
There is a wedding in Glasgow town
This night we'll go and see."
She put not on her robes of black,
Nor her robes of brown,
But she put on robes of white,
To ride into Glasgow town.
And as she rode into Glasgow town,
The city for to see,
The bailiff's wife and the provost's wife
Cried, "Ach, and alas for thee."
"Ah, you need not weep for me," she cried
"You need not weep for me;
For had I not slain my own wee babe
This death I would not dee."
"Ah, little did my mother think
When first she cradled me,
The lands I was to travel in
And the death I was to dee."
154
Mary Hamilton (2)
Then by and come the King himself,
Looked up with a pitiful eye,
"Come down, come down, Mary Hamilton,
Tonight you'll dine with me."
"Ah, hold your tongue, my sovereign liege,
And let your folly be;
For if you'd a mind to save my life
You'd never have shamed me here."
"Cast off, cast off my gown," she cried,
"But let my petticoat be,
And tie a napkin 'round my face;
The gallows I would not see."
"Last night I washed the Queen's feet,
And put the gold on her hair,
And the only reward I find for this,
The gallows to be my share."
"Last night there were four Marys,
Tonight there'll be but three,
There was Mary Beaton, and Mary Seaton,
And Mary Carmichael, and me."
155
Northern Tide
Linda Kelly
Out to sea, on a northern tide,
On a northern tide, I’m bound away.
To the fishing grounds, and the ocean wide,
And more beside, to earn my pay.
But I’ll not let the ocean come between us,
There’s part of me that never leaves the shore,
And though I haven’t said the words, my own one,
I couldn’t love you more.
Far away, to my second home,
In the salt and foam of a foreign sea,
Lashed by the winds of a raging gale,
Sleet and hail are home to me.
You ask me if it’s lonely on the ocean,
You ask me if I miss you; but you know,
I miss you but the sea will never leave me,
And I can’t let her go.
Heave too lads and haul your nets,
And fill her decks with a ton of cod,
Barrels full of liver oil; fisherman’s spoil,
Pays the rent, thank God.
Our holds are full and we are heading homeward,
To the Humber’s muddy waters we’ll return,
We’ll leave the icy ocean far behind us,
And pleasure in the money we have earned,
Sailing home, on an evening tide,
On an evening tide we’re getting near.
From the fishing grounds, and the ocean wide,
And more besides, to you my dear.
156
The Drift from the Land
Graeme Miles
All the young fellows have gone to the factories,
To learn their new trades making iron and steel.
When they pick up their wages they’ll wonder, however
They managed on the money they made in the field.
And it’s all the young fellows have gone to the cities,
All the young fellows have gone to the town,
Where they’ll soon be earning near double the money
They’ll ever earn at the harrow and plough.
Down in the valley the sound of a tractor,
Young Jimmy Dickinson sits at the wheel,
But this time next week he’ll be in some hot foundry
Casting the iron or rolling the steel.
Well down in the hedgerow Billy Dowson is working,
The blade of his sickle glints in the bright sun,
But in less than an hour he’ll pack up his gear,
His last day of working the land will be done.
Well you can’t blame the young men for throwing the towel in,
They’ll be much better off making iron and steel,
But the drift from the land it will always continue
Till the money gets better for the man in the field.
157
The Green Banks of Grain
Graeme Miles
It was a spring morning
An early spring morning,
Over yonder high hill I wended my way.
With the new heather growing
And a pleasant breeze blowing
I made my way down to the green banks of Grain.
I made my way down,
Made my way down,
Made my way down to the green banks of Grain,
With a new heather growing
And a pleasant breeze blowing,
I made my way down to the green banks of Grain.
Oh the moss was all springy,
All spongy and springy,
The intakes ran silver after overnight rain.
The grey sheep were grazing,
And the adder was lazing,
All down the green banks, the green banks of Grain.
All down etc.
Oh the winter’s long past now,
How green grows the grass now,
The broom and the bracken likewise the same.
Summer birds are arriving,
Hark the curlew is crying,
The red grouse are flying
Down the green banks of Grain.
The red grouse etc.
I made my way down
Made my way down
I made my way down to the green banks of Grain.
A
158
Three Maids a- Milking
Now us maidens a milking we did go,
Us maidens a milking we did go,
And the wind it did blow high
And the wind it did blow under
And it tossed their petticoats to and fro.
Well we met with a young man that we know,
We met with a young man that we know,
And I asked it of him had he got any learning
For to catch me a little bird or so.
Oh yes I’ve a very good skill,
Oh yes I’ve a very good skill,
If you’ll come along with me down to yonder flowering bushes
I will catch you a little bird or three.
Well we went till we came down to a bush,
We went till we came down unto three,
Well a little bird flew in and you know just what I’m meaning
And I caught it a little above my knee.
Here’s a health to the birds all in the bush,
A health to the bonny rigadoo,
For tonight I will get paid and tomorrow I will spend it
And go home by the light of the moon.
For tonight I will get paid and tomorrow I will spend it
And go home by the light of the moon.
159
Annan Water
Oh Annan Water's wondrous deep, and my love Annie is wondrous bonny
I'm loath that she should wet her feet, because I love her best of any
Go saddle to me the bonny grey mare, go saddle her soon and make her ready,
For I must cross that river tonight and all to see my bonny lady.
And woe betide you Annan water, at night you are a gloomy river,
And over you I'll build a bridge, that never more true love may sever.
And he has ridden o'er field and fell, o'er moor and moss and many a mire
His spurs of steel sore to bite, and from the mare's feet flew the fire
The mare flew on o'er moor and moss and when she'd won the Annan Water
She couldn't have run a furlong more, had a thousand whips been laid upon
her.
Oh, boatman come, put-off your boat; put-off your boat for gold and money,
For I must cross that stream tonight, or never more I'll see my Annie.
The sides are steep, the waters deep, from bank to brae the water's pouring
And your bonny grey mare she sweats for fear, she stands to hear the water
roaring.
And he has tried to swim that stream, and he swam on both strong and steady
But the river was broad and strength did fail, and he never saw his bonny lady.
Oh woe betide the willow wand, and woe betide the bush of briar,
For it broke beneath her true love's hands, when strength did fail and limbs did
tire.
160
One Too Many Mornings
Down the street the dogs are barkin'
And the day is a-gettin' dark.
As the night comes in a-fallin',
The dogs 'll lose their bark.
An' the silent night will shatter
From the sounds inside my mind,
For I'm one too many mornings
And a thousand miles behind.
From the crossroads of my doorstep,
My eyes they start to fade,
As I turn my head back to the room
Where my love and I have laid.
An' I gaze back to the street,
The sidewalk and the sign,
And I'm one too many mornings
An' a thousand miles behind.
It's a restless hungry feeling
That don't mean no one no good,
When ev'rything I'm a-sayin'
You can say it just as good.
You're right from your side,
I'm right from mine.
We're both just too many mornings
An' a thousand miles behind.
Bob Dylan
161
By Creek Water Side
Graeme Miles
By creek water side
By creek water side
Where wild geese fly and curlews cry
Where kestrels swoop and glide
And beyond the distant factory pawl
The sun begins to slide
And it’s by creek water side
By creek water side
By creek water side
By creek water side
Where houseboats gently rock and sway
On the silent creeping tide
And across the black and velvet void
The moon begins to rise
And it’s by creek water side
By creek water side
162
Pull Down Lads
John Tams
Pull down lads, pass the bevvy round lads,
"Ta'ra" to Sylvie, "Ta'ra" to Jean, we'll soon be on the road,
Don't think on what you're leaving, don't think on what you've found,
Just tear off the tilt, pull out the chat, we'll find another ground.
Pull down lads, it wasn't a bad ground lads,
We've made some brass, you've had a lass, it's perhaps as well we're going,
I know how it can hurt, lads, to leave her standing there,
For there's often fears and there's always tears, but you'll be back next year.
Pull down lads, the sets are cooling down lads,
The ark’s all packed and the dodgems stacked, a bite of scran then go,
We'll leave it as we found it, they'll soon forget we've been,
For we trade in fun and we go and come,
We're often scorned but seldom mourned,
I hope you'll know what I mean.
163
Tomahawking Fred
Now some shearing I have done and some prizes I have won
Through knuckling down so close against the skin
But I’d rather tomahawk every day than shear a flock
For that’s the only way to make some tin.
Now I’m just about to head for the Darling River shed
To turn a hundred out I know the plan
Just give me sufficient cash and you’ll see me make a splash
For I’m the ladies man.
Put me on a shearing floor and I’ll lay you five to four
That I’ll give any ringer ten sheep start
When I’m on the whipping side then away from me they glide
Just like any bullet or a dart.
Oh of me you might have read for I’m Tomahawking Fred
In shearing sheds me fame has travelled far
Oh I’m the don of Riverine ‘mongst the shearers cut a shine
And the tar boys said I never called for tar.
Wire in and go ahead for I’m Tomahawking Fred
In the shearing sheds me lads I’ve cut a shine
There is Roberts and Jack Gunn shearing laurels they have won
And me tally’s never under ninety nine.
164
Wassail
A wassail, a wassail all over the town
Our cup it is white and our ale it is brown.
Our cup it is made from the white maple tree
With a wassailing bowl we’ll drink to thee.
Oh Master and Mistress oh are you within
Pray open the door love and let us come in
Oh Master and Mistress sitting down by the fire
Won’t you see us wassailing travelling the mire.
There was an old man and he had an old cow
How for to heat her he didn’t know how,
He built up a barn to keep his cow warm
And a drop of strong beer will do her no harm.
So here’s to the maid in the lily white smock
Who trips to the door and pulls back the lock
Who trips to the door and pulls on the pin
For to let us jolly wassailers in.
165
Where Raven Feed
I roam and ramble in lonely places
All in the coolness of the rain
Over rolling hill and rugged mountains
Over sandy heath and grassy plain
And should you ask am I contented
I'd answer yes oh yes indeed
For my love it is for lonely places
Where springs leap down where ravens feed
I seek and find these lonely places
Where bounds the hare and deer run
Over crags of grey and mossy boulders
Shaded from the morning sun
And should you ask am I at ease there
I'd answer yes oh yes indeed
For my heart it dwells in lonely places
Where springs leap down where ravens feed
I yearn and long for lonely places
Where hunts the fox and badgers play
Where midnight stars are at their brightest
Where snow lies deep where mists hang grey
And should you ask am I at home there
I'd answer yes oh yes indeed
For my desires are for lonely places
Where springs leap down where ravens feed
I lose myself in lonely places
On heathered moor and bracken fell
And with the wind hold conversation
It always has so much to tell
And should you ask am I at ease there
I'd answer yes oh yes indeed
For I'll always need these lonely places
Where springs leap down where ravens feed
166
My flower, my companion and me
All the flowers that I’ve loved in the wild wood
They have sent off their beautiful bloom
And the many dear friends of my childhood
Have slumbered for years in their tombs.
It’s no wonder I’m broken hearted,
Stricken with sorrow to be
We have met, we have loved we have parted
My flower, my companion and me.
Oh the rose that I loved, I remember
And the smile that I nevermore shall see
Since the cold bitter wind of December
Stole my flower, my companion from me.
Ah but think of that bright shining morning
When our spirits from earth shall be free
And we meet those we loved in the dawning
For my flower, my companion and me.
167
War Song Linda Kelly
We stood in Hell as the bombs fell all around us,
Our bayonets were useless, and death had found the boy
We see him now, his lifeless eyes are staring
Another Flanders hero, and his mothers pride and joy
I feel no pain; we’ve marched for many days now
Beyond Le Gheir and Messines, Armentieres at dawn
When will it end, when can we come home to England
Our heads are full of killing and our limbs are weary worn.
This is the war to end all wars, they said
This is the last, the final call
We’ll never take this road again, they said
But the truth makes liars of us all.
I heard no sound, not even one bird singing
But saw the plumes of Belsen smoke, and smelled the death and fear
A young child cries, but the others cannot hear her
Her small voice, lost of innocence, drowned out amongst her tears
Look at us now, We are fearful for our brothers
Our sisters and our mothers and of everything we’ve known
We plant our fields, not knowing if tomorrow
Will bring the peace forever, to our Hiroshima home.
They came by night, by river at Dhak Hanjro
Through dark and deadly forest, seen with their stranger’s eye
At Toumorong the battleground was bloody
A hundred brave Americans each one too young to die
Their shattered dreams, betrayed by those who loved them
Impoverished and empty, they struggled every day
Homecoming seems a million miles away now
When the neighbours will not listen and they turn their face away
And so it goes, this endless round of sorrow
From the ravaged streets of Najaf, to the starving at Diafur
Can we not see, that when man abandons reason
The cause is lost, and no one knows what they are fighting for.
How can it change, will the anger ever leave us,
Will the warlords drop their weapons will the conflict soon be done
Or will they reign, and their power overwhelm us
And we have to face our enemy a generation on?
168
King George Hunt
Dave Burland
Dew has fallen, all nature is charming,
Come my brave boys and let us away.
In search of a hare, for the prospects are fair,
And the King George Hunt is up and away.
Hark to the hound’s melodious music,
There’s Orange and Finnan, Fair Lydia and Kay.
Old Johnny Booker he strains at the leash,
For he’s thinking to bloody his muzzle today.
The chase it is on and the scent it is found,
Our hounds give voice and away they do fly,
Elliot, our master, there is no one faster,
He calls is on with his favourite cry.
Through Jump and Pilley he races but still,
We follow that hare, keeping him in our sight.
Through Bank and Birdwell and Kingston and Kendrick,
How that old hare must long for the night.
At last and Pogmoor there comes a reckoning,
Our champion hounds they have him at bay.
Orange and Bill, they advance with a will,
Just to let the hare know they require him to stay.
Here’s success to the hounds and the huntsmen so noble,
Our whipper-in, Gough, holds his whip with great style.
To Clive, Keith Border and Ivor and all of the lads
Who have run many a mile.
Now with Albion’s strong beer we will make ourselves merry,
We’ll drink a success to George, our King.
With a song from Jack Linstead, where can we hear better,
Our songs and our revels will make the beams ring.
And now we trudge home, all dusty and weary.
From our hearts and our minds we have banished all care.
Forty long miles we have run the ground over.
There is no fine pastime like hunting the Hare.
Notes
This is a bit of a spoof of the trad. version.
The Barnsley Folk Club met at the King George Pub.
Some the hounds and others in the song are named after members of the Club.
Derek Elliot ran the Club. Albion Turner was the landlord.
All the place names are villages around Barnsley.
169
Candlelight Fisherman
From the singing of Bob Roberts
The last of the Thames Sailing bargemen
Now my dad was a fisherman bold
And he lived till he grew old
For he'd open the pane and pop out the flame
Just to see how the wind do blow.
And he'd oftentimes tell to me
You be sure before you go
Do you open the pane and pop out the flame.
Just to see how the wind do blow.
When the north wind roughly blow
Then I lie snug below
But I open the pane and pop out the flame.
Just to see how the wind do blow.
When the wind comes in from the east
It's no good for man nor beast
But I open the pane and pop out the flame
Just to see how the wind do blow.
When the wind back into the west
It'll blow in hard at best,
But I open the pane and pop out the flame
Just to see how the wind do blow.
But when the south wind softly blow
It’s then I’d love to go
But I open the pane and pop out the flame
And there's not enough wind to go.
Now my wife she says to me, Joe
We shall starve if you don't go
So I open the pane and I pops out the flame
Just to see how the wind do blow.
So come all you fishermen bold
If you'd live till you grow old
Do you open the pane and pop out the flame
Just to see how the wind do blow.
170
Nutting Time
Come all you single fellows would you like to hear a song,
If you’ll listen to my ditty I won’t detain you long.
It is of a fair young maiden lived in a town of \Kent,
She arose one Summer’s morning and she a nutting went.
Oh, a nutting she did go my boys, and a nutting she did go,
With a blue cockade all in her hat she caused a gallant show.
There was a brisk young farmer a ploughing up his land,
He called out to his horses and kindly bid them stand.
He set himself down on his plough a song unto begin,
His voice was so melodious it made the tenors ring.
It was this same young damsel was a nutting in the wood,
And the song was so melodious it charmed her as she stood.
She had no longer power in the lonesome wood to stay,
So what few nuts that poor girl got she threw them all away.
She went to this young farmer as he sat on his plough,
She said to him my Johnny dear I feel I don’t know how.
He said my pretty fair maid I’m glad to see you here,
Do you set yourself by the side of me and I’ll keep you from all fear.
Young Johnny he turned back again and finished up his song,
He said my pretty fair maid, won’t your mother think you long.
She threw her arms around him as she tripped along the plain,
I should like to see the world my dear go round and round again.
171
Across the Miles
Derek Moule
Night is drawing in now, and the day’s work is done,
Boxer’s in his stable till the early morning comes.
And across the miles to home at last, my thoughts now do fly.
Memories of days long gone, and the southern cross is shining in the
sky.
An easy thing was parting, with the callousness of youth.
But life’s a broader canvass, each brush reveals the truth..…farewell youth.
And across the miles to home at last, my thoughts now do fly.
Memories of days long gone, and the southern cross is shining in the
sky.
Years have rolled away now since I left my English home,
Childhood days, old fashioned ways, when I set out to roam……all alone.
And across the miles to home at last, my thoughts now do fly.
Memories of days long gone, and the southern cross is shining in the
sky.
Up at half past four to work, and a lonely weary day,
Harness up the horses, I’ll be on my way…..another day.
And the southern cross is shining in the sky
172
When The Snows Of Winter Fall
Graeme Miles
My yard is high with wood now, my cellar deep with coal,
My windows are well battened; I’ve sealed each crack and hole,
When the storms and winds come raging, I’ll not be touched at all,
For I’ll be well protected, when the snows of winter fall.
My sheep still wander freely, upon the lonely fell,
In the field my horse is grazing, and my cattle feed as well,
But come the bleak December, with its rain and sleet and squall,
They’ll be safely penned and stabled, when the snows of winter fall.
I look out from my doorway, to the trees on yonder rise,
Soon the leaves will turn to yellow as the summer fades and dies,
I’ll put on my coat of leather, and my love will don her shawl,
How close we’ll draw together, when the snows of winter fall.
Through the bitter cold and darkness, our hopes we will keep high,
For we know the warmth of summer will come back by and by,
Then we’ll walk into the sunshine wearing neither coat nor shawl,
And together we will listen just to hear the cuckoo call.
I am not a man of riches; I have little that is new,
Some livestock and some chattels, amount to very few,
But my love is here beside me; I need nothing more at all,
She will give her love and comfort, when the snows of winter fall.
173
Leaving of Liverpool
Farewell to Prince's Landing Stage
River Mersey, fare thee well
I am bound for California
A place I know right well
Chorus:
So fare thee well, my own true love
When I return united we will be
It's not the leaving of Liverpool that's grieving me
But my darling when I think of thee
I have signed on a Yankee Clipper ship
Davy Crockett is her name
The captain’s name is Burgess
And they say she's a floating shame
Chorus:
It’s my second trip with Burgess in the Crocket
And I think I know him well
If a man's a seaman, he be alright
If not, then he's sure in Hell
Chorus:
Farewell to lower Frederick Street
Ensign Terrace and Park Lane
For I think it will be a long, long time
Before I see you again
Chorus:
Oh the sun is on the harbour, love
And I wish I could remain
For I know it will be a long, long time
Till I see you again
Chorus:
174
Rose of Allandale
The sky was clear, the morn was fair
No breath came o’er the sea
When Mary left her highland home
And wandered forth with me
Though flowers decked the mountainside
And fragrance filled the vale
By far the sweetest flower there
Was the rose of Allandale.
Chorus
Sweet rose of Allandale
Sweet rose of Allandale
By far the sweetest flower there
Was the rose of Allandale.
Where'er I wandered, east and west
And fate began to lower
A solace still was she to me
In sorrow's lonely hour
Though tempest wrecked my lonely barque
And rent the quivering sail
One maiden’s form withstood the storm
'Twas the rose of Allandale.
Chorus
And when my feeble lips were parched
On Africa's burning sands
She whispered hopes of happiness
And tales of foreign lands
My life had been a wilderness
Unblessed by fortune's gales
Had fate not linked my love to hers
The rose of Allandale.
175
Jolly Fellows as Follows the Plough
It was early one morn at the break of the day
The farmer came to us, and this he did say,
Rise up my brave fellows and be of good will,
Your horses need something their bellies to fill
So four o’clock comes boys and up we do rise
And off to the stable we merrily flies.
With a-rubbin' and scrubbin' I’ll swear and I’ll vow,
We're all jolly fellows that follows the plough.
When six o' clock comes, boys, at breakfast we'll meet,
Bread, beef and pork lads, we'll heartily eat.
With a piece in our pockets, to the fields we do go
To see which of us a straight furrow can hold.
Up came the farmer and this he did say,
What have you been doing this long summer's day?
You've not ploughed your acre, I'll swear and I'll vow,
For you’re all idle fellows that follows the plough!
Then up spoke our carter and this he did cry,
We have all ploughed our acre you’re telling a lie.
We've all ploughed our acre, I'll swear and I'll vow,
We are all jolly fellows that follows the plough
Then up spoke the farmer and laughed at the joke,
It's past three o’clock lads, it's time to unyoke,
Un-harness your horses and rub them down well,
And I'll give you a jug of my very best ale.
So come all you young ploughboys,
Where’er you may be.
Come take this advice and be ruled by me
Never fear any master, I'll swear and I'll vow
For we're all jolly fellows that follows the plough.
176
Put Another Log On The Fire :
Put Another Log On The Fire :
Put another log on the fire.
Cook me up some bacon and some beans.
And go out to the car and change the tire.
Wash my socks and sew my old blue jeans.
Come on, baby, you can fill my pipe
And then go fetch my slippers.
And boil me up another pot of tea.
Then put another log on the fire babe,
And come & tell me why you're leaving me.
Now don't I let you wash the car on Sunday?
And don't I warn you when you're gettin fat?
Ain't I a-gonna take you fishin' with me someday?
Well, a man can't love a woman more than that.
And ain't I always nice to your kid sister?
Don't I take her driving every night?
So, sit here at my feet cause I like you when you're sweet,
And you know it ain't feminine to fight.
So, put another log on the fire.
Cook me up some bacon and some beans.
And go out to the car and change the tire.
Wash my socks and sew my old blue jeans.
Come on, baby, you can fill my pipe
And then go fetch my slippers.
And boil me up another pot of tea.
Then put another log on the fire babe,
And come & tell me why you're leaving me.
177
Lord Franklin
We were homeward bound one night on the deep
Swinging in my hammock I fell asleep
I dreamed a dream and I thought it true
Concerning Franklin and his gallant crew.
With 100 seamen he sailed away
To the frozen ocean in the month of May
To seek a passage around the pole
Where we poor sailors do sometimes go.
Through cruel hardships they vainly strove
Their ships on mountains of ice was drove
Only the Eskimo with his skin canoe
Was the only one that ever came through
In Baffin's Bay where the whale fish blow
The fate of Franklin no man may know
The fate of Franklin no tongue can tell
Lord Franklin among his seamen do dwell
And now my burden it gives me pain
For my Lord Franklin I'd sail the main
Ten thousand pounds I would freely give
To know Lord Franklin, and where he lives.
Now a hundred years and more have passed
And the fate of Franklin is known at last
Frozen in time in the icy ground
Killed by the navy to save a pound.
178
Farewell to the Gold
Paul Metsers
Shotover River, your gold it is waning
It's weeks since the colour I've seen.
But it's no use complaining or Lady Luck blaming
I'll pack up and make the break clean.
chorus:
Farewell to the gold that never I found,
Goodbye to the nuggets that somewhere abound;
For it's only when dreaming that I see you gleaming
Down in the dark deep underground.
It's nearly two years since I left my old mother
For adventure and gold by the pound.
With Jimmy the prospector, he was another,
For the hills of Otago was bound.
Well we worked the Cardrona's dry valley all over
Old Jimmy Williams and me.
They were panning good dirt on the winding Shotover
So we drifted down there just to see.
We sluiced and we cradled for day after day
Barely making enough to get by;
'Til a terrible flood swept poor Jimmy away
During six stormy days in July
179
I wish there were no prisons
I wish there was no prisons. I do. Don't you?
And the old treadmill makes me feel ill.
I only steal my belly to fill,
With my hands, with my fists, with my maulers.
I saw a girl with a perambulator,
She’d got twins, each had a tater,
In its hands, in its fists, in its maulers.
So I leaned into that perambulator,
Kissed one twin and took the others tater,
With my hands, with my fists, with my maulers.
Chorus;
Oakum picking gives me a licking.
Still I like to do a little bit of nicking.
With my hands, with my fists, with my maulers.
The probation officer was giving me a rocket,
While he was at it I was into his pocket,
With my hands, with my fists, with my maulers.
Chorus;
I’ve twice been to church, once was to wed,
The other was at night, I came home with some lead,
In my hands, in my fists, in my maulers.
I sold that lead to a kid called Fenner,
But he robbed me with his scales, so I only got a tenner,
In my hands, in my fists, in my maulers.
Chorus;
Down outside the market hall
I once saw a kid nick a trotter off a stall
With his hands, with his fists, with his maulers.
I said Hey Up, Son! Here comes a copper
So he took to his heels and he dropped that trotter
In my hand, in my fist, in me maulers
Chorus;
180
Flandyke Shore
When I was young and went a’courting,
I loved a fair maid as my life,
But from four in the morning until nine at night, until nine at night,
I never could gain my own true heart’s delight.
I never could gain my own true heart’s delight.
And when her father he did discover,
That I did love his daughter dear,
He locked her up in a room so high, up in a room so high,
And there began my own sad misery.
And there began my own sad misery.
I went unto my own love's chamber window,
Where I had often been before,
To tell my love unto Flandyke shore, unto Flandyke shore,
Never to return to England no more,
Never to return to England no more.
I went unto my own love's chamber door,
Where I had never been before.
I saw a light springing from her clothes, springing from her clothes,
Just like the morning sun when first arose,
Just like the morning sun when first arose.
As I was walking on the Flandyke shore
Her own dear father I did see.
"My daughter she is dead," he cried. "She is dead," he cried.
"And she's broken her heart all for the love of thee."
So I hove a bullet onto fair England's shore,
Onto fair England's shore,
Just where I thought my own true love did lay.
181
Kathy’s Song
Paul Simon
I hear the drizzle of the rain
Like a memory it falls
Soft and warm continuing
Tapping on my roof and walls.
And from the shelter of my mind
Through the window of my eyes
I gaze beyond the rain-drenched streets
To England where my heart lies.
My mind's distracted and diffused
My thoughts are many miles away
They lie with you when you're asleep
And kiss you when you start your day.
And a song I was writing is left undone
I don't know why I spend my time
Writing songs I can't believe
With words that tear and strain to rhyme.
And so you see I have come to doubt
All that I once held as truth
I stand alone without beliefs
The only truth I know is you.
And as I watch the drops of rain
Weave their weary paths and die
I know that I am like the rain
There but for the grace of you go I.
182
Jukebox as she Turned
Jeff Deitchman
Now all the boys down at Smokey's Bar they could easily understand
How Judy left without a word, but not without a man.
That old routine that she had going was like the sun so sure
That by surprise just may not rise but it always has before.
Chorus
And I still remember what was on the jukebox as she turned:
The dobro part out of Cheating Heart. She never has returned.
She snapped the little plated latch and she closed her pocket book.
And then paying for what she had drunk, she gave all us boys a look.
And something in that little glance sent creeps throughout the room,
No-one stared or even dared to breathe or even move.
I cannot say just what others thought, ah, but I can likely guess.
Well they were probably scared of where, just where, she'd take what we'd
confessed.
So now that good old gang down at Smokey's Bar they've just about busted up,
With no-one here left to drink our tears or to fill out empty cup.
183
Holly and the Ivy
The holly and the ivy, when they are both full grown,
Of all the trees that are in the wood, the holly bears the crown.
Oh, the rising of the sun and the running of the deer,
The playing of the merry organ, sweet singing in the choir.
The holly bears a blossom as white as lily flower,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ to be our sweet saviour
The holly bears a berry as red as any blood,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ to do poor sinners good.
The holly bears a prickle as sharp as any thorn,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ on Christmas Day in the morn.
The holly bears a bark as bitter as any gall,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ for to redeem us all.
184
Sweet Minerva
Sweet Minerva waits for me
Anchor down and homeward bound
Heading for St Andrew’s Quay
Sweet Minerva set me free
Heavy rain from Humber skies
Wipe the water from my eyes
My love’s clearly in my mind
Glad to leave this trawl behind
Captive north of Killingholme
Wanting so much to be home
Prisoner of the waiting tide
Home and heart are still denied
Kingston nights shine bright once more
Diamond lights and dazzling shore
Smoke house terrace, all my own
Hessle Road and harbour home
See my woman standing by
See that rare look in her eye
Tonight I’ll hold her close to me
Forget the trials of the sea.
Settling done and some to spare
Pay the ovel man his share
Two days on then back to sea
Arctic waters wait for me
185
Tattooed Lady
Well I was a bit of a lad I admit,
My past was a trifle shady.
Until in the end I went right round the bend
And married a tattooed lady.
I immediately saw there were pictures galore,
On every available corner
As I studied her frame, very soon I became
An expert in flora and fauna
On one of her feet, you were liable to meet
A Master of Hounds in his habit.
While right round her waist, in impeccable taste,
Was a python devouring a rabbit.
On the back of each knee was a small chimpanzee,
On her thigh was a Knight of The Garter
And just for a laugh they had put on her calf
Eight bars of the Moonlight Sonata
One evening I found as I ambled around
I was feeling an absolute Charlie
'Cos I couldn't be sure if the sketch on her jaw
Was Picasso or Salvador Dali
I loved all the ships on one side of her hips
The view in Peru on the other.
But I was struck dumb when I found on her tum
A caricature of her mother
Well this was much more than a man can endure,
Though I made the most earnest endeavour.
So I scuttled away, and I'm happy to say
It was Ta ta tattoo for ever,
Ta ta tattoo for ever,
186
Carrying Nelson Home
Ease the bowspring,
Gently set the foresheets on the windward side.
Let go fore and aft and as she turns,
Sail her full and by to catch the evening tide.
Shake out those topsails,
Feel the seas roll under that she knows so well.
Find a star to guide her to the dawn
And then let her greet the long Atlantic Swell,
Sing me a shanty
Cantad del Cabo San Vicente (sing of Cape St Vincent)(Spanish)
Chantez des maran de Nile (sing of the Nile)(French)
Sing a hymn of Trafalgar
Stream the log now,
For she's heeling with a land breeze to inspire;
Orange scented from the groves of Andalucía,
And within my mind Cadiz still gleams with fire.
Give her searoom,
Put St Vincent well astern by break of day,
Then you shorten sail and harden up those sheets
And close-hauled we'll make the northings slip away
One point to leeward,
For the rolling seas are getting shorter now;
They remind me of the lights of far Hyeres, (Hiyereth)
And they tell me Biscay's on the starboard bow.
Shake out your reefs,
For carried on the breeze that's setting fair
Are spices from the quays of Lorient. (Lor-e-en)
You can sail her free to weather Finisterre.
Ease your mainsheets,
For it's soon we'll see the harbour lights of home.
Anchor; make good every sheet and halyard,
Remembering just who you have on board.
Pipe me ashore;
Gently hoist aloft your keg of brandy wine,
Make ready to receive the Admiral's barge,
Lower me easy now, I'm going ashore one last time.
187
“A wager, a wager with you, my pretty maid,
Here's five hundred pound to your ten;
That a maid you will go to yon merry green broom,
But a maid you will never return.”
“A wager, a wager with you my kind sir,
With your five hundred pound to my ten;
That a maid I will go to yon merry green broom,
And a maid I will boldly return.”
Then she came to the bonny green broom,
She found her true love in a sleep,
With a well fashioned rose, and a suit of new clothes,
And a bunch of green broom at his feet.
Three times did she go to the crown of his head,
And three times to the soles of his feet.
And three times she kissed his red rosy lips,
And still lay him fast in a sleep.
She took a gold ring from off her right hand,
And placed it all on his left thumb,
And that was the way that she let him know
That she had been there but had gone.
When he awoke from out of his sleep,
Found his true love had been but had gone,
It’s then he remembered and counted the cost,
And thought of the wager he'd lost.
Three times he called to his horse and his man,
His horse that he'd once bought so dear,
Saying, “Why didn't you waken me out of my sleep,
When my lady, my true love, was here?
“Three times did I call to you, oh my lord,
And three times did I blow on my horn,
Before I could waken you out of your sleep
Your true love, your lady had gone.
“If I’d have been awake when my true love was here,
Of her I would have all my will;
If not, the pretty birds in this merry green broom
Of her they should all have their fill.”
188
Sailor Home From Sea
Oh Cock of the North with a dream in his hand
My love has come home to this beautiful land
He bursts through the door with his eyes like the sun
And his kitbag crammed full of the treasures he's won
A coral from Broome and a tall Darwin tale
A pearl and a clam and the jaws of a whale
My kitchen is filled with the smell of the sea
And the leaping green fishes my love brings to me
Oh tumble your treasures from Darwin and Broome
And fill with their glory this straight little room
With the sun of the morning ablaze on his chest
My love has come home from the north of north-west
And deep in our bed we'll lie and we'll be
We'll kiss and we'll listen to the rain on the sea
Warm as the summer, we've lived winter long
My love has come home like King Solomon's song
189
Man of Double Deed (anon arr. Chris Woods)
There was a man of double deed
Hey Ho in Green-O
Who sowed his garden full of seed
A Man of dreams again oh
When the seed began to grow
'Twas like a garden full of snow
When the snow began to melt
'Twas like a ship without a bell
When the ship began to sail
'Twas like a bird without a tail
When the bird began to fly
'Twas like an eagle in the sky
When the sky began to roar
'Twas like a lion at my door
When my door began to crack
'Twas like a stick across my back
When my back began to smart
'Twas like a penknife in my heart
And when my heart began to bleed
'Twas death and death and death indeed.
190
Sir Eglamore
Sir Eglamore was a valiant knight,
He took up his sword and he went to fight,
Then he rode o’er hill and dale,
All armoured in a coat of mail.
Out came a dragon from her den,
That killed God knows how many men,
When she saw Sir Eglamore
You should have heard that dragon roar.
Well then the trees began to shake,
Horse did tremble and man did quake,
The birds betook them all a peep
It would have made a grown man weep.
But all in vain it was to fear,
For now they fall to fight like bears,
To it they go and soundly fight,
The live long day from morn ‘till night.
This dragon had a plaguey hide,
That could the sharpest steel abide,
No sword could enter through her skin,
Which vexed the knight and made her grin.
But as in anger she did burn,
He fetched the dragon a great good turn,
And as he over she did fall,
He thrust his sword up hilt and all.
Like a coward she did fly,
To her den which was close by,
And there she lay all night and roared,
The knight was sorry for his sword.
Fa la lanky down dilly
Fa la la n da did’n da la da da
191
The last of the widows
Jez Lowe
The last of the widows of the Duck Bill seam
Is lying tonight with her young man again
They're clinging fast together soothing sighs and pain
And coaxing back the love their loss survived
The last of the widows of the Duck Bills flare
Is brushing back dust from his strong brown hair
And he's stretched on her bosom with his love laid fair
And making up for time fate stole away
Parting words were never spoken last kisses never broken
She never even watched him walk away
Now the last of the widows of the Duck Bill's seam
Reached out and took his hand again today
The last of the widows of the Duck Bill's fire
Stood bleak and bewildered as the count climbed higher
Then she wept for the world across a newsroom wire
When she heard his name called out across the crowd
But when the world had turned to leave eighty women turned to grieve
And cursed their compensation through their tears
Now the last of the widows of the Duck Bills seam
Can close her eyes and wipe away the years
The last of the widows of the Duck Bill's flame
Is free of the lonely nights of bitterness and blame
And there's some who'll remember as they speak her name
The reason why she lived so long alone
And in the fields above the dangers of Gresford, Trimdon Grange
Haswell, Hartley Beam and Markham Main
The last of the widows of the Duck Bill's seam
Is walking with her miner lad again
The Duck Bill was a district of the Five Quarter Seam at Easington Colliery in Co. Durham.
At 4.20am on May 29th 1951 there was an explosion of firedamp which lifted and ignited
coal dust, causing a fireball which roared for more than nine miles through the mine.
The explosion brought down 120yds of roof and causing many other rock falls.
80 men were burned or entombed.
The final body was accounted for 16 days after the explosion.
192
London Danny Jez Lowe
London Danny, you're a real bad penny,
The one man time has taught me I should fear
'Cause her you left behind, she said she would be mine
So why'd you have to come and show your face round here?
CHORUS: 'Cause she always said that time would make it right
And now I always hear her sighing in the night
And don't think I don't know, if you asked her then she'd go,
Oh, but please now, don't you take her from me, London Danny.
Well, I've learned to listen for your name round town
When people talk of your success in city life,
But I could never tell, if she heard them talk as well
And rued the day she ever was a poor man's wife.
My hands are black while yours are clean and clever
And there's ways you know to turn her pretty head,
When it's all that I can do, when my working day is through,
To let her heart beat me to sleep at night in bed.
193
Shipyard Apprentice
Archie Fisher
I was born in the shadow of a Fairfield's crane
And the blast of a freighter's horn
Was the very first sound that reached my ears
On the morning that I was born
As I lay and listened to the shipyard sounds
Coming out of the unknown
I was lulled to sleep by a mother tongue
That was to be my own
Before I grew to one year old
I heard a siren scream
And a city watched in the blacked-out night
A wandering searchlight's beam
And then one day I awoke and rose
To my first day of peace
But I learned that the battle to stay alive
Was never going to cease
And I've sat and listened to my father tell
Of the days that he once knew
When you either sweated for a measly wage
Or you joined the Parish queue
And as times grew harder day by day
Along the riverside
I've often heard my mother say
It was tears that made the Clyde
I sat in school from nine to four
And dreamed of the world outside
Where the riveters and the platers watched
Their ships slip to the Clyde
And I served my time behind shipyard gates
And I've often mourned my lot
But if anyone tries to mess me about
Then I'll fight like my fathers fought
194
Old Man’s Retreat
Nick Burbridge
Blind me, the old man cries, as another of his children dies,
I will not look upon this land until the wounds are healed.
There is no honour in this war; it was forsaken long before,
I’ll turn towards the mountains now and scorn the battlefield.
For where seeds of revenge are sown, I see valleys bruised and torn,
And every hill is broken, and every village burns.
And in the twisted name of race, a son will gouge his brother’s face,
The offspring of a mother’s rape, another father is to hate.
Seal my lips the old man prays, raising blood-stained fingertips,
I will speak no more of any cause or weep for peace.
There is no flower among these thorns; I renounce all I have sworn,
I’ll turn towards the mountains now, in search of some release.
I will not speak of anger; I forget what it means,
But I know it is a clean wound, not a poison in the veins.
Nor will I cry for pity; to be accused of fear,
For this I will not shed my blood, I will not shed a tears.
Close my ears the old man cries; claims and lies I will not hear,
I’ve swallowed more of this bile than I can endure.
There is no succour in these streams; tainted with such bitter crimes,
I’ll turn towards the mountains now, where the streams run pure.
As flares and shells fall through the night, and taunt a people cursed to fight,
The old man takes flight from the rituals of fire.
A dark figure and an ancient track; his voice mute and his gaze black,
In silence his heart cracks where summits vault and spire.
Take me, the old man calls, as his weary body falls,
For I have come to yield here, and not to stand.
And where he lies among the snow, a source springs from the rocks below,
And sings and circles as it flows towards the wounded land.
And sings and circles as it flows towards the wounded land.